Penguins unable to reach Hornqvist to approve the trade and now deal with another issue!

Is there or isn’t there a trade? For now, the man with the ultimate power, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist, hasn’t been reached to approve the trade that was reported this morning, sending him to the Florida Panthers in return for defenseman Mike Matheson. 

According to a source close to the Penguins, the reason for the trade holdup is that simple: the Penguins have been unable to reach Patric Hornqvist to make sure he approves the trade to Florida.

Hornqvist does hold a no-trade clause in his contract, and becomes the ultimate decider in this move. As soon as the trade was reported by Kevin Weekes of the NHL network, other insiders came out saying that a glitch was taking place and the move was on hold. 

Hornqvist has played 407 regular season games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, scoring 264 points along the way. He is a beloved player in the Burgh and we can only imagine that this move will hurt the fanbase. He is a ball of intense energy and grit, and there is no doubt he would be missed.

This trade looks to still be on the table though the Penguins need to reach Hornqvist to get things moving further. 

When will he pick up the phone? 

On top of all this, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports that there is another issue holding up the trade, stating that there is an insurance issue — the ability to fully insure contracts against injury.

A lot needs to get ironed out before this deal moves through and gets approved by the NHL (not just Horny).