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The Pittsburgh Penguins are seemingly ready to tear it down to the studs. While they’re holding off the inevitable because Sidney Crosby deserves better, they’re staring a rebuild square in the face. They could try to avoid it and make Crosby happy. The only problem is that their roster is full of unmoveable contracts.
The Not Going Anywhere Contracts
Crosby isn’t going anywhere because he recently re-signed to commit to the team and GM Kyle Dubas has reportedly told teams that No. 87 is the only player not available. If Crosby were to ask out, it would be a different story that could open the floodgates to change, but that will never happen.
Meanwhile, Evgeni Malkin told the media after a recent loss, “I’m glad to be here. It doesn’t matter if we win or we lose, I want to be here always together with Sid (Crosby) and Tanger (Kris Letang).” Clearly, his priorities aren’t to win, but to end his career with his friends.
And, while Elliotte Friedman believes that Kris Letang is someone that the Penguins would be willing to move on from, he’s got total control over his future and is more likely to do what Crosby and Malkin do.
The Maybes, But Also Too Costly To Dump Contracts
Erik Karlsson’s name has come up, if only because it sounds like he’d be open to a move. The issue with Karlsson is that he recently took a huge hit to his reputation when a former Swedish Olympic coach said the 4 Nations Team shouldn’t have selected Karlsson. Couple that with a massive $10-million cap hit and a full no-move clause and the Penguins would be lucky if Karlsson got a sniff on the trade market.
Then there is Tristan Jarry. PuckPedia’s cap relief calculator suggests a first-rounder could be used to move him seeing as he recently signed a lucrative contract extension and just returned from the minors after a horrid start to the season. There has been chatter about the Penguins trying to move on from Jarry almost the second his five-year, $5.375 million per season deal was signed. He’ll be a costly asset to move. He’s played in four games this season and has a 5.36 goals-against average and a .847 save percentage.
Bryan Rust (no-move clause) and Rickard Rakell (modified no-trade) will be tough to move because of their deals. Michael Bunting is a tough sell because of his production versus price tag. Finally, Ryan Graves looks like one of the biggest failed experiments since Karlsson.
The Few Players the Penguins Might Get Interest In
“Marcus Pettersson and Drew O’Connor are among those to follow. Pettersson deservedly gets a lot of attention, but O’Connor’s low number ($925,000) and flexibility makes him attractive, too,” Elliotte Friedman wrote in his latest 32 Thoughts column.
Pettersson is a serviceable defenseman on a fair contract. As a 28-year-old pending UFA, his contract is reasonable at $4.025 million and he can produce, playing an average of over 22 minutes per game this season. He’s easily the best asset the Penguins have available on the list of real possibilities and it’s likely a team does pick him up before the deadline.
O’Connor’s cap hit is the most attractive part about him. This is not to say he’s a bad player (three goals and five points on the season), but to add depth for under $1 million is a win for most teams. Contenders won’t have an issue with taking on his contract if they deem him a fit, and he’s got a history of depth scoring, having posted 16 goals last season in 79 games. He too is a pending UFA, which always helps.
Anthony Beauvillier is an inexpensive left-shot center with some skill. However, his production has fallen off a cliff and he’s moved around a lot. Should he be traded, it would mark his sixth NHL team since 2023.
The Penguins Are In a Tough Spot
Kyle Dubas has his hands full in trying to figure out what to do with this roster. It’s not good enough to compete with the best teams. He doesn’t want to tear it all down while Crosby is still on the roster, but he doesn’t have much he can move to get legitimate assets in return.
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