The pros to trading Pettersson outweigh the cons, so don't be surprised if it happens soon. Teams such as the Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, and Minnesota Wild seem to be good fits for the top-four defenseman, and they're also teams that may be able to provide the assets Pittsburgh would be looking for.
Marcus Pettersson landing on injured reserve forced the Pittsburgh Penguins to do some tinkering on the blue line. Pettersson had been Erik Karlsson’s defensive partner since Karlsson debuted with the Penguins last season.
Pittsburgh Penguins veteran defenceman Marcus Pettersson has been playing decently well since returning from injury in early January. Pettersson has been playing mostly alongside either Erik Karlsson or Kris Letang this season.
The Pittsburgh Penguins’ decision to weld Kris Letang with Marcus Pettersson on a defensive pairing in recent weeks wasn’t necessarily rooted in a sense of familiarity between the two long-time teammates.
Even if the Penguins go on an outrageous hot streak, I still fully anticipate Dubas to sell at the deadline. He knows what he has to do. He’s not in this to grab the second wild card and lose in the first round. Dubas’ vision is much more grand than that. The problem is that fans might need to find some patience.
According to Preston Hodgkinson of Daily Hive, “If the Oilers want a “Mattias Ekholm-type addition” this season, their best bet will be 28-year-old Marcus Pettersson.” Hodgkinson wrote this on Wednesday when he looked at the Pittsburgh Penguins as a strong fit for a trade partner ahead of this season’s trade deadline.
Not just pending free agents, but all big name players in play.