Ice Breakers: Penguins, Kris Letang have big gap to bridge in negotiations

Frank Seravalli shared some news and nuggets from around the NHL in Thursday’s edition of Ice Breakers on the Daily Faceoff Show:

> This season is beginning to have a “Last Dance” feel to it for the Pittsburgh Penguins, if it didn’t already.

Pittsburgh president of hockey operations Brian Burke stressed patience this week, saying the Penguins “don’t need to re-sign” their three big pending UFAs in Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Bryan Rust before the March 21 trade deadline.

“It doesn’t really matter if these guys aren’t signed by the trade deadline,” Burke told the Athletic.

So while the lack of extensions may not impact the Penguins’ deadline plans – they remain in Stanley Cup contender mode as a battle-tested entry from the Metropolitan – that doesn’t mean they haven’t tried.

There are big gaps to bridge in the City of Bridges – particularly with Letang.

The two sides are far apart on term.

Sources say the ask from the Letang camp was for a five-year deal with an AAV that starts with a $7 (million). The Penguins, we’re told, are simply not willing to entertain Letang on a deal of that length.

The Penguins would not be the only term-weary team. We saw the Anaheim Ducks push back this week on term in extension talks with pending UFA defenseman Hampus Lindholm. Lindholm recently turned 28 and the Ducks do not appear willing to sign him to a deal that would take him to Letang’s current age, and he is one of the elite skating defensemen in the NHL.

Letang turns 35 in six weeks; a five-year contract would take him through his 40th birthday. He is in the last season of an eight-year, $58 million deal signed in 2013 by Ray Shero, two GMs ago.

On the one hand, Letang has been one of the most consistently productive defensemen in the NHL for more than a decade, and he’s kept pace with all of the young guns over the last three seasons. He ranks sixth in points among defensemen this season with 49 in 54 games and is also sixth in average time-on-ice, skating just under 26 minutes per night.

To his credit, Letang has also been relatively durable. He’s missed 33 games over the last five seasons, limiting the concern for someone with a significant injury history that includes a stroke suffered in 2013-14.

On the other hand, the Penguins are clearly teetering on the edge of a rebuild.

This core, led by Letang, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, has delivered three Stanley Cups to the Steel City. They are the only trio in NHL history to play together for 16 consecutive seasons. Their contending window has been propped open at the expense of the franchise’s future.

Pittsburgh has made just one first-round selection since 2014. The pain coming is inevitable.

If he’s not signed, it’s fair to ask the question of how the Penguins would replace Letang next season. (Hint: They can’t.)

It’s also prudent of Burke and GM Ron Hextall to ask if a five-year deal is in the best interest of where the Penguins are heading. (Hint: It’s probably not.)

To this point, talks have remained cordial and the two sides have continued dialogue. Is there a potential compromise? Would Letang accept a two or three-year deal at an enhanced AAV? Maybe.

Either way, as the Penguins prepare to chase a fourth Cup with this group, the math is is daunting.

With Letang, Malkin and Rust all seeking new deals, the 30,000-foot salary cap view paints a picture where there appears only to be room for two of the three.

It’s way too early to handicap the favorites to stay. The focus is on the ice. And some of the decisions may end up being made for the Penguins anyway.

In the rest of Thursday’s Ice Breakers segment, Frank Seravalli touched on data available to teams at this trade deadline for the first time ever, and Russia’s potential impact on the 2024 World Cup of Hockey: