Former Penguins are having major influence on 2024 Stanley Cup Finals

Do you miss ERod yet?

Former Pittsburgh Penguin Evan Rodrigues is outscoring Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, combined, in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final.

Sure, that’s somewhat an unfair comparison, given that the Edmonton Oilers stars both have yet to beat Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky on 23 total shots through three games.

Rodrigues meanwhile has recorded three shots. He’s scored on all three.

Prior to this series against the Oilers, Rodrigues had three goals and five assists for eight points through 17 playoff games.

That doesn’t mean he hasn’t been strong for the Panthers throughout the postseason, however. NHL Edge stats place him in the 91st percentile with a top skating speed of 22.75 mph, and 92nd percentile with 32 high-speed skating bursts, through the postseason so far.

Now he’s having the kind of postseason run Conor Sheary put up for the Penguins in 2016 by battling at the netfront to be in the right place and right time around top-tier players.

Rodrigues isn’t the only former Penguin influencing the outcome of the Final, although he’s certainly the former Pittsburgher with the biggest positive impact.

Cody Ceci had a tough series start against the Panthers. He and Darnell Nurse played the first two games of the final on a defense pairing together.

They were burned on multiple Florida goals as a result, including Rodrigues’ first of the series.

Ceci was made a healthy scratch for Game 2, but returned for Game 3 and will likely play in Game 4 as injuries thin the Oilers’ blue-line depth.

Between Ceci’s struggles and Rodrigues’ breakout postseason, it’s fair to say this pair of former Penguins is having a significant impact on the outcome of the Final.

Rodrigues, who played 124 games over parts of three seasons with the Penguins before he left as a free agent in 2022, still has three seasons remaining on his contract. The $3 million AAV on the deal he signed last season looks well worth it to the Panthers right now.

Ceci, who played 53 games for the Penguins during the 2020-21 season before leaving in free agency, has one year left on his contract at a cap hit of $3.25 million. Whether the Oilers are able to extend the series past four games this evening could determine what Edmonton decides to do with that contract this offseason.