Trading players such as Penguins' Phil Kessel rare, not unprecedented

From his personality on and off the ice to his set of strengths and weaknesses as a player, Phil Kessel is truly one of a kind in the NHL universe.

But that doesn’t mean the Pittsburgh Penguins are in uncharted territory as they try to trade the popular two-time Stanley Cup champion this summer.

While teams don’t move proven offensive contributors with restrictive no-trade language in their contracts every day, it has happened often enough over the past five years to provide some hints about how this saga will end up for the Penguins.

Here are the parameters the Penguins are dealing with when it comes to trading Kessel:

• He’s 31 with three years left on a contract with an annual cap hit of $6.8 million for the acquiring team.

• While there are some indications his production has begun to tail off, like the 29 consecutive games he went without an even-strength goal in February and March, his overall offensive numbers remain strong. He’s one of 15 NHL players to average a point per game in each of the past two seasons.

• Kessel’s no-trade clause includes a list of eight teams he can be sent to without prior approval. According to multiple reports, he already scuttled a deal that would have sent him to the Minnesota Wild.

Here are four examples of teams that have moved players under similar circumstances in recent years:

Ryan Kesler to Anaheim

In the summer of 2014, Ryan Kesler wanted out of Vancouver, but his no-trade restrictions were tight. He reportedly only would approve a move to Anaheim, Chicago or Pittsburgh.

Kesler’s age and contract situation made him slightly more attractive than Kessel is right now. Kesler was 29 with two years left on a deal with an average salary of $5 million.

The Canucks sent Kesler to Anaheim for center Nick Bonino, defenseman Luca Sbisa and a first-round pick. It was a pretty decent haul. The Penguins would be lucky to get a similar return for Kessel.

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Jason Spezza to Dallas

That same summer, Spezza wanted out of Ottawa after reported disagreements with coach Paul MacLean. Spezza was considered a bona fide top-six scorer at the time. He was 31 with one year left on a contract that paid him $7 million.

Ottawa first made a deal with Nashville at the draft, but Spezza used his no-trade clause to nix it. On their second try, the Senators sent him to Dallas for Alex Chiasson, prospects Alex Guptill and Nicholas Paul and a second-round pick.

If the Penguins acquire prospects in a Kessel deal — which they theoretically might, using the salary cap savings to pursue a free agent instead — they’ll have to hope they turn out better than these ones did.

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Patrick Sharp to Dallas

The Blackhawks were looking for salary-cap relief in summer 2015, so they shopped Sharp, who was 33 with two years left on a contract worth $5.9 million per season.

Chicago sent Sharp and defensive prospect Stephen Johns to the Stars for defenseman Trevor Daley and fourth-liner Ryan Garbutt. Daley was 31 and coming off a career year in which he scored 16 goals.

While the Blackhawks saved a few bucks in the deal, it was more or less a hockey trade. Given the Penguins aren’t looking to rebuild, a Kessel deal easily could look a lot like this one.

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T.J. Oshie to Washington

Oshie was 28 when the Blues traded him to Washington for power forward Troy Brouwer, goalie prospect Pheonix Copley and a third-round pick in summer 2015. The trade is analogous to the Kessel situation for one big reason.

The Blues wanted to move Oshie to shake up their culture after three straight first-round playoff exits. They wanted to get heavier and harder to play against.

Oshie turned out to be the best player in the deal by far, but the season after the trade, the Blues advanced to the conference finals for the first time in 14 years. The Penguins are hoping for a similar result by shopping Kessel.