The Pittsburgh Penguins pulled off an early-season trade on Wednesday.
The announced deal sends forward Filip Hallander out of Pittsburgh and brings aboard defenseman Spencer Stastney from the Edmonton Oilers.
You can read more about who Stastney is at this link.
The Hallander side of things is fascinating, though. He may not have been the first player most Penguins fans would’ve thought would be traded.
But Hallander no longer will play for Pittsburgh. He’ll instead try to prove he can help the forward lines in Edmonton that are led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
It’s worth taking a moment to try and understand why the Penguins would do this.
Why Did Penguins Trade Filip Hallander?
The reality with the Penguins is that the forward choices were getting quite crowded.
That’s what The Athletic’s Josh Yohe wrote in a post on X on Wednesday afternoon following the trade.
“I’m surprised that Hallander was the forward the Penguins decided to move,” Yohe wrote. “They love him. But remember, the other team has a say in this kind of thing also, and I can see why Hallander is a player the Oilers would like. The forward logjam was getting a little ridiculous. At some point, room needs to be made for Rutger McGroarty. And then there is Elmer Soderblom, who showed last season that he very much can play. And then there is Avery Hayes. And eventually Bill Zonnon and Will Horcoff.”
And if you think it’s busy up front, it’s a very different look in defense.
“The Penguins are considerably thinner on the blue line, so the move makes sense from that standpoint,” Yohe writes. “Personally I love Hallander and would have had a hard time moving him. But I am not the general manager.”
Fascinating Timing
Maybe the most interesting thing about this trade is the timing.
The season for the Penguins is a week old. Very little has changed from what would’ve been the outlook for the roster when the campaign kicked off.
To trade a promising player like Hallander suggests that the Penguins really felt they needed to get this deal done and bring aboard a guy like Stastney.
Only time will tell whether it was a rushed or prudent decision.
It just feels fast on the surface. Trades rarely happen a week into the season, because there’s rarely enough data to inform any changes in opinion or approach.
The Penguins, though, didn’t waste any time. Hallander is out. Stastney is in. And whether it makes sense or not, the trade is official.
Why Penguins Traded Filip Hallander to Oilers