National rumors persist about Rickard Rakell
· Yahoo Sports
It’s nothing new for veteran Penguins players to find their names being brought up on national panels and media outlets when it comes to potential trades. Lately, Rickard Rakell has been a popular name to share among the likes of Frank Seravalli, Nick Kypreos and Chris Johnston for early season chatter about potential names to keep an eye on for a possible trade.
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The trade talk is starting to pick up as the NHL regular season rolls into its fifth week.
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) October 27, 2026
We’ve expanded our early Big Board to 20 names, starting with Dylan Larkin.
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7. Rickard Rakell, Pittsburgh PenguinsAge: 33
Position: RW
Contract term: 2028 UFA
Cap hit: $5 millionNo stranger to the Big Board in the past few years, Rakell may finally be in his final months with a Penguins team slowly transitioning to a younger group. He’s delivered an outsized amount of production on a reasonable contract, but it’s been a slow start for both player and team. Still, Rakell is an above-average finisher who has a history of holding his own when playing alongside highly skilled linemates. He’s scored at a 29-goal-per-82-game pace across the last four seasons.
Frank Seravalli – Oilers NOW – Penguins | Rakell up for grabs. Bryan Rust will be up for grabs. That whole core outside of the big guns are all going to be in play and in talks and look for the Penguins to take Flyers on younger players around the league that have fallen out of… pic.twitter.com/GZfZ0h0AyV
— R i N K Y (@RinkyReport) October 27, 2026
The last one from over the weekend might be the spiciest since it contains some specific information.
Nick Kypreos: The Penguins have been ready to move on from Rickard Rakell since the summer, but couldn’t close a deal – Sportsnet (10/22)
— NHL Rumour Report (@NHLRumourReport) October 27, 2026
That nugget makes the mind wander back to the behind the scenes video that the Ottawa Senators shared over the summer, where they were considering moving the 25th overall pick on draft night in June in exchange for an unnamed ‘roster player’ from the Penguins. Nothing further came to light regarding who was involved, but it’s not a huge stretch to imagine that could have been an effort to move Rakell in the summer as Kypreos mentioned. It also was unclear from the video if there were more parts involved than just one roster player and Ottawa’s 25th overall pick, which they ultimately elected to hang onto and use themselves, so it’s impossible to judge from the outside just what that exact proposal might have been – if it involved Rakell at all.
As perhaps usual when it comes to Rakell, the value that the team views him considering his on ice contributions still outweigh the amount other NHL clubs are willing to offer. So then, as it is now, comes the lasting period of rumors and whispers with little other tangible information out there.
Rakell’s name isn’t the only one being spoken about. There are various reports about the availability and potential likelihood of Bryan Rust and Erik Karlsson also making the rounds. Say enough names for long enough and it’s bound to come true eventually, though it’s very clear that many eyes outside of Pittsburgh are keeping a close eye on how the Penguins do in the standings in the immediate future and what pivots that Kyle Dubas and company might choose to make as they build their team for this season and potentially beyond.