{"id":905671,"date":"2026-07-01T15:09:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T15:09:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/905671\/"},"modified":"2026-07-01T15:09:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T15:09:13","slug":"penguins-free-agent-primer-trade-confusion-potential-targets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/905671\/","title":{"rendered":"Penguins Free Agent Primer: Trade Confusion & Potential Targets"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pittsburgh Penguins and general manager Kyle Dubas<\/a> tried to be active on the NHL trade block at the NHL Draft on June 26 and 27, but instead came away with a pair of twins and a couple of interesting prospects. <\/p>\n

The Penguins\u2019 trades<\/a> didn\u2019t begin until Monday, when they dealt depth defenseman Jack St. Ivany to the Winnipeg Jets for large depth center Michael Gustafsson, followed by Tuesday\u2019s awkward deal in which Dubas traded away the team\u2019s top-pairing left-side defenseman Parker Wotherspoon for younger third-pairing righty Kaedan Koczak. <\/p>\n

At the stroke of noon on Wednesday, the NHL Free Agent Frenzy begins, and the NHL has warned teams that they cannot speak to the unrestricted free agents until then\u2013hoping to avoid obvious infringements of years past when many of the UFAs were spoken for by noon. <\/p>\n

However, the salary cap spike this season, followed by spikes over the next two seasons, will push the cap beyond $114 million, and formerly cap-strapped teams have almost unanimously locked down their star players. The free agent crop is not flush with talent. <\/p>\n

As Sportsnet\u2019s Elliotte Friedman duly noted at the NHL Draft Saturday, the biggest movement will likely come via trades. <\/p>\n

So, the first important factor for the Penguins is their salary cap space: $35.958 million. They have enough to do as they please. <\/p>\n

The second important factor is the overstocked, understocked, and imbalanced roster. <\/p>\n

Penguins Roster Needs<\/p>\n

After acquiring Koczak on Tuesday and eating $500,000 of Parker Wotherspoon\u2019s salary in the process, they still have plenty of coin to spend, but it would seem Dubas has opened spaces on the left side of the Penguins\u2019 blue line. Indeed, the only regular now expected to return is Sam Girard. The others under contract are prospects and part-timers, including Owen Pickering<\/a>, Jake Livanavage, Caleb Jones, Ryan Graves, and Ilya Solovyov. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s not a bumper crop of lefties for a team hoping to take a step forward. Prospects Pickering and Livanavage may become solid NHL\u2019ers, but even if one of them claimed a role in training camp, it would likely be toward the bottom of the depth chart, leaving that all-important spot beside Erik Karlsson wide open without a natural fix. <\/p>\n

Up front, the Penguins also have 12 forwards on the roster, including unsigned RFAs Egor Chinakhov and Hendrix Lapierre. Confusingly, it would appear there remains no space for the Penguins\u2019 prospects, but their inclusion in camp battles already creates an overloaded competition for bottom-six roles that would otherwise seem to be filled. <\/p>\n

Notably, Dubas laughed off spending money on July 1, indicating it might be a quiet day because he learned from his mistakes\u2013presumably an acknowledgment of inking Ryan Graves and Tristan Jarry to long-term deals in his first days on the job on July 1, 2023. <\/p>\n

So, the Penguins need a stable left-handed defenseman to play with Karlsson. It wouldn\u2019t hurt to have one to play with Kris Letang, freeing the team from the wild ride that becomes Girard-Letang, and letting Girard be the dominant defenseman on a separate pairing. <\/p>\n

The Penguins do not need any more bottom-six forwards, though Dubas is likely to sign a few who are keen to prove they can be more. We\u2019ll call that the Justin Brazeau scholarship. <\/p>\n

Free Agent Departures<\/p>\n

The players on their way out are:<\/p>\n

Forwards: Kevin Hayes, Noel Acciari, Anthony Mantha. On the depth level: Joona Koppanen, Boko Imama, Rafael Harvey-Pinard<\/p>\n

Defensemen: Ryan Shea, Connor Clifton, Sebastian Aho.<\/p>\n

Goalie: Stuart Skinner.<\/p>\n

Potential Penguins Targets<\/p>\n

To circle targets, it would help to know more about Dubas\u2019s intentions for the coming season. Right now, it seems Dubas is caught between a rebuild and moving forward. In the absence of being able to close a trade for an elite player in his mid to later 20s, such as Jason Robertson, will Dubas spend more than he planned on July 1?<\/p>\n

Or will the Penguins add more under-the-radar players and those who have been relegated to the shadows elsewhere, hoping to find more diamonds in the rough, much like Wotherspoon?<\/p>\n

One thing to note about the Penguins\u2019 free agent signings is that advanced analytics typically play a big role. Traditionally, Dubas signs a few players who break the analytics mold, such as Noel Acciari, but not many.<\/p>\n

Need: LHD<\/p>\n

There are only 50 free agent defensemen from which to choose. The pickins are slim. <\/p>\n

Potential Targets<\/strong>: Ville Heinola (Winnipeg Jets), Donovan Sebrango (Florida Panthers), Adam Boqvist (New York Islanders), and Declan Carlile (Tampa Bay Lightning). <\/p>\n

Of the under-30 set on the market, Carlile looks like a very intriguing option and one that screams \u201cKyle Dubas!\u201d Carlile was an undrafted free agent who signed with the Tampa Bay organization in 2022, but worked his way upward in the Syracuse Crunch lineup, becoming a pillar there, before getting more NHL ice this season as the Tampa Bay defense was in tatters. Carlile played well and was invited to play for Team USA at the Worlds.<\/p>\n

Carlile, 26, is a steady, reliable defender with good feet\u2013exactly what the Penguins should be looking for, and they should have the runway for him, too. He\u2019s got the size (6-foot-3, 192 pounds) and likes to play tight gaps. <\/p>\n

Heinola, 25, has been on our watch list all season as he failed to crack the Winnipeg Jets lineup. He\u2019s a zippy albeit light defender (6-foot, 181 pounds), with offensive instincts and production at the AHL level (104 points in 152 games), but in limited NHL action has only 12 points in 58 games. <\/p>\n

Sebrango, 25, showed potential with Florida. Venerable colleague George Richards of Florida Hockey Now expressed surprise that Florida did not tender him a qualifying offer. He\u2019s a big boy at 6-foot-3, 223 pounds, but he can skate well and move the puck. He even knows how to drop the gloves. Sebrango would also be very much in keeping with Dubas\u2019s effort to find young talent that can stick around. We really like this option, too. <\/p>\n

Boqvist would be a gamble. He\u2019s a small offensive defenseman who hasn\u2019t yet been in an offensive role after being the Chicago Blackhawks first-round pick in 2018 (eighth overall). If the Penguins expect Koczak to be third pairing right-sider, a puck-moving, play-pushing D-man like Boqvist could make sense. <\/p>\n

Need: Middle Six Insurance<\/p>\n

The Penguins\u2019 wingers are set, but one trade or one injury to a top winger such as Bryan Rust or Rickard Rakell could upset the natural balance. As surprising as Elmer Soderblom was after the Penguins acquired him from Detroit, he is, at best, a third-liner capable of good puck possession but not much offensive game. <\/p>\n

Unfortunately for the Penguins, there isn\u2019t a 40-point scorer under 30 on the market. That\u2019s how depleted the 2026 UFA class has become. <\/p>\n

Potential Targets<\/strong>: Jack Roslovic (Edmonton Oilers), Michael Bunting (Dallas Stars), Pavol Regenda (San Jose Sharks), Carter Mazur (Detroit Red Wings). <\/p>\n

Roslovic, 29, is a center who can score goals. He consistently pots 20 or more goals, but fewer assists. If Dubas expects to lose a forward from last year\u2019s top-nine crew, especially a center, Roslovic might be the only safe option on the market. <\/p>\n

Mazur, 24, is an interesting player who has battled injuries over the last two seasons. Detroit did not qualify him, though reports indicated the sides were still talking. He is a crash-bang winger who can put the puck in the net\u2013and a former teammate of Penguins prospect Tristan Broz at the University of Denver. In his only AHL season, Mazur had 17 goals and 37 points in 60 games. He has missed most of the last two seasons due to injury, playing in only eight NHL games last season and 20 AHL games in 2024-25 (and one NHL game). <\/p>\n

This is a great buy-low opportunity, and the Penguins should have a book on him from his time at Denver.<\/p>\n

Regenda, 26, earned an NHL contract after a big performance at the 2022 Winter Olympics. The Slovakian forward is a power forward who can skate well. Last season, Regenda posted the unique stat line of nine goals and one assist in 24 games with San Jose, but his opportunity was limited as San Jose\u2019s roster is full of more talented players. At 6-foot-4, 212 pounds, he would be an interesting project to complete.<\/p>\n

The underpinnings of the Penguins\u2019 recent free agent signings have been analytics and size. Players such as Regenda, Sebrango, and Carlile would fit the size requirement. Another note would be the Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton Penguins roster. Despite a long playoff run, they are set to lose some of their key pieces without replacements. The Penguins\u2019 large 2025 draft class won\u2019t be eligible to join WBS for a year or two, so there is currently a gap of prospects. Dubas could again overstuff his training camp roster and demote borderline players. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags: carter mazur<\/a> declan carlile<\/a> kyle dubas<\/a> Nhl free agents<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> Ville Heinola<\/a> <\/p>\n

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