Well, day two of the free agent frenzy is upon us and we are in exactly the same position as we were yesterday at this time. The team is anxiously awaiting decisions from Ruslan Fedotenko and Rob Scuderi. Once those situations are laid to rest in one way or another, Ray Shero can take a look at the market to see if there are any additional bodies that he can bring in.

Here are a couple of thoughts on each situation…

First, Rob Scuderi…

Everyone keeps using Brooks Orpik as an example as why Scuderi should take less money to stay here in Pittsburgh and the point is valid. However, it is a different situation. Though Brooks Orpik is rumored to have left about a million dollars on the table last year to return to the Penguins, it might not be fair to expect Scuderi to do the same thing. First of all, the Penguins had just come off of a heart breaking loss in the Stanley Cup Final and the core of that team was set to return. Brooks Orpik, who spent a significant chunk of time losing in Pittsburgh, knew that the team was close…if not this season, then in the near future. He was hungry for the year to year opportunity to compete that the Penguins provided him. It is also worth noting that Orpik was a first round draft pick and had made decent if not astronomical money over his career to that point. He was also on the radar of USA Hockey and GMs around the league. He could comfortably stay here and know that he was still setting him and future family up for the long haul.

Rob Scuderi is a completely different situation. First of all, Scuderi was a late round draft pick and had been toiling in relative obscurity for the bulk of his career. (At least around the league) In fact, it took him until the age of 28 to earn a one way contract in the league… He hasn’t had a million-dollar season in the league and is 30 years old. This is his big opportunity to cash in and set his family up for life. You might be saying, “Well, that is all fine and dandy, but what about winning? Doesn’t he want to win?” The answer is yes, but the Penguins aren’t the only team that provides that opportunity for him. Sure, they are the reigning Champs and are coming off of back to back trips to the Final, but that might not be enough to keep him here. He earned every bit of the Stanley Cup ring that will be on his finger later this year and that ring might be enough to spur him towards the money.

Scuds has his ring, was a late round pick and has to be basking in the glow of being in demand. That demand doesn’t end in the NHL, he was also added to the list of players invited to the Olympic Orientation Camp.

Now all of this isn’t to say that he will not take less money to stay here in Pittsburgh, but I felt it necessary to point out some of the key differences between the Orpik and Scuderi situations.

On to Fedotenko…

Ruslan Fedotenko and the Penguins knew that this situation would occur if things went the way Ray Shero had hoped. He inked a one-year deal with the clutch playoff performer in hopes that he would be part of the Stanley Cup formula and he was. Fedotenko signed that deal knowing that a good year would get him some nice offers this summer…a win, win situation. Well, though there were some early snags, the plan came off without a hitch. The Penguins got their cup and Fedotenko is in the process of wading through quite a few multi year offers. Both sides would love to get something done to keep Fedotenko in Pittsburgh, but it might not be feasible, as the sides have not been able to agree on certain factors. The biggest is the term of the deal.

Both of these players have seemingly put off their decisions in hopes of getting an offer from the Penguins that meets their needs, but I wouldn’t expect this drag on into the weekend. Actually, both could be signed before the end of today. Regardless of what shakes out, Ray Shero has proven that he has the ability to affordably plug holes with comparable players. In a perfect world, he plugs those holes with the players he had in the fold last year.

There are some players on the market that could potentially be signed to deals similar to those signed by Fedotenko and Satan last summer, but Shero will wait for decisions from Tank and Scuds. We will discuss some of those options when the time comes.

Here are some great quotes from Brian Strait on joining the Pittsburgh Penguins from www.wickedlocal.com.

On starting to think about foregoing his senior season at BU to turn pro this season…

“I remember in the middle of the year my agent contacted me, and told me he thought Pittsburgh would make me an offer after the season, and asked me what I thought of that. I told him I thought it would depend on how we finished the year. If we hadn't won, I would have thought about what we could have done differently to win it the next year. But with the way it went - we won everything. How could you go out any better?''

On when the decision was officially made…

“It was pretty exciting. I decided to sign during the playoffs. Obviously, I didn't know they would win it. But I got to watch them do it with my parents and family. I was ecstatic to see them win it and was ecstatic that they wanted to sign me.''

“I just felt it was time. It kind of hit me all at once when my agent came back to me at the end of the season. But I weighed the pros and cons of both sides with my parents. It was one of those things where you need to sit and let it marinate in your mind and then you decide what's best for you.''

On the impact of signing a pro contract…

``It hits you when you finally get that contract. You look through all the stuff, and you know once you put your name on that paper you're not going back to college.''

On the fact that he could have waited out his window for signing with the Penguins and become a free agent…

“You don't know what could have happened. From the time Pittsburgh drafted me I was pumped. I didn't think there was a better fit in the NHL. I never changed my mind set on that. I figured I really didn't want to go to any other team but Pittsburgh, so why go all the way to free agency next year. That's dumb.”

On his hope to make the NHL this season…

“I'm really hoping they give me the opportunity to make it out of camp. I think I have a great chance. I feel if I work hard enough, and get some bounces to go my way, that I can do it. I feel you have to go in setting the bar high. You have to set big goals if you want to achieve them.”

On the opportunity that lies ahead of him…

“It's one of the most exciting times of my life, if not the most exciting. This is what I've looked forward to ever since I was a kid watching the Bruins on the floor in my living room. It has always been the greatest goal of mine to play in the NHL. I have this chance. Now I have to make it happen.”

Hockey Canada Makes Sends its Olympic Invites...

Sidney Crosby, Jordan Staal and Marc Andre Fleury have been invited to the Hockey Canada Orientation Camp for the Olympic team...

Crosby was an obvious choice, but it is very nice to see Staal and Fleury get some love. We did a good bit of talking during the Stanley Cup Finals that Jordan Staal and Marc Andre Fleury might have opened up some eyes. Glad to see that they did...

Here is the complete list of invites...

Goaltenders (5)
Martin Brodeur (Montreal, Que./New Jersey, NHL)
Marc-Andre Fleury (Sorel, Que./Pittsburgh, NHL)
Roberto Luongo (Montreal, Que./Vancouver, NHL)
Steve Mason (Oakville, Ont./Columbus, NHL)
Cam Ward (Sherwood Park, Alta./Carolina, NHL)

Defencemen (16)
Francois Beauchemin (Sorel, Que./Anaheim, NHL)
Jay Bouwmeester (Edmonton, Alta./Calgary, NHL)
Dan Boyle (Ottawa, Ont./San Jose, NHL)
Brent Burns (Ajax, Ont./Minnesota, NHL)
Drew Doughty (London, Ont./Los Angeles, NHL)
Mike Green (Calgary, Alta./Washington, NHL)
Dan Hamhuis (Smithers, B.C./Nashville, NHL)
Duncan Keith (Penticton, B.C./Chicago, NHL)
Scott Niedermayer (Cranbrook, B.C./Anaheim, NHL)
Dion Phaneuf (Edmonton, Alta./Calgary, NHL)
Chris Pronger (Dryden, Ont./Philadelphia, NHL)
Robyn Regehr (Rosthern, Sask./Calgary, NHL)
Stephane Robidas (Sherbrooke, Que./Dallas, NHL)
Brent Seabrook (Tsawwassen, B.C./Chicago, NHL)
Marc Staal (Thunder Bay, Ont./N.Y. Rangers, NHL)
Shea Weber (Sicamous, B.C./Nashville, NHL)

Forwards (25)
Jeff Carter (London, Ont./Philadelphia, NHL)
Daniel Cleary (Carboneau, N.L./Detroit, NHL)
Sidney Crosby (Cole Harbour, N.S./Pittsburgh, NHL)
Shane Doan (Halkirk, Alta./Phoenix, NHL)
Simon Gagné (Ste-Foy, Que./Philadelphia, NHL)
Ryan Getzlaf (Regina, Sask./Anaheim, NHL)
Dany Heatley (Calgary, Alta./Ottawa, NHL)
Jarome Iginla (St. Albert, Alta./Calgary, NHL)
Vincent Lecavalier (Île-Bizard, Que./Tampa Bay, NHL)
Milan Lucic (Vancouver, B.C./Boston, NHL)
Patrick Marleau (Aneroid, Sask./San Jose, NHL)
Andy McDonald (Strathroy, Ont./St. Louis, NHL)
Brenden Morrow (Carlyle, Sask./Dallas, NHL)
Rick Nash (Brampton, Ont./Columbus, NHL)
Corey Perry (Peterborough, Ont./Anaheim, NHL)
Mike Richards (Kenora, Ont./Philadelphia, NHL)
Derek Roy (Rockland, Ont./Buffalo, NHL)
Joe Sakic (Burnaby, B.C./Colorado, NHL)
Patrick Sharp (Thunder Bay, Ont./Chicago, NHL)
Ryan Smyth (Banff, Alta./Colorado, NHL)
Martin St. Louis (Laval, Que./Tampa Bay, NHL)
Eric Staal (Thunder Bay, Ont./Carolina, NHL)
Jordan Staal (Thunder Bay, Ont./Pittsburgh, NHL)
Joe Thornton (St. Thomas, Ont./San Jose, NHL)
Jonathan Toews (Winnipeg, Man./Chicago, NHL)


More later…

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