NHL Rumors: 3 Potential Trade Destinations for Penguins' Bryan Rust

The Pittsburgh Penguins have already reportedly had internal discussions that they'll be moving on from Evgeni Malkin at some point next season, and Bryan Rust may not make it there. Rust is a prime trade candidate from the Penguins this summer, and could be moved as early as the NHL Draft, or ahead of free agency.

Rust is owed $5.12 million AAV for the next three seasons, and is coming off a 31-goal season, which included 65 points in 71 games. With limited resources for trades, look for Kyle Dubas to try and cash in on Rust's value, as he doesn't have any trade protection on his contract.

Here's three potential destinations if Rust is traded this summer:

Detroit Red Wings

The Red Wings have been linked to Rust in the past and are going to have some holes to fill on their wings, with the expected departure of Patrick Kane this summer. Captain Dylan Larkin was not impressed with GM Steve Yzerman sitting on his hands ahead of the trade deadline, so the message has been sent to management to be active this summer or else Larkin could be looking to move on.

Los Angeles Kings

The Kings want a top-six scorer, and these two teams have been no stranger to making deals in the past. Dubas even had a long history of trades with the Kings from his days in Toronto, so there's certainly some familiarity there when it comes to the conversations. Rust would give the Kings a huge boost up front, and the Kings have plenty of young talent spread all throughout their organization to appeal to the rebuilding Penguins.

Vancouver Canucks

The Canucks management duo of Jim Rutherford and Patrik Allvin know Rust very well from their days together in Pittsburgh, and with Brock Boeser on the way out of town it seems, Rust is a reasonable replacement and at much cheaper AAV. Look for these two teams to engage in trade conversations, if they haven't already.

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