Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford stopped short of saying the Penguins would definitely make a trade to offset the loss of All-Star winger Jake Guentzel.

Not by much, though.

Speaking on his 105.9 the X radio show Wednesday night, Rutherford sounded like a GM well-aware of what he had lost.

He also sounded like one who was determined to make sure his team didn’t suffer because of it.

Rutherford spent much of the show’s first two segments glowing about how his players “scratched and clawed” in the face of so many injuries this year. He referred to the organization’s 57 points and second-place standing in the Metropolitan Division as “an amazing story” because many of those wins occurred despite injuries to the likes of Sidney Crosby, Brian Dumoulin, Kris Letang, Justin Schultz, Evgeni Malkin, Patric Hornqvist and Bryan Rust at various stretches over the course of the season.

In some cases — such as Crosby’s 26 games — very long stretches.

Now, add Guentzel to that list. He already has missed four games and will sit out the next four to six months after shoulder surgery.

Rutherford’s tone turned dour as he recollected watching Guentzel crash into the boards after scoring a goal against Ottawa on Dec. 30.

“It was really sickening, when he went into the boards,” Rutherford said. “The way he went in. It could’ve been worse. You just didn’t know. Did he break his neck, or something like that?”

Rutherford also seemed upset that his leading scorer couldn’t participate in the All-Star Game and receive the praise he deserved for following up a 40-goal season last year with a 20-goal start this year.

“Jake is probably the most underappreciated star in our league,” Rutherford continued. “When players play with Sid or Geno, (observers) will say ‘Well they are playing with great centers.’ Well, they are. But I can put a lot of other guys there that aren’t going to do what Jake Guentzel does.”

Crosby is expected to rejoin Malkin in the lineup at some point over the next few games. Now Rutherford is tasked with trading for a player who can skate with one of his two great centers, even if that player can’t do it as well as Guentzel.

Rutherford doesn’t appear to want his team, which has worked so hard to stay afloat, to suddenly be hindered by a lack of firepower.

“With where our team sits and how much we like our team, we are always going to be looking at where we can strengthen it for the playoffs,” Rutherford said.

That’s encouraging to hear.

Because there aren’t enough answers within the franchise at wing as it sits right now. With 17 goals this season, Rust is within one goal of matching his career high. So he’s already exceeding expectations.

The general manager also couched his comments by saying he wanted to “take a chance to think about it,” adding he wanted to give an opportunity for some players to “step up.”

Here are the problems with that.

Hornqvist’s shelf life on Crosby’s line often only seems to be a few games at a time. Head coach Mike Sullivan seems inclined to keep Brandon Tanev and Zach Aston-Reese with Teddy Blueger. Jared McCann may have to continue playing center for a while. Alex Galchenyuk has yet to find consistency in Pittsburgh. And Dominik Kahun can bounce up and down the line as much as Sullivan wants. Unfortunately, he still only counts as one player.

So adding another winger is crucial.

The sooner the better.

Granted, rumored names the Penguins may want to acquire sound only decent. Not great.

You’ve heard most of them by now — Chris Kreider (Rangers), Brandon Saad (Blackhawks), Tyler Toffoli (Kings), J-G Pageau (Senators), Rickard Rakell (Ducks), Mike Hoffman (Panthers).

All of them would help cushion the blow of losing Guentzel. Unfortunately, whether it is on the ice or off, there seems to be a rub with each player. Whether that’s age, injury, salary, fit, attitude or contract length, there’s a legitimate argument as to why a first-round or second-round pick may be too much, especially if another player from the current roster has to go out the door in the deal.

One could understand Rutherford’s reticence to throw in a lot of capital for moderate rental return, especially since Guentzel and his $6 million salary cap hit will — hopefully — be back next season.

I’m sure Rutherford doesn’t want to be too desperate and act too quickly. But it’s not like the Penguins haven’t had an eye toward potentially adding scoring depth anyway. My guess is that scouting on at least some of these guys started long before Guentzel’s injury.

At the time of Rutherford’s comments, his club was seven points clear of the playoff cut line. That sounds good now. But with 39 games left, that cushion could vanish in a heartbeat.

Augmenting the need to get someone on board quickly is the desire to give that player as many games as possible to build chemistry with Malkin or Crosby. Plus, there is the small matter of seven more games smooshed into the schedule over the next 11 days.

Not to mention, the price of doing business always seems to get higher once other teams start to sniff the playoffs as the trade deadline approaches.

In the past, Rutherford has made trades in December and January. Deals that yielded Marcus Pettersson, Carl Hagelin, Jamie Oleksiak and Trevor Daley come to mind.

To buffer the loss of Guentzel, I think he’d be wise to do so again this year. Rutherford seems to think his team deserves it.

He’s right.

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