NHL insider Elliotte Friedman has poured cold water on the heated trade speculation linking Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry to the Edmonton Oilers. According to a report from Saturday, December 7, 2024, while the Oilers have legitimate interest in the netminder, a significant financial obstacle stands in the way.
The Core of the Impasse: Salary Retention
Friedman clarified that the primary complication is the Pittsburgh Penguins' firm stance on salary retention. Tristan Jarry has two more seasons remaining on his contract at an annual cap hit of $5.375 million. The Penguins have indicated they are not willing to retain any portion of that salary in a potential trade.
This creates a major hurdle for the Oilers, who are notoriously tight against the NHL's salary cap. As Friedman noted, Edmonton would need to perform significant "roster surgery" to accommodate Jarry's full cap hit. The team's current injury situation and cap constraints leave them "really stuck," making a deal under these conditions extremely difficult, if not impossible.
Edmonton's Plan and Pittsburgh's Position
The Oilers' reported strategy was not to replace current starter Stuart Skinner, but to acquire Jarry and utilize both goaltenders. This plan is now in jeopardy due to the cap mechanics.
The question arises: why are the Penguins unwilling to retain salary? The team is currently operating well below the NHL's $95.5 million upper limit, with Puckpedia listing their cap payroll at approximately $86.3 million. This suggests cap space itself is not the limiting factor for Pittsburgh.
The reluctance may stem from pure financial cost. If the Penguins were to retain the maximum 50% of Jarry's remaining contract, the ownership would be on the hook for roughly $7 million in actual salary payments over the next two and a half years. For a franchise with reported annual revenues of $224 million (according to Forbes), compared to Edmonton's $388 million, that cash outlay may be a significant deterrent.
Context and Speculation
The situation is further contextualized by Pittsburgh's depth in goal. The organization boasts promising young goaltenders like Arturs Silovs (24), Sergei Murashov (21), and Joel Blomqvist (23), all of whom have shown promise in the AHL and limited NHL action. Jarry was also sent to the minors briefly last season, indicating he is not untouchable.
This leads to speculation that the Penguins' ownership may have implemented a broader policy against salary retention deals, a tactic some cost-conscious NHL teams employ. With the salary cap rising, not all franchises are eager to increase their spending proportionally, especially when paying a player to compete for another team.
For now, Friedman's analysis suggests Oilers fans should temper their expectations. While the interest from Edmonton is real, the financial framework demanded by Pittsburgh makes a trade for Tristan Jarry a long shot unless one side dramatically alters its position.
