Why Penguins must trade Bryan Rust in 2025 offseason

For a third consecutive year, the Pittsburgh Penguins missed the playoffs. The Penguins have already made changes, moving on from head coach Mike Sullivan. They will need to make more changes as they rebuild. Now, we look at why the Penguins need to trade Bryan Rust this offseason.

Rust was picked by the Penguins with the 80th overall pick in the 2010 NHL Draft. He would then go play for Notre Dame at the college ranks before signing an entry-level contract with the Penguins in 2014. Rust would play for Pittsburgh for the first time in the 2014-15 season, playing in 14 games. He would be brought up from the AHL for good the next season. Rust has played 638 regular-season games for the Penguins, scoring 203 goals and adding 234 assists.

Rust just finished his third season as part of a six-year $30.75 million contract. He does have a no-movement clause currently on his contract, giving him control of where he goes. His no-movement clause does expire this summer, though, allowing Pittsburgh more control over moving Rust. Further, at a cap hit of just $5.125 million, his production would make him desirable to many teams looking for a seasoned winger.

The Penguins need to get younger

The Penguins have missed the playoffs for three straight seasons, and they continue to get older. First, the Penguins had just five guys score 50 more points last season. The youngest of those five players is Rickard Rakell, who will be turning 33 during the upcoming season. The average age of their forwards is 30.1 years old, and it is 29.6 years old on defense. The Penguins were the third oldest team in the NHL this year, having an average age of 29.79 years old. Only two teams in the NHL had an older team; one, the Toronto Maple Leafs, who just lost in the second round of the playoffs. The second, the Edmonton Oilers, are playing for the Stanley Cup.

Of the top ten oldest teams in the NHL, both teams in the Stanley Cup Final are in the top five, and seven of the ten teams made the playoffs. Age can be a good thing, with the right core. Still, the Penguins do not have the right core currently. The Penguins have continually declined since last making the playoffs in the 2021-22 season. They have won fewer games each of the last three years, scored fewer goals, and given up more goals.

Bryan Rust will turn 34 at the end of next year. He has not shown any signs of slowing down. Moving Rust now would allow the Penguins to bring in younger parts. The Penguins currently have $24.5 million in cap space, and moving on from Rust would bring them to $30 million, unless they have to pay any of the salary to facilitate a trade. They currently have six free agents to re-sign, but four of the six are under the age of 27. Getting younger will require keeping those parts and going after young an exciting free agents. Moving on from Rust gives the Penguins the money to do that now, and the draft capital to make the team young later.

The Penguins can get the most value for Bryan Rust now