The Penguins are facing their most important offseason in a long time. The team is coming off a first-round flameout and the clock is ticking on its aging stars. There are some whispers that they are going to make some big changes this offseason and maybe even trade one or two of their big names.
The latest trial balloon to be floated out there seems to be the idea that they should/will trade Evgeni Malkin. This isn’t just “Joe from Blawnox” talk-show banter, either; those who cover the team have also confirmed it is something that is, at the very least, being contemplated.
Forget for a moment that Malkin has a full no-trade clause which means he would have to approve any deal and that would probably hurt his value on the open market. I’m sure he’d give the Penguins a list of teams he’d be interested in moving to, and I’d be shocked if there were more than four or five teams on it. It becomes a buyer’s market at that point, and that means the Penguins would likely have to take less in the deal than they should to make it work.
But let’s go with the idea of trading Malkin. Let’s pretend the Penguins find the right deal and Malkin agrees to it and the Penguins pull the trigger and trade him for whatever the market price is.
If that were to happen, the Penguins’ next moves should be to trade Phil Kessel, Kris Letang, Patric Hornqvist and then pray some general manager somewhere is dumb enough to take Jack Johnson and his contract off their hands, too.
That — essentially tearing it down and remaking the team — is the only way a trade of Malkin would make sense. This is not something the Penguins should do if they aren’t going to follow through and finish the job. Malkin is one of the cornerstone players, one of the players that defines this era and one of the players that has enabled the Penguins to play the way they have for as long as they have.
If you are going to move on from a player like that, then it is time to just remake the roster and do things differently. If the Penguins’ front office wants change, then actually change. Don’t do it halfway and don’t do it in a way that leaves a splintered team. Don’t put half of a roster of guys who still think they can win a Stanley Cup with another half of rebuilding parts.
Either rebuild or reload and go for it 2019-20. That’s the approach the Penguins need to take, and I am not sure which way is right — that’s for the front office to figure out — but I do know the wrong way would be to trade one of your two biggest stars and then act like you are still trying to win the Stanley Cup.
A trade of Kessel, by the way, is different from a trade of Malkin. Kessel feels like a player who needs to move on. He had a great run here, but he has probably hit his expiration date. And while he has a skill that is important — he can score goals — a trade of him wouldn’t change the DNA of the team.
The Penguins could find another wing or two to score goals; they can’t find a center capable of doing the things that Malkin does. Yes, he is frustrating at times and his propensity for making mistakes, turning the puck over and taking idiotic penalties were a part of the Penguins’ struggles this year.
But he is still one of the absolute best players in the NHL. He probably isn’t in the top five any more, but he is still somewhere in the top 10 and those players are not easy to come by. If the Penguins trade him they are not going to get anyone close to him in return.
I would say the same thing about Letang. He is one of the best defensemen in the league. Letang can be frustrating at times, but he is so unique in his skill set and so valuable that the Penguins wouldn’t be able to trade him and get close to equal value in return.
That’s why the Penguins’ front office needs to think long and hard about their approach this offseason. They have a team that obviously needs some work in order to get back to contention for the Stanley Cup. They need to add some players and perhaps even change their style a little bit to match their diminished speed.
They could do that and take another run, but they won’t be able to make another run if they trade Malkin. And that’s why if they do trade Malkin, they need to blow it up and essentially start the rebuilding process now. The Penguins, built around an aging Sidney Crosby, could recover quickly and maybe contend in a year or two, but the only way that can happen is if they remake themselves.
First Published: April 30, 2019, 6:41 p.m.
