Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are in win right now mode. They have Evgeni Malkin under contract for two more years and they need to capitalize on that windown. Malkin and Sidney Crosby are in their mid-30s and while they are still excellent, their best days are definitely behind them.
If the Pens are going to win another Stanley Cup in the next dozen years, it’s going to have to be in 2021 or 2022 because there will be some tough rebuilding years once Malkin and Crosby are gone. So, they are obviously looking to buy.
The Flames are also looking to buy thought, which once again makes it difficult to find a trade match here. Both teams want to add, and both have too many left defencemen and not enough right defenceman.
One thing the Penguins do have is too many goaltenders. The Flames will probably test the free agent market to try and get a proven number one without trading away any assets. But if that doesn’t work out, or if guys like Robin Lehner and Jacob Markstrom don’t want to come to Calgary, the Flames could circle back to the Pens.
Matt Murray has a pair of Stanley Cup wins on his resume but struggled more recently. Could he regain his early career form with the Flames? It would be worth a gamble if nothing materializes in free agency.