Three Surprising Teams Linked to Erik Karlsson Following Elliotte Friedman latest report

After a slow start to the 2024/25 season, the Pittsburgh Penguins made their direction clear by trading some veteran pieces to get assets for the future, and with the 2025 trade deadline just days away, it's clear that they could be ready to make some more moves.

One veteran that makes sense to move is defenseman Erik Karlsson, who hasn't been at his best in Pittsburgh but remains very productive with 40 points in 59 games played this season as a 34-year old.

Now, we are starting to get a sense of his market, with top NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman revealing that three teams in particular make sense as landing spots for the former Norris Trophy winner.

Those teams are the Dallas Stars, who are dealing with plenty of injuries on their blue line, the Florida Panthers who let several key pieces of their Stanley Cup run go in free agency and his former team the Ottawa Senators, who are looking to break their Stanley Cup Playoffs drought this season.

It's unclear however which of these teams have the most interest or whether or not they're ready to trade him now or in the summer, but after moving Lars Eller, Marcus Pettersson and Drew O'Connor this year, Kyle Dubas is ready to sell for the right price.

Given that he's owed over $11 million for the next two seasons after this one, it's unclear what the price would be to acquire Karlsson, but if the team can move him and get any asset in return, it should be seen as a major win for the Penguins.