Crosby and Letang Ignite Penguins Quest to Land Erik Karlsson
It's no secret by now that Pittsburgh is one of Erik Karlsson's preferred trade destinations. The veteran defenseman has made it clear that he will only go to a team that he wants to, with the two frontrunners heavily rumored to be Pittsburgh and Carolina.
Crosby and Letang Chime in
Rob Rossi of The Athletic has reported that longtime Penguins superstars Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang are all for Pittsburgh acquiring Karlsson via trade.
What's interesting here is that Letang wouldn't be willing to give up his spot on the top pairing to do so. Karlsson led all defensemen in points last season and won the Norris Trophy which is awarded annually to the NHL's best defenseman. We get that Letang wouldn't want to lose his ice time and be dethroned as Pittsburgh's top defender, but he should reconsider if it helps Pittsburgh's chances at a Stanley Cup win.
Mock Trade
While this trade is a tricky one to figure out, hence why it's taking so long, we figured we'd take a stab at a mock trade.
San Jose Receives: Jeff Petry, Casey DeSmith, Samuel Poulin, P.O Joseph, Emil Jarventie, 2024 1st Round Pick, 2026 2nd Round Pick
While it's quite the haul of assets to give up, Pittsburgh would be receiving Erik Karlsson with a cap hit of just $6,519,758 annually for the remainder of his deal.
While we know San Jose doesn't want to retain this much money on Karlsson's deal, they'd be getting back multiple draft picks, two young NHLers, a prospect, a proven NHL defenseman, and a very good backup goalie.
While this is just a mock trade, it's fun to think about.
As Seen on The Athletic
| POLL | ||
Who would win this mock trade? | ||
| San Jose | 226 | 31.8 % |
| Pittsburgh | 329 | 46.3 % |
| Fair Deal | 155 | 21.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
