MAJOR | Blockbuster trade proposal emerges sending Jake Guentzel to the Canucks

Recently, it became known amongst the hockey world that Pittsburgh Penguins young forward Jake Guentzel may be moved ahead of this season's trade deadline. The 29-year-old Omaha, Nebraska native is due for a hefty pay raise and may not be in the Penguins' budget as they have a large amount of their cap space committed to franchise cornerstones Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and now Erik Karlsson.

Guentzel has been a consistent 30-40 goal threat each season he has been in the league, flirting with point-per-game production regularly. He boasts 52 points on 22 goals and 30 assists in just 50 games — good for second on the team behind a certain number 87. He also possesses the highest points-per-game on the team, narrowly ahead of Crosby.

Given the Canucks emergence as Stanley Cup hopefuls as they pace the NHL with 80 points, the desire for additional scoring ahead of a potential playoff run has never been higher — highlighted by their recent acquisition of forward Elias Lindholm.

A mock trade was seen on Twitter on Thursday, which involved Guentzel being exchanged for forward Ilya Mikheyev, highly-regarded prospect Aatu Raty (a significant piece in last year's Bo Horvat trade), forward Jett Woo, and a conditional first-round pick. Defender Chad Ruhwedel was also included in the trade:

My trade offer for a currently injured upcoming UFA Guentzel:

To PIT: Mikheyev, Raty, Woo and conditional 1st '25*
To VAN: Guentzel + Ruhwedel

*1st becomes a 3rd if Guentzel doesn't dress for playoffs #Canucks— krufrank (Cutting Edge Comics) (@krufrank) February 22, 2024