Thin NHL Trade Market Will Only Help The Pittsburgh Penguins

Big trades at the beginning of an NHL season are already uncommon, but this fall already stands out.

After the first seven months of 2025 saw Mikko Rantanen, Mitch Marner, Nikolaj Ehlers, Brad Marchand and Noah Dobson switch teams, there aren’t many notable names available to acquire as the 2025-26 season nears.

That means the Pittsburgh Penguins – which have the third-worst odds of winning the Stanley Cup, according to BetMGM – are in an excellent position, in a sellerâ€s market, to reap the rewards of moving some veterans as they focus on the future.

The most likely Penguins veterans to be dealt are a pair of right wingers – Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell – who have affordable cap hits for most teams and could fetch a large return. So whether the Penguins trade them soon or later, this thin NHL trade market will only help the team

Rust, 33, doesn’t have any trade protection in his contract, and he had a career-high 31 goals and 65 points last season. Rakell, 32, only has an eight-team no-trade clause, which means there are still 23 teams Penguins GM Kyle Dubas can trade Rakell to without getting his permission. The right winger also had a career-high 35 goals and 70 points last year.

Given that Rust is signed for $5.125 million per year and Rakell carries a $5-million cap hit, at a time when the cap ceiling will rise until further notice, Dubas will continue to be one of the most popular GMs on the trade front.

Rakell and Rust are under contract for two seasons after this one, making them cost-controlled, highly valuable assets.

NHL’s Biggest Trade Bait With 2025-26 Season Almost Here
It is an exciting time for hockey fans with the new season approaching. Soon, NHL teams will be back to playing regular-season hockey, as it officially begins Oct. 7. 

Look around the rest of the NHL, and youâ€ll see there are very few players of their caliber presumed to be available via trade. Calgary Flames veteran defenseman Rasmus Andersson is the exception. So too could be Nashville Predators right winger Jonathan Marchessault, but GM Barry Trotz dismissed those rumors in June, and Marchessault has four years left on his deal at $5.5 million per year, making him harder to move.

Other than that, thereâ€s a clear dearth of high-end talent available. So the price for Rakell and Rust will continue to be sky-high, and teams may not be willing to meet the asking prices for them – at least, right now.

Once the season begins and holes start to open up for organizations, youâ€re going to get more GMs who are willing to pay the price GMs like Dubas are asking to acquire in return for those players. But if the Penguins have a strong start to the season, it might be even tougher for teams to pry Rust or Rakell away from Pittsburgh.

Report: Price For Penguins’ Top Winger ‘Especially High’
With few intriguing forward pieces remaining on the free agent market, many teams are turning to the RFA market and the trade market to upgrade their top-six.

Thereâ€s nothing wrong with GMs who have movable pieces waiting to trade them until weeks and months down the line. Teams like the Penguins, Flames and Predators can bide their time before someone comes across with a high-end package of draft picks and prospects to help them with their respective rebuilds. Nobody is forcing them to make those moves right now, so patience will be a virtue for teams with veterans who can be difference-makers.

If the Pens, Preds or Flames shock the NHL and come out of the gate very strongly, it will be easier to keep their veteran players around at least until the trade deadline. But at present, the future of some veterans is going to be cloudy for the short term. The GMs who control the future of those players are going to wait for the most opportune time to move them.

So, donâ€t hold your breath that teams will make notable trades anytime soon. For several reasons, teams are reluctant to make major deals at this stage of the hockey calendar. The lack of available talent will also make the price for the players who are available extremely costly. 

But if some ambitious team does convince one of those clubs to trade those players now, it will be massive news in the NHL.

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