It’s been a busy last few days to close out the year for Kyle Dubas. 

On Monday, Dubas sent forward Danton Heinen, a 2026 second round pick, and a 2027 third pick to Columbus for forward Yegor Chinakov. 

Two days later, with one last trade to close out the year, Dubas made another trade within the division. In the afternoon, he sent forward Philip Tomasino across the state in exchange for defenseman Egor Zamula. 

This move will help supplement the blue line for the Penguins, after they assigned Ryan Graves back to the AHL. 

Zamula is a 25-year-old, left-shot defenseman. He stands at 6’ 3 and clocks in at about 200 pounds. 

He’s new to the Penguins, but he is not new to the NHL. He played 26 games spread out over three seasons from 2020 to 2023, before taking on a much more permanent role each of the last two years. 

In 2023-24, Zamula appeared in a career-high 66 games, registering five goals and 16 assists (21 points) in Philadelphia. He was also able to be a +3, an impressive mark for a team that struggled. 

Last year, Zamula skated in 63 games and had three goals and 12 assists (15 points). 

The big improvement for Zamula was his discipline. In his first true year, he racked up 32 penalty minutes. Last season, he recorded just six, despite seeing an increase in ice time. He played 16:31 a night last year. 

This season, his time has been cut by nearly two and a half minutes. He hasn’t fit into the Flyers lineup nearly as much, under new head coach Rick Tocchet. He has just one assist and is a +4 in 13 games. 

He’s now heading to Pittsburgh in exchange for a player who, despite playing a different position, had a similar falling out of favor story. 

Tomasino was a former first round pick by the Nashville Predators back in 2019. He put together a decent rookie season back in 2021-22, when he registered 32 points in 76 games. But he never was able to get either figure after that year. 

Last season, after he was a healthy scratch on numerous occasions, Nashville cut their losses and sent him to the Penguins for a fourth round pick in 2027. 

Upon arriving in Pittsburgh, Tomasino showed flashes of what the Predators were hoping they would get from the forward. He had 11 goals and 12 assists (23 ppinys) in 50 games after the trade. 

With the added depth at forward though, Tomasino struggled to grab hold of an NHL spot. He was placed on waivers earlier in the year and went unclaimed, before he was assigned back to the American Hockey League. 

And that’s how his Penguins story ends. 

At the end of the day, Zamula is an option on the blue line. Is he a great option? Not right now, but he’s an option. And there’s always the chance that he finds a way to flourish in a new environment. 

Though the Penguins have a bit of a jumble of depth defenseman in the organization, Zamula doesn’t have to compete with a whole lot to stand out.

Pittsburgh’s defense corps is one of the worst in the NHL. It’s part of the reason why their goaltending has struggled the way it has of late. 

What’s one more guy to that mix? Maybe he finds a way here, maybe he doesn’t.

But the team made it clear that they weren’t going to use Tomasino. So, why not try out Zamula?