My friends, the moment we were all dreading has finally come.
The Jake Guentzel trade is complete, officially. This unveiling of the trade has ben a mess from the start, but it’s here and, I’m not going to lie: it’s underwhelming.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have traded Jake Guentzel and defenseman Ty Smith (hey remember him?) to the Carolina Hurricanees in exchange for NHL forward Michael Bunting, and prospects Ville Koivunen, Vasily Ponomarev, and Cruz Lucius. The deal also comes with two conditional picks.
I want to address something right off the bat: both those picks are a lie. I don’t blame the Penguins, they have to dress up this trade as best they can, but the conditions on both picks read as follows:
- A second round pick (originally belonging to Philadelphia) will upgrade to 2024 1st round ‘CAR’ if Carolina makes it to the 2024 Stanley Cup final
- That fifth round pick will only transfer if Carolina wins the 2024 Stanley Cup
It’s not great. To see either of those conditions met, the Hurricanes have to *at least* win three rounds in the playoffs. Not that they can’t do it, but that’s asking a lot out of them to achieve a first rounder. And even then, it’s a very late first rounder.
Now to the actual playrs themselves. It might not get a whole lot better. Far from someone like Scott Morrow, who was at one point reported to be a part of this deal, the Penguins instead got Carolina’s 6th, 7th, and 9th rated prospects.
I’m not going to pretend I know a ton about the prospects — I’m not fully convinced Cruz Lucius is a real guy — but here’s some surface level stuff on these guys, including Bunting. Let’s try to make the best of it.
Michael Bunting
As Steve Dangle would say, Kyle Dubas LOVES his guys. Bunting is a Dubas-guy in more way than one. He’s got the Sault Ste. Marie connection, but Bunting also played under Dubas when they were in Toronto.
Bunting made a name for himself in the NHL during the 2020-21 season, when he played in 21 games for the Arizona Coyotes, scoring 10 goals in that span.
As a free agent after that season, Dubas signed him to a two year deal in Toronto. In his first full NHL season, Bunting racked up 63 points in 79 games while playing 15:33 a night. He was a finalist for the Calder Trophy that season as league’s best rookie.
Last season, he put up 49 points in 82 games, a significant drop off, but still alright production. He parlayed his success in Toronto into a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes, who gave him $4.5 million for three years.
That contract hasn’t quite panned out. Though Bunting has 36 points in 60 games, he is a -15 and hasn’t been a fit defensively in Carolina. He’s also tied for the Canes’ lead in giveaways, but that hasn’t been nearly as big an issue for him in the past.
That’s a hefty contract if you aren’t sure about a player, but now that’s Pittsburgh’s problem.
I’m ok with Bunting, to be honest. I think he brings a little physicality that this team lacks. He threw 85 hits both seasons in Toronto, and I think if you pair him with the right players, he can be very effective here.
I’d try him on Sid’s line, just to see how that goes.
I’m not a huge fan of bringing in a 28 year old on a big contract with multiple years left and modified trade protection, but again, looking for the positives here.
Ville Koivunen
Ville Koivunen, 20 years old, was a second round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, 51st overall by the Canes.
He is currently playing in Finland’s top league, Liiga, for Kärpät, where he is nearly a point per game. Koivunen’s racked up 21 goals and 34 assists in 57 games, tied for the team lead with Teemu Turunen. For a 20-year old, that’s very impressive.
At 5′ 11, 180 pounds, he doesn’t have the big-time size of physicality, but he has more enough skill to carry him through.
From David St. Louis at EliteProspects, Koivunen has high hockey sense and is a good playmaker. He mentioned skating as a weakness, which is important in a sport called ice hockey, but he is definitely a talented young forward.
The 2021 edition of the EliteProspects draft guide had this to say on Koivunen:
“His game is one of pure, unrelenting skill, and an attacking mindset to match. Koivunen wants the puck on his stick, wants to be a game-breaker, wants to make something happen every shift. Koivunen keeps his top hand pushed out, handles the puck at his hip, and doesn’t mind engaging numbers.”
Look, he very likely isn’t going to be Jake Guentzel, but I’m open to him a ton and I can’t help but he intrigued with what he has done with Kärpät and be very impressed.
Vasily Ponomarev
Full disclosure: some sites list his first name as Vasili, and others as Vasily. I opted to use the version the Penguins used, but my apologies if I am wrong.
This is the prospect I am most excited about, but it is probably because I think he has the fastest NHL ETA.
Ponomarev was picked 53rd overall in 2020, one pick behind goaltender Joel Blomqvist, who the Penguins selected that year. Here is the EliteProspects run down on him from that season:
“The motor on this kid is unrelenting. He backtracks well through the neutral zone, consistently applies back-pressure, and is dogged in 50-50 puck battles. He’s a legitimate two-way centre, the type that makes his presence felt at every corner of the ice”
Ponomarev played 2 games for the Hurricanes earlier this season, and although it was an incredibly small sample size, he did pot a goal and add an assist in his NHL debut.
A better look at Ponomarev’s numbers come from his time in the American Hockey League this year. As you might remember from when it was a big story this summer, the Hurricanes have no AHL affiliate this season. As a result, their prospects have been scattered, some playing in the AHL for the now independent Chicago Wolves, and a lot of them being pushed down to the ECHL, where the Canes do have a team.
Ponomarev has 8 goals and 21 assists in 39 AHL games this season in Chicago. He is projected to be more of a bottom six forward with two-way abilities. Ponomarev is currently a -15, which is bad, but it’s important to note that this has been a rough season for the Wolves.
AHL Chicago is currently 19-27-5, and it’s also extremely important to note that literally nobody on the Wolves who has played more than 3 games with the team is a plus-anything. So, that helps put Ponomarev’s number a little more in context.
I think there is a chance we see the 21-year old play NHL games for the Penguins this season, depending on how other trades shake up the roster. Keep an eye on this kid.
Cruz Lucius
Ok I’m not gonna lie: Cruz Lucius does not sound like a real player. He sounds like an EA generated player when you’ve gone too far in Franchise Mode or something like that.
In any case, he is indeed real and also the youngest of the bunch coming to Pittsburgh. At 19 years old, Lucius is currently NCAA hockey for the University of Wisconsin.
He leads the Badgers with 31 points in 32 games. That tally consists of 12 goals and 19 assists. Of note, he has just 4 penalties all season.
His numbers this season have been very consistent with last season at Wisconsin, when he had 11 goals an 23 assists for 34 points in as many games.
He also played in the World Juniors during the 2021-22 season, racking up 8 points in 6 games.
Lucius was a fourth round pick by the Canes in 2022, 124th overall. EliteProspects had this to say on him at the time:
“With his combination of deception and passing skills, Lucius managed to send a staggering amount of pucks to open teammates in the slot. When he gets the space to prepare his plays, he can manipulate defenders and connect highly difficult plays”
Per David St. Louis once again, Lucius is highly skilled. He’s a “flashy playmaker,” but like Koivunen, his skating is also a weakness. St. Louis also said that Lucius’ style of play may not translate to the NHL, but I think we’re still a few years away from seeing if that is true.
He is the only player going to Pittsburgh in this deal who is currently unsigned. The Penguins merely acquired his signing rights, given the fact that the Canes had not given him an entry level contract yet.
He was on Carolina’s Reserve List, and will transfer over to Pittsburgh’s in the deal.
Fifth Avenue Sports 
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