This team will never get a break when it comes to injuries, will they? Currently, Mark Friedman, Jared McCann, Teddy Blueger, John Marino, Jason Zucker, and Evgeni Malkin are out with injuries. Teddy Blueger’s and Jason Zucker's injuries are longer-term, and who knows how long Malkin is out for yet. All of a sudden, Jankowski or Rodrigues could be the second-line center tonight.
This might be a good time to make a deal like the Penguins did last season for Zucker. You trade for a guy that can fill in for an injured player for the time being, but when they get healthy you’ve just added more skilled depth. If this team can get a Centre or a Right-Winger on the 3rd line they’ll have one of the best rosters on paper.
So with the trade deadline coming up on April 12th, 2021, it’s time to start discussing possible moves for this team. I don’t expect any of their top prospects or draft picks to be moved. But, I do expect them to try to upgrade. There’s plenty of sellers at this year's deadline, and let’s take a look at some of them, as well as possible trades.
The Buffalo Sabres
Possible Trade Assets: Taylor Hall, Eric Staal, Brandon Montour
The Buffalo Sabres certainly have a team. A very very bad team. But it’s still a team. If Taylor Hall and Eric Staal are still on this roster by the end of the trade deadline I’d be very surprised. I don’t think that there’s much of a way for the Penguins to pick up Hall because of his cap hit, but Eric Staal is interesting.
Staal can play down the middle and on the Left Wing, but I’m not sure if he’s that much of an upgrade. Staal only has 10 points on the season, and I think he’s hit that point in his career where he just won’t be productive enough. I barely noticed him in the Sabres two games against the Penguins earlier in the season, and I just don’t think he will be worth whatever Pittsburgh has to give up to get him.
Brandon Montour is just a no-go. The Penguins are fine on the Right Side on the blue-line, and picking up Montour, who wouldn’t even crack the top 6, wouldn’t make any sense for the Penguins.
The Anaheim Ducks
Possible Trade Assets: Rickard Rakell
The Ducks are a team that doesn’t have as many great assets, but they have a really good one. Rakell is a great play driver and playmaker, and having him on the third line would be absolutely fantastic. He’s also very fast, so imagine him and McCann on a line. Rakell has struggled to finish his chances so far this season, but I expect that to turn around. He’s not awful defensively either. He has faced much more difficult competition when he’s on the ice compared to his teammates and he’s still done a great job. His $3.8 Million cap hit is something Pittsburgh can’t fit under the cap right now, but I have a trade in mind for this one.
To Pittsburgh: Rickard Rakell
To Anaheim: Marcus Pettersson
Look, I really like this deal. I think the Ducks would too. They get a young left-handed defenceman with 3+ seasons of NHL experience. Pettersson may be in a down season right now but can certainly be a positive. He’s already locked up to a contract that is completely fair if he plays as he did for Pittsburgh last season. He was actually drafted by Anaheim in 2014 and played 49 games as a Duck before being traded to Pittsburgh. The Penguins would probably have to also include a 2nd round pick for next season.
Rickard Rakell is, as mentioned above, a perfect fit for the Penguins. What’s just as good as his play on the ice is that his contract expires in 2 seasons. This is at the same time as Malkin, Letang, Rust, and Kapanen’s current contracts expire. It gives the Penguins a lot of cap space to work with that offseason, and it makes things a lot easier for them compared to if Pettersson was still on the roster. It makes too much sense.
For Anaheim, I don’t feel the same. Apparently, the current asking price for Rakell is very high. Elliotte Friedman said on his latest 31 Thoughts “Things can always change but the price is also high for Rickard Rakell”. I know for a fact that Hextall isn’t going to trade Poulin, Legare, or a 1st. Besides that, the prospect cupboard is pretty bare. Friedman also said, “The Ducks, I think, want young players with a little more of an NHL track record for him.”
Now, does that not sound like Marcus Pettersson? They’re also already familiar with him, so it sounds like a good fit. Friedman did say players, however, with an s. I’m not sure if he means multiple young guys from one team or not, but if he doesn’t expect the Penguins to be on a possible Rakell trade. At least I hope so.
The Nashville Predators
Possible Trade Assets: Mattias Ekholm, Mikael Granlund
I still don’t see Pittsburgh picking up a defenceman. If they were to pick one up, however, Ekholm is my guy. I really like his defensive play, and if they picked him up he’d fit right in on the 2nd pairing with Marino. The Penguins would have to give up one of Pettersson or Matheson in the deal, which I’m okay with.
The problem is what Nashville is asking. Also from Elliotte Friedman's most recent 31 Thoughts, Nashville is looking for the same kind of package as LA got from Toronto in the Muzzin trade. 2 decent prospects and a 1st rounder. I know Hextall isn’t giving up a 1st, so I don’t see this deal happening.
Granlund is another player that I’m not too sure about. He only has 1 year left on his deal, and there’s not much of a chance he would resign in Pittsburgh. Nashville's asking price is probably too high for Granlund for just half a season and the playoffs for what Pittsburgh is trying to do.
I expected to write about a lot more possible trades than this, but I just couldn’t find many. A lot of the teams that are bad and selling at the deadline don’t have good enough players that fit the Penguin's needs. With the flat cap as well as the 1-2 week quarantine if you cross the border, things are a lot more difficult.
Rakell is the perfect fit. If the Penguins are willing to give up what they would need to to get him is another thing. I would love to see this trade, and I think it benefits Pittsburgh more than it hurts them. This gives Riikola, Friedman, or POJ room to play on the left side for the rest of the season.
I think Ekholm is a fantastic fit as well. If you ignore the price that they’re asking for, everything works out perfectly. If the Penguins wanted to trade for both of these players, they could. They shouldn’t. The price for Ekholm is too high and it’s not worth it for Pittsburgh.
I really hope they get Rakell. Do I think there’s a fantastic shot at it happening? Probably not. One thing I do know is that I didn’t talk about a single-player down the middle. I don’t think that they need another Centre. I don’t think that Malkin's injury is that bad.
If he is out long-term, they need absolutely need one. Jared McCann and Evgeni Malkin have been ruled out for tonight's game against New Jersey. McCann has shown that he can play centre and he’ll be able to fit in if it’s just for the short term if Geno is out longer term. I’d really like this team to get healthy, but as a Pens fan, I know that that will never fully happen.