Friedman Names Teams Interested in Jake Guentzel; Penguins Goalies, Too

It might be more of a confirmation of common sense. During the Headlines segment of Hockey Night in Canada, Sportsnet and HNIC reporter Elliotte Friedman rattled off a handful of teams interested in Penguins winger Jake Guentzel. He also confirmed that teams believe a Penguins’ goalie will be available on the NHL trade block, too.

Pittsburgh Hockey Now included goalies in the Penguins trade analysis multiple times, including earlier this week, that Alex Nedeljkovic could be president of hockey operations/GM Kyle Dubas’s most accessible trade chip. Friedman seemed to concur that one of the Penguins goalies could be on the move.

“One position I do think people have started to ask about, and the Penguins will consider, is (goalie),” Friedman said. “They’ve got (Tristan) Jarry and Nedeljkovic at the NHL level. They’ve got a really good prospect, Joel Blomqvist, who’s having a good year in the American Hockey League. And a couple of teams have suggested to me that you could add to the list of the goalies who could be moved — one of the goalies in Pittsburgh.”

You can watch the full Headline Segment here.

The Penguins signed Jarry to a five-year deal on July 1 with a $5.375 million average annual value. He’s seventh in the NHL with a .916 save percentage.

Nedeljkovic is on a one-year deal worth $1.5 million. In 19 appearances, the Penguins backup has a .915 save percentage.

Jake Guentzel Trade Talk

The million-dollar question surrounding the Penguins and the coming March 8 NHL trade deadline is Guentzel’s future. Dubas attempted to be vague during his press conference on Wednesday, but his tone led many to conclude a trade or letting him leave via free agency this summer were the more likely results.

Dubas circled the team’s performance for the next two weeks as the ultimate deciding factor. Saturday, Friedman listed several potential suitors, including the Vegas Golden Knights.

“After they lost to LA last week in the great (Jaromir) Jagr retirement ceremony night, I think talk really intensified around the Penguins. Obviously the big name is Jake Guentzel. Everybody is really interested in him,” said Friedman. “I think some of the teams that have expressed interest are Vegas, Vancouver, Edmonton, Carolina, Florida.”

The Vegas Golden Knights have lost five of their last six games including a shootout loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night. Injuries have decimated their lineup, including significant injuries to captain Mark Stone and center Jack Eichel.

Friedman also signaled activity for former Penguins GM and current Vancouver Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford:

“Jim Rutherford has been at this for a long time. They think they can win. There’s a lot of things he could try to do.”