Report: Pens hope Guentzel trade in place by Wednesday

The Pittsburgh Penguins hope to have solidified a deal to send Jake Guentzel elsewhere by Wednesday evening, reports TSN's Darren Dreger.

Pittsburgh is eyeing a first-round pick, a young NHL player, and prospects in exchange for the potent winger, and the club is open to receiving quality over quantity, Dreger adds.

Guentzel is expected to be dealt as a rental rather than with an accompanying contract extension, according to TSN's Chris Johnston.

The pending unrestricted free agent is now the best player available ahead of Friday's NHL trade deadline. He's a two-time 40-goal scorer and has 22 tallies and 30 assists over 50 games this season.

In late February, it was reported several teams were interested in Guentzel, including the Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers, Vancouver Canucks, and Vegas Golden Knights.

Penguins president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas called Guentzel trade talk "pure speculation" in January. However, it was later reported that he was listening to offers on all non-core players. Dubas subsequently left the door open for a Guentzel swap by not ruling out the possibility.

The trade deadline is 3 p.m. ET on Friday.