The Pittsburgh Penguins added veteran depth for the stretch run on Wednesday, landing defenseman Luke Schenn along with forward Tommy Novak from the Nashville Predators in exchange for left wing Michael Bunting and a 2026 fourth-round draft pick.
In a separate deal, the Penguins sent defenseman Vincent Desharnais to the San Jose Sharks for a 2028 fifth-round pick.
Typically, teams that deal for second- and third-line defensemen at the deadline are looking for players who bring expiring contracts with them. But with Nashville out of the postseason race, and Schenn carrying a modest $2.75 million salary cap hit on a deal that still has one more season left, the 35-year-old veteran attracted plenty of interest.
Schenn won't bring much offense to Pittsburgh -- at the 4 Nations Face-Off break, he had one goal for the Predators a season after also posting just one in 63 games -- but he is likely to contribute to the tune of about 17 minutes per game and could help the penalty-kill unit.
This will be Schenn's ninth NHL club after breaking in with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2008. His 3,588 hits since his debut season are third most in the NHL and first among all blueliners.
Novak, 27, has played all four of his seasons with the Predators, who drafted him in the third round of the 2015 NHL draft. He has 13 goals, 9 assists and 22 points in 52 games this season.
Bunting, 29, is currently out indefinitely after undergoing surgery to remove his appendix last week. He has 29 points (14 goals, 15 assists) and a minus-18 rating in 58 games this season.
Desharnais, 29, moves to his third team this season. A penalty-killing defenseman, he signed with Vancouver as a free agent after two seasons in Edmonton, then was traded to Pittsburgh in February.