Looking back on the career and influence in the career of Alex Goligoski

His long trade tree for Penguins outlasted by even longer career

One of the longest-lasting members of the draft class of 2004 has hung up the skates.

Only Evgeni Malkin and Alex Ovechkin remain in the NHL from this draft, though free agent Blake Wheeler hasn’t officially announced what his next steps may be.

Goligoski’s long and effective career makes him a perfect poster boy for the puck moving defensemen who have thrived in this era of hockey. Penguins’ fans often can become so excited remembering the trade haul that Pittsburgh got for him (and they did get a lot) to sometimes overshadow just how good the piece that left was.

But, as it stands, that trade did well. In fact, it effectively came to an end in 2022-23 for the Penguins — barely outlasted by Goligoski’s career.

Pittsburgh received Matt Niskanen and James Neal from Dallas in early 2011. Niskanen’s career was going sideways at the time, the move to Pittsburgh would do him well. He would stay with the Pens until departing in free agency in 2014.

The trade tree springs from Neal, who was traded in the summer of 2014 to Nashville for Patric Hornqvist and Nick Spaling in Jim Rutherford’s first trade as Pittsburgh’s general manager.

Spaling was included in the Phil Kessel trade the following summer, entirely to help make the money even between the teams.

Fittingly enough, Hornqvist was later Rutherford’s second-to-last trade with the Pens, with Pittsburgh getting back Mike Matheson and Colton Sceviour. Sceviour was a bit player who lasted one season.

Matheson was in Pittsburgh for two years before being flipped for Jeff Petry and Ryan Poehling. This time it was Poehling in the “bit player lasting one season” role.

Petry would only last one season with the Penguins and then was sent to Montreal in the complicated transaction that sent Erik Karlsson to Pittsburgh. Being as Petry was off-loaded for space, it isn’t exactly right to include Karlsson (or Phil Kessel before him, for that matter) as a direct branch of the Alex Goligoski trade tree since those components were among multiple pieces and more financial-related. But maybe it’s fitting to be considered that Karlsson is in part on the roster as an off-shoot of Goligoski.

Goligoski had a big moment in what is now known as PPG Paints Arena.

And though surely a minor footnote, Goligoski is the rare Penguin second round draft pick that made a notable NHL career for himself, even though lately players like Teddy Blueger, Tristan Jarry and Daniel Sprong have done well for themselves.