Trade Market Swings to Penguins; Org Likes Goalie Prospect

The logjam among the Pittsburgh Penguins goaltenders has become the best-case scenario. As the NHL trade market rumors shift from the drama in Vancouver and implosion in New York toward goaltending, that situation may become the best-case scenario for the Penguins, too.

Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas and Jason Spezza, the AGM, and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton GM, have loaded the organization with goaltending, and it might be about time to cash in to further the retool.

The trade market is looking for what the Penguins have. The question is whether the market agrees.

Working from the bottom up, the unexpected summer arrival of d      goalie Sergei Murashov from Russia added another prospect to the pool, and Murashov has delivered to an extraordinary level. He hasn’t lost a start since Nov. 1 and is 14-2-0 with a .924 save percentage. Murashov has taken the net from fellow prospect Taylor Gauthier, who is the reigning ECHL goalie of the year.

Either could or should be in the AHL.

However, the AHL is full-up goalies Filip Larsson and Joel Blomqvist. Despite Blomqvist’s dominance last season, Larsson has outplayed him this season. Each has 11 starts, and Larsson has a 6-3-1 record with a .932 save percentage, while Blomqvist is at .905 in the AHL.

More importantly, Blomqvist acquitted himself quite well in eight appearances at the NHL level early in the season. While the Pittsburgh Penguins wallowed in disarray throughout October and part of November, Blomqvist made eight appearances with a .904 save percentage—nearly 20 points better than either Penguins goalie.

Getting to the top of the depth chart, Penguins goalies Tristan Jarry and Alex Nedeljkovic have risen from difficult starts; Jarry needed a conditioning assignment in the AHL to reboot his game.

Since returning from the AHL, Jarry has posted a mediocre .894 save percentage, but that is an improvement from his previous work.

Nedeljkovic has an .888 save percentage this season.

However, the statistics behind the Penguins’ sometimes defensively unreliable defense are less important than the eye test. And the eye tests show the Penguins’ NHL goalies have been solid.

The Penguins could easily trade a goalie at the NHL level. The biggest decision would be which goalies get to level up.

PHN can confirm the obvious: the Penguins organization really likes Murashov. They really, really like Murashov. From Dubas to Spezza, they’ve spoken about Murashov with a mix of amazement and satisfaction. His unbeaten streak has management all but salivating at the possibilities.

Here’s where it gets interesting because the depth gives Dubas will have more options. Could the Penguins move one of their AHL goalies as a prospect in part of a larger deal for another younger player?

At the NHL level, teams such as the Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators are on the market looking for goalies, and it appears that John Gibson’s stock has dropped after a few years of languishing in Anaheim.

In Ottawa, Linus Ullmark has suffered an injury with an unspecified timetable. Edmonton’s duo of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard leaves a bit to be desired.

The currently available goalies aren’t much. Cayden Primeau, Alexander Georgiev, and Vitek Vanecek are on the list after Gibson. So, it stands to reason the Penguins’ goalies are a bit more valuable.

Jarry likely remains untradeable because of his contract. His numbers still don’t equal his salary, which is $5.375 million, and he has three more seasons beyond this one.

However, Nedeljkovic is on an affordable two-year, $5 million contract. His scrappy play and puck-stopping, which surpass his salary, could make him an attractive candidate, especially compared to the others on the trade block.

As much as Nedeljkovic provides for the Penguins, especially in terms of competition for Jarry and a certain spunky attitude, it’s not irreplaceable. A trade of any of the top four goalies would have a dual purpose because it would bring an asset and clear the path for Murashov.

Now might be the best time to move before better options become available, too. For the moment, the trade market seems to be coming to the Penguins.