Penguins attempted one monster move before falling back onto the rebuild plan

There was hope for another all in shot at a Stanley Cup championship for Pittsburgh Penguins and captain Sidney Crosby on the market of the opening of the free agent market on July 1st. That’s because, according to insider Frank Seravalli, the Penguins were one of the teams interested in forward Brock Boeser before he ended up re-signing with the Vancouver Canucks.

Boeser ended up signing a seven-year, $50.75 million contract to remain with the Canucks. The deal with carry an average annual value of $7.25 million. The star forward himself admitted that in the last hour before he was to officially become one of the most coveted free agents on the market, something changed in his discussions with Vancouver and convinced him to re-sign there.

It was also reported Boeser had at least 10 teams presenting offers that morning, and now we know the Penguins were amongst them.

While no more information was given on the offers themselves and the money attached to them, there is no doubt that Boeser could have commanded a higher annual average salary from another team on the open market.

Not sure if Pittsburgh and general manager Kyle Dubas, who has been focus on the long-term success and rebuil of the Penguins, had a real shot at Boeser. However, it does not seem completely off the table for the Penguins to make a significant move for an immediate boost and perhaps allow Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang to get another chance at the postseason in Pittsburgh. Unfortunately, it won’t be with the addition of Boeser, who recorded 204 goals and 434 points in 554 games since getting drafted 23rd overall in 2015. He is coming off his third season with at least 50 points, registering 25 goals and 25 assists in 75 games.