Trade Deadline Primer: Pittsburgh Penguins

With the Olympic break upon us, the trade deadline is under a month away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league at teams on the playoff bubble; next up are the Penguins.

The Penguins spent the summer collecting what appeared to be spare parts, and many expected them to be a top contender for the first overall pick in this summer’s NHL Entry Draft. That has not been the case, however, as the Penguins have defied projections and their own uneven play to find themselves not only in the hunt for a playoff spot but also in a position to earn home-ice advantage in the first round of the NHL Playoffs. It’s been a fun, feel-good story thus far, but it has certainly changed the calculus for Penguins GM Kyle Dubas as he heads into the trade deadline. What once appeared to be a surefire sell-off now feels as though it could turn into a conservative shopping spree for the Penguins.

Record

29-15-12, 2nd in the Metropolitan

Deadline Status

Conservative Buyer

Deadline Cap Space

$53.52MM on deadline day, 0/3 retention slots used, 46/50 contracts used, per PuckPedia.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2026: PIT 1st, PIT 2nd, WPG 2nd, PIT 3rd, SJ 3rd, NSH 6th
2027: PIT 1st, PIT 2nd, NYR 2nd, PIT 3rd, NJ 3rd, WPG 4th, PIT 5th, PIT 6th, PIT 7th

Trade Chips

The Penguins have no lack of trade chips heading into this deadline, which is something they haven’t been able to say all that often in recent years. Pittsburgh has built a healthy backlog of prospects and a robust stockpile of draft picks for the coming years. That said, GM Kyle Dubas has shown a willingness to pivot from the plan slightly if it makes sense to bring in young, controllable talent. In some cases, Dubas has brought in talent along with futures, but the deadline may be an opportunity for Pittsburgh to move some pieces out for a bigger piece.

So, who could Pittsburgh trade? Well, last summer’s trade chips are probably not on the table, given their playoff positioning. That list includes Bryan Rust, Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell, and unless Pittsburgh is blown away, it feels like all three will remain with the Penguins. In fact, it feels like most of Pittsburgh’s current NHL roster is safe for this season, because it is a tight-knit group, and it would be hard to tell the veterans that they need to subtract talent.

But what about in the minors? One potential chip is 2022 first-round pick (21st overall) Owen Pickering. The hulking defenseman hasn’t progressed as Penguins management would have hoped, but he shows signs of being an NHL defenseman, possibly even in the team’s top four. Pickering has long been viewed as a defenseman with a very high ceiling. He is mobile, has good size, and is reasonably skilled with the puck on his stick. That said, Pickering remains a project, and there is work to do on the defensive side of his game. Pittsburgh has been patient with his development, but you have to wonder if the Penguins might see him as another potential Samuel Poulin, a former first-round pick who ran out of chances and watched his trade value fall to nothing. Pittsburgh has to make a call on Pickering soon, and they could leverage him as trade bait before that decision is made.

Another prospect who has fallen out of favour this season is Ville Koivunen. The forward was a key piece in the Jake Guentzel trade two years ago and showed enough last season to have people thinking he would be part of Pittsburgh’s top six this year. He had chances this season, but his play was uninspired, and he was quickly returned to the AHL, where he has been fantastic, posting 25 points in 20 games. Koivunen has a ton of skill and hockey IQ, but he isn’t overly big or strong, nor is he fleet of foot. He will rely on his smarts to score, but there is an adjustment to the NHL game Koivunen hasn’t made yet. Given that Koivunen is probably Pittsburgh’s highest-skilled prospect, it’s hard to imagine them dumping him in a deadline move, but anything is possible.

Finally, we return to the NHL roster and the possibility of moving a player off it. While it seems unlikely that Pittsburgh makes any major changes with the big club, there is always the possibility that a team blows them away with an offer for one of their veterans. Rust, Rakell, and Karlsson aren’t likely to be moved, but a player like Noel Acciari probably wouldn’t be off limits. Acciari has formed a formidable fourth line with Blake Lizotte and Connor Dewar and is a free agent this summer. Pittsburgh isn’t likely to re-sign the 34-year-old, but Acciari has played well enough to get paid this summer. If a team made a strong enough offer, one would have to believe Pittsburgh could be persuaded to move him if it improved their long-term future.

Team Needs

A Right Shot Defenseman: It’s easy to look at the Penguins’ defensive core and think their bigger issue might be on the left side, but Pittsburgh is banged up on the right side. Kris Letang is out, as is Jack St. Ivany, and with those two hurt, the right side looks very thin. Ryan Shea has been filling in recently, but his performance has declined, and he looks uncomfortable in his current role. Right-handed defensemen are historically hard to acquire, and given that Dubas has been stockpiling assets, he probably isn’t interested in turning a bunch back to acquire a stopgap. An under-the-radar trade feels likely here rather than a big addition, but Dubas is nothing if not unpredictable, so it wouldn’t be a shock to see him look for a longer-term solution if it fits the bigger plan.

Top Nine Forward Help: The Penguins look set up front and able to roll four consistent lines. However, they lack depth beyond their top 12 forwards and struggled when several forwards were sidelined by injury in December. Pittsburgh lost 9 of 10 games during that stretch as the loss of Evgeni Malkin, Anthony Mantha, and Justin Brazeau eroded the team’s depth. Given the Penguins’ history of injuries, adding an extra top-nine forward might be a wise move to prepare for such an unfortunate series of events. The Penguins don’t need to break the bank to acquire an additional body and could certainly shop the bargain bins to add a bit of depth just in case they run into injury troubles in the final weeks of the season.