I really want to know about Sanheim and Lindblom though
- YuenglingJagr

Im sure they will be assigned to Lehigh for the remainder of the AHL playoffs.

I really want to know about Sanheim and Lindblom though
- YuenglingJagr

With reliable veterans like Weise, Manning, Gudas at Hakstol's disposal, there was just no room for Sanheim, or Lindblom.

Manning will move on this summer. He hinted recently that he isn't expecting to be back. Didn't say it in so many words, of course, but said he was playing for a contract. Most of the time, that means the agent talked the GM and informed his client there was no offer of an extension.
- bmeltzer

Manning and Gudas should stay together as a pair....

Manning and Gudas should stay together as a pair....

- landros 2

I'll gladly trade them both to Vancouver.

Are you sure? How many pucks have you asked?
- jmatchett383

More than I care to remember. They go on and on about how much they love the sound when they hit the post but not a word about the age of the goaltender.

I’m not ready to trade Voracek
- arichardson22

if it gave you a shot at JT would you?

if it gave you a shot at JT would you?
- 2Real

Most definitely.

I'll gladly trade them both to Vancouver.
- jmatchett383

...for a hamburger today?

Manning will definitely find a landing spot.

There are worse defensemen in the league than Brandon Manning. Manning is only 27 with over 200 games of NHL experience. He does a little of everything, but nothing especially well. He'll come cheap. Ideally, he's a 7th, but you can make due with him as bottom pairing guy with the right partner.
- johndewar

I think he is a tweener....he can be a very good AHL d man....or a below average NHL player who can put together some decent play but probably better suited for a part time role. I'm sure he's hoping for a one way contract. I like the kid's makeup...he hit's, he fights and plays with an edge. He is caught in a numbers game here....too many quality youngsters that are coming or are already here.

if it gave you a shot at JT would you?
- 2Real

Just in pure fantasy land, JT at center and Giroux on wing would be pretty wicked, on paper.

I think he is a tweener....he can be a very good AHL d man....or a below average NHL player who can put together some decent play but probably better suited for a part time role. I'm sure he's hoping for a one way contract. I like the kid's makeup...he hit's, he fights and plays with an edge. He is caught in a numbers game here....too many quality youngsters that are coming or are already here.
- landros 2

He hits, fights, plays with an edge, is a good locker room guy, a standup teammate, etc.

These are all things that people say about a player when he's really not all that good. I mean, kudos to the guy for all the hard work, he just doesn't cut it.

From a penguins perspective, Couturier should have the "C", Giroux was a no-show, cheap shotting female dog, that literally flopped to the ground when (frank)ing phil kessel came over to him...but then again couturier had his fare share of flops as well...at least he scored.
- joecool2931

LOL tell us how you really feel

Well I guess that will elate the masses.

I wonder if they look for a FA or go in house for a 7th type. Could Gudas be your 7th if Morin and Myers make the roster? Or is that too much money for a guy that might sit a stretch of games before playing another?

I wonder if this is the off season Hextall gets creative as I see the window starting to open.
- J35Bacher

I’m guessing they go older vet type for the 7th D spot.

He hits, fights, plays with an edge, is a good locker room guy, a standup teammate, etc.

These are all things that people say about a player when he's really not all that good. I mean, kudos to the guy for all the hard work, he just doesn't cut it.
- jmatchett383

oh I agree. I didn't think it necessary to kick him on the way out the door. I wish the kid luck, but I don't see him ever getting the opportunities that Hak and Hex gave him here.

oh I agree. I didn't think it necessary to kick him on the way out the door. I wish the kid luck, but I don't see him ever getting the opportunities that Hak and Hex gave him here.
- landros 2

I don't mean to kick him. It was more a jab at the coach. Manning did what he could.

LOL tell us how you really feel
- ajw12

I did. Do you want me to again?

I would give an A to Couturier once Filppula departs
- nastyflyergirl

I would give him the C now. A true playoff performer!

I think he brings more to the leadership table than G

I did. Do you want me to again?
- joecool2931

I guarantee you that if that "cheap shot" by G on Hagelin was flipped around you'd be praising Hagelin for that hit, so get outta here with the Giroux is a cheap shotting female dog bs.

From an article from 2014:

If you're a Pennsylvania taxpayer, you'll be paying more for Pittsburgh's hockey arena than originally anticipated. From Thursday's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

Under the 2007 deal cut to build Consol Energy Center, the state's contribution was set at $7.5 million annually for 30 years, but in reality, taxpayers have ponied up far more than that and likely will be on the hook for even more in the years ahead.

Since 2009, state taxpayers have shelled out an extra $5.08 million to cover shortfalls in the money needed to pay off the debt on the $321 million arena, and the state is estimating that it will need another $5.6 million over the next five years for the very same purpose.

That's in addition to the annual $7.5 million in payments the state is contractually obligated to make.

Just a friendly reminder: When the Wells Fargo Center (then called Spectrum II, and eventually Corestates Center) was built between 1994 and 1996, the City of Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania contributed basically zero (0) dollars of American currency for its construction. Ed Snider and Spectacor secured private financing for the entire ~$210 million cost of the building -- roughly $337 million in 2014 dollars -- and even today, Spectacor leases the land the building sits on from the city.

The taxpayers did pay for some necessary infrastructure improvements around the Sports Complex area, including the ~$5 million expense to knock down the old JFK Stadium, which sat on the land now occupied by the WFC. Ultimately the public contribution to the project was a stack of pennies compared to the $7.5 million+ per year for 30 (!) years that Pennsylvania taxpayers are shelling out to keep the Penguins in the state -- much of which comes from the affluent eastern half of the state.

(The Penguins did have an agreement with a casino developer in 2006 which would have brought a $290 million arena, privately financed, to Pittsburgh. That casino developer was not awarded a gaming license by the state and therefore the plan to build the arena fell through, which immediately led to threats of relocation from Mario Lemieux and the Penguins. If you're interested there more on that, and Gov. Ed Rendell's awkward position in the middle of it, here.)

Even more impressive, though, is that while the Penguins used relocation to Kansas City and Quebec as a dang negotiating tactic to bleed more money from the state for Consol Energy Center, Snider easily could've moved the Flyers out of the state. In fact, a move to New Jersey may have been the financially smart decision.

In the early 90s, when the Spectrum II plan was still up in the air, Spectacor had an offer from Jersey officials to move the team across the river to Camden, and the state would've paid two-thirds of the construction cost. Philly couldn't match that offer because it was damn broke, but Snider still balked at New Jersey because he didn't want to move out of the city. He then went on to nail down the financing on his own.
- J35Bacher

Therein lies the problem. In order to properly understand the state's funding of the Pens arena, one has to understand the downright crookedness of the casino license awarding process, that is no surprise considering the crookedness that was, is, and will be the future of the state government (much of which comes out of the two biggest cities in the state, especially Philly).

If my memory serves me correct, there were about 12 licenses to be awarded. 11 were to places in the eastern part of the state and only one was to the west (Pittsburgh specifically). Everyone but one person on the six to eight member board that awarded the licenses was from the eastern part of the state.

There were three bidders:
1. Isle of Capri, who offered to completely build the arena and give it to the city as a perpetual revenue generating machine.
2. Harrah's, a favorite due to its executives being friends with Rendell.
3. Majestic Star, who experts gave a 1% chance of winning it, especially due to the fact that they were on the road to bankruptcy at the time of the bid.

For anyone with even the faintest hint of the best interests of the western part of the state in mind, not to mention the best interests of Pittsburgh specifically, the answer to who should have won the bid is obvious. Even if someone is not a Pens fan the fact that Isle of Capri would have literally given the arena to the city as a perpetual money-generating machine should have made their bid automatic, unless one of the others could find some way of topping that. Naturally, the 6-8 member board gave the license to Majestic Star, #3 above.

This begs the all-important question, why? One of the terms the board set at the outset is that at least one of the 12 licenses had to go to a minority owner. The 11 that went to the eastern part of the state did not. I am not sure if any minority bids were placed on these but I suspect that they went to buddies of the crooked politicians in that part of the state. Majestic Star was owned by Don Barden who is a minority and they thus gave the Pittsburgh license to them, irregardless of the fact that the company was heading toward bankruptcy. The company did in fact go bankrupt in 2008 and 75% of Barden's ownership was bought out. The issue was not helped by a western politician, Bill DeWeese of Greene County, who watched the 2006 Super Bowl (Steelers vs. Seahawks) with Barden in Barden's luxury box in Detroit. I had the misfortune to meet him once and he is one of the sleaziest people I have ever come in contact with (I washed my hands right away afterward).

Oh yeah, and that one person on the gaming board from the west was a minority.

The fundamental problem was that the gaming board was an executive board and not just an advisory board. The 6-8 unelected people on it had the power to make binding decisions instead of just being able to propose a plan that required the legislature to vote to approve. Had they done this, likely all of the legislature in the west (on both sides of the aisle) except that assclown in Greene County would have voted it down.

So Rendell's state funding of the arena was a way to "patch up" this mess that his own government created. It is not the fault of the city of Pittsburgh. The city was more the victim than anything.

Also, Lemieux later said that the team would have stayed in the city regardless (yes, he did use this as a reason to push for the arena). The only thing that would have caused the team to actually move was if the NHL did not impose a salary cap, which it did after the 2004-5 lockout. Pittsburgh is too small of a city to compete in an open market with much bigger cities like New York and Philly (as the Pittsburgh Pirates have proven).

I’m guessing they go older vet type for the 7th D spot.
- BiggE

Like a Kevin Connauton, Nick Holden type? Probably around 1-2.5 million for a year?

Yup. Stay the course and all. I dont expect big things. The goaltending will be the question.

Regarding Simmonds, I do think they bring him back but if he really was healthy at the end here - I want him out.
- flyer_nutter

They’ll need to dip into ufa for a 3rd line center. It appears that giroux has a permanent spot at LW

if it gave you a shot at JT would you?
- 2Real

Sure


But what if JT signs somewhere else? Now we don’t have Jake or JT.

Therein lies the problem. In order to properly understand the state's funding of the Pens arena, one has to understand the downright crookedness of the casino license awarding process, that is no surprise considering the crookedness that was, is, and will be the future of the state government (much of which comes out of the two biggest cities in the state, especially Philly).

If my memory serves me correct, there were about 12 licenses to be awarded. 11 were to places in the eastern part of the state and only one was to the west (Pittsburgh specifically). Everyone but one person on the six to eight member board that awarded the licenses was from the eastern part of the state.

There were three bidders:
1. Isle of Capri, who offered to completely build the arena and give it to the city as a perpetual revenue generating machine.
2. Harrah's, a favorite due to its executives being friends with Rendell.
3. Majestic Star, who experts gave a 1% chance of winning it, especially due to the fact that they were on the road to bankruptcy at the time of the bid.

For anyone with even the faintest hint of the best interests of the western part of the state in mind, not to mention the best interests of Pittsburgh specifically, the answer to who should have won the bid is obvious. Even if someone is not a Pens fan the fact that Isle of Capri would have literally given the arena to the city as a perpetual money-generating machine should have made their bid automatic, unless one of the others could find some way of topping that. Naturally, the 6-8 member board gave the license to Majestic Star, #3 above.

This begs the all-important question, why? One of the terms the board set at the outset is that at least one of the 12 licenses had to go to a minority owner. The 11 that went to the eastern part of the state did not. I am not sure if any minority bids were placed on these but I suspect that they went to buddies of the crooked politicians in that part of the state. Majestic Star was owned by Don Barden who is a minority and they thus gave the Pittsburgh license to them, irregardless of the fact that the company was heading toward bankruptcy. The company did in fact go bankrupt in 2008 and 75% of Barden's ownership was bought out. The issue was not helped by a western politician, Bill DeWeese of Greene County, who watched the 2006 Super Bowl (Steelers vs. Seahawks) with Barden in Barden's luxury box in Detroit. I had the misfortune to meet him once and he is one of the sleaziest people I have ever come in contact with (I washed my hands right away afterward).

Oh yeah, and that one person on the gaming board from the west was a minority.

The fundamental problem was that the gaming board was an executive board and not just an advisory board. The 6-8 unelected people on it had the power to make binding decisions instead of just being able to propose a plan that required the legislature to vote to approve. Had they done this, likely all of the legislature in the west (on both sides of the aisle) except that assclown in Greene County would have voted it down.

So Rendell's state funding of the arena was a way to "patch up" this mess that his own government created. It is not the fault of the city of Pittsburgh. The city was more the victim than anything.

Also, Lemieux later said that the team would have stayed in the city regardless (yes, he did use this as a reason to push for the arena). The only thing that would have caused the team to actually move was if the NHL did not impose a salary cap, which it did after the 2004-5 lockout. Pittsburgh is too small of a city to compete in an open market with much bigger cities like New York and Philly (as the Pittsburgh Pirates have proven).
- PghPens668771

lol like anyone is gonna read this

I don't know any player of Simmonds caliber that is expendable. Flyers don't have forward depth that makes him expendable either. I also don't buy that Simmonds is not a good 5 on 5 guy either. He has had solid point totals at 5 on 5 in the past. I think one mistake Hakstol made is not getting Simmonds back out on the first PP unit in yesterday's game. Raffl was out on one PP shift. Go with the proven player.
- MJL

By expendable I mean a tradeable player to acquire assets. I believe I made that point quite clear that if there are viable trade options that the flyers should go that route as they can fill holes in other areas.
Close to half of Simmonds goals were on the power play. Aside from Giroux from last season most goal scorers score more 5 on 5 goals than power play goals.
Look at Giroux's, Crosby's, Hall's, McKinnon's stats and see that they score more goals at even strength by a decent margin.
With a contract coming up soon that might be in the 5-6 million a year range for a power forward going into his 30s could be better served cap money elsewhere.