It's safe to say that the trade sending Pittsburgh Penguins' goaltender Tristan Jarry and forward Sam Poulin to the Edmonton Oilers on Friday - which returned goaltender Stuart Skinner, defenseman Brett Kulak, and a 2029 second-round pick - surprised a whole lot of people, fans and players alike.
Even though there had been mounds of speculation surrounding Jarry and Edmonton for weeks, it was the timing that wasn't necessarily anticipated. The Penguins are in the midst of a very tight playoff race that Jarry had a huge role in, the rest of their goaltending depth is promising but young and unproven, and the team is about to play a back-to-back this weekend against the San Jose Sharks and the Utah Mammoth with the possiblity that Skinner won't even be available for either game.
In other words, much of the surprise was centered on the timing of the trade, which happened early Friday. But Penguins' GM and POHO Kyle Dubas made it clear that the timing of the deal felt exactly right.
"I just think where we're at and the opportunity to bring in a goalie that has deep experience in 'Stu' - plus what we feel is an opportunity to upgrade our defense, plus the draft pick - it just made sense for us to do it at this time," Dubas said. "I think Tristan is extremely talented, and it will be a great opportunity for him in Edmonton."
Of course, dealing Jarry while the Penguins are in the midst of a playoff race does come with a degree of risk. Even if he hasn't exactly been consistent throughout his NHL career, he is a veteran, and that experience is valuable. That's something that none of the other goaltenders in the Penguins' organization - aside from, now, Skinner - have very much of.
But, at the end of the day, the Penguins do feel they have enough goaltending depth to have made a move like this, and the fact that Jarry is having such a strong bounceback campaign after the season he had last year made a deal make sense.
BREAKING: Penguins Trade Tristan Jarry To Edmonton Oilers
The <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins">Pittsburgh Penguins</a> have made a blockbuster move.
Arturs Silovs has struggled as of late, but he had a great start to the season and will have a larger opportunity. Sergei Murashov is putting up video game numbers at the AHL level, and he showed well in a brief NHL stint earlier this season. Joel Blomqvist is also performing very well for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) Penguins since returning from a lower-body injury that kept him out since training camp. And that's not to discount Skinner, who has played much better as of late after a rough start.
The Penguins are comfortable with the guys they have, and Dubas expects them all to compete hard for the starting job at the NHL level.
“I think going forward, it opens the door wide open for competition between these goaltenders to earn NHL spots - and that would include the four guys we’ve talked about - so there’s a lot of incentive there in a number of regards," Dubas said. "So, we’ll see who can climb to the top and take it and run with it.”
'We Feel That We’re Getting Better In That Area': Oilers Coach And Players React To Skinner-Jarry Trade
The Edmonton Oilers completed two trades yesterday, one of which was made to solve their goaltending issues. Although the move was made to upgrade the team, players and coaches were left feeling emotional.
The other part of the deal, too, was the acquisition of Kulak, a veteran blueliner who had a career year offensively last season with seven goals and 25 points and has always been known for his steadiness and stinginess in his own zone. He's having a bit of a down year, but it still presents an opportunity for the Penguins to improve their blue line.
“The number one thing with him is that he’s been incredibly steady, and he’s done it in the hardest environments in the playoffs and down the stretch," Dubas said. "I know when we were watching him last month, he’d obviously had his struggles - I think their whole team was in that sort of a funk - and then he’s been able to come through it. He’s been able to play both left and right, he’s played with all types of different partners there, he can kill penalties, he had a good year last year offensively - all at even strength.
"And I know those things can be fleeting for defensemen, especially when they’re not on the power play. But, we just expect him to be steady, use his experience, come back, move the puck, be a complement to any of the guys on the right side that he’s playing with, and then he can also move to the left side if needed as well."
What Brett Kulak Brings To The Penguins After Trade From Edmonton
The Pittsburgh Penguins got Brett Kulak back in the Tristan Jarry deal, and he has the tools to help this team.
At the end of the day, Dubas believes the trade helps the organization in both the short-term and long-term. That bit of goaltending assurance in the organization - as well as the pick and the improvement to the blue line - should still bode pretty well for the Penguins' hopes of a playoff run.
And, yes, that aspiration hasn't changed this season. Even if the intent heading into the season was for this to be another transitionary year, the team's performance has made a believer out of their GM, their fans, and their room.
Dubas wanted to make it clear that the message in the room is that they've made an attempt to mitigate the loss in net and simultaneously improve elsewhere.
“I think we’re capable of more than we’ve shown," Dubas said. "So, that’s my expectation every day. I think that everyone in the room here has seen it, when we’re at our best, that we can not only play, but carry play against the very best teams in the league. And I think we’ve left points on the table that I think everybody in the room regrets and laments.
"But the thing that I like about the group most is when we have those moments - [Thursday's loss against the Montreal Canadiens] would be the first night where I didn’t feel, coming out, we didn’t push back right away - every other time where we’ve had a tough night or a tough finish, we’ve pushed, the next game we’ve been back in the saddle and rolling. So, I think we’re capable of continuing to get better throughout the year."
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