Rumor: trade brewing between Penguins and Wings?

The Detroit Red Wings are still waiting on an agreement with forward Andreas Athanasiou, and according to NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman, "the longer this takes, the more you think a Detroit-Pittsburgh trade is contingent on his signing with the Wings."

Penguins GM Jim Rutherford has made it clear that he is considering three options to boost the offense at the center of his third line. It is believed that Riley Sheahan is one of those options for the Pens, but the Wings cannot afford to lose both Sheahan and Athanasiou. 

If Wings GM Ken Holland and Athanasiou don't come to an agreement soon, the Penguins could forget about Sheahan and move on. 

In the meantime, the Penguins could be considering getting controversial former KHLer Danis Zaripov, seeing that Evgeni Malkin has commented he would be more than happy to have him in the fold. 

Looks like Athanasiou is stalling more than just the Wings' plans for this season...