The Pittsburgh Penguins are intrigued by the idea of trading for Seattle Kraken center Shane Wright, sources told The Athletic’s Josh Yohe on Monday — making Pittsburgh the third team publicly attached to Wright in the past week, after the Rangers surfaced as a potential fit on Friday.
Yohe’s reporting, part of a broader piece on Pittsburgh’s roster construction, arrives with a caveat: Seattle’s asking price is substantial, and possibly more than the Penguins are willing to pay. That matches everything known about this market so far. The Kraken opened talks with the Vancouver Canucks by asking for Zeev Buium or Tom Willander and were turned down, and Wright’s own reported preference for Vancouver has not moved Seattle off its number.
The Pittsburgh thread has one connection the other suitors lack: Ron Francis, the general manager who drafted Wright fourth overall in 2022, now works in the Penguins’ front office as a senior adviser. No executive in the league knows Wright’s file better, and Pittsburgh has an informed read on the organization across the table.
The fit is easy to sketch. Behind Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh’s center options are Evgeni Malkin, Tommy Novak, Ben Kindel, Blake Lizotte and Hendrix Lapierre — an aging top and a thin middle. A 22-year-old center under team control addresses the position for the next decade rather than the next season. Wright’s complication is his 2025-26 line: 12 goals and 27 points in 74 games, down from career highs of 19 goals and 44 points the year before. Pittsburgh would be buying the 2024-25 version and betting the down year was about Seattle’s environment, not the player.
The market now runs on three tracks: Vancouver holds Wright’s preference but won’t pay in blue-chip prospects, the Rangers have been named a fit, and Pittsburgh brings the Francis connection and a genuine positional need. Seattle has shown no urgency to resolve it before camp.
For fantasy managers, this is the rare trade watch where the destination matters more than the deal. Wright’s dynasty stock has sagged after the 27-point season, but a landing spot with a defined second-line role and power-play time — which Pittsburgh could offer immediately — would make him one of the cheaper buy-low center bets of the summer. Hold off on redraft interest until he actually moves.
