Karlsson taking a shot (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
The NHL trade rumors surrounding Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson continue to get louder, and one of the teams that may have more than lukewarm interest could ignite two rival NHL markets.
Karlsson hasn’t played for the Ottawa Senators since 2018, but for Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs fans, the memory of Karlsson back boning the Senators’ offense in the battle of Ontario could be conjured up next season.
“There’s more than just hearsay when it comes to the Leafs and Erik Karlsson right now,” an NHL source told RG recently. “There’s probably going to be salary retained, but the thought that there’s some kind of bad blood between Dubas and the Leafs still that would prevent something like this is crazy. This is a business, and if there’s enough interest from both teams and they figure out the cap hit and money, then that’s all that matters.”
The idea of bad blood the source is referring to is the fact that the current Pittsburgh Penguins general manager, Kyle Dubas, was fired by the Toronto Maple Leafs two years ago. As the source pointed out, though, this is a business, and the water is under the bridge.
“Look, Brendan Shanahan is gone, and the guy that replaced him wants and needs to take this team deep in the playoffs,” the source said. “This isn’t about Dubas’ history with the Leafs, it’s about winning and business. That’s why, as you reported, the Leafs are interested in a guy like [Dougie] Hamilton. They need that offense from the backend; they need that guy on the powerplay. Can they make the cap hit and cap space work? That’s what matters here, and the Leafs gotta make up that offense with [Mitch] Marner gone.”
As the source noted, RG reported on Tuesday that the Maple Leafs have expressed interest in New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton.
Erik Karlsson is entering the seventh season of an eight-year, $92 million contract that he signed with the San Jose Sharks, which carries an $11.5 million salary cap hit. When they traded Karlsson to the Penguins in the 2023 offseason, the Sharks retained just over 13 percent of Karlsson’s cap hit, which brought it to a $10 million cap hit.
The widespread belief and understanding is that the Penguins can’t move Karlsson unless they retain cap space in a trade for the 35-year-old defenseman who had 11 goals and 42 assists in 82 games last season. Per Puckpedia, the Maple Leafs currently have $4.9 million in cap space.
There have been numerous reports that the Detroit Red Wings have expressed interest in Karlsson on the NHL trade market. The aforementioned NHL source told RG that recent NHL trade chatter also has the Anaheim Ducks, Utah Mammoth, and Dallas Stars also interested in Karlsson.
Karlsson has 200 goals and 670 assists in 1084 NHL regular season games and eight goals and 45 assists in 67 Stanley Cup Playoff games. Karlsson is 15th in all-time points by a defenseman and second amongst active NHL defensemen. Karlsson has also won three Norris Trophies (2012, 2015, and 2023). His best season points-wise came in 2022-23 when he won the Norris Trophy with 25 goals and 76 assists in 82 games for the Sharks.
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Marco D’Amico is a beat reporter covering the Montreal Canadiens and the NHL Draft, while also being a recurring guest on TSN690 and BPM Sports. His work primarily on NHL CBA breakdowns and prospect analysis, all while covering the Montreal Canadiens on a day-to-day basis.
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