Penguins have a $10.54 million secret weapon before NHL trade deadline

Penguins have a $10.54 million secret weapon before NHL trade deadline originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Pittsburgh Penguins didn't necessarily expect to be in this spot.

But with the NHL trade deadline approaching on Friday, the Penguins can be a buyer, and they've got a secret weapon to get that done.

The key: $10.54 million in open cap space.

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Given that most players moved this time of year are veterans on at least decently sizable deals, that much cap space is a huge helper in making something happen.

"The Pens are in the playoff hunt, to the surprise of many," ESPN's Arda Ocal wrote on Monday. "They have cap space to make some additions -- to the tune of $10.54 million, per PuckPedia. Why not take a big swing?"

Pittsburgh is well-positioned to make noise, and this Penguins group has tons of playoff experience, which has to count for something.

"Sidney Crosby might be even more motivated after he was unable to play in the gold medal game in Milan and his teammates fell short," Ocal writes. "Pittsburgh is currently second in the Metro, and firmly in the playoff chase. GM Kyle Dubas has taken a high-risk, high-reward stance in the past, so why not here again?"

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Ocal adds that the Penguins could pursue a shutdown defenseman, as well as "another scorer or two."

There are a lot of players potentially available that fit those molds to at least some degree.

The Penguins may have an advantage in not needing the other team to retain any salary to get a trade done.

We'll see if that benefits Pittsburgh by the end of this week.

More NHL news:

• Oilers want 2 positions before the NHL trade deadline
• A salary cap rule may make 2 Flames trades difficult
• Sidney Crosby breaks silence on injury, Olympics and rest of Penguins' season
• It'll be complicated to trade for Steven Stamkos
• Alex Ovechkin has shared an update on his retirement plans
• Evgeni Malkin gets big news on a possible future