Pittsburgh Penguins To Listen To Trade Offers For 2026 UFAs

The Pittsburgh Penguins are reportedly open to listening to trade offers for players on their roster whose contracts expire after this upcoming season, according to Josh Yohe of The Athletic. The only player whose contract expires at the end of next season that the Penguins will not trade is Evgeni Malkin, although it has been confirmed that Pittsburgh will not offer him a new contract after this season. 

Pittsburgh Penguins Pending Unrestricted Free Agents

Yohe listed the players who fit the description of those the Penguins will listen to offers for, and there are six players. Noel Acciari, Kevin Hayes, Danton Heinen, Blake Lizotte, Vladislav Kolyachonok, and goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic. Acciari, Hayes, and Nedeljkovic all look like players that other teams could be interested in this offseason.

Noel Acciari has been a career bottom-line forward who can score at a pretty decent rate every season. He’s been a consistent goal-producer for a bottom-line player. His cap hit is only two million dollars for next season, so the salary is perfect for the production he provides. Bet on the Penguins getting some calls on him.

Final Thoughts on Other Unrestricted Free Agents

Kevin Hayes joined Pittsburgh last offseason after being traded away from the St. Louis Blues. He is in the final year of his contract, with a cap hit of approximately $ 7.1 million. Hayes is primarily a center, and he can still be a solid option even at 33 years of age. Some teams might shy away due to his contract, and the Penguins may need to retain some players to finalize a deal. He can still provide 10-15 goals at this stage of his career. 

Alex Nedeljkovic has a 2.5-million-dollar salary going into next season. Nedeljkovic has spent the last two seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins and has seen mixed results. In 2023, he had a .902 save percentage, which is acceptable, but then it dropped to .894 the following year. With the Pittsburgh Penguins still having Tristan Jarry, it would make sense for them to want to get rid of Ned. 

Let’s get back to Malkin real quick. There is a growing belief that he will retire after this season, as stated above, because the Penguins are unlikely to offer him another contract. It’s hard to think Malkin would continue playing and go somewhere else. Evgeni Malkin in any other jersey besides a Penguins jersey would be weird to picture.