3 players the Pittsburgh Penguins should trade this offseason
The Pittsburgh Penguins need a shakeup. Here are three players they should move out during what should be a long offseason.
There are going to be changes with the Pittsburgh Penguins this offseason. General Manager Jim Rutherford implied as much during his end of the year press conference. The Penguins are a “win now” team who have won a total of one postseason game the past two seasons. Rutherford refrained from any huge shakeups last offseason, but he needs to make some changes this time around.
The Penguins Stanley Cup window isn’t closed – yet. But it’s starting to close and you can bet Pittsburgh’s going to do whatever it takes to pry it back open. They can’t afford to rebuild. Not while Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are still elite players.
Back in 2015, the Penguins were tempted to make huge changes to their core, but they instead elected to add to it. That’s the kind of move Pittsburgh needs to make. They shouldn’t be subtracting from their core. If anything, the Penguins need to add to it.
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Is there a Phil Kessel trade on the market this offseason? Probably not. But if the Penguins want to make any changes, it’s going to have to happen via the trade market. Let’s take a look at three players who the Pittsburgh Penguins should trade if they’re serious about making changes.
3. Nick Bjugstad
At the time, the Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann trade was brilliant for Rutherford. It’s still a good trade, but Bjugstad’s tenure with the Penguins has been rather disappointing. In 45 games, he has just 16 points.
This season has been plagued by injuries for him. And even when Bjugstad has been on the ice, he hasn’t gotten much playing time. In 13 games this season, he averaged just over 12 minutes per game, a huge drop from his career average of over 15 minutes per game.
Trading Bjugstad will be hard for several reasons. First of all, there’s his health, which pretty much speaks for itself. He’s played over 70 games in a season just once in the past five seasons. Secondly, Bjugstad’s $4.1 million cap hit isn’t awful, but he’s due over $5 million in salary next season.
The Penguins will need to make some moves to optimize their finances and getting rid of Bjugstad would be a huge help. Of course, to dance, you need a partner. Who’s going to want to trade for Bjugstad?
2. Jack Johnson
There’s no way Jack Johnson should be allowed to return to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Not after how terrible he was against the Montreal Canadiens. And it wasn’t just the case of Johnson having a bad series. He was awful even before the ink on his five-year contract dried.
Since signing the five-year deal in 2018, Evolving Hockey‘s GAR model has him as the least valuable defenseman in the NHL. Virtually everyone Johnson has played with over the past two seasons has been objectively worse while playing with him and objectively better without him on the ice.
Worst of all, head coach Mike Sullivan trusts him. It baffles me why he does, but maybe Johnson’s similar to a dangerous toy. As a parent, what would you do if your toddler’s playing with a dangerous toy? You’d take it away, right? Well, Sullivan has proven he needs to have his dangerous toy (Johnson) taken away.
Now, here’s the $1 million question. Who the heck is going to trade for Johnson? He still has three years left on his deal and he’s not even a serviceable NHL defenseman. Plus, $3.25 million a year (Johnson’s cap hit) is a really bad price to pay for someone who is, at best, a bottom pairing defenseman.
Maybe the Penguins send a prospect and draft pick or two to the Ottawa Senators or Detroit Red Wings to take on Johnson’s contract. They need to get rid of Johnson by any means necessary because he’s a liability.
1. Matt Murray
Yup, it’s time for the Pittsburgh Penguins to part ways with Matt Murray. He’s done a lot of good things in Pittsburgh. Murray helped the Penguins win back-to-back Stanley Cups. Other than Tom Bassarro, he’s the only goaltender in franchise history to win back-to-back Stanley Cups as a starter. Murray’s career in Pittsburgh deserves to be celebrated.
Now, with all of that said, those two Stanley Cups are in the past. Murray’s no longer the goalie he was back in 2016 and 2017. He is by no means washed up, but a change in scenery is needed for both sides. The Penguins already have his replacement in Tristan Jarry.
If the Penguins don’t get rid of Murray now, they’ll have to likely lose him to the Seattle Kraken for nothing in a year. And that’s in a best-case scenario! Imagine if Murray’s decline continues and the Penguins have to surrender other assets to the Kraken to get them to take him.
Trading Murray won’t be too difficult. The free-agent market is really weak after you get past Robin Lehner and Braden Holtby. Especially since Corey Crawford’s future is in limbo. Whoever loses out on them and wants an upgrade in goal is going to have to turn to the trade market. Murray would be a pretty solid trade option. He has a strong track record of success.
Next. 3 Moves The Penguins Must Make. dark
The trade market for goalies is broken. I honestly don’t know what the Penguins will get for him. It could be a huge return, or it could be the equivalent of a bunch of lottery tickets. But what I do know is it’s time for the Pittsburgh Penguins to part ways with Matt Murray.