On Saturday, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced that third-pairing defenseman Caleb Jones would be out for approximately eight weeks after suffering a lower-body injury against the Florida Panthers on Thursday. And thus began the Penguins’ search for another left-handed defender on the NHL trade block.

Sources say Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas is “kicking tires” on spare left-handed defensemen.

Jones is one of just three lefties on the Penguins roster. Ryan Shea and Parker Wotherspoon are the others.

One defenseman that sources believed the Penguins have inquired about is 33-year-old Erik Gustafsson. The Detroit Red Wings waived Gustafsson on Oct. 5, and after he cleared was assigned to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL. Gustafsson has 515 games of NHL experience but has played with 10 teams over the last seven seasons.

The trade inquiries would indicate a reluctance to recall three LHDs in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The team currently has Ryan Graves and Alexander Alexeyev, both of whom they waived at the end of training camp, and prospect Owen Pickering, who failed to make the NHL squad, as well.

The Penguins will embark on a four-game, eight-day road trip beginning Tuesday in Philadelphia. Veteran NHL defenders Connor Clifton and Matt Dumba, both righties, comprised the Penguins’ third-pairing during their 5-4 shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday.

The Penguins acquired both via trade over the summer. Clifton arrived with a second-rounder from Buffalo for Conor Timmons and Dumba from the Dallas Stars in a salary dump, which also netted the Penguins a second-round pick.

Rookie Harrison Brunicke has been the mainstay on the pairing, but the team gave the 19-year-old defenseman a break after a couple of shaky performances. Brunicke is also right-handed.

There are plenty of defensemen in the AHL with NHL experience, but only a few who have primarily or exclusively played in the NHL over the past handful of seasons. And it would be quite debatable if any, including former Penguins prospect Calen Addison (New Jersey), would represent an upgrade over what the Penguins currently have available.

There are also young defensemen in the AHL with some NHL experience who did not make their NHL clubs out of training camp, such as 23-year-old Emil Andrae of the Philadelphia Flyers, and Isaak Philips, now with the Winnipeg Jets organization.

Phillips, 24, is a blend of athletic skating and some physicality, but has played only 56 NHL games since being a fifth-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2020.

However, their availability is unknown. Clifton and Dumba did not draw positive reviews for their performance against Columbus Saturday, but the team as a whole was badly outshot 40-28. The Penguins suffered a similar fate, but beat the Florida Panthers Thursday. The five-game points streak could add additional pressure on Dubas to solve the burgeoning situation during the Penguins’ strong start to the 2025-26 season.

The team is 6-2-1 and, after their shootout loss on Saturday, still claimed the third-best winning percentage in the Eastern Conference.

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Categorized: Penguins Trade Talk