Pittsburgh Penguins Eyeing Erik Karlsson Trade? Frustrations Reportedly Growing in the Organization

Last summer, the Pittsburgh Penguins brought in reigning Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson via trade from the San Jose Sharks, hoping it would spark the blue line to success after he tallied 101 points with the team.

Unfortunately, he hasn't started quite the same way, and after publicly stating that he's playing well this season, there are reports from Josh Yohe of The Athletic that reveal people in the organization are now frustrated over that.

With 2 goals and 10 points through 17 games played, Karlsson has slowed down in a major way at 34-years of age, and with a -7 differential, it's safe to see why frustration in the organization continues to grow.

In fact, Yohe expands on his earlier report, noting that the Penguins believe there's simply no way that the three-time Norris Trophy winner will improve his game any further.

This has led to growing speculation that the team could be interested in moving Karlsson, but unfortunately, he carries an $11.5 million cap hit until the end of the 2026/27 season, making it one of the most untradable contracts in the NHL.

There are ways Pittsburgh can get it done, but that would involve either retaining salary cap space or sending out other assets, and given that they want to acquire as many assets as possible, this isn't ideal.

With Sidney Crosby having just two years left on his deal after this one, the team would love to compete for a Stanley Cup, but after their recent 7-1 defeat, there have been calls for the team to trade him too.

While there's a 99.9% chance that Crosby remains a Penguin for the rest of his career, the same can't be said about Karlsson, and if the frustration continues to grow, Kyle Dubas and the front office may simply need to bite the bullet and do what they can to trade Karlsson before his play slows down even more.