CRANBERRY TWP., PA (93.7 The Fan) – it’s been looming over the team all year, the future of forward Jake Guentzel. Now as the trade line is approaching and the team is teetering, will Guentzel be moved as he will be a free agent after the season?
GM Kyle Dubas is not ruling it out.
The first-year general manager said the Guentzel decision is at the forefront of their minds. He said it’s complicated because of the injury he suffered on Valentine’s Day and that he is not eligible to return until March 10, two days after the trade deadline.
Another clue to the potential future of Guentzel in Pittsburgh is when Dubas talked of the core of the team moving forward he mentioned Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Erik Karlsson. He also wants to get younger. Guentzel turns 30 early next season.
“The way that our whole strategy plays out over the next two-and-a-half weeks,” Dubas explained. “How our team continues to play will dictate the short-term answer at the trade deadline. We will continue to have those conversations.”
It’s not that Guentzel’s play has dipped, in his eighth season, the 5’11” forward is averaging over a point-per-game with 52 points (22 goals) in 50 games. He has been around that number for the last six seasons while playing mostly with Crosby.
There are reports he’s asking for money around what Crosby makes at $8.7 million. While there are ways to make that work, it would add another big salary and depending on the cap could be tough moving forward.
“I understand how valuable he’s been as a teammate, person in the community, contributor to helping a team win a Stanley Cup. And so on and so forth, it’s important, but at the same time we have to take stock of where we are at and be realistic about the issue.”
“The issue is we need to get younger. We have a lot of guys in their 30s signed and they are some of the best players in the franchise history. It’s tough with Jake, as I’ve said to him, because he’s an excellent player and playing at an elite level.”
“We have to find a way to have those solid veteran guys, but also continue get younger at the same time.”
That is a tough job. How he deals with Guentzel is the first, big piece of it.