Kyle Dubas reportedly issued low-ball offer to Jake Guentzel
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jake Guentzel is going to be a hot commodity on the trade market over the next few weeks and while it's not entirely certain if the team will move him, there's plenty of interest from teams around the National Hockey League.
Guentzel has been linked to numerous teams who are looking to improve their top-six forward group, one of which was the Vancouver Canucks, who are likely no longer in the running after acquiring Elias Lindholm from the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night.
However, while there's plenty of speculation on where Guentzel could go if he's traded, Nick Kypreos is reporting that the Penguins did make a contract offer to the pending unrestricted free agent and it was turned down.
According to Kypreos, Kyle Dubas and the Penguins offered Jake Guentzel a six-year contract worth $8.5 million per season, but as mentioned, it was turned down, which is understandable.
With how consistent Jake Guentzel is year after year, there's no doubt that if he hits the open market on July 1st, that he'll be getting a long-term contract with an AAV north of $9 million and while that may look like an overpay for some, he's scored 20+ goals in seven consecutive seasons and goals are hard to come by in the NHL, so whoever decides to pay him that much, he'll be worth every penny.
In 46 games this season, Guentzel has recorded 49 points (22 goals, 27 assists), 14 penalty minutes and is a plus-12.
Do you think Jake Guentzel will get more than $9 million AAV if he hits the open market? Let us know what you think in the poll below!
Today Josh Yohe of The Athletic also reported that if Guentzel isn't willing to take a team friendly deal, Dubas will certainly look at trading the forward.
| POLL | ||
Do you think Jake Guentzel will get more than $9 million AAV if he hits the open market? | ||
| Yes | 315 | 33.5 % |
| No | 590 | 62.8 % |
| See Results | 34 | 3.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
