The Pittsburgh Penguins are rebuilding, whether they use that word or not. But dominos are falling, which raise the possibility that rebuilding can be accelerated, perhaps within the time frame of Sidney Crosby’s remaining tenure. (However long that is.
He’s the best 37-year-old ever.) The Penguins keep stockpiling draft choices, most recently getting a first-round selection in the trade that sent Marcus Pettersson and Drew O’Connor to Vancouver. (That’s great return.
Ex-Penguins GM Jim Rutherford runs the Canucks, he’d just gotten that pick from the New York Rangers in the deal that sent J.T. Miller to the Rangers, and it was burning a hole in his pocket.
) The Penguins have 29 picks in the next three NHL drafts. That includes four in the first round, four in the second round and seven in the third round. The NHL salary cap is going up: From $88 million this season to $95.
5 million next season to $104 million in 2026-27 to $113.5 million in 2027-28. That’s an increase of $22.
5 million in three years, about 30%. Crosby becomes an even bigger bargain at his $8.7 million cap hit.
So do Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang at $6.1 million. (Erik Karlsson at $11.
5 million is still a burden.) The Penguins figure to have about $30 million in cap space available this coming offseason, and with zero players of significance to re-up. A few prospects could be ready for NHL duty, like forwards Ville Koivunen, Vasily Ponomarev and Rutger McGroarty.
Defenseman Owen Pickering will be b.
