5 NHL Trade Landing Spots for Bryan Rust Amid Rumors

The Pittsburgh Penguins are expected to make at least one or two more trades this offseason as part of their ongoing rebuild, especially now that most of the top free agents have been picked over and teams need to find upgrades through the trade market.

The Penguins have some intriguing options to dangle as trade bait, including defenseman Erik Karlsson and forwards Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust.

It's a good bet that at least one of them is playing hockey for somebody else this upcoming season. Here, we are going to look at some potential landing spots for Rust, should they decide to trade him.

It's not a given that he will be moved, given his leadership role in the locker room and the fact that he is one of Sidney Crosby's preferred wingers. But he might be one of the Pens' most valuable trade chips, will be 33 years old at the start of the season and no longer has any trade protections in his contract.

So, let's take a look at some potential matches for Rust.

Detroit Red Wings

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This might be one of the most sensible options for several reasons.

For one, Detroit needs to do something significant this offseason. The Red Wings have been way too quiet for a team that should be desperate to make the playoffs, and could use Rust's two-way ability.

They also have more than $12 million in salary-cap space, and Rust is from Pontiac, Michigan. The Red Wings also have a full cupboard of draft picks and a solid prospect pool that could be enticing to a Penguins team that is looking to add more young talent.

The Red Wings missed on pretty much everybody in free agency and have not made any major trades.

Rust would be a great way to change that if they could pull it off.

Buffalo Sabres

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The Sabres are in a near-identical position as the Red Wings, only worse.

There should be huge pressure on this team getting closer to the playoffs, if not actually in the postseason after 14 consecutive years on the outside.

They still have more than $7 million in salary-cap space and need more offense, especially after trading JJ Peterka to the Utah Mammoth earlier in the offseason.

They could also use somebody who brings a winning mentality into the organization.

Losing has become accepted in Buffalo, and it's all anybody there seems to know. They need people who can change that mindset, such as Rust.

Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch were the only two players on the roster who had more than 30 goals and more than 60 points the way Rust did in 2024-25, and he can also make an impact in all phases of the game and across the lineup.

Los Angeles Kings

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The Kings' offseason has been a mess so far with the way they have overhauled—and downgraded—their defense.

They have also not done anywhere near enough to upgrade a mid-tier offense that has held them back the past four years in their first-round playoff matchups against the Edmonton Oilers.

Rust would not only fit in with the Kings' style of play with his two-way ability, but he would also have been their third-leading goal-scorer and third-leading point-producer during the 2024-25 season.

The Kings were only 14th in goals scored during the 2024-25 season, and when combined with their defensive play, that was enough to get them comfortably into the playoffs.

But it's not enough to get them anywhere once they get in.

They added Corey Perry this summer, but that will not be enough offensively.

Calgary Flames

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The Flames exceeded pretty much every expectation from the start of the 2024-25 season and nearly made the playoffs in a season everybody expected to be a rebuilding year.

Their defensive play and goaltending was outstanding.

Their offense was not, though, and it was the one thing that held them back from making the playoffs.

The Flames were only 29th in the league in goals scored, and if they had found just a few more goals throughout the season, they likely would have found themselves in a playoff spot.

They have a clear need, $15 million in salary-cap space with only Connor Zary left to re-sign and two first-round draft picks in the 2026 class.

The Flames had just one 30-goal scorer in 2024-25 and only two players exceed 47 points. Nobody had more than 67.

Another forward is still a must this offseason if they are to have any hopes of building on last year's success.

Toronto Maple Leafs

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After letting Mitch Marner go in free agency, the Toronto Maple Leafs have been trying to take a quantity-over-quality approach to replacing him in an effort to balance out their lineup.

Whether that will pay off remains to be seen, but even if we assume they made the right depth additions, they still need another top-six winger.

Rust would fit that criteria, and he'd also bring some winning credibility to a locker room that has lacked it.

The Maple Leafs would need to get a little creative to make the money work, given they have just a little more than $2 million in salary-cap space, though that can always be worked around.

The Maple Leafs keep losing in the playoffs because they never score enough goals or come through in big moments. Rust has a knack for being the type of player who has consistently come through in big games.

Is he better than Marner? No, but he has the type of big-game DNA the Maple Leafs are lacking.

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