It appears Erik Karlsson’s future is with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun reports Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas has no intention of moving the veteran defenceman this off-season.
While Karlsson remains signed through next year at a cap hit of $10 million, he is owed a $6 million signing bonus on July 1 of this year and just $1.5 million in remaining salary beyond that.
The 35-year-old blueliner has 11 goals and 54 points in 65 games this season, on pace for his best output since joining Pittsburgh from the San Jose Sharks as part of a three-team trade in 2023. The Sharks retained $1.5 million in the deal to bring Karlsson’s cap hit down to the current $10 million.
“Look at the way he’s playing. I mean, it’s Erik Karlsson of old. There will be serious interest in Erik Karlsson this summer,” LeBrun explained on Early Trading. “Having said that, I will tell you that I chatted with Penguins GM Kyle Dubas, who is not happy to have Karlsson’s name out there in terms of trade chatter. He is adamant that Karlsson has been such a great player for them this year, that he views Karlsson as a guy that they will continue to want to retool and put young players around, that he doesn’t see himself wanting to trade him this summer.
“He wanted to be clear about that with me and to spread the word, I guess, that he doesn’t view Erik Karlsson as a trade chip this summer.”
Averaging 23:45 of ice time this season, Karlsson was part of Team Sweden at the Olympics last month, posting four assists in five games.
Karlsson was the subject of trade speculation last summer after a $5 million bonus was paid out on July 1, but said when training camp opened he was not surprised he stayed put.
“No, I’m not,” Karlsson said, per Wes Crosby of NHL.com. “It was a quiet summer for me. Didn’t really hear much other than what I read from you guys and all the other people around the league, which is typical for the off-season.”
Karlsson had 11 goals and 53 points in 82 games with the Penguins last season while averaging 23:14 of ice time. The 6-foot, right-shot defenceman is in the seventh season of an eight-year, $92 million contract inked with the Sharks in 2019.
Selected 15th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 2008 draft, Karlsson has 211 goals and 924 points in 1,149 career games.
With an aging core that includes Karlsson, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang, the Penguins are pushing to make the playoffs this season for the first time since 2022. The team sits second in the Metropolitan Division, but hold just a one-point cushion on the New York Islanders, who are currently in the final wild-card spot.
While Karlsson’s future appears to be coming more clear, the future of Malkin in Pittsburgh remains unclear as the 39-year-old forward approaches unrestricted free agency this summer.