Impending Penguins fire sale puts Bryan Rust one step closer to becoming a Maple Leaf

With the Pittsburgh Penguins reportedly on the verge of making big changes, the Toronto Maple Leafs could finally have a pathway to acquiring Bryan Rust.

There's been a lot of discussion about the Maple Leafs' trade situation as of late. While they would love to make a move, they also have to abide by the rules and unless there's a money in - money out type of situation, they may be out of luck.

They would love to add a bit more reliability up front, and there's certainly some great scoring options but the Maple Leafs need a little more to push them past the rest of the competition and field a dangerous four lines.

Pittsburgh's lost season could lead to a fire sale for the Penguins

Things may look difficult for them however thanks to their old GM they may have a perfect opportunity per a report from Dan Kingerski of PGH Hockey Now:

Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas is reportedly ready to sell.

The Penguins trade chatter boiled over Friday following multiple tepid reports, preceded by Sportsnet reporter Elliotte Friedman's detailed report on Fan 590 in Toronto on what comes next for the forlorn Penguins, who have tailspun after starting the season 2-0.

The trades could happen, “pretty quickly,” according to Friedman.

Yikes, it's a rough bit of news if you're a Penguins fan, especially with the old trio of Crosby, Malkin and Letang all near the end of their careers. Though it would be hard to see any of them leave, there are other names who could be on the outs.

That leads the Maple Leafs right to the player they need - Bryan Rust.

Sidney Crosby's right-hand man is Toronto's next trade target

Rust, 34, is currently on the IR with a lower-body injury but has seven points in seven games this season for the Penguins. He'd had seven-straight 20+ goal seasons and consistently one of the most reliable support scorers in the NHL.

Granted he did get to play with Sidney Crosby a lot, but even then it just let his natural talent shine through even more. Add into the fact that he's fairly physical and isn't afraid to stick up for his teammates - it's an x-factor Toronto needs.

But here comes the issue that always seems to impede John Chayka whenever he wants to make a move: Tagging rules.

Rust is not a pending free agent, so any hopes of bringing him in means money needs to go out. If Pittsburgh is going to want flexibility to make moves, then Kyle Dubas could take on Max Domi's deal along with a second or third-round pick and a prospect.

That gives him money to work with as Domi might never play again, Rust has no protection, he gets future assets for a rebuilding team, and he's someone intimately in tune with the Maple Leafs prospect system - he can find his diamond in the rough.

Rust's contract ($5.125M) won't hurt Toronto financially, especially if they are looking to move on from Domi, and other names like Dakota Joshua or Oliver Ekman-Larsson who are veterans who may be moved at some point this season.

Adding a 20+ goal-scorer would entice anyone, but for Toronto who needs as much firepower in a stacked division - their former front office leader holds the key.

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