Karlsson Poised for Return to Playoffs

Back in March, Erik Karlsson did a postgame interview on the TNT broadcast, talking about the team’s success and recruiting the panel to the “Penguins Train” during their playoff chase.

With his always standout charisma, they ended up awarding Karlsson the 2026 Mr. TNT Award.

“I hope that this solidifies the bandwagon support we are going to get from (Paul Bissonnette),” Karlsson quipped in his thank-you video. “He has finally moved over to our team forever. That’s what I take this award as, and that’s what it means to me.”

His 'acceptance speech' showcases the Swedish defenseman’s fun, energetic personality, which is part of his leadership style. 

“He’s such a talented player, but I also think his character and the way that he carries himself, he’s very, very underrated,” Penguins President of Hockey Operations Kyle Dubas said on the final GM Show of the regular season with SportsNet Pittsburgh's Josh Getzoff.

“Maybe one of the more underrated things in the whole league, frankly. And the impact he’s been able to have on the team and the environment around the team, has added so much this year. He’s not an introvert, by any stretch [laughs]. But it’s been great to see the impact that his personality and his spirit, especially as he’s a little bit older now, has been able to have on the team.”

It was a challenging start to Karlsson’s tenure in Pittsburgh, after being acquired from San Jose following a season where he put up 101 points and won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman for the third time in his career.

The Penguins had a chance to make the playoffs, and as Dubas put it, “we bungled it (that) March.” Last year, they were eliminated earlier.

“Most people, I think, in his position, would jump out. He came into this year, and from the outset, has been outstanding,” Dubas said.

Karlsson’s teammates voted him Penguins Team MVP for the job he did all year long, but particularly down the stretch. Karlsson was named the NHL’s Second Star of the Month for March with 24 points (9G-15A) in 17 games. His nine goals were the most in a calendar month by a Penguins blueliner in the franchise’s history.

Driven by Karlsson’s elite play, the Penguins were able to clinch the second spot in the Metropolitan Division; give the 35-year-old defenseman his first appearance in the playoffs since 2018-19; and first one with the black and gold.

“I mean, obviously, that’s why I came here to begin with. I believe in this group,” Karlsson said. “From an outside perspective, and being here now for three years, the potential has always been there. This group, we really found a way to bring it out of everybody and be here where we are today. I’m very excited and looking forward to getting the opportunity again to play in this.”

He brings a lot of experience to this time of the year. Performing as one of the league’s best defensemen throughout the 2010s, Karlsson dominated in the postseason with 53 points (8G-45A) in 67 playoff games.

Most notably, he served as the captain of the Ottawa Senators and led them to the 2017 Eastern Conference Final while fighting through two hairline fractures in his foot.

In an intense seven-game series with Pittsburgh, Karlsson and the Senators were eliminated when Chris Kunitz scored the game-winning goal in double overtime.

“He’s just somebody that I felt like always elevated. As good as he is, he always found another level in the playoffs,” Sidney Crosby said. “That's something that from playing against him, you understood that, you knew that he had the ability to make an incredible play that could change the game.

Karlsson faced the Penguins two other times in his career before joining the group, all with the Senators: Round 1 in 2009 and Round 2 in 2013. The Penguins ended his season every time.

“I mean, it’s been brutal for me playing against those guys over the course of my career,” Karlsson quipped, when asked about playing against Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang in those series. “I never had any real success, so it’s going to be nice to have them on your side.”

And the feeling is more than mutual.

“It’s way better having him on our team. I've seen what he's capable of and what he can do, and he’s been doing it all year,” Crosby said.

“Great players usually raise their level in the playoffs,” Letang added. “We’re excited to have Erik on our side this time and playing at this time of the year.”