The Pittsburgh Penguins traded forward Lars Eller to the Washington Capitals on Tuesday.
Why?
Pittsburgh wanted more assets and got exactly that by netting a third-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft and a fifth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas explained the thought process in an email with Pittsburgh-based media outlets.
“It signals that with Blake Lizotte returning from injury and having depth options at center with Cody Glass, Noel Acciari, and Sam Poulin on the roster plus younger centers progressing in our system that we wanted the minutes for those players,” Dubas wrote, as shared by TribLive. “It give them greater opportunity plus increase our assets and cap space to give us greater flexibility.”
The Penguins now have 10 selections in both the 2025 and 2027 NHL Drafts to accompany nine selections in the 2026 NHL Draft.
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“Players will be recalled and given opportunity only when we feel they have maximized their development (with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton) and are ready to make that step,” Dubas wrote. “Some guys earned that out of camp and others are starting to make a strong push while helping (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton) off to a great start. We look forward to seeing which guys can continue that push with (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton), help them win and earn their chance to come up when those opportunities arise.”
Eller will return to Washington D.C., where he previously spent seven seasons and won the franchise’s only Stanley Cup title in 2018.
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