As details of Jim Rutherford’s resignation as GM of the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, several sources told National Hockey Now that Rutherford was close to negotiating with the Penguins before handing over his keys and leaving the organization.
Sources close to the lawsuit, both on the Penguins side and on the St. Louis Blues side, told Hockey Now that Rutherford was surrounding St. Louis Blues defender Vince Dunn.
Both sides said the Penguins “were close to Dunn”.
The return is not known.
Last weekend, Jimmy Murphy’s Pittsburgh Hockey Now Off the Record column reported that both the Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers were interested. One of those same sources indicated that things had progressed.
Because of rampant speculation on the internet, PHN should not claim that no source mentioned any of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ stars, and such an exchange would break the St. Louis salary cap and be much more than the reported request to Dunn, who was a high choice.
Dunn, 24, has been a healthy problem in St. Louis, which has sparked rumors about the NHL trade. The left-handed defender is a skilled skating disc engine that is still solving his game. He has a lot of talent and can play a powerful game, but at times he has been irregular. The 6-foot, 203-pound defender has a sense of the game.
He will be an RFA after the season and currently earns $ 1.8 million. The Penguins are desperate for help from LHD, as the first four d-men in the depth table are seriously injured.
After an AHL season, this is Dunn’s fourth NHL campaign. Last season, Dunn scored 23 points (9g, 14th) in 71 games. He was 15 years old.
In 2018-19, Dunn scored 35 points with 12 goals and was a plus-14.
This season, Dunn got off to a slow start and was a healthy scratch for coach Craig Berube. He has a goal and an assist in six games.
Conspiracy theories abounded in Pittsburgh to explain why Rutherford quit his job. He used a local radio program to dismiss speculation and curiosity that a fight over the trade of one of the Penguins’ superstars led to his resignation.
