Mark Madden: Jake Guentzel's injury is Penguins' worst yet

Of all the injuries suffered by the Pittsburgh Penguins in a campaign that resembles the Battle of Gettysburg more than any hockey season, Jake Guentzel’s might have hurt worst.

The 25-year-old winger was following a career year with yet another career year. What will almost certainly be Guentzel’s last competitive touch of a puck until October went into the net.

Key players such as Sidney Crosby, Brian Dumoulin, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust and Justin Schultz have been sidelined for significant spells. But none had his season ended like Guentzel.

But the Penguins’ season isn’t over. They still have 43 games to go. They are 24-11-4 and an amazing 14-5-3 without Crosby, who should return within two weeks.

Guentzel’s injury seems crippling. But the Penguins navigated the 2017 playoffs without Letang and still won the Stanley Cup. Their speed replenished and their structure rebuilt, the Penguins could be a special team yet.

But who plays with Crosby? He and Guentzel fit hand in glove.

So do Guentzel and Malkin, for that matter. But Malkin will doubtless keep Bryan Rust on his line as each has been a big part of the other’s recent surge.

In-house options are available for Crosby’s wings.

Crosby likes analytics darling Dominik Simon. He shouldn’t. Crosby doesn’t seem to feel he and Patric Hornqvist are compatible, and at this stage of Hornqvist’s career, perhaps that’s true.

Jared McCann has the speed. But he’s better at center than at wing, and moving McCann out of the middle means trusting Nick Bjugstad as the third-line center when he returns from injury.

Dominik Kahun intrigues. He’s up to nine goals after a rocky start. He was Jonathan Toews’ linemate in Chicago last season and came to Pittsburgh with a rep for playing well in the top six.

But GM Jim Rutherford is going to make a trade. He always does.

Of obvious interest: The New York Rangers’ Chris Kreider and Los Angeles’ Tyler Toffoli. (So obvious that Rutherford reportedly inquired about both even before Guentzel got hurt.) Each carries a cap figure of $4.6 million, easily handled with Guentzel’s hit of $6 million temporarily negated. Both skate well — that’s a must — and both can score. Kreider has 12 goals in 39 games, Toffoli 11 in 41. Each is in the final year of his contract. Each is on a team likely going nowhere this season and looking to the future.

Other potential rentals: Ottawa’s J-G Pageau, primarily a center but also a wing. Florida’s Mike Hoffman is fast, but keep his girlfriend off the internet. Buffalo’s Conor Sheary knows where the Penguins’ rink is (and how to skate with Crosby). Ottawa’a Tyler Ennis is tiny (5-foot-9) but having a decent year (10 goals in 40 games) and carries a bargain-basement cap number of $800K.

The New York Islanders’ Derick Brassard is in the last year of his deal. But the Penguins likely have more interest in David Clarkson and Nathan Horton, also on expiring contracts.

Of those perceived available, my pick is Kreider. He’s 6-3 and a straight-line speedster.

To get, you’ve got to give. What do the Penguins have to give?

The Penguins have all their first-round draft picks moving forward. They traded their second- and seventh-round choices for 2020 and their fourth- and sixth-round selections for 2021, picking up an additional seventh-rounder for that year.

But the Penguins have little (if any) legit NHL talent playing at their American Hockey League affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Should Rutherford trade picks and/or prospects playing Major Junior for a rental like Kreider or Toffoli, neither of whom is likely to come cheap? Should he sacrifice recent high draft choices like winger Samuel Poulin or defenseman Calen Addison?

You want to maximize the Crosby-Malkin era. But you’ve got to ice a team and sell tickets after it’s over.

Rutherford is known for trading a lot, making 42 swaps since assuming GM duties in Pittsburgh on June 6, 2014. Ironically, this shaped up as a season where Rutherford wouldn’t need to make impact at the Feb. 24 trade deadline. But then Guentzel got hurt.