Predators trade Tommy Novak and Luke Schenn to Penguins for Michael Bunting, pick
The Pittsburgh Penguins have acquired Luke Schenn and Tommy Novak from the Nashville Predators in exchange for Michael Bunting and a draft pick.
This trade comes not long following the Penguins offloading defenseman Vincent Desharnais to the San Jose Sharks for a 2028 fifth-round pick.
#preds have notified Tommy Novak and Luke Schenn that they are Pittsburgh bound in trade with #letsgopens.
Sounds like there is also a pick involved going to Nashville.
Schenn has tallied five points and 41 penalty minutes in 61 games this season with Nashville. Now in his 17th NHL season, Schenn has 44 goals and 159 assists for 203 points in 1,057 regular-season games with the Predators, Vancouver Canucks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Ducks, Arizona Coyotes, Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Novak has racked up 13 goals and nine assists for 22 points in 52 games this season. Novak has emerged as a pivotal depth player around Nashville over the last couple of seasons. Last March, Novak signed a three year extension with an AAV of $3.5 million.
Drafted 85th overall in 2015 while playing with the Waterloo Black Hawks, Novak had a strong four-year stretch with the NCAA’s University of Minnesota. He helped the Golden Gophers win consecutive Big 10 regular season titles in 2016-17 and finished his tenure with 18 goals and 88 points in 129 games.
Since turning pro, Novak has 135 points in the AHL and 84 points in the NHL, showing good chops as a playmaker.
Meanwhile, Bunting has scored 14 goals and 15 assists for 29 points in 58 games with the Penguins. The 29-year-old Scarborough, Ont., native is in his second season with the Penguins, part of a three-year pact that carries a $4.5-million annual average value, per PuckPedia.
Originally selected in the fourth round of the 2014 NHL Draft by the former Arizona Coyotes, Bunting has seen 311 career contests counting stops with the Coyotes, his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, and Penguins in which he has amassed 89 goals and 117 assists for 206 points alongside 296 penalty minutes.