Red Wings trade Sheahan to Penguins for Wilson
The Pittsburgh Penguins have added a center.
The club acquired Riley Sheahan and a fifth-round pick in 2018 from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for winger Scott Wilson and a 2018 third-round selection, the Penguins announced Saturday.
Key to this deal is the exchange of salaries. Sheahan is signed through this season and carries an average annual value of $2.075 million, while Wilson's cap hit comes in at $625,000 and his deal also runs through 2017-18.
No salary retained in PIT-DET trade.
- Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) October 21, 2017
This is especially important for the Red Wings, who had to get under the salary cap after signing restricted free agent Andreas Athanasiou earlier this week.
The Red Wings now have $1,470,220 in available cap space thanks to long-term injury reserve allowances, allowing them to accommodate Athanasiou's reported $1.3875-million salary.
From the Penguins' point of view, they add center depth, an area they've desperately needed to address since the departures of Nick Bonino and Matt Cullen in free agency.
Sheahan, 25, infamously failed to score in a single game last season before recording two goals in the final game at Joe Louis Arena. In 292 appearances with Detroit after being selected 21st overall in 2010, he scored 38 goals and added 60 assists.
Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford believes better days are ahead for Sheahan.
Rutherford: "He's a proven guy. He dropped off a little bit last year in his production, but there's no reason why he can't get that back."
- Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) October 21, 2017
As for Wilson, also 25, he recorded 13 goals and 19 assists in 106 games for the Penguins, and chipped in three goals and three assists in 20 playoff games en route to a Stanley Cup win this past spring.
Copyright (C) 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.