Penguins Trade: Stockpiling Picks, Helping St. Louis RFA Offersheet

PITTSBURGH — This article originally appeared on PittsburghHockeyNOW.com.

The Pittsburgh Penguins made what seemed like a small trade with the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday involving draft picks.

That’s the quick headline. The real story goes a bit deeper and is indicative of each team’s rebuilding strategy. The Penguins acquired St. Louis’s 2025 second-round pick at the NHL Draft last month. In exchange for accepting Kevin Hayes and his $3.5 million salary in each of the next two seasons, St. Louis included their 2025 second-round pick.

The trade Tuesday was just part of a larger move and some wheeling-and-dealing by St. Louis president of hockey operations/GM Doug Armstrong. St. Louis needed their 2025 pick back so that they could offer sheet a pair of the Edmonton Oilers’ restricted free agents, Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway.

Penguins president of hockey operations/GM Kyle Dubas used St. Louis’s need for the pick to add to the Penguins’ growing stockpile of picks. The Penguins trade was a re-do of the draft-day deal, but this time, Dubas charged a premium.

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