LA Kings: Pens’ Marcus Pettersson could be a cap casualty
By Ryan Sikes
Even after the Patric Hörnqvist trade, the Penguins have just over $6M in cap space. Could the LA Kings pluck Marcus Pettersson to fill their LHD needs?
The Penguins and Panthers made an interesting trade last week, swapping forward Patric Hornqvist for defenseman Mike Matheson. The trade could end up playing favorably for the LA Kings, who are in the market for a left-handed defenseman.
The Matheson trade stockpiles left-handed defensemen on the Penguins’ roster. With the organization having just over $6M in cap space this offseason and depleted draft capital, general manager Jim Rutherford could have the incentive to move a significant piece.
So we end the trade with an increase in salary for the Penguins. No idea which direction this heads next. You would hope that Pettersson is not the cap casualty here.
— Jesse Marshall (@jmarshfof) September 24, 2020
That piece could end up being Marcus Pettersson. The 24-year-old was drafted 38th overall in the second round of the 2014 NHL Draft by the Anaheim Ducks. He was part of the Daniel Sprong trade in December 2018, and the change of scenery was good for both Pettersson and the Penguins.
In 57 games of the 2018-2019 campaign, the Swedish defenseman scored two goals with 17 assists, including a goal on the man advantage, and saw a noticeable uptick in average on-ice time. He finished in the top-ten of Calder Trophy voting and took another leap forward in the COVID-19 shortened season.
In 69 games, Pettersson scored two goals with 20 assists while logging 106 hits and 84 blocked shots. He registered a 52.2 Corsi-for percentage and a 53.1 expected goals-for percentage.
Under contract through the 2024-2025 season, Pettersson comes at a $4.03M cap hit and has a modified no-trade clause in 2023-2024 and 2024-2025. Without a first or second-round pick this year, the LA Kings could be the perfect trade partner for the Penguins and Pettersson, boasting three second-round picks in next week’s draft.
Related Story. Evaluating a Gostisbehere trade as the LHD. light
I’m not entirely sure if Petterson for a second-round pick, straight up, would get the deal done, but he’s the type of player that Rob Blake should be targeting. We’ve presented a number of options this offseason, and getting a guy who is entering his prime would be a good addition atop the Kings’ top pairing with Drew Doughty.