Pittsburgh is (already) open to the idea of trading Erik Karlsson

There were two cases this summer that caused a stir in the NHL.

That of Pierre-Luc Dubois, who was finally traded to the Los Angeles Kings…

And Erik Karlsson, who is now a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins organization.

Without recalling all the details, we recall that Kyle Dubas worked very hard to bring the recent Norris Trophy winner to Pittsburgh. His reasoning was simple: Dubas wanted to allow Crosby, Malkin and Letang to get some help in their bid for one last Stanley Cup.

How’s it going so far? Badly.

It’s bad enough that Pittsburgh is starting to talk about the possibility of Karlsson being traded again.

At least, that’s what Dan Kingerski, who covers the team for Pittsburgh Hockey Now and previously worked for NHL Sirius XM, reported:

It looks like the Penguins might actually trade Erik Karlsson. He’s in it to win it, and if that doesn’t happen, the two parties could part quickly and amicably. –Dan Kingerski

Originally, many questioned Dubas’ decision because there didn’t seem to be an obvious “fit” for Karlsson in Pittsburgh, when the Penguins could already count on the services of an excellent right-handed defenseman in Kristopher Letang.

The thing about Erik Karlsson is that he’s great when asked to be the club’s first option. He never had the success he’d hoped for behind Brent Burns in San Jose… And things changed drastically when Burns was traded by the Sharks.

Karlsson is currently in the fifth year of an eight-year contract he signed in 2019. The deal, which runs until the end of the 26-27 season, is worth $11.5 million annually…

Kyle Dubas will certainly have his work cut out for him if he wants to trade his defenseman.

But all in all, just the fact that there’s already talk of trading him to Pittsburgh is frankly ridiculous.

He only played 30 games (22 points) with the Penguins, after all.

In gusto

– Great news for the Rocket.

– The Montreal CF 2024 schedule is out.

– It’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Get out your pennies pic.twitter.com/ooMLlGDYHC

– DansLesCoulisses (@DLCoulisses) December 20, 2023

– The coaches

Will the NHL coaching carousel ever slow down? It’s been a crazy eight months, and it may not be over. My latest for@TheAthletic https://t.co/qJ4pdl3e0I

– Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) December 20, 2023

– His equipment is magnificent.

Hey Jacob pic.twitter.com/V47CvdxFgt

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) December 20, 2023