Now that the Pittsburgh Penguins are in rebuild mode, much has been made this offseason about the potential trade candidacy of the trio of Rickard Rakell, Bryan Rust, and Erik Karlsson. Regarding the latter candidate, while speaking on the Kevin Karius Show, Josh Yohe of The Athletic expects a trade to be completed sooner rather than later, with one team in particular leading the pack.
According to Yohe, the Detroit Red Wings have been the most active team in their pursuit of Karlsson. This isn’t to say that the Red Wings are the only interested party, but they are the team that Yohe has heard the most about. Detroit is in a unique position as a team looking to contend, which could also conceivably afford Karlsson’s total $10MM cap hit.
If the Red Wings considered taking on Karlsson’s full salary, it would limit any potential trade return for the Penguins, but it could be the best option for the rebuilding club. It’s not complicated to ascertain Detroit’s purported interest in Karlsson, as the right side of their defense behind Moritz Seider is undeniably thin.
While Karlsson’s defensive weaknesses have become more evident in his game over the past two years, he would certainly be an improvement for the Red Wings behind Seider. Additionally, bringing him in wouldn’t create any long-term commitments, which General Manager Steve Yzerman has generally worked to avoid during his early years managing Detroit’s front office.
Other notes from the Eastern Conference:
- Yesterday evening, the Buffalo Sabres surprised many by inking netminder Alexandar Georgiev to a one-year pact for the 2025-26 season. Given that Buffalo already has Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Devon Levi, and Alex Lyon rostered for next year, there wasn’t an apparent positional need for Georgiev. Giving context to the signing in a new article on The Athletic, Matthew Fairburn reported that team sources indicated that Luukkonen “tweaked” something over summer training, and the Sabres are unsure when he’ll be back to full health. No reports indicate that Luukkonen has sustained a serious injury, but it is something to monitor during training camp.
- Speaking for the first time on the trade that sent him from the Carolina Hurricanes to the New York Rangers, defenseman Scott Morrow described the news as bittersweet. In a recent interview with John Kreiser of Forever Blueshirts, Morrow was quoted as saying, “It was definitely a little bit of disappointment leaving Carolina because it’s a great organization, but I’m super pumped to be here.” As the principal player acquired for K’Andre Miller, Morrow is expected to compete for a spot on the Rangers’ opening night roster.
I don’t know why the Pens would limit their return by forcing the entire salary on a team. Dumping him just to dump isn’t going to help the rebuild.
Aye, I’m thinking much the same. Other than saving on paying out salary, how would not retaining to the max (and thus pretty much zeroing out any return) help Pittsburgh in the slightest? It’s not as if they want to go get people with that money, the team just plain needs to tank.
It wouldn’t necessarily be just to “dump him” for the sake of it. It’s difficult for a team to bench a $10MM player on a nightly basis, and trading Karlsson immediately opens up a consistent spot for Pickering or even Brunicke. Additionally, although he’s been poor on defense, trading Karlsson for little lowers their floor, giving them better odds at the first overall pick. Lastly, and I don’t think this is particularly likely, but if they want to give Crosby one last good run, having $10MM in cap space to throw around next summer would help them do that.
It would likely be more that Detroit wants to limit their cost.
Who else wants him? Not like there is a bidding war.
Just like SJ did with us…if you can find a taker, you just move him for whatever and be done with him.
“Give Crosby one last good run”? The only run they can make is for winning the lottery.
Karlsson this, Karlsson that! He’s useless when it matters.
At 35 the chances of a stellar year at the Wings is not that great. However, it could provide a year, maybe two of some competence added to the Wing’s defensive weaknesses. while looking for someone more long term from GR or elsewhere. Big question is can he perform at his top level at 34 years old, or better yet, is he worth it in terms of cash cost?
Guess we’ll see.
Karlsson at age 35 is still better than the vast majority of Wings D men. They get stuck in their zone a lot & Karlsson would definitely help with that.
Ah, you make a good point. And then there is the angle of a new team and a new or fresh outlook on the game. What the heck, give it a shot, might be at least a small step in the right direction.