Why would the Pens do this? This is basically a lateral move with the Pens retaining money. Plus, Dubas made it crystal clear in his presser the other day that EK is considered part of the core and he's not tampering with the core.

Idk, they do get a fair bit younger. Might be of benefit to an aging core? Id do it without retention fwiw

It still doesn't work for a few reasons...

1) Throws off the balance on the left side vs. right. The Pens would have a massive void at RHD.
2) While I understand your thinking about aging, Dubas like I said made it clear he's not moving those guys.

OTT declines EK deal