The Pittsburgh Penguins traded forward Michael Bunting and a fourth-round pick to the Nashville Predators for forward Tommy Novak and defenseman Luke Schenn before the 2025 trade deadline. Subsequently, the Penguins traded Schenn to the Winnipeg Jets for future draft picks after he expressed a desire to join a contender. General Manager Kyle Dubas noted Novak's younger age, contract control, and positional value contributed to the trade's rationale. Novak only participated in two games due to injury, finishing the season with 13 goals and 22 points in 54 games, despite a strong performance prior to the trade.
The motivation being that Tommy was younger, under team control for an additional season over Bunting, carried a lower cap charge, and is primarily a center. We felt that carried a large amount of value as we move ahead here with our plans.
Novak has two years left at $3.5 million per season compared to Bunting's $4.5 million cap hit for one season.
He finished the season with 13 goals and 22 points in 54 games.
Before he was dealt to the Penguins, he was generating offense fairly well with the Predators, even though they were one of the worst teams in the league.
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