PITTSBURGH — Sergei Gonchar's list of accomplishments is not short.

Twenty NHL seasons and 1,301 games played. More points (811) than any other Russian-born defenseman. Nine times in the top-10 of Norris Trophy voting. Hoisting the Stanley Cup as a player and coach while also winning Olympic medals for his country.

But something Gonchar never did particular well? Fitting in quickly with a new team.

"I always had a tough time adjusting," Gonchar said over the phone from Miami this week. "I needed more time than most when it came to getting familiar with the city, system and players.

"It doesn't just happen overnight."

Gonchar also skated for the Capitals, Senators, Stars, Bruins and Canadiens during his career, but what happened in Pittsburgh offers important perspective with current Penguins Erik Karlsson and Ryan Graves.

While deeper, process-oriented numbers did paint Karlsson in a favorable light — let's leave the bulk of that discussion for another day — it's safe to say neither the three-time Norris winner nor Graves met expectations in Year 1.

The good news: There's precedent, especially here, for defensemen bouncing back and becoming productive players, with Gonchar and Paul Martin as shining examples.

"I personally think defense is the hardest position to play in hockey," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan told me last weekend. "The reason is, a lot of times you're the last line of defense before the goalie, and you have to make reads based on what happens in front of you. Forwards make a lot of mistakes. So, the reads happens fast.

"It takes experiential learning for that process to come to fruition. You have to make mistakes and learn through them. ... There's no magic bullet to speed up that process."

After signing a six-year, $27 million contract last offseason, Graves encountered a drastically different system than what he experienced with the Devils. Breakouts and defensive-zone coverages improved, but he also averaged fewer than 17 minutes a night in January and February after playing 20:08 through December.

At his end-of-season news conference, president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas pulled zero punches when it came to Graves, explaining that he didn't expect the defenseman's struggles to linger as long as they did. And, after 70 games, it's hard to blame the system.

However, Dubas also complimented Graves' character and work ethic and emphasized how the Penguins believe some added strength will help the 29-year-old rediscover his game.

"If the whole year didn't go the way you wanted, how are you going to respond?" Dubas said. "How are you going to change your preparation and training to make a greater impact?

"I think that's the expectation for Ryan."

It was for Paul Martin, remember.

This started in the summer of 2010, when former general manager Ray Shero signed Martin for five years, $25 million. The idea was to add Martin into a top four including Kris Letang, Jordan Leopold and Alex Goligoski.

But instead of Martin finding a seamless fit, it felt like pounding a square peg into a round hole. Martin became the target of fan outrage, similar to Graves. A steady presence with the Devils, Martin's game became volatile and borderline ugly in Pittsburgh.

Shero told ESPN in February 2013 that Martin was "embarrassed" by his play. Martin spoke to the Pioneer Press back home in Minnesota a couple years ago and described himself as "uncomfortable" with the transition.

But then a funny thing happened: Shero and the Penguins stood by Martin, created a path for him to get better that emphasized strength and mobility, and slowly but surely, the 14-year veteran rebuilt his confidence.

"Usually time helps," Sullivan said. "They're more comfortable in their surroundings. They get to know their teammates. They get to know their coaches. They learn how we're trying to play and some of the nuances around that. After that first year, usually there's a benefit, where we can get a jump in performance."

Karlsson did plenty well this past season. The Penguins averaged nearly a full expected goal more with him on the ice five-on-five. When it came to advanced metrics such as entries, exits, scoring chances generated and in-zone offense, Karlsson played at an elite level.

The issues, of course, involved the power play and defensive mishaps — too powerless and too frequent for the Penguins' situation.

Karlsson did improve defensively and stopped trying to "slap pass it through five people every time." But the Penguins need that version for an entire season.

It was similar for Gonchar, another offensive defenseman and power play quarterback. Gonchar said even when he struggled, it was always more on the defensive side, trying to react to what forwards are doing without knowing their tendencies. Offensive was more instinctual.

"As a forward, some mistakes aren't recognized because there are people to cover for you," Gonchar said. "With us, you can see it right away."

We saw it plenty in the first half of the 2005-06 season, which was summed up beautifully by Hall of Famer Dave Molinari in an old Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story I read:

"There were times during the first half of 2005-06 when [Gonchar] looked as if he had taken up the game only a couple of weeks earlier," Molinari wrote. "His decision making was bad, his execution worse. He looked hopelessly out of place much of the time, and probably felt that way, too."

Amazingly, Gonchar rediscovered his game, producing six goals and 37 points in his final 23 games that year (after notching just one and 11 in the 24 before that). The next year, Pittsburgh reached the postseason for the first time in six years, Gonchar enjoying some of the additional structure brought by Michel Therrien.

None of this means Graves and Karlsson will automatically become different players in 2024-25. A lot must happen. But I think we should remember that it's possible.

"I don't think these guys had horrible years, but I think the expectations were extremely high," Sullivan said. "Did we meet those? Probably not. I think if you asked those players themselves, they'd probably share the same thing.

"But I do think they're very capable guys, and there's an opportunity here to take a giant step forward."

(c)2024 the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.