The Pittsburgh Penguins are searching for answers to help put together the puzzle that next year's roster seems to be. Could potentially trading fourth-year defenseman John Marino be a piece to that? Marino was ranked 12th among potential trade targets by Frank Seravalli of DailyFaceoff.
Seravalli stated that the Penguins were fielding offers for Marino ahead of the 2022 NHL Trade Deadline but declined to make a move to "remain focused and committed on their playoff push."
Marino rewarded the Penguins with a spectacular showing in the postseason. He and defensive partner Marcus Pettersson carried the brunt of the defensive zone assignments after Brian Dumoulin left with an injury after Game 1 of the series. Averaging over 23 minutes of ice time, Marino led all Penguins defensemen at even strength in expected goals for percentage (68.05%). Executives around the league took notice as Marino showed what he could be at his best.
Marino is the most valuable asset under contract for the Penguins on the blue line. While he is one of four Penguins defensemen to have a salary cap hit over $4 million, he is the only one that naturally plays the right side. Without Kris Letang signed, moving Marino would leave only Mark Friedman and Chad Ruhwedel on the Penguins right-side defense.
While it is not the Penguins preferred option, according to Seravalli, it may be the only one as teams around the league are seemingly not interested in taking on the remaining three years of Marcus Pettersson's contract. Moving Pettersson instead would not only free up $4.025 million in cap space but would create a spot for Pierre-Olivier Joseph, who is expected to jump to the NHL at some point next season.
When Marino signed his current deal in 2021, many believed that he was the heir apparent to Letang as the Penguins top blue liner. He followed it up by having a rough sophomore season that saw him demoted to the third pairing in favor of Cody Ceci.
Last season, Marino bounced back to sure up his performance in the defensive zone. However, he remained unable to recapture the offensive skillset he showed in his rookie season, scoring 26 points in 56 games. The 25-year-old defenseman showed glimpses of offensive ability but finished this season with one goal and 25 points in 81 games.
Re-signing Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang is the Penguins top priority currently, but what will it cost them to run it back with their veteran core? One would have to imagine Rickard Rakell and Danton Heinen would not return, and a trade would probably have to happen on the blue line.
The Penguins desire to create salary-cap space this offseason, and moving Marino may be the only way to do so.
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