With the Olympic Trade Freeze lifted at 11:59 pm on February 22, two days later, the first major trade took place as the NHL resumes its season on Wednesday. The Colorado Avalanche are sending defenseman Samuel Girard and a 2028 second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Brett Kulak.
We acquired Brett Kulak from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Samuel Girard and a second-round pick in the 2028 NHL Draft. pic.twitter.com/tZrCRBm3LB
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) February 24, 2026
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Kulak is a solid defenseman, who helped the Edmonton Oilers reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2024 and 2025. He plays about 20 minutes a night and is a leading skating-four defenseman who is a powerful killer.
Brett Kulak, acquired by COL, is the fourth-leading defensive penalty kill. He has been playing with Kris Letang and is doing very well after a rough start with the Oilers this season. When he’s at his best he calms things down and makes safe plays. pic.twitter.com/FdYI3Nqnnr
– JFresh (@JFreshHockey) February 24, 2026
This is the second time Kulak has been sold this season. Remember, Kulak, along with Stuart Skinner, were traded to the Penguins from Edmonton as the Oilers acquired goaltender Tristan Jarry.
At that point, Girard is a solid piece that could be the future of the Penguins’ blueline with aging veterans behind it. He is a top four defenseman and his ceiling is second.
The Pittsburgh Penguins acquired Sam Girard and a ’28 2nd round pick from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Brett Kulak. I love this Pittsburgh deal. Girard, at his best, is a good 2nd pairing defenseman. pic.twitter.com/nFOCEO7JgI
– Rono (@RonoAnalyst) February 24, 2026
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The Avalanche have been looking to trade Girard for the better part of four years now. Even though he helped Colorado win the Stanley Cup in 2022, there was a feeling that if the right move happened, they would pull the trigger.
From somewhere in the North Atlantic, trade details and thoughts:
It depends #GoAvsGo:
D Brett Kulak (pending UFA)It depends #LetsGoPens:
D Samuel Girard
2028 2nd Round PickKulak is a proven playoff player. Colorado had flirted with the idea of moving Girard to an open/close 4th quarter…
– Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 24, 2026
Penguins Kyle Dubas took a lot of heat for some of the moves he made during his time there, but he turned around Tristan Jarry. and Sam Poulin to Stuart Skinner and Samuel Girardand two second-round picks.
There is no salary retention in this agreement. Kulak is in the final year of his $2.75 million contract. Girard has one year left on his contract with a cap hit of $5 million. The Colorado Avalanche were looking to clear cap space as they looked to find a depth centerman and possibly another defenseman.
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Currently, the Avalanche have $8.742 million in cap space. At the NHL Trade Deadline, the Avalanche will have approximately $10.8 million in cap space. These numbers will be adjusted if Logan O’Connor returns to the roster and is activated from LTIR, adding $2.5 million to the salary cap.
It begs the question: Will the Colorado Avalanche call the Calgary Flames, if they haven’t already, and discuss a possible trade involving Nazem Kadri? Everyone knows the impact he had on the Avalanche in 2022, helping them win the Stanley Cup.
It’s worth a look, given their cap situation.
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