Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas
The top of the 2026 NHL Draft is star-studded. Not only is there one projected franchise cornerstone, but with right-handed defenseman Keaton Verhoeff’s emergence, there are two players that should make a rebuilding team, such as the Pittsburgh Penguins, salivate.
Yet, the Penguins are not close to the worst overall team. In fact, they’re closer to being a playoff team than having a top overall draft pick. Uniquely, other teams that are hoping to stop rebuilding and start winning currently have a much better track toward those top draft picks, which begs the question: Will Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas buckle on his trade asks to give his team a better shot at getting a better pick?
Read More: The Five 2026 Draft Picks to Watch
Could and should are two different discussions.
From recent reporting, we know that Fenway Sports Group underwent a change of heart and chose to keep the gang together for one more run rather than pursuing the rebuild for which Ron Hextall was hired.
Of course, Hextall chose poorly on the veterans he added around the championship core and was soon out of a job.
Pittsburgh Hockey Now has been in contact with numerous sources within the Penguins organization over the last couple of weeks. Sources tell PHN that there have not been any alterations to Dubas’s plans and none are expected under new ownership.
Read More: Big Penguins Week Ahead; Sources on Sale, Complications, & a Trade?
In other words, new ownership is not expected to pump the brakes on rebuilding.
Of course, when push comes to shove, when the final decisions are made, anything can change. Profit motives, loss fears, changing pain tolerances, or simply emotion can change even the most perfectly laid plans.
Penguins Rebuilding
So, as ownership, old or new, continues on the same path of securing a winning future, one which will presumably sell tickets and merchandise as winning returns, Dubas will soon be faced with a collision of his own decisions.
Though the results may not be known until long after the decision.
Thus far, Dubas has maintained what he termed as “sky-high” prices on his top-six wingers, Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust. He didn’t specifically term his price on three-time Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Erik Karlsson in the same manner, but the incongruence of Karlsson’s future and the Penguins’ path continues to burden logic.
Karlsson’s quest to win a Stanley Cup and the Penguins’ current position are diametrically opposed, and his presence on the right side of the blue line takes a spot that could otherwise be used by a young defenseman or a reclamation project who would become a trade chip.
Karlsson holds the final say on a trade and won’t go to just any team, which complicates the situation. But specifically to the issue of rebuilding, Karlsson’s presence will make the Penguins a better team while he’s here–thus
Just as keeping both Rakell and Rust will make the team better.
Dubas pushed back and took issue with talk of tanking or trying to make the team worse, but the difference in a top-five pick and a 10th overall pick is large. Dubas has every reason to make the moves and not just to get deeper into the rebuild, but to clear some space for younger players.
The gambit is to maintain price integrity–get as much for the players as they should be worth. Each extra asset or better asset makes the rebuilding easier, and getting fewer has the inverse effect.
There will be a point when the extra asset the Penguins acquire by holding to a high price will be negated by the difference in their draft prospect AND the delay in turning the corner on the rebound.
The delay in turning the corner could delay the acquisition of million in playoff revenue by one or two years.
A good owner would see the future and want that money more than an immediate nickel.
Dubas’s decision when to make his move has plenty of fallout and consequences … in all directions.
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