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Kris Letang

#58 · Defence · Pittsburgh Penguins

Born Apr 24, 1987 in Montréal, Quebec, CAN (age 39) · 6'0", 199 lb · Shoots right · Drafted 62nd overall in 2005 by PIT (round 3)

Trophy case

Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy Perseverance, Sportsmanship and Dedication 2022-23

Compare with a similar player

The defencemen closest to him in points in 2012-13. Pick one to see the two side by side, or choose someone else.

P.K. Subban MTL · 38 P in 42 GP Ryan Suter MIN · 32 P in 48 GP Andrei Markov MTL · 30 P in 48 GP Keith Yandle PHX · 30 P in 48 GP Cody Franson TOR · 29 P in 45 GP

Career

Regular season games only. Pick a season to see its game log below. Cap hit is what he counted against the salary cap that season, where it is known.

02040602006-07: 2 points206-072007-08: 17 points172008-09: 33 points3308-092009-10: 27 points272010-11: 50 points5010-112011-12: 42 points422012-13: 38 points3812-132013-14: 22 points222014-15: 54 points5414-152015-16: 67 points672016-17: 34 points3416-172017-18: 51 points512018-19: 56 points5618-192019-20: 44 points442020-21: 45 points4520-212021-22: 68 points682022-23: 41 points4122-232023-24: 51 points512024-25: 30 points3024-252025-26: 34 points342026-27: 3 points326-27

Points by season. The darker bar is the season shown below.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Cap hit
2006-07 PIT 7 2 0 2 -3 4 8 8 0.29 $638K
2007-08 PIT 63 6 11 17 -1 23 68 79 0.27 $623K
2008-09 PIT 74 10 23 33 -7 24 138 111 0.45 $623K
2009-10 PIT 73 3 24 27 1 51 174 117 0.37 $623K
2010-11 PIT 82 8 42 50 15 101 236 167 0.61 $3.5M
2011-12 PIT 51 10 32 42 21 34 142 83 0.82 $3.5M
2012-13 PIT 35 5 33 38 16 8 95 45 1.09 $3.5M
2013-14 PIT 37 11 11 22 -8 16 108 43 0.59 $3.5M
2014-15 PIT 69 11 43 54 12 79 197 131 0.78 $7.25M
2015-16 PIT 71 16 51 67 9 66 218 135 0.94 $7.25M
2016-17 PIT 41 5 29 34 2 32 122 70 0.83 $7.25M
2017-18 PIT 79 9 42 51 -9 56 222 109 0.65 $7.25M
2018-19 PIT 65 16 40 56 13 48 206 116 0.86 $7.25M
2019-20 PIT 61 15 29 44 0 38 177 101 0.72 $7.25M
2020-21 PIT 55 7 38 45 19 32 132 92 0.82 $7.25M
2021-22 PIT 78 10 58 68 20 49 214 171 0.87 $7.25M
2022-23 PIT 64 12 29 41 -13 30 161 162 0.64 $6.1M
2023-24 PIT 82 10 41 51 13 62 164 137 0.62 $6.1M
2024-25 PIT 74 9 21 30 -15 52 164 120 0.41 $6.1M
2025-26 PIT 74 3 31 34 -4 38 104 95 0.46 $6.1M
2026-27 PIT 6 0 3 3 2 2 15 6 0.50 $6.1M
21 seasons Career 1241 178 631 809 83 845 3065 2098 0.65

Playoffs

Playoff games only. Pick a season to see that year's bracket.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP
2007-08 PIT 16 0 2 2 5 12 14 25 0.13
2008-09 PIT 23 4 9 13 1 26 54 30 0.57
2009-10 PIT 13 5 2 7 -5 6 23 19 0.54
2010-11 PIT 7 0 4 4 0 10 28 19 0.57
2011-12 PIT 6 1 4 5 -1 21 15 11 0.83
2012-13 PIT 15 3 13 16 2 8 49 28 1.07
2013-14 PIT 13 2 4 6 2 14 29 19 0.46
2015-16 PIT 23 3 12 15 6 22 70 53 0.65
2017-18 PIT 12 3 8 11 0 15 25 23 0.92
2018-19 PIT 4 0 1 1 -3 2 14 11 0.25
2019-20 PIT 4 0 0 0 -2 0 12 7 0.00
2020-21 PIT 6 1 5 6 -2 6 15 30 1.00
2021-22 PIT 7 1 3 4 -3 0 19 15 0.57
2025-26 PIT 6 2 0 2 -2 20 11 11 0.33
14 seasons Playoffs 155 25 67 92 -2 162 378 301 0.59

2012-13 season totals

GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Shooting % Avg TOI
35 5 33 38 16 8 95 45 1.09 5.3 25:38

Contract

$3.5MCap hitends in 2014, then UFA
$92KCap dollars per point38 points in 35 games
$401KCap dollars per goal above replacement8.7 goals above replacement
$8.1MWorth at the going ratewhat teams paid for a season like his
+$4.6MValueworth minus cap hit; below zero is overpaid

His cap hit for the whole season, set against what he did in the regular season. Lower is better value. In a season still being played the cost per point starts high and falls as the games add up. Value is coloured by where it ranks among the 558 ranked skaters whose contract is known. How value is worked out.

The contract

Signed by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Mar 30, 2010, as an extension of the contract he was on: 4 years and $14M, beginning in 2010-11. It runs through 2013-14, with 1 season left after this one, and he is then an unrestricted free agent.

Season Cap hit Base salary Signing bonus Performance bonuses Paid in all Clause
2010-11 $3.5M $3.5M $0 $3.5M
2011-12 $3.5M $3.5M $0 $3.5M
2012-13 $3.5M $3.5M $0 $3.5M
2013-14 $3.5M $3.5M $0 $3.5M

Each season of the contract, with this one marked. The cap hit is the same every year; what he is paid is not. The pay is as written when the contract was recorded in October 2024, so a later change, such as the rise in the lowest salary for 2026-27, is not shown.

Contracts he has signed

Signed Signed by Kind Seasons Years In all Cap hit
Jul 7, 2022 Pittsburgh Penguins Extension (35+) 2022-23 to 2027-28 6 $36.6M $6.1M
Jul 1, 2013 Pittsburgh Penguins Extension 2014-15 to 2021-22 8 $58M $7.25M
Mar 30, 2010 Pittsburgh Penguins Extension 2010-11 to 2013-14 4 $14M $3.5M
Oct 2, 2006 Pittsburgh Penguins Entry-level 2007-08 to 2009-10 signed for 2006-07, slid 3 $2.505M $623K

Every contract on record for him, newest first, with the team that signed him to it and the day it was signed. The one covering 2012-13 is marked. An extension is signed while the contract before it is still running, often a year ahead. A row with no team or date is a contract known only by its cap hit, most often one signed since October 2024.

2012-13 analytics

Regular season Playoffs

Rating

+8.7Goals above replacement23rd of 605 skaters, 2nd of 208 defencemen
+1.5Wins above replacementgoals above replacement divided by six
+5.7Goals above averagethe five parts below added up

Each number is coloured by where it ranks among the 208 ranked defencemen: green is in the top fifth and red the bottom fifth, with paler shades in between and amber for the middle. Hover over a tile for its percentile.

Even-strength offence+4.5 99th percentileEven-strength defence+0.2 54th percentilePower play+0.3 93rd percentilePenalty kill0.0 43rd percentilePenalties+0.8 94th percentile

The goals he added to his team's goal difference, compared with a spare-part player given the same ice time. Each part is measured against the league, so zero is an average skater, and the rank beside it is among defencemen. A full season is about two-thirds the player and one-third chance. Provisional: under 40 games it is more chance than player. Before 2023-24 the NHL timed events less exactly, and differently from rink to rink, so expected goals for this season are rougher than for recent ones.

-5051015202010-112013-142016-172019-202022-232025-26Goals above replacementGoals above replacement, by season

On the ice

What happened at five-on-five while he was on the ice. What these numbers mean

53.8Corsi for %623 attempts for, 534 against
+7.1CF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
56.1Expected goals for %28.4 expected for, 22.2 against
+4.8xGF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
54.6Fenwick for %unblocked attempts
63.3Goals for %38 for, 22 against
103.8PDO11.2% shooting + 92.6% saves
119Attempts takenhis own shot attempts

Each share is coloured by where it ranks among the 578 skaters who played enough to be ranked: green is in the top fifth and red the bottom fifth, with paler shades in between and amber for the middle. Hover over a tile for its percentile. PDO and attempts taken are left plain, since neither is good or bad on its own.

Who he played with

Defence pairGPTimeCF%xGF%Goals
Matt Niskanen · Kris Letang28220:3155.652.39-8
Brooks Orpik · Kris Letang24113:5342.245.57-6
Kris Letang · Simon Despres2092:2664.170.05-2
Mark Eaton · Kris Letang1284:0849.362.76-3

The pairs he spent the most time in at five-on-five, with the team's share of the shot attempts and expected goals, and the goals for and against, while they were out. The two shares are coloured as above, against the league's pairs that played a fair amount together. Hover over one for its percentile.

Chances and finishing

Expected goals adds up how likely each of his shots was to go in, judged by where it came from, what kind of shot it was and whether it was a rebound. All situations, leaving out shots at an empty net. Before 2023-24 the NHL timed events less exactly, and differently from rink to rink, so expected goals for this season are rougher than for recent ones.

4Goalsnot counting empty-netters
5.9Expected goalsfrom 129 unblocked attempts
-1.9Goals above expectedgoals minus expected goals
Chances created 0.40 expected goals per 60 minutes97th
Shot quality 4.6% chance per attempt95th
Finishing -1.9 goals above expected5thOne season of finishing is mostly luck.

Each bar shows the share of defencemen he is ahead of, among the 210 who played 300 minutes or more this season.

024Game 20Expected 5.9Goals 4

His goals and his expected goals as the season went on. When the goals line pulls away above, he is scoring more than his chances were worth; below, less.

Where he shot from

Every attempt he took this season, in all situations, attacking the net on the right. Darker red means more attempts from that spot, and each dot is a goal. "Show every shot" switches to a dot for each attempt, bigger for a better chance. Click a goal for its details.

Game log

Date Opponent Result G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits TOI
Apr 27, 2013 vs CAR W 8-3 0 2 2 3 0 3 2 23:34
Apr 25, 2013 @ NJD L 2-3 0 1 1 0 0 2 1 26:07
Apr 23, 2013 vs BUF L 2-4 0 1 1 0 0 5 0 28:16
Apr 20, 2013 @ BOS W 3-2 1 0 1 -1 0 4 2 24:24
Apr 17, 2013 vs MTL W 6-4 0 3 3 0 0 3 1 28:55
Apr 13, 2013 @ FLA W 3-1 1 0 1 2 0 2 1 28:19
Apr 11, 2013 @ TBL W 6-3 0 1 1 1 0 3 2 23:31
Mar 26, 2013 vs MTL W 1-0 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 24:20
Mar 17, 2013 vs BOS W 2-1 0 0 0 -1 0 1 0 07:03
Mar 16, 2013 vs NYR W 3-0 0 1 1 0 0 4 2 25:35
Mar 14, 2013 @ TOR W 3-1 0 0 0 1 0 3 3 27:40
Mar 12, 2013 vs BOS W 3-2 0 1 1 1 0 8 3 27:49
Mar 10, 2013 vs NYI W 6-1 0 2 2 3 0 2 1 23:31
Mar 9, 2013 @ TOR W 5-4 (SO) 0 2 2 1 0 4 1 30:23
Mar 7, 2013 @ PHI W 5-4 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 23:59
Mar 4, 2013 vs TBL W 4-3 0 2 2 2 0 4 0 28:19
Mar 2, 2013 @ MTL W 7-6 (OT) 0 4 4 -2 0 3 2 26:43
Feb 28, 2013 @ CAR L 1-4 0 0 0 -1 2 1 1 29:25
Feb 26, 2013 @ FLA L 4-6 0 0 0 -1 2 2 2 24:47
Feb 24, 2013 vs TBL W 5-3 0 2 2 1 0 1 3 26:28
Feb 22, 2013 vs FLA W 3-1 0 1 1 1 0 2 1 26:44
Feb 20, 2013 vs PHI L 5-6 0 1 1 0 2 3 1 28:20
Feb 17, 2013 @ BUF W 4-3 0 1 1 1 0 3 0 26:27
Feb 15, 2013 @ WPG W 3-1 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 27:54
Feb 13, 2013 vs OTT W 4-2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 27:33
Feb 5, 2013 @ NYI W 4-2 0 1 1 0 0 4 2 25:19
Feb 3, 2013 @ WSH W 6-3 1 1 2 0 0 4 3 19:57
Feb 2, 2013 vs NJD W 5-1 1 0 1 2 0 4 1 23:20
Jan 31, 2013 @ NYR W 3-0 0 1 1 2 0 3 1 24:46
Jan 29, 2013 vs NYI L 1-4 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 23:46
Jan 27, 2013 @ OTT W 2-1 (SO) 0 0 0 1 0 4 1 29:10
Jan 25, 2013 @ WPG L 2-4 0 1 1 -1 0 0 2 26:01
Jan 23, 2013 vs TOR L 2-5 0 1 1 -2 2 1 0 27:31
Jan 20, 2013 @ NYR W 6-3 1 1 2 1 0 4 0 24:17
Jan 19, 2013 @ PHI W 3-1 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 27:03