Karlsson to PIT

[largegarlic]

I'm kinda disappointed to give up a 1st. I was hoping to get Karlsson without doing so. But I wasn't anticipating Granlund being included in the trade. I figured they'd buy him out and trade Petry, so maybe that makes it worth a 1st.

[FLPensFan]

I'm kinda disappointed to give up a 1st. I was hoping to get Karlsson without doing so. But I wasn't anticipating Granlund being included in the trade. I figured they'd buy him out and trade Petry, so maybe that makes it worth a 1st.

Discussing it with some others on Twitter this morning before the trade broke, many said they would happy if we gave up only 1 premium asset...a 1st, Pickering, Smith or POJ. To make this deal only giving up a 1st (top 10 protected) AND dumping Granlund, Petry, Rutta, and DeSmith contracts is a massive win.

[Coffey Break]

I'm kinda disappointed to give up a 1st. I was hoping to get Karlsson without doing so. But I wasn't anticipating Granlund being included in the trade. I figured they'd buy him out and trade Petry, so maybe that makes it worth a 1st.

Discussing it with some others on Twitter this morning before the trade broke, many said they would happy if we gave up only 1 premium asset...a 1st, Pickering, Smith or POJ. To make this deal only giving up a 1st (top 10 protected) AND dumping Granlund, Petry, Rutta, and DeSmith contracts is a massive win.

I'm stunned beyond belief that GMKD somehow undid the entire Hextall era (minus Carter of course) in one trade. Completely surreal! All the dead weight sucking the air dry - Petry, Granlund, Rutta, Desmith.

The thought of 58 or EK65 ALWAYS being on the ice when 87/71 step foot is an absolute dream.

[Pensfan4life8771]

FLP we still need to make another trade no? I mean Pitlick can play 4C and move Acari up to 3RW so fixes Granlund leaving. Need to fill Jake spot. Also only have 21 on roster so need to more bodies with not much cap space.

[pens_CT]

FLP we still need to make another trade no? I mean Pitlick can play 4C and move Acari up to 3RW so fixes Granlund leaving. Need to fill Jake spot. Also only have 21 on roster so need to more bodies with not much cap space.

I think Nylander, Puustinen or Yager (9 game trial) are the most likely to replace Jake in the short term. The numbers become tight once Guentzel returns. However with the propensity of injuries this team usually goes through it wouldn't surprise me if someone else goes on LTIR as Jake returns.

[Antonio]

Honestly, at first blush, my thoughts are that this is as close to perfect as you could hope for. Impossible to avoid giving up a draft pick, retain something etc, but for the cost of a 1st and 2nd, we got a 3rd, got rid of all of our **** contracts except fo JMFC, and picked up the best offensive D man in the league. Dubas may have made the bottom 6 a place where offense goes to die, but hopefully it also will be the death of the other team's offense, which we needed badly. Also, adding EK will add to the offense significantly I think. Given the state of the team that he took on, honestly, I don't know that I could have asked for too much more this offseason. No one and nothing is ever flawless but on paper so far I would say this looks like a superb job. We will see how it all plays out on the ice though, but for now, great job.

[Southern Fan]

Trying to remember the players hextall signed or traded for that are still here. I’m coming up withCarter, Rakell and Smith.

Anyone else?

What a wipe out.

[Puck-Lurker]

FLP we still need to make another trade no? I mean Pitlick can play 4C and move Acari up to 3RW so fixes Granlund leaving. Need to fill Jake spot. Also only have 21 on roster so need to more bodies with not much cap space.

I don't think so, but someone will be along to confirm soon enough.

- The minimum roster size is 20 players, of which 18 skaters and 2 goalies. So that's not an issue.
- Capfriendly has us 79K over in the meantime and that's a problem.
- Even if Guentzel goes on LTIR right after the season starts, we'd get that 79K cap relief if we're not under by then, not 6M.
- Waiving Ruhwedel has us at 20 players and cap compliant. Then Guentzel's LTIR relief is 6M and we can bring up extra bodies.

The fun part is 'when everyone's healthy' we'd be 79K over the cap. Not sure that's a big deal during the season.

Trying to remember the players hextall signed or traded for that are still here. I’m coming up withCarter, Rakell and Smith.

Anyone else?

What a wipe out.

Friedman, but he's down in WBS.

[DelPen]

Send Nedeljkovic down for any other goalie and we are under. Unless he outplays Jarry or the other guys look like complete garbage I’d take the risk of waiving him to get under the cap and get the full relief of Jake’s LTIR.

[FLPensFan]

FLP we still need to make another trade no? I mean Pitlick can play 4C and move Acari up to 3RW so fixes Granlund leaving. Need to fill Jake spot. Also only have 21 on roster so need to more bodies with not much cap space.

I don't think so, but someone will be along to confirm soon enough.

- The minimum roster size is 20 players, of which 18 skaters and 2 goalies. So that's not an issue.
- Capfriendly has us 79K over in the meantime and that's a problem.
- Even if Guentzel goes on LTIR right after the season starts, we'd get that 79K cap relief if we're not under by then, not 6M.
- Waiving Ruhwedel has us at 20 players and cap compliant. Then Guentzel's LTIR relief is 6M and we can bring up extra bodies.

The fun part is 'when everyone's healthy' we'd be 79K over the cap. Not sure that's a big deal during the season.

Trying to remember the players hextall signed or traded for that are still here. I’m coming up withCarter, Rakell and Smith.

Anyone else?

What a wipe out.

Friedman, but he's down in WBS.

Baring any other injuries, here's what I would expect our cap compliant roster to look like:

Guentzel-Crosby-Rakell
Smith-Malkin-Rust
DOC-Eller-Nylander
Nieto-Acciari-Carter

Graves-Letang
MP-EK
POJ-Smith

Jarry
Ned

That mean's they'll waive Ruhwedel to get under the cap. Then once that roster is submitted, they'll place Guentzel on LTIR, recall one of Ruhwedel, Friedman or Butcher, and two of Johnsson, Hinostroza, Zohorna, Poulin, or Puustinen.

Once Jake goes on LTIR, I'd expect that either DOC goes with Crosby and Rakell, or Crosby gets Smith and Malkin gets one of DOC or Nylander.

[Pensfan4life8771]

Bring back Kessel for $850K/yr

He can play with Geno and Rakkell.

[Three Stars]

Gentille and Goldman of The Athletic each gave the Pens an A+ on the trade. The Pens dumped their garbage by wrapping a bow around it in the form of a 1st round pick. The major risk is Karlsson’s health, because otherwise the massive benefit is that this is is situation that fits EK and the team perfectly.

Montreal got an A- and B+ respectively. Petry is likely to be flipped.

Sam Jose got a C and a C-. The Sharks shot themselves in the foot by not getting more for retention.

[Tico Rick]

Dubas you ole dog

Dubas is smiling like a butcher’s dog!

[brwi]

Gentille and Goldman of The Athletic each gave the Pens an A+ on the trade. The Pens dumped their garbage by wrapping a bow around it in the form of a 1st round pick. The major risk is Karlsson’s health, because otherwise the massive benefit is that this is is situation that fits EK and the team perfectly.

Montreal got an A- and B+ respectively. Petry is likely to be flipped.

Sam Jose got a C and a C-. The Sharks shot themselves in the foot by not getting more for retention.

Yeah, and the SJ fans on The Athletic are indulging in serious copium and trying to say they deserved a B/B+ for the deal.

I'm not saying Karlsson's contract isn't huge and a major issue on moving him anywhere(it is) or that he can play decent defense(he can't) or that he doesn't have a concerning injury history(he does) but he still has all the offense that he brought in 2015 and 2016 and is unmatched by anyone else. Generational, elite offense. To get a return that includes the poison pill of Granlund's contract for 2 yrs gets you a "C' at best for starters and the 1st rounder that isn't going to be top 10....C- is probably generous. What they are going to do with Hoffman who is in real decline is a mystery, Ruutu might get them a 3rd rounder at the deadline, maybe a 2nd if he doesn't have to play with Vlasic this season.

[mariojr]

Forgot to mention we also got a serviceable bottom 6 forward, a sure improvement over Granlund, in the deal.

Now if we could just get Tampa to send us Vasilevsky for Jarry and a 2nd rounder ...

[KG]

Dillon Hamaliuk was a 2nd round pick in 2019 for SJ too. Probably becomes a top 10 prospect for us now as well. Also getting 2026 SJ 3rd round pick was a good get too. Giving up some future for now, but also getting a little back to help off-set.

Basically the only value the Pens gave up was 1st round pick (top 10 protected). They rid themselves of 4 contracts they didn't want. It's a great trade for us. The fact we didn't have to give up anyone from our thin prospect pool is solid as well.

That's probably why SJ only retained a small percentage. They weren't getting a great return that's for sure.

[E-Ramone]

I appreciate all of the analyses by everyone on this thread. This is a huge day for the organization, and I’m almost certain it’ll be remembered as such for years to come. It’s going to make this coming season a lot of fun to watch. To be honest, before this trade, I was kind of thinking this coming season was going to be a lot like last year so this is something to be excited about. I think Dubas nailed this today.

[Pitts]

I can't believe it is done! And to correct so many problems with one trade? Wow. Now I can't wait for next season!

Also, you can't say that bottom 6 forward group is not significantly better than last year's. I think top to bottom this is a much better hockey team. And to read through this thread, I think there is still some work to be done. What an exciting off season for a change!

[Three Stars]

There’s a lot of “what happens if Karlsson regresses to only a 70 point player?” out there.

You know what would happen? We’d be thrilled. How many 70 point defensemen do we have otherwise? Mayyyybe one?

Phil Kessel’s first regular season here was very much not a success, with only 59 points in 82 games. Anybody want to complain about the end result?

[Coffey Break]

The most underrated aspect of this trade is the impact to Sid and Geno in their twilight years. I, like many of the folks on the board, see it as a pipedream for both 87 and 71 to lace up for a full 82 games at their age. But man, by ensuring Letang or EK65 are on the ice anytime Geno and Sid are on (in addition to what I presume a much improved PP) - I can see 87/71 both put up monster numbers the next 2 years. It's gonna be a fun team to watch again, finally.

[FLPensFan]

Gentille and Goldman of The Athletic each gave the Pens an A+ on the trade. The Pens dumped their garbage by wrapping a bow around it in the form of a 1st round pick. The major risk is Karlsson’s health, because otherwise the massive benefit is that this is is situation that fits EK and the team perfectly.

Montreal got an A- and B+ respectively. Petry is likely to be flipped.

Sam Jose got a C and a C-. The Sharks shot themselves in the foot by not getting more for retention.

Yeah, and the SJ fans on The Athletic are indulging in serious copium and trying to say they deserved a B/B+ for the deal.

I'm not saying Karlsson's contract isn't huge and a major issue on moving him anywhere(it is) or that he can play decent defense(he can't) or that he doesn't have a concerning injury history(he does) but he still has all the offense that he brought in 2015 and 2016 and is unmatched by anyone else. Generational, elite offense. To get a return that includes the poison pill of Granlund's contract for 2 yrs gets you a "C' at best for starters and the 1st rounder that isn't going to be top 10....C- is probably generous. What they are going to do with Hoffman who is in real decline is a mystery, Ruutu might get them a 3rd rounder at the deadline, maybe a 2nd if he doesn't have to play with Vlasic this season.

The only reason Grier doesn't get a D or an F on this deal is because he cleared cap space and retained much less than many expected.

Otherwise, he got a mid-round 1st and 3 aging roster fillers.

[dark_forces]

FLP we still need to make another trade no? I mean Pitlick can play 4C and move Acari up to 3RW so fixes Granlund leaving. Need to fill Jake spot. Also only have 21 on roster so need to more bodies with not much cap space.

I don't think so, but someone will be along to confirm soon enough.

- The minimum roster size is 20 players, of which 18 skaters and 2 goalies. So that's not an issue.
- Capfriendly has us 79K over in the meantime and that's a problem.
- Even if Guentzel goes on LTIR right after the season starts, we'd get that 79K cap relief if we're not under by then, not 6M.
- Waiving Ruhwedel has us at 20 players and cap compliant. Then Guentzel's LTIR relief is 6M and we can bring up extra bodies.

The fun part is 'when everyone's healthy' we'd be 79K over the cap. Not sure that's a big deal during the season.

Trying to remember the players hextall signed or traded for that are still here. I’m coming up withCarter, Rakell and Smith.

Anyone else?

What a wipe out.

Friedman, but he's down in WBS.

Baring any other injuries, here's what I would expect our cap compliant roster to look like:

Guentzel-Crosby-Rakell
Smith-Malkin-Rust
DOC-Eller-Nylander
Nieto-Acciari-Carter

Graves-Letang
MP-EK
POJ-Smith

Jarry
Ned

That mean's they'll waive Ruhwedel to get under the cap. Then once that roster is submitted, they'll place Guentzel on LTIR, recall one of Ruhwedel, Friedman or Butcher, and two of Johnsson, Hinostroza, Zohorna, Poulin, or Puustinen.

Once Jake goes on LTIR, I'd expect that either DOC goes with Crosby and Rakell, or Crosby gets Smith and Malkin gets one of DOC or Nylander.

Where would Rem Pitlick fit into this roster configuration? I'd figure he makes it—even if it's as the 13th forward.

[FLPensFan]

I was a little surprised Dubas didn't hold a presser today on this. Guessing we'll get something tomorrow maybe?

Grier did hold a press conference about an hour ago. Some things he said, based on what I am reading on the internet:

--In the end, only 2 teams were serious on Karlsson.
--Says several other teams asked SJ to retain much more salary on Karlsson, which is something he didn't want to do.
--Said he was NOT close to a deal with Pittsburgh on July 1st.
--On Dubas pursuit of the trade: "Kyle's been pretty upfront and aggressive for the last couple months."
--Finally, he did say that SJ had strong interest in Tarasenko with the anticipated loss of Karlsson's offense, and thinks Hoffman can help fill that void.

[FLPensFan]

FLP we still need to make another trade no? I mean Pitlick can play 4C and move Acari up to 3RW so fixes Granlund leaving. Need to fill Jake spot. Also only have 21 on roster so need to more bodies with not much cap space.

I don't think so, but someone will be along to confirm soon enough.

- The minimum roster size is 20 players, of which 18 skaters and 2 goalies. So that's not an issue.
- Capfriendly has us 79K over in the meantime and that's a problem.
- Even if Guentzel goes on LTIR right after the season starts, we'd get that 79K cap relief if we're not under by then, not 6M.
- Waiving Ruhwedel has us at 20 players and cap compliant. Then Guentzel's LTIR relief is 6M and we can bring up extra bodies.

The fun part is 'when everyone's healthy' we'd be 79K over the cap. Not sure that's a big deal during the season.

Trying to remember the players hextall signed or traded for that are still here. I’m coming up withCarter, Rakell and Smith.

Anyone else?

What a wipe out.

Friedman, but he's down in WBS.

Baring any other injuries, here's what I would expect our cap compliant roster to look like:

Guentzel-Crosby-Rakell
Smith-Malkin-Rust
DOC-Eller-Nylander
Nieto-Acciari-Carter

Graves-Letang
MP-EK
POJ-Smith

Jarry
Ned

That mean's they'll waive Ruhwedel to get under the cap. Then once that roster is submitted, they'll place Guentzel on LTIR, recall one of Ruhwedel, Friedman or Butcher, and two of Johnsson, Hinostroza, Zohorna, Poulin, or Puustinen.

Once Jake goes on LTIR, I'd expect that either DOC goes with Crosby and Rakell, or Crosby gets Smith and Malkin gets one of DOC or Nylander.

Where would Rem Pitlick fit into this roster configuration? I'd figure he makes it—even if it's as the 13th forward.

Yeah, I forgot about him. Although he is listed as playing all 3 positions, he's taken less than 200 faceoffs over the last 3 years, so I doubt he's going to be used much at center unless it is an emergency situation.

I wouldn't doubt either if Nylander is waived over Ruhwedel to get compliant. I've seen some configurations with Carter as 4C and Acciari as the 3rd RW. In that case, DOC-Eller-Acciari and Nieto-Carter-Pitlick could be your bottom 6. We still don't know if Johnsson or Hinostroza will make a solid showing and force their way into the conversation.

[Skatingpen]

There’s a lot of “what happens if Karlsson regresses to only a 70 point player?” out there.

You know what would happen? We’d be thrilled. How many 70 point defensemen do we have otherwise? Mayyyybe one?

Phil Kessel’s first regular season here was very much not a success, with only 59 points in 82 games. Anybody want to complain about the end result?

To be fair, Karlsson had not scored more than 45 points in his previous four seasons prior to this past one. He also has battled so many injuries. This is not a risk free acquisition.