Be sure to check out the latest NHL lines with online sportsbook Betway!
Welcome back to Around the League — the column here at CanucksArmy in which we deliver you news and notes from around the National Hockey League, oftentimes through a Vancouver Canucks-tinted lens.
Folks, it finally happened. No, we’re not talking about the Canucks making a move in the month of August.
Instead, we’re talking about the Erik Karlsson saga in San Jose coming to a close. On Sunday morning, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced they had acquired the 2023 Norris Trophy Winner from the Sharks in a three-team trade with the Montreal Canadiens.
Full trade:
To #LetsGoPens: Erik Karlsson, SJS 2026 3rd Rd Pick, Dillon Hamaliuk, Rem Pitlick
To #GoHabsGo: Jeff Petry, Casey DeSmith, Nathan Legare, PIT 2025 2nd Rd Pick
To #sjsharks: PIT 2024 1st Rd Pick, Mikael Granlund, Mike Hoffman, Jan Rutta
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) August 6, 2023
Karlsson, 33, has four years left on his contract with a cap hit of $11.5 million, but the Penguins will only be on the hook for a $10 million AAV. Additionally, the Penguins have retained 25% of Jeff Petry’s contract for a total of $1,562,500 over the next two years.
We don’t blame you if you need to re-read that Seravalli tweet a few times to figure out which pieces are going each teams’ way, but the main thing is that Pittsburgh managed to get Mikael Granlund’s inefficient salary off the books while not giving up all that much to get the league’s top defenceman.
Following his 101-point campaign, Karlsson made it clear that he was not going to play for the Sharks next season. While San Jose originally seemed like they were dragging their feet along on a trade, they finally managed to get something done on Sunday.
The reality of the flat cap made the return perhaps a bit underwhelming for San Jose, but for the Penguins, new GM Kyle Dubas has to be pleased at how this trade improves his club’s blue line without breaking the bank to do so.
Matt Dumba chooses Arizona
Adding to Sunday’s news headlines is the Arizona Coyotes’ signing of defenceman Matt Dumba. Dumba’s contract with Arizona is for one year and will see him earn $3.9 million in 2023-24.
The 29-year-old spent the 2022-23 season with the Minnesota Wild where he registered four goals and 10 assists through 79 games while averaging 21:17 of ice time. He added two assists in six Stanley Cup Playoff games as the Dallas Stars eliminated the Wild in the first round. Throughout his 10-year NHL career thus far, Dumba has appeared in 598 games, all with the Wild, collecting 79 goals and 157 assists.
Dumba has long been someone discussed amongst various Canucks circles, as the club’s overall need for right-handed defencemen has been apparent for quite some time now.
