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‘The Piece’ returns: Scuderi, Pittsburgh agree to four-year, $13.5M deal

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Rob Scuderi is heading home.

The veteran defenseman -- who spent his first five NHL seasons in Pittsburgh -- has signed with the Penguins on a four-year, $13.5 million deal, according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie.

Scuderi will carry an average annual cap hit of $3.375 million.

The deal is remarkably similar to the one Scuderi signed with the Kings in 2009 (four years, $13.6 million), but the investment is probably worth it to Pittsburgh, a club that’s struggled defensively at times and could certainly use Scuderi’s stay-at-home presence.

The former Boston College standout has won two Stanley Cups since 2009 -- one with Pittsburgh, one with Los Angeles -- and has proven to be an effective player in the postseason, thanks in large part to his shot-blocking and defensive responsibility.

He averaged over 23 minutes per game as the Kings advanced to the Western Conference finals this season -- a career-high for ice time -- and finished with a solid plus-9 rating.

As for “The Piece” thing -- read here.

With the move, the Penguins now have less than $1 million in available cap space, and will be hard pressed to sign any other significant free agents.