Taking a look back at memorable trades between the Winnipeg Jets, & the Pittsburg Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Winnipeg Jets recently went on to swapped top prospects, with Rutger McGroarty going to the Pens, and Brayden Yager moving to Canada.

The Penguins joined the NHL in 1967, and this version of the Jets (2011-present) was once the Atlanta Thrashers, an expansion team that was formed in 1999.

Although most Winnipeg fans dislike discussing the team's time in Atlanta, we do need to remember their past before the relocation. When the Thrashers existed, these two Eastern Conference teams made three deals, bringing the total to six. Here's a look at those notable transactions.

As previously mentioned, the Penguins acquired the Jets' top prospect, McGroarty, who requested a trade in June. Last seasons NCAA, Hobey Baker Award nominee is looking for a chance to crack an NHL lineup. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh traded away their best prospect, Yager, who had 95 points in the WHL last year and was on a path to play in the AHL in 2024-25, possibly making his NHL debut also.

The Penguins acquired Nathan Beaulieu in exchange for a seventh-round pick in the 2022 Draft. He spent the early part of his career with the organization before moving on to Buffalo and Winnipeg. Beaulieu never played a game in Pittsburgh or Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, instead signing with the Anaheim Ducks as a free agent.

Arguably, the most significant trade between the two franchises occurred in February 2008. In a five-player deal, the Penguins acquired Marian Hossa and Pascal Dupuis, two key players who would help them to the 2008 Stanley Cup Final.

The Thrashers acquired Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, Angelo Esposito, and a first-round pick in 2008, who turned out to be Daulton Leveille.

Unfortunately, Esposito and Leveille never played in the NHL, making the Penguins the unanimous winner of this blockbuster.

Leading up to the 2007 Draft, the Thrashers acquired defenseman Chris Thorburn for a third-round pick that became Robert Bortuzzo. After four seasons in Atlanta, Thorburn relocated to Winnipeg with the team and finished his tenure with the club after 10 years and 709 games in 2017.

Bortuzzo skated in only 113 games with the Pens before being dealt to St. Louis in 2015. He would go on to win the Stanley Cup in 2019 and is now an unrestricted free agent in late 2024.

The first trade between the thes two franchises occurred in January 2001 involving defenseman Jiri Slegr, who left Pittsburgh after four seasons in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2001 Draft.

Slegr only went on to play 71 games in Atlanta before a deal sent him to Detroit in 2002, where he would win the Stanley Cup in June. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh traded their new draft pick away to the Columbus Blue Jackets on the same day for Krzysztof Oliwa.