Report: Kyle Dubas on verge of 1st major splash as Penguins president

The Pittsburgh Penguins have themselves a brand new president of hockey operations, and he officially made his debut earlier this month. 

Former Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas is the new head honcho in the Steel City, taking over the franchise who elected to clean out their front office at the conclusion of this season after having missed the postseason for the first time since Sidney Crosby's rookie year of 2005-6. 

And it looks as though he could already be on the verge of a major deal. According to NHL analyst Elliott Friedman, Dubas is preparing to "announce himself" by packaging Pittsburgh's 1st round draft pick and use it to acquire a goaltender. 

"I think Dubas is going to announce himself here, and people are wondering is he going to put his first rounder on the table for a goalie," Friedman said in his latest 32 Thoughts podcast. 

One big name goaltender that is rumored to be on the move this offseason is Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets, who has expressed his desire to move on. Additionally, another goaltender who has had his name in trade talks is Pittsburgh native John Gibson of the Anaheim Ducks. 

The goaltending tandem of Tristan Jarry and Casey DeSmith has been underwhelming for the Penguins, to say the least. With the prized Penguins trio of Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang all on the wrong side of age 35 and a projected dark age set to be ushered into Pittsburgh before too long, look for Dubas to maximize the time that they have left with the team to try and make one more run at a championship.

A bonafide starting goaltender could go a long way in Pittsburgh achieving that goal.