|
|
Bloggers 
My HockeyBuzz
Cap Central
Fantasy
Rumor Chart
Forums
Store
Chat
RSS
|
Season Ticket Login Free Registration! |
Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 |
 |
|
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger •
Day two of the National Hockey League's free agent signing period answered some big questions for the Penguins and identified the areas that Ray Shero will need to address moving forward.
The day started off with rumblings that Marian Hossa had made a decision and we found out around noontime that he would sign with the Detroit Red Wings. Signing with the Stanley Cup Champions is not a surprise, but the fact that he accepted a one year deal that pays $7.45 mil is. The Penguins are thought to have upped their offer to Hossa and finally settled upon 7 years and roughly $52 mil for his services. Unfortunately it wasn't enough.
The wild thing about this situation is that I still firmly believe that if Hossa was represented by anyone else, he would have signed with the Penguins prior to 7/1/08...no point crying over spilled milk as they say. The money that was saved by not locking Hossa up is expected to used for (2) forwards who can potentially play a top six role for the team.
The Penguins are apparently trying for Markus Naslund, who would be an interesting addition. Most people seem to forget the fact that Naslund had a couple years in Vancouver where he was among the league's leading scorers. He has the pedigree to be a very effective linemate for Sidney Crosby.
Hossa wasn't the only forward to fly the coop on this day, as the Penguins lost agitator Jarkko Ruutu. Ruuuu, as the Mellon Arena crowd affectionately called him, wasn't interested in the Penguins offer of a two year contract and instead accepted a three year deal with the Ottawa Senators. I am thinking Ruutu's performance against the Senators in a four game playoff sweep this Spring must have been fresh in Bryan Murray's mind. He seemed to do it all for the Penguins during that series. Ruutu will be missed...his knack for agitating the opposition and drawing penalties will be tough to replace. Though Jonathan Bombulie, beat writer for the Wilkes Barre-Scranton Penguins, seems to think it could open a door in the Penguins line-up for Ryan Stone. Time will tell...
Lost in the shuffle of losing Hossa was the fact that the Penguins 6 year contract extension with Evgeni Malkin became official. It is practically a mirror image of the deal signed by Sidney Crosby last year at this time and ensures that Crosby and Malkin will play on the same team for at least the next five years. This is a big deal for the future...how can you not be excited about the fact that the team is finding a way to lock it's core up for very manageable money.
Speaking of signing the core to very manageable money, the Penguins also locked up defenseman Brooks Orpik for the next six seasons at a very cap friendly $3.75 mil per. Orpik turned down offers on the open market that would have paid him over $4 mil.
Brooks really found his game playing alongside Sergei Gonchar and was one of the best defensemen on the team from March on. Ray Shero talked glowingly of Orpik in his press conference this afternoon, especially about his ability to play with the team's skilled blueliners. He also feels that he is just entering his prime and will continue to develop into a top shut down d-man.
There would be a bigger cloud over the Penguins off season if they had missed out on retaining Brooks Orpik, but his signing has generated some confidence. The team has it's young core intact and are a couple shrewd deals away from being very competitive again this season.
Tomorrow could be a big day for the Penguins...will they get the (2) forwards they covet? There are reports that a long term contract with Marc Andre Fleury could be announced very shortly as well...in fact the PG actually says the deal is as good as done. The reshaping continues...
Some Quick Hits:
Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review reports that Sidney Crosby spent the morning making several phone callls to Marian Hossa, unfortunately it didn't help close the deal.
Other internet reports claim that several Penguins did the same thing with Brooksie. It really shows the desire of this group to stay together and their commitment to the team.
Ray Shero mentioned in his press conference that Jordan Staal would be in line for Ryan Malone's minutes. He called it the next step in his career development...he would get the power play time and five on five minutes. No word on if he would move back to the wing, but those comments definitely speak to that fact.
Shero also let it be known that he has had "plenty of guys calling him" who would like to play in Pittsburgh. He compared it to the situation last season which brought Petr Sykora on board.
It was interesting that when Ray Shero praised Brooks Orpik's ability to play with the team's skilled defensemen, he didn't mention Ryan Whitney. He mentioned the names of Gonchar, Letang, and Goligoski. This could dove tail with the rampant speculation that Shero is listening to offers for Whitney...could he have something up his sleeve to get his top six winger via trade?
Stay tuned for a ton more tomorrow...
The day started off with rumblings that Marian Hossa had made a decision and we found out around noontime that he would sign with the Detroit Red Wings. Signing with the Stanley Cup Champions is not a surprise, but the fact that he accepted a one year deal that pays $7.45 mil is. The Penguins are thought to have upped their offer to Hossa and finally settled upon 7 years and roughly $52 mil for his services. Unfortunately it wasn't enough.
The wild thing about this situation is that I still firmly believe that if Hossa was represented by anyone else, he would have signed with the Penguins prior to 7/1/08...no point crying over spilled milk as they say. The money that was saved by not locking Hossa up is expected to used for (2) forwards who can potentially play a top six role for the team.
The Penguins are apparently trying for Markus Naslund, who would be an interesting addition. Most people seem to forget the fact that Naslund had a couple years in Vancouver where he was among the league's leading scorers. He has the pedigree to be a very effective linemate for Sidney Crosby.
Hossa wasn't the only forward to fly the coop on this day, as the Penguins lost agitator Jarkko Ruutu. Ruuuu, as the Mellon Arena crowd affectionately called him, wasn't interested in the Penguins offer of a two year contract and instead accepted a three year deal with the Ottawa Senators. I am thinking Ruutu's performance against the Senators in a four game playoff sweep this Spring must have been fresh in Bryan Murray's mind. He seemed to do it all for the Penguins during that series. Ruutu will be missed...his knack for agitating the opposition and drawing penalties will be tough to replace. Though Jonathan Bombulie, beat writer for the Wilkes Barre-Scranton Penguins, seems to think it could open a door in the Penguins line-up for Ryan Stone. Time will tell...
Lost in the shuffle of losing Hossa was the fact that the Penguins 6 year contract extension with Evgeni Malkin became official. It is practically a mirror image of the deal signed by Sidney Crosby last year at this time and ensures that Crosby and Malkin will play on the same team for at least the next five years. This is a big deal for the future...how can you not be excited about the fact that the team is finding a way to lock it's core up for very manageable money.
Speaking of signing the core to very manageable money, the Penguins also locked up defenseman Brooks Orpik for the next six seasons at a very cap friendly $3.75 mil per. Orpik turned down offers on the open market that would have paid him over $4 mil.
Brooks really found his game playing alongside Sergei Gonchar and was one of the best defensemen on the team from March on. Ray Shero talked glowingly of Orpik in his press conference this afternoon, especially about his ability to play with the team's skilled blueliners. He also feels that he is just entering his prime and will continue to develop into a top shut down d-man.
There would be a bigger cloud over the Penguins off season if they had missed out on retaining Brooks Orpik, but his signing has generated some confidence. The team has it's young core intact and are a couple shrewd deals away from being very competitive again this season.
Tomorrow could be a big day for the Penguins...will they get the (2) forwards they covet? There are reports that a long term contract with Marc Andre Fleury could be announced very shortly as well...in fact the PG actually says the deal is as good as done. The reshaping continues...
Some Quick Hits:
Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review reports that Sidney Crosby spent the morning making several phone callls to Marian Hossa, unfortunately it didn't help close the deal.
Other internet reports claim that several Penguins did the same thing with Brooksie. It really shows the desire of this group to stay together and their commitment to the team.
Ray Shero mentioned in his press conference that Jordan Staal would be in line for Ryan Malone's minutes. He called it the next step in his career development...he would get the power play time and five on five minutes. No word on if he would move back to the wing, but those comments definitely speak to that fact.
Shero also let it be known that he has had "plenty of guys calling him" who would like to play in Pittsburgh. He compared it to the situation last season which brought Petr Sykora on board.
It was interesting that when Ray Shero praised Brooks Orpik's ability to play with the team's skilled defensemen, he didn't mention Ryan Whitney. He mentioned the names of Gonchar, Letang, and Goligoski. This could dove tail with the rampant speculation that Shero is listening to offers for Whitney...could he have something up his sleeve to get his top six winger via trade?
Stay tuned for a ton more tomorrow...
Join the Discussion:
More from Brian Metzer
 |
 |