LeBrun: Pens' Rutherford in great position to trade

Pierre LeBrun was on Ottawa’s TSN 1200 on Wednesday afternoon.

On the Pittsburgh Penguins and the trade scene:

“They were already targeting a top-six forward before the March deadline as it was, never mind now that they’ve lost Dupuis. I mean, you can make the case now they may have to go out and trade for two of them. Although at the end of the day, maybe one will suffice. But they were already on the lookout, eventually, for a top-six player because they felt they were one of those players short in their top six.

“So I think this puts way more onus on it, and you’ve seen Jim Rutherford in the past. He is not scared at all to be bold. And I suspect that – I haven’t reached out to anyone in that organization today, but I suspect that will be full-on over the next couple of months to try and find that piece.”

Related: McKenzie: Pens "kicked tires" on Stafford, Stewart; trade search will "intensify"

Also:

“They are in win-now. This is about winning now. As long as Crosby and Malkin are healthy and in the peak of their careers, they’re always going to go for it, no matter what.

“And the thing about that is they have a lot of young defensemen in the organization. Some are at the NHL level. Some are at the AHL level. I had a GM from another team tell me at least two guys that are playing on their AHL team should be NHL defensemen.”

Also:

“You would think that Jim Rutherford is in a good position to trade one of those kids... Dallas needs a defenseman. Colorado needs defensemen. Edmonton needs defensemen. There should be something there for Jimmy Rutherford to do given the abundance in that particular position in Pittsburgh.”

Source: TSN 1200/ Transcript: Nichols on Hockey