Everybody loves a good blockbuster trade, especially when it helps both teams in getting exactly what they want and need.
One of the best examples of such a trade over the past couple of years was when Buffalo traded Jack Eichel to the Vegas Golden Knights for Alex Tuch and Peyton Krebs. The Golden Knights got their superstar center that might bring them a Stanley Cup, Eichel got out of a situation he did not want to be in, while the Sabres got two potential cornerstone players for their rebuild that actually want to be in Buffalo and can help snap the 12-year playoff drought.
Everybody wins. Everybody is happy.
So with that deal in mind, let's take a look ahead to the offseason at some hypothetical blockbuster trades that should happen (these are simply our suggestions) and could be a win-win for everybody involved.
Jake Guentzel for Devon Toews
The Trade Idea: Pittsburgh sends Jake Guentzel to Colorado for Devon Toews
Why it is a win-win
The Penguins have not won a playoff series since 2018 and just missed the playoffs for the first time since 2005-06. Some sort of a major change seems inevitable after all of that, and it is not likely to come from the core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang.
Guentzel, however, could be a potential trade chip.
Not only is he a pending unrestricted free agent following the 2023-24 season, but dealing such a significant part of their roster could serve as a wake-up call to everybody else that remains.
Even after missing the playoffs and with a new yet-to-be-named general manager coming in, this is not yet a rebuild situation. So you would ideally be looking for a hockey trade here, and one thing that Pittsburgh could use is an upgrade on the left side of its defense, especially with Brian Dumoulin likely to leave this summer.
That is where Toews comes in.
Toews could seamlessly slide into the left spot on the Penguins' top-pairing next to Letang, giving them another top-tier defenseman to help reshape a defense that struggled at times last season.
Colorado, meanwhile, has one of the deepest defense corps in the NHL and is going to be in the market for forward help. The Avalanche were not as strong offensively this past season as they were during the 2022 Stanley Cup run and captain Gabriel Landeskog has already been ruled out for all of next season.
With two top-tier players at their position, the salaries are close enough to work under the cap for both teams ($6 million cap hit for Guentzel vs. $4.1 million for Toews), and both players have one year remaining on their current contracts. It is a pure hockey trade.
The only downside for Pittsburgh is it would create another hole at wing, while potentially angering Crosby by taking away his go-to linemate. But maybe the Penguins need that. It would also be easier to find a top-six winger in free agency than it would be to find a defenseman of Toews' caliber.