NHL Rumors: Buzz on Possible Penguins Trades, Alex Pietrangelo, Roman Josi

The St. Louis Blues and Nashville Predators have let the 2019-20 NHL season begin without signing their captains to extensions.

Alex Pietrangelo and Roman Josi have spent their entire professional careers with St. Louis and Nashville, respectively, and the expectation is that trend will continue. The question seems to be what's taking so long to actualize the inevitable.

Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Penguins are the center of trade rumors concerning their overcrowded defense amid separate major injuries at other positions.

Alex Pietrangelo's Agents Met With Blues GM

The champion St. Louis Blues have yet to secure Pietrangelo for the long haul, but according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the organization has a starting point in mind.

"It is believed St. Louis wishes to use Oliver Ekman-Larsson's eight-year, $66-million contract as a baseline," Friedman wrote Tuesday. "His agents (Newport) met with Blues GM Doug Armstrong on Monday."

Pietrangelo is in the final year of his seven-year, $45.5 million contract and is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer as things stand. However, Friedman offered additional context on the situation using Armstrong's track record:

"Armstrong's history with UFAs is pretty interesting. He's not afraid to wait well into a season. Alexander Steen got a new deal in December 2013, just six months before he could walk. In 2018–19, as the team navigated a wild, roller-coaster season, Roberto Bortuzzo was re-upped in December, Carl Gunnarsson in March and Jay Bouwmeester on the eve of the playoffs."

Pietrangelo's stock figures to rise as the season progresses, especially given the 29-year-old defenseman's game-winning goal and 400th career point to give the Blues a 3-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday:

The blueliner has been in St. Louis for his entire NHL career. The Blues selected him fourth overall in the 2008 NHL entry draft. Since then, the two-time All-Star has 95 goals and 305 assists.

Most recently, St. Louis gave center Brayden Schenn an eight-year extension worth $52 million on Oct. 4.

The Penguins Could Be Looking to Deal Defensemen

The Pittsburgh Penguins were hit with two major injuries just two games into the regular season, losing centers Evgeni Malkin and Nick Bjugstad for "longer-term" periods because of lower-body injuries. 

The team was upended further when forward Alex Galchenyuk landed on injured reserve Thursday, also with a lower-body injury. Forward Adam Johnson was consequently called up from the minors. 

However, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie, the Penguins were mulling over roster moves before the injury bug bit: 

"But there is a situation in Pittsburgh and we've known even before those injuries occurred, where the Penguins have nine defensemen. We've heard all of the Jack Johnson trade rumors. You could throw Erik Gudbranson's name in there. Jim Rutherford is trying to move a defenseman. Now because of those injuries to Bjugstad and Malkin, if it's possible to move a defenseman and bring back in some short-term help to plug one of those gaps in the middle of the ice, absolutely he would love to do that. But it's almost got to be dollar-in and dollar-out. And they do have to allow that both Bjugstad and Malkin, as I said, a month to six weeks, they're both going to be back in the lineup."

Galchenyuk's injury could place the lack of depth at forward ahead of an overloaded defenseman group on the team's priority list. Not to mention that on Oct. 2, Johnson and Rutherford both shut down any reports that the defenseman was on the trading block.

"I was made aware of [the report] when I came off the ice [Sunday]," Johnson told Pittsburgh Hockey Now's Dan Kingerski. "No, it's not true. [The report] is unfortunate. ... Mr. Rutherford never went to my agent or came to me."

Rutherford added: "That was some pretty shabby journalism because all these reporters here have 24-hour access to me. When you're going to write something like that, you probably should go right to the person that can answer the question."

Regardless of whether a trade comes to fruition, the Penguins will look much different than anticipated for at least the next month because of injuries.

Roman Josi Contract Negotiations Have Stalled

The Nashville Predators' top priority is tying down captain Roman Josi to a new deal. 

"There was momentum in the summer; that's stopped," Friedman wrote Tuesday. "Unless you're actually in the room, you're never sure if it's something serious or two sides grinding away. But there is surprise it isn't done yet."

In late April, Predators general manager David Poile disclosed that the team would begin contract talks with the defenseman and his agent July 1. 

Poile noted to Paul Skrbina of The Tennessean that Josi was gone for his honeymoon over the summer. "Each negotiation has certain elements that make it different," he said.

Allowing negotiations to seep into the 2019-20 season could end up costing Nashville more, however. 

"Both sides have said they feel a deal is imminent," Skrbina wrote Tuesday night. "But will he sign for a hometown discount a la Ryan Ellis last summer?" 

Ellis, also a defenseman, signed an eight-year extension worth $50 million in August 2018.

Josi was drafted by Nashville in the second round of the 2008 NHL entry draft. Since then, the 29-year-old has recorded 95 goals and 256 assists. After finishing seventh in voting for the Norris Trophy last season—having posting a career-high 41 assists and tying his career-high with 15 goals—Josi has two goals and an assist through three games this season.

If a new agreement isn't reached, Josi will become an unrestricted free agent next summer.