After much anticipation about the Pittsburgh Penguins' goaltending situation heading into the 2025-26 season, the dam has finally broken.
On Tuesday, the Penguins traded goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a 2026 third-round pick. Nedeljkovic is signed through the end of the 2025-26 season with a cap hit of $2.5 million.
Nedeljkovic, 29, spent the last two seasons as one half of the tandem with Tristan Jarry in Pittsburgh. There were mixed results in both campaigns, and last season, Nedeljkovic finished the season 14-15-5 with a 3.12 goals-against average and an .894 save percentage.
With Nedeljkovic out of the picture for the Penguins, it opens the door for one of Pittsburgh's young goaltending prospects to share the workload with Jarry next season. The obvious candidate is Joel Blomqvist, who had two short NHL stints last season.
The first stint went well for Blomqvist. The second? Not so much. Overall, the rookie finished 4-9-1 with a 3.81 goals-against average and an .885 save percentage.
Pittsburgh also has goaltending prospects in Sergei Murashov and Filip Larsson, both of whom figure to be in the mix for NHL playing time next season.
After the trade, the Penguins now have 28 picks in the next two drafts, including six in the first three rounds in 2026.
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Feature image credit: Timothy T. Ludwig - Imagn Images