Penguins Lock Up Connor Dewar Through 2028, Solovyov Gets One More Year

Pittsburgh Penguins GM Kyle Dubas made two roster-retention moves Thursday, re-signing forward Connor Dewar to a two-year extension worth $2.25 million AAV through 2027-28 and locking up defenseman Ilya Solovyov on a one-year deal at $850,000 for 2026-27. Neither signing reshapes the franchise, but together they signal Dubas is building a reliable, cost-controlled depth structure around what he hopes is a sustainable playoff contender.

Dewar is the more meaningful piece here. The 26-year-old Manitoba native posted career highs across the board in 2024-25 — 14 goals, 16 assists, 30 points in 78 games — after arriving via trade from Toronto ahead of last year's deadline. That production helped Pittsburgh finish second in the Metropolitan Division and snap a four-year playoff drought. He chipped in two goals against Philadelphia in the first round before the Penguins exited in six. His new $2.25M AAV represents more than double his previous $1.1M cap hit, a justifiable bump for a player who's proven he can be a reliable third-line contributor with legitimate secondary scoring upside.

Solovyov is a roster-depth move, pure and simple. The 25-year-old Belarusian blueliner was acquired from Colorado in January for minimal return and appeared in just 14 games with Pittsburgh, totaling five assists. His $850K cap hit is negligible, and his role figures to be bottom-pairing minutes with occasional power-play exposure — a low-risk retainment for a young defenseman still developing his NHL game.

From a prop-betting lens, Dewar's extension confirms his role as a locked-in regular for Pittsburgh heading into next season, which matters when projecting shots, points, and goal totals. A 30-point pace over a full season — roughly 0.38 points per game — puts him in the range where points props and anytime goal markets carry real value on nights he's skating in an elevated role or on the power play. His 14-goal campaign translates to a projected line around 12-15 goals next season at current usage, making goal-scorer props worth monitoring once lines drop for the 2025-26 campaign.

Solovyov's book value is minimal for prop purposes given his limited ice time and point production. But Dewar is exactly the kind of mid-tier depth forward whose markets get underpriced by books that anchor on name recognition rather than actual production. At $2.25M AAV, the market will slot him as a fringe player — sharp bettors should be ready to exploit that gap when his shots and points lines open conservatively next fall.