Avalanche trade Ilya Solovyov to Penguins for Valtteri Puustinen, draft pick
The Colorado Avalanche have traded defenseman Ilya Solovyov to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for winger Valtteri Puustinen and a 2026 seventh-round draft pick, the club announced Tuesday afternoon.
Solovyov, 25, has appeared in 16 games with the Avalanche this season, recording a goal and three points while averaging 11:34 of ice time. The Avalanche claimed the Belarusian defenseman off waivers from the Calgary Flames in October.
Puustinen, 26, has spent the entire 2025-26 season to date with the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, recording seven goals and 26 points in 35 games.
We have acquired Valtteri Puustinen and Pittsburgh's own 7th Round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft in exchange for Ilya Solovyov.
A seventh-round pick (No. 205 overall) of the Flames in the 2020 NHL Draft, Solovyov spent the first four seasons of his North American professional career in the Calgary organization. The 6’3″ lefty skated in 15 games with the Flames over the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, recording four points (all assists).
Born in Mogilev, Belarus, Solovyov is under contract at a $775,000 NHL cap hit through the end of the 2025-26 season, at which point he’ll become a Group 6 unrestricted free agent. He collected six goals and 28 points in 59 games with the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers during the 2024-25 season.
Puustinen will provide more depth at the forward position to an Avalanche team that has dealt with multiple injuries this year. The 5’9″ winger hails from Kuopio, Finland and has 66 NHL games under his belt with the Penguins, who drafted him in the seventh round (No. 203 overall) back in 2019.
After developing in the HPK Hameenlinna system, Puustinen came to North America with the Penguins organization in 2021 and made his NHL debut that season. He skated in 52 games with the Penguins in the 2023-24 season, collecting five goals and 20 points.
With this trade, the Avalanche now have nine picks in the upcoming 2026 NHL Draft: two fourths, three fifths, and four sevenths.