SB Nation - Miroslav Satan

Revenge of the minnows

Bruce McCurdy — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 20:34:42 -0000

Derek's great story on Peter Bondra brought back some memories that should be bitter but are in truth rather sweet. Bondra was one hell of a player, I loved the guy even when he was driving a stake through my heart. This happened twice in 2002. There was Derek's called shot hat trick against my Oilers, and then a few weeks later Bondra was the principle assassin as Slovakia knocked Canada out of the World Championships. That's a story in itself. It is without a doubt my favourite Canadian loss ever, as it was the first chapter in one of the greatest underdog stories in hockey history.

The bloodless revolution which should have set an example around the world -- one of the amicable divorcees installed a playwright as its president, for goodness' sake -- nonetheless seemed at the time to be a death blow to the competitiveness of the former hockey power, Czechoslovakia. Instead, both sides emerged as forces still to be reckoned with. It took the Czechs about five years to recover, then go on an unprecedented roll which saw them win the Olympics, two consecutive world juniors, and three consecutive world senior championships around Y2K.

The Slovaks seemed by comparison to be on the wrong side of the tracks. A tiny nation of ~5 million, they were shown zero respect, initially installed in C Pool in the worlds, then taking a gang reaming at the pleasure of the NHL, IOC, and IIHF in the winter Olympic games. At Salt Lake City earlier that winter, the "Big 6" got a bye into the second round and essentially right on into the medal since all 8 second round teams made it. Meanwhile Slovakia had to qualify among the hockey minnows for Round 2, and do so without their stars who weren't released from their NHL clubs in time. They lost their first two games before reinforcements arrived, and that was that, their Olympics were done. It was the royal shaft in about every manner imaginable, and one would imagine it was particularly hurtful to the Slovaks that they were treated in such a second class manner to the Czechs so soon after the Velvet Revolution. It was like the Czechs were treated like former Czechoslovaks and the Slovaks weren't, if you follow me.

Suddenly at the worlds, the shoe was on the other foot. As luck had it, many of the top Slovak stars either missed the NHL playoffs or got knocked out in the first round. While they still missed the likes of Zdeno Chara, Marian Hossa, and Pavol Demitra, every country could say the same about top stars either unable or unwilling to play. For example, the host Swedes were missing Peter Forsberg, Mats Sundin, and Daniel Alfredsson. Manager Peter Stastny had no trouble convincing the Slovak players who were available to show up, and they showed up on a mission. It was quite a line-up, particularly up front: the NHL's most underrated superstar, Peter Bondra; team captain and tournament leading scorer, ex-Oiler Miro Satan; deadly sniper and surprising playmaker Ziggy Palffy; proven two-way centres Josef Stumpel and Michal Handzus; rising talent Ladislav Nagy, Lubos Bartecko, Vladimir (Gesundheit) Orszagh and a couple of youngsters who hadn't (yet) crossed The Pond. The blueline corps was fairly solid but unspectacular, led by Richard Lintner and future Oiler Lubomir Visnovsky. The goaltender was Jan Lasak who had ended the season in Nashville, and he played brilliantly.

I had the good fortune of seeing all three of Slovakia's sudden-death games on the tube, and it was riveting hockey. Thanks to the wonders of Youtube, game highlights are readily available from the Slovakian telecasts of the day, and are well worth the watch if you have a few minutes.

The first two feature the Slovakia-Canada game. Against a Canadian team that featured Oilers Ryan Smyth, Eric Brewer, Steve Staios, Mike Comrie, and Dan Cleary, the Slovaks dominated early, fell behind 2-0 against the flow of play, then started their comeback on a great individual effort by Bondra with one second to go in the second period (around 8:30 of the first video). Early in the third, Comrie took an undisciplined slashing penalty, and the awesome Slovak powerplay (Bondra, Palffy, and Satan were all in the top five in the NHL in PP goals that season) made him pay on a well-engineered goal by Satan. Before Canada could recover, Bondra was set up in the slot and buried an absolute rocket (around 1:45 of the second video). J-S Giguere played well, but he had no chance on the goals by these snipers. (Listen to the play-by-play guy, who cracks me up, seemingly mocking Giguere right after the 3-2 goal.) Once ahead, the Slovaks defended more effectively than Canada had done, although in the last two minutes the Canadians poured on the pressure, and Lasak absolutely robbed Comrie with a brilliant save to preserve the win. But it was a deserved win; the Slovaks were the better team on the day.

The Swedish game was much more one of those "team of destiny" type games. Once again the Slovaks fell behind 2-0. Late in the second period there was a frantic sequence where Orszagh pulled down a breaking Swede on a near-penalty-shot situation; the Swedes poured it on for the full two minutes of the PP with Lasak standing on his head, only to be caught on an odd-man rush when Orszagh came out of the box just in time to receive a head-man pass and go in and pick the top corner. 2-1, and the exuberance was absolutely sucked out of the Swedish fans. The Swedes still appeared to be in control in the third, but took a late and deserved penalty for checking Satan from behind. Satan got his revenge with a tying PP goal just as the two minute announcement was being made. The game went to OT with pulsating, end-to-end action, featuring a miraculous Cujo-on-Nieuwendyk type emergency save by Lasak. The damn satellite feed went down at that point, but came back in time for the shootout. Lasak remained unbeatable, with glove side, stick side, poke check, and five-hole saves; then-Oilers goalie Tommy Salo made two fine stops on low shots before Palffy and Lintner buried a couple under the crossbar to put it away.

The final featured another hockey giant, Russia. Like the Slovaks, they too had pulled off what could be considered (at least on paper) two huge upsets. The Russians had only three active NHLers, and a handful of formers, including captain and another ex-Oiler, Andrei (In the Tank) Kovalenko. Although history said otherwise, Slovakia could clearly be considered the favourites based on (known) talent. They quickly jumped into a first-minute lead which they stretched to 2-0, then 3-1 on goals by Visnosky, Bondra, and Satan. They missed some great chances to make it a three-goal lead, then came out for the third period very nervous, looking very much like a team unaccustomed to playing with a lead. They stayed back in their own end, content to shoot the puck out if they could, doing nothing offensively, falling and diving around with hero plays rather than playing the type of hockey that got them there. Sure enough, the Russians got a couple to tie it up and it looked like the Slovakian dream might come crashing down in humiliating fashion. Instead, with under two minutes left, Palffy broke out with the puck and wisely fed Bondra, who calmly fired a sniper's bullet in off the post. It was only the second shot of the period for the Slovaks, but it was the telling blow in a game that was more tense than it was wide-open exciting. For Bondra it was his 7th goal and 3rd game-winner, and raised his plus-minus to +12 (he was on the ice for 12 goals for and zero goals against); all were tournament highs.

Bondra's winner occurs around the 2:10 mark of the embedded clip, although the entire 6-minute video should be required watching for anybody who poohpoohs the World Senior Men's Hockey Championships as unimportant. Seeing the bedlam in Bratislava's Main Square in the immediate aftermath of Bondra's snipe with 100 seconds remaining in the Gold Medal Game is enough even all these years later to bring a tear to the eye of this sentimental old fool. And I'm not even Slovakian.

As the clock wound down, the joy of the Slovaks was great to see. They'd gotten some breaks along the way, but surely they'd earned a couple over the years, and when the situation presented itself, they took advantage. To see them bellowing the Slovakian anthem (the beautiful "second half" of the old Czechoslovak hymn that we once heard fairly frequently) was a wonderful sight if not sound.

For your added viewing pleasure check out this clip of the post-game celebration, highlighted around the 42-second mark when Lubo Visnovsky literally bounds into the room wearing a grin to light up the world.

Canada's quarter final loss was an anticlimax to an Olympian season, and just a momentary setback in a series of triumphs; the Red Maple Leaf would return to win the Worlds in both 2003 and 2004. That spring of 2002, though, was Slovakia's time to shine. Peter Bondra, who led the tournament in goals (7), game-winning goals (3) and plus (+12 by being on the ice for 12 goals for and zero goals against), shone the brightest of all. It was the crowning moment of a great career.

Some Perspective on Penner's Start

Derek Zona — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:20:43 -0000

Left winger Petr Klima of the Edmonton Oilers (right) and defenseman Steve Duchesne of the Los Angeles Kings tangle up during a game at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. Klima immediately apologized. via cdn.picapp.com

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Dustin Penner's blistering start has slowed a bit, but Big Pun continues to carry the team on a nightly basis. He's on pace for 40 goals, something that hasn't been accomplished in Edmonton since Petr Klima in 1990 He's on pace for 88 points, the most for any Oiler since Doug Weight's 90 in 2000. Let's check the twenty-one years A.G.

Year	Player	Goals	Player	Assists	Player	Points	Player	+/-
1988	Carson	49	Messier	61	Kurri	102	Muni	43
1989	Messier	45	Messier	84	Messier	129	Gregg	24
1990	Klima	40	Messier	52	Tikkanen	69	Klima	24
1991	Damphousse	38	Damphousse	51	Damphousse	89	Maciver	20
1992	Klima	32	Nicholls	32	Klima	48	Gelinas	3
1993	Arnott	33	Weight	50	Weight	74	Arnott	1
1994	Oliver	16	Weight	33	Weight	40	Kennedy	2
1995	Ciger	31	Weight	79	Weight	104	Satan	0
1996	Smyth	39	Weight	61	Weight	82	Marchment	13
1997	Weight	26	Weight	44	Weight	70	Tie	9
1998	Guerin	30	Guerin	34	Guerin	64	Poti	10
1999	Smyth	28	Weight	51	Weight	72	Smith	16
2000	Smyth	31	Weight	65	Weight	90	Tie	15
2001	Comrie	33	Niinimaa	39	Tie	60	Comrie	16
2002	Smyth	27	Marchant	40	Smyth	61	Reasoner	19
2003	Smyth	23	Smyth	36	Smyth	59	Ulanov	18
2004
2005	Smyth	36	Hemsky	58	Hemsky	77	Staios	10
2006	Smyth	31	Hemsky	40	Tie	53	Thoresen	-1
2007	Penner	23	Hemsky	51	Hemsky	71	Nilsson	8
2008	Tie	23	Hemsky	43	Hemsky	66	Grebeshkov	12
2009	Penner	44	Penner	44	Penner	88	Penner	32

Penner's projected goal total is good for 3rd over this time period. His pace would tie him for 13th in assists and 6th in points. He would join Mark Messier, Vincent Damphousse, Doug Weight and Ryan Smyth as Oilers who have led the team in Goals, Assists and Points.

He's also on pace to accomplish a feat that only one other player in the history of the Oilers has been able to pull off -- lead the team in Goals, Assists, Points, and +/-.

Best (and worst) Free Agent signings by the Pittsburgh Penguins from 2000-09

Hooks Orpik — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:00:19 -0000

Yesterday we took a look at the draft picks, and by popular requests, here's a look at free agency hits and misses.

Free agency has been a tool that Pittsburgh hasn't used much. In the early part of the decade they couldn't afford the spending sprees that drunken GM's went on (like Bobby Holik's $45 million over 5 seasons back in 2002). Then when the salary cap was in effect, they could only afford to add bit pieces and stay under the cap.

Still, we have some guys to review and question -- either how they got the money they did or how the Penguins got such a steal! Yours, after the jump

Worst

#5 - Mark Recchi (signed in summer 2004, two year contract, signed in 2006, signed in summer 2007 one year deal with $1.75 million cap hit)

The term wasn't bad, but the player didn't mesh. Recchi played exclusively with Sidney Crosby, and it didn't seem like he had enough gas in the tank to keep up. Recchi was traded and won the Cup with Carolina in between his stints in Pittsburgh this decade, but by the start of the 2007-08 season he had only 8 points (and 2 goals) in the first 19 games and the Pens waived him.

#4 - Miroslav Satan (signed in summer 2008, one year contract $3.5 million cap hit)

Satan was another player that didn't work out. Though he wasn't terrible with 17 goals in 65 games, that isn't exactly awful, but who envisioned the team waiving him and having him play out 10 games in the minors to stay under the salary cap? Not the ideal situation for either party, though credit Satan's class of never complaining throughout the whole ordeal.

#3 - Dany Sabourin (signed in summer 2007, two year contract with a $512,000 cap hit per season)

Signed back from the Vancouver organization to be a reliable backup, Dany Sabourin was more of just a backup. His presence and contract kept Ty Conklin in the minors in '07 and Sabourin faired so rough the Pens decided to trade him away in '09 after he gave up 3+ goals in eight of nine appearances (some of them in relief).

#2 - John LeClair (signed in summer 2005, two year contract with a $1.8 million cap hit per season)

A part of Craig Patrick's post-lockout re-tool, the 36 year old winger was added to the Penguins. While he had a decent first season with 51 points in 73 games, LeClair was in full decline. He'd only score 2 goals (and 7 points) in the first 21 games of the 2006-07 before it was over. LeClair was waived, placed re-entry waivers, then unconditonally released by Pittsburgh and that was the sad end to a once stellar career.

#1 - Zigmund Palffy (signed in summer 2005, three year contract with a $4.5 million cap hit per season)

Palffy broke the number 1 rule, so he ends up at #1. He literally quit on the team, walking into the GM's office on an off-day and announcing "retirement". Shockingly, he's played in Slovakian league the past two seasons. Palffy had 42 points in 42 games with the Pens and seemed to be a decent fit with Crosby and the Pens. Whether he didn't like then-new coach Michel Therrien's defensive systems, or the losses in Pittsburgh or just felt tired of dealing with NHL level physical abuse, he quit and he's the goat of goats. (The NHL allowed his salary to come off the books upon his "retirement", if you were wondering).

Best

# 7 - Mike Rupp (signed in summer 2009, two year deal for $825,000 cap hit per year)

Ray Shero made an under the radar signing that set off alarms here, but now we see why. Rupp's been a great teammate, wiling to fight if someone's been wronged. But he's also shown an undiscovered scoring touch, scoring 9 goals in his first 32 games in a Pens jersey, when he'd only scored 27 goals in his whole 325 game career prior.

#6 - Matt Cooke (signed in summer 2008, two year deal for $1,200,000 cap hit per year)

Faced with the dilemma of having their resident sand-paper, gritty penalty killing forward demanding a three year contract, the Penguins let 33 year old Jarkko Ruutu go to Ottawa and brought in a very similiar player in 30 year old Matt Cooke. Cooke formed a bond with Tyler Kennedy and Jordan Staal, kills penalties well, and can pitch in limited offensive help.

#5 - Jay McKee (signed in summer 2009, one year deal for $800,000 cap hit)

McKee was looking to raise his profile around the league after being bought out by the St. Louis Blues. That gave him some money, so he didn't need a lot from his new team. The Penguins were needing a defensive replacement for departed players in Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill. Win meet win. And when everyone wins, the Penguins win.

#4 - Ty Conklin (signed in summer 2007, one year deal for $500,000 cap hit)

Conklin was signed as pure depth; he'd start the year in the AHL and only make his way up when Marc-Andre Fleury fell to injury. But when Conklin was in, the Penguins season was in the balance. Conklin went 18-8-5 with a 2.51 GAA and near-league leading .923 save percentage. He breathed life into the Pens season and once Fleury was back they took it within two games of winning it all.

#3 - Mark Eaton (signed in summer of 2006, $1.6 million cap hit per year; signed summer 2008, $2 million cap hit)

One of Shero's first moves in becoming GM of Pittsburgh was signing over a guy he knew from Nashville. Eaton hasn't disappointed, so long as he's been healthy, being a valued part of the Penguins' Stanley Cup winning team. He ranks this high on the list for his years of service, as well as being signed to reasonable contracts twice.

#2 - Petr Sykora (signed in summer 2007; $2.625 million cap hit per year)

Sykora chipped in 53 goals in two regular seasons, including 28 PP markers, and six more in the playoffs. Who could forget the 3 OT game to force a Game Six versus Detroit in the Stanley Cup final in '08. He was signed to score goals, and that's what he did, up to the point it was obvious he didn't mesh into Dan Bylsma's aggressive, skating heavy system.

#1 - Sergei Gonchar (signed in summer 2005; $5 million cap hit per year)

Amazingly, this was considered one of the worst contracts in it's infancy, as Gonchar had a difficult time adjusting to his new team and the unorganized system employed by former coach Ed Olczyk. But once he settled in and the team grew around him, Gonchar blossomed from an offensive-defenseman into a well-rounded #1 guy and leader of a Stanley Cup winning team.

So there you have it. Mind you, these weren't nearly all the signings, and I didn't consider re-signings (like bringing back Gary Roberts or Brooks Orpik) even though that possibly could be considered in-bounds. There's more good than bad, because, well I think the Penguins have managed free agency pretty well. It's not a staple of their team building philosophy, but that's by design. For the most part, free agency was used to augment the existing roster with bits and pieces. The one year it wasn't (2005), it's probably no coincidence that 2 of the 3 most noteworthy contracts are in the "bad" column.

Derek Roy: Small in Size, Large in Talent

Rafal Ladysz — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:52:06 -0000

More photos » by Gerry Broome - AP

8 months ago: Buffalo Sabres' Derek Roy (9) scores on a penalty shot against Carolina Hurricanes goalie Michael Leighton (49) during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Thursday, April 9, 2009. Buffalo won 5-1. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

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Great things come in small packages. Plenty of NHL players bring true meaning to that famous saying competing in a much huger capacity than their misleading size. Martin St. Louis (5' 9", 177 pounds) is the iconic figure in such a way having earned a Stanley Cup, Hart Trophy and Art Ross Title all in 2004.

Hard work, grit and determination made him the accomplished athlete he is. There are many players similar to his stature such as Mike Cammalleri, Vyacheslav Kozlov, Pavel Datsyuk, Zach Parise, Ray Whitney, Bryan Little; the list is endless.

In Buffalo, Derek Roy possesses those very same qualities. While he's not the biggest guy Lindy Ruff has, his contributions on a nightly basis are immeasurable. A special teams contributor both ways (power play and penalty killing), Roy can lead the way offensively, does everything in his power for the sake of the club and maintains a responsible all-around display.

His professional career took off the same year St. Louis (the player not the team) dominated the league at a time when Miroslav Satan and Daniel Briere were two of the Sabres more threatening forwards. Named as a member of the NHL's YoungStars group, Roy scored nine goals and 10 assists in 49 games.

Then, because of the lock-out, he spent another year in Rochester grooming his skills. Eventually, he found himself regularly in the Sabres line-up as he failed to make the roster out of training camp proving it a difficult task for the staff to ignore his AHL performances.

Roy's strides for improvement have been remarkable as he's quickly transformed into a first-line star used in every situation imaginable. As a depth player first, the 109 points he amassed in two years was instrumental in both of Buffalo's playoff berths in 2006 and 2007.

The postseason became another moment for Roy to prove himself in and he did with 22 points in 34 games. Unexpectedly, Chris Drury and Briere decided to pursue greener pastures over two years ago and let's just say they haven't been the same performers since leaving. Sabres management decided to supply Roy with a six-year, $24 million dollar contract in light of those departures.

This saddled the 26-year-old into an automatic position with increased responsibility as he would have to quickly fill part of the offensive and leadership gap. No problems there. The Ottawa native has led the Sabres in scoring two consecutive seasons with 81 and 70 points respectably.

Although they missed the postseason on those two occasions, it was by mere inches and the 12-4-1 start this season indicates that such a trend may vanish come April. There's still a long way to go but barring any misfortunes such as Ryan Miller's injury last year, Buffalo should return to the promised land.

And as the campaign progresses, so too will Derek Roy's growth. Perhaps not in height but definitely as a player.

Rangers Pregame: Scouting the Pens

Jim Schmiedeberg — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 19:00:26 -0000

Taking a look at tonight's opponent, the Pittsburgh Penguins:

Pittsburgh Penguins

Head Coach: Dan Bylsma

2008-09 Record: 45-28-9 (99 pts)

Finished: 4th overall Eastern Conference (Won Stanley Cup)

Last Season vs. Rangers: Series tied 3-3

Ex-Rangers on the Penguins: Pascal Dupuis, Tony Granato, assistant coach, Kevin Stevens, professional scout, Phil Bourque, broadcaster, Bob Errey, broadcaster. (courtesy of post-gazette)

Stars:

Sidney Crosby

#87 / Center / Pittsburgh Penguins

Height: 5-11

Weight: 200

Born: Aug 07, 1987

Evgeni Malkin

#71 / Center / Pittsburgh Penguins

Height: 6-3

Weight: 195

Born: Jul 31, 1986

Who's In: Jay McKee (STL), Alex Goligoski (WBS farm team), John Curry (re-signed), Bill Guerin (re-signed), Ruslan Fedotenko (re-signed), Mike Rupp (FA), Brent Johnson (FA),

Who's Out: Hal Gill (MTL), Rob Scuderi (LA), Mathieu Garon (CLB), Petr Sykora (MIN), Miroslav Satan (unsigned), Philippe Boucher (retired),

2009-10 Pittsburgh Penguins Season Preview from Pensburgh, the SBnation community for the Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins notes: (courtesy of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Evgeni Malkin has a new right winger. Pascal Dupuis has been shifted to the right side with Malkin and Ruslan Fedotenko while Tyler Kennedy, who worked there most of the preseason, is returning to his old spot with Jordan Staal and Matt Cooke. Coach Dan Bylsma said he expects to use those combinations when the Penguins face the New York Rangers in the season-opener tomorrow at Mellon Arena.
Sidney Crosby is confident he will be in uniform for the opener. He tested his sore groin aggressively in the 75-minute practice at Southpointe yesterday and said he was pleased with the results.
The Rangers will be making their fifth and final appearance as a home-opening opponent at Mellon Arena. That is the most for any one opposing team.
The Penguins have $1.6 million in salary cap space, and they plan to keep at least $1 million free for possible moves at the trade deadline. They are working on securing extensions for Ds Sergei Gonchar and Kris Letang, both of whom are in the final years of their current deals. The unknown that is the 2010-11 cap is affecting those negotiations.

2009-10 NHL Season Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins

James Mirtle — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 12:00:17 -0000

by Gene J. Puskar - AP

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Who's in: Nate Guenin, Brent Johnson, Chris Lee, Jay McKee, Mike Rupp
Who's out: Philippe Boucher, Mathieu Garon, Hal Gill, Miroslav Satan, Robert Scuderi, Petr Sykora, Mike Zigomanis

Outlook: Another top team tight against the salary cap and forced to watch some incumbents leave for big paydays, the Penguins had to settle for bargains in the summer to replace the bodies lost.

Two of the team's top four minute munchers in Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill both signed lucrative free agent contracts elsewhere, while bit parts like backup Mathieu Garon and forwards Petr Sykora and Miro Satan were not offered contracts. The good news was that GM Ray Shero was able to re-sign a couple of his key cogs, reupping with both Bill Guerin and Ruslan Fedotenko for a combined $3.8-million on one-year deals.

Replacing Scuderi and Gill on defence was another matter, however, and the only newcomer on that front is veteran shot block king Jay McKee, who signed for a song after being bought out by the Blues. As a result, expect to see a lot of youngsters Kris Letang and Alex Goligoski on the back end and some growing pains on the penalty kill without Scuderi's steadying influence.

In terms of offensive gains, a full season of Chris Kunitz, Guerin and Sergei Gonchar in the fold should be enough to replace Sykora and Satan's dwindling contributions, while the if it ain't broke mentality makes sense when it comes to loading the minutes up on Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal.

There may be a small Stanley Cup hangover given they've lost some depth, but expect the Penguins to be in the thick of the Eastern Conference title race all season nonetheless.

X-factor: Kris Letang

For a more in-depth Penguins preview, visit PensBurgh
For more NHL analysis, check out the McKeen's Hockey Yearbook

Poll

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2009-10 Pittsburgh Penguins Season Preview

FrankD — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 10:00:32 -0000

Keeping with the trend across SBN, here's your Pittsburgh Penguins 2009-10 Season Preview.

2008-09 recap: Well, we can sum this up with a lot of unnecessary wordage or we can just cut right to the chase. Given the fact that the new season kicks off in less than a week and every player has mentioned they are putting the success of last year on the back burner, I choose the latter.

Who's In: Jay McKee (STL), Alex Goligoski (WBS farm team), John Curry (re-signed), Bill Guerin (re-signed), Ruslan Fedotenko (re-signed), Mike Rupp (FA), Brent Johnson (FA),

Who's Out: Hal Gill (MTL), Rob Scuderi (LA), Mathieu Garon (CLB), Petr Sykora (MIN), Miroslav Satan (unsigned), Philippe Boucher (retired),

Injuries: Max Talbot, shoulder; tentative return set for November

Team Strengths: Minus Petr sykora and Miro Satan, the entire offense is more or less intact. Keeping this unchanged, combined with the enthusiastic and discounted returns from Bill Guerin and Ruslan Fedotenko, should hopefully leave the Pens and fans with the same up-tempo offense that took down the Cup last season. Pittsburgh's top line will likley be comprised of Crosby, Chris Kunitz and Guerin. Funny to think only 1/3 of that line was even starting for Pittsburgh last year at this time.

Marc-Andre Fleury proved his worth in the playoffs last season and may finally get the recognition he deserves in 2010. The important factor that can't go overlooked is his ability to play well in high-pressure situations - you know, like the dying seconds of the third period in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. He's starting to get that reputation all goaltenders strive for. The sort of guy who steps up and makes big saves at big times - aforementioned Lidstrom save in the finals, Alex Ovechkin in the semifinals, Jeff Carter in the quarterfinals.

Even backup goaltender Brent Johnson brings experience and strong rebound control to the Pens which hopefully stands as some reassurance in the event that MAF disappears for a few weeks like he's done the past two seasons. Given the risk of injury to either, it's also reassuring to know that John Curry rests not too far away in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Despite his inexperience at the NHL level, Curry showed signs of flashiness last season and more than a few impressive saves during the preseason.

Team Weaknesses: Even though the Pens waved good-bye to Hal Gill, Rob Scuderi and Philippe Boucher this offseason, you can't just say defense. You have to ask, "defense?" With a question mark. That's because the overall competence is somewhat unknown, even if guys like Brooks Orpik, Sergei Gonchar and Kris Letang are still in place.

Jay McKee came on board with the Pens in July after having his contract bought out by the St. Louis Blues. He's still untested for the Penguins but took a discount with hopes of winning the Cup. He's a shot-blocking, blue collar sorta guy who will make every second on the ice count.

The Pens also look to add Alex Goligoski to the blue line this season, an offensive defenseman who saw some time with the parent club last season when Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney each missed time we injuries. GoGo showed signs of offensive prowess last season but may very likely have to improve on his defensive side of the game.

Kris Letang, entering a contract year where he's rumored to be asking for $4-million per, will have to play like a $4-million defenseman. Offensively Letang leaves more to be desired but it would seem everyone in Pittsburgh is rooting for him in that respect. Much to his credit, Tanger shot the puck more frequently last season and according to camp reports has upped the defensive aspect of his game.

Predictions for 2009-10 season: How can any Pens fan say they expect anything less than a repeat? The fact that it's realistic and not entirely unattainable stands as evidence to the fact that they have as good a shot as any, if not better than some. However here comes another season of all this Stanley Cup hangover talk. Two straight seasons of playoff hockey, both of which sent Pittsburgh's season well into June, may catch up with the team. Young as they may be, this is obviously a concern. It'll be a long season where any team that beats the Pens didn't just beat Pittsburgh, but instead they beat the "Stanley Cup Champs." Some sort of surprise injury always pops up at some point in the season but Pittsburgh has always managed to work around it. And what of all these experts and pundits that claim the Penguins won't make another run for it? I say bring it. Leadership is strong and the Pens already have their much-anticipated taste of victory. They won't settle for anything less than a repeat and tend to play better with the odds stacked against them.

They're not worried, I'm not worried, and you shouldn't be either.

Free agents twisting in the wind

James Mirtle — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:30:17 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

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A high-profile agent told Sun Media yesterday that the current environment for free agents is "all being orchestrated" by the NHL and the plan all along was to make these players sit to see if they’re willing to sign for less money.

"I think what you’ve got here is something that has been in the works for a while," said the agent, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bunch of guys sitting around like this looking for work. This is something teams have been looking at for a while."

— Bruce Garrioch, Sun Media

Greg Wyshynski gave Garrioch a hard time over this story in the Puck Headlines on Wednesday, but I was actually told the exact same thing — nearly word for word — by a lower profile agent last week. At the time, I chalked it up to frustration on the part of one individual, but it turns out this is something being talked about with some regularity behind the scenes.

"NHL teams know that [players will panic] and for the most part agents think NHL headquarters instructed teams to get as many players as possible to free-agent market to get players fighting against each other [for contracts]," the agent told me via email. "Some GMs have said that 'we'll wait until August because we believe we get better deals then.' None of them will say anything about Bettman instructing them since collusion charges could [come into play]."

I trust the source that said that to me, but I'm still uneasy about spreading rumours that widespread collusion is going on. It would be incredible if all 30 teams were able to agree to not stock their teams as well as possible to further some nefarious league objective.

Unbelievable, even.

Still, it's also really shocking how many quality players are available, probably 20 of whom definitely should have found a home by now. Alex Tanguay is one, but how about Sergei Zubov, Robert Lang, Manny Fernandez, Mats Sundin, Petr Sykora, Jason Williams, Taylor Pyatt, Manny Malhotra, Dennis Seidenberg, Dominic Moore, Mike Comrie, Mathieu Schneider, Miroslav Satan, Mike Grier, Mike Peca, Blair Betts, Martin Skoula, Marc-Andre Bergeron, Rob Niedermayer, etc.?

In terms of the argument that there's no cash left to spend, considering the cap is the same size as it was a year ago, that should be pretty easy to determine. Using rough calculations from nhlnumbers.com and capgeek.com, here's what teams spent last season compared to this one and the cash left over:

TEAM	2008-09	2009-10	Diff
ANA »	$57.5	$54.3	-$3.21
ATL »	$43.6	$48.9	$5.33
BOS »	$56.8	$58.0	$1.17
BUF »	$50.6	$52.1	$1.44
CAR »	$51.1	$54.0	$2.96
CGY »	$58.9	$55.3	-$3.53
CHI »	$57.9	$59.6	$1.70
CLB »	$51.2	$47.8	-$3.45
COL »	$53.4	$50.1	-$3.30
DAL »	$57.3	$48.7	-$8.64
DET »	$57.4	$55.1	-$2.32
EDM »	$55.2	$55.7	$0.45
FLA »	$54.7	$50.2	-$4.58
LAK »	$43.9	$50.6	$6.67
MIN »	$54.4	$53.6	-$0.82
MTL »	$57.5	$55.2	-$2.32
NAS »	$45.4	$40.7	-$4.76
NJD »	$55.0	$50.1	-$4.89
NYI »	$46.7	$41.7	-$5.04
NYR »	$56.4	$53.2	-$3.21
OTT »	$54.9	$56.6	$1.68
PHI »	$66.2	$56.0	-$10.18
PHO »	$45.5	$45.0	-$0.54
PIT »	$56.7	$55.2	-$1.51
SAN »	$57.2	$57.3	$0.08
STL »	$54.3	$52.2	-$2.10
TBL »	$51.0	$49.6	-$1.35
TOR »	$50.1	$58.9	$8.78
VAN »	$53.9	$53.3	-$0.54
WAS »	$60.1	$57.4	-$2.71
AVG	$53.8	$52.5	-$1.29

Tossing out the figure from the Flyers that is heavily influenced by all the long-term injury exemptions they had, there is about $30-million "extra" left to get us back to where we were a year ago, with the tiny rise in the cap contributing another $3-million or so.

If you assume that adding an additional player to a roster would mean subtracting a league minimum salary that's being counted here, that leaves roughly $1.5-million per team to add one additional free agent. And that's before we get into signing the remaining RFAs, injuries, callups and the like that are sure to push spending above the $53.8-million average of last season by the time we get to April.

In short? There's really not much cash left at all — and that's a more likely explanation for all of the guys searching for homes than GMs banding together for the greater good. Five to 10 teams could use another piece, but they won't be spending much, and that's bad news if you're either an unsigned player or an agent, whatever the cause may be.

Flirting with Satan: The case against re-embracing Miro

Dominik — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 11:00:22 -0000

More photos » by Pablo Martinez Monsivais - AP

"Could it be ...... SATAN?"

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I liked Miroslav Satan as a Sabre. I liked him as a productive Islander. I was happy to see him pick up a Stanley Cup ring this past spring. But the Islanders have no business treading in these declining veterans' waters, unless it's to listen for another cheap veteran bargain and subtly send a message to RFA Blake Comeau that uncertain scoring wingers do, in fact, grow on trees.

Satan's last 30-goal season (35 total) was his first on Long Island, when 17 came on the power play. His last 20-goal season was before his knee injury -- which he admirably played through -- and before Ted Nolan miscast him on the power play as a point man rather than in his favored down-low position. Though he lifted the Cup after returning for the playoffs with the Penguins this year, he spent the post-trade-deadline part of the regular season in the AHL so that the Pens could make salary cap room for fellow declining ex-Islander Billy Guerin.

Whether it's the knee injury after-effects or simply the expected decline that comes with age (those are hardly unrelated, but he turns 35 in October), Satan has simply been in steady decline the last four years. As a veteran winger who needs ice time (and forgiveness for defensive lapses) to produce, he simply doesn't fit the Islanders rebuild. I see an Islanders power play of Tavares/Okposo/Bailey + Streit/Weight, and that doesn't leave room for the ice time Satan surely needs to succeed.

But that doesn't mean GM Garth Snow shouldn't listen...

Miro Satan	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	TOI	SOG	PCT
2005-06 (NYI)	82	35	31	66	-8	54	17	0	2	19:10	253	13.8
2006-07 (NYI)	81	27	32	59	-12	46	7	1	2	18:35	216	12.5
2007-08 (NYI)	80	16	25	41	-11	39	5	0	4	18:19	171	9.4
2008-09 (PIT)	65	17	19	36	3	36	6	0	2	15:45	120	14.2

The fact that "news" of the Islanders' negotiations with Satan came straight from his agent's mouth -- via Twitter, no less -- tells me the agent is now desperate to build interest, and that Satan is in a very weak bargaining position to secure an NHL job. Agent Allan Walsh is a progressive new media user, so hey, he's just keeping with the times. But your agent could be a cuddly pussycat and I'm still going to rightly view his public comments with a healthy degree of skepticism (to say nothing of my fear he just wants to use my lap for a litter box stand-in).

So for Satan, it seems, it's no longer about money; it's about getting a guaranteed gig on these shores rather than trudging to Slovakia (where Ziggy Palffy is still scoring and quite happy, actually) or the KHL. That's why the hardly-Cup candidate Islanders are in the picture for this recent Cup winner.

That's not criticism -- it's just the facts of life in today's NHL. Never a two-way workhorse, Satan has reached the point in his career where his diminishing finishing skills can no longer draw even mid-level dollar. When a first-liner with liabilities no longer produces like a first-liner, suddenly the importance of those liabilities grows. So if Satan and his agent are offering his services to the Islanders for something quite cheap (say $1.5 million or less), I'm fine with Garth Snow taking the flier. The Isles still need scoring, and who knows? Maybe they catch lightning in a bottle.

But Satan's recent years reflect a sniper in decline, and without a physical or defensive side to his game (to be fair, he was hardly the worst 5-on-5 Penguin forward), that's not a profile that's worth much in today's NHL.

(In truth, more than anything I want SATAN 81 to be in a Devils jersey at some point before he calls it quits, in accordance with the prophecies and the wishes of jersey hounds.)

Monday linkage - The Stanley flip-cup, Hal Gill's new number, no more offer sheets and more!

Hooks Orpik — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 10:00:16 -0000

From the "probably not a coincidence department", Sidney Crosby will get the Stanley Cup for the day on 8/7 which happens to be Sid's 22nd birthday. [From the Rink]

Speaking of the Stanley Cup, it was the centerpiece of a game of flip-cup when Brooks Orpik had it last weekend. [Hockey Hall of Fame]

The Pensblog found a great youtube some Detroit fans made pre-Game 7. To our knowledge they did not make a follow up. [tPB]

Foreshadowing? Pens prospect Alex Velischek bet a buddy $10 bucks on the Penguins two weeks before they drafted him because he liked Marc-Andre Fleury better than Chris Osgood. [Post-Gazette]

Another piece on the feisty Eric Tangradi...Shouldn't be many dull moments with this guy, that's for sure. [Tribune Review]

Great column on everyone's favorite grandpa, Eddie Johnston. [PG]

Old friend Ryan Whitney does a Q&A [Ducks.nhl.com]

Staying on ex-Penguin news, Miroslav Satan's camp is in talks with re-joining the New York Islanders. Guess he does really want to stick around in the NHL. [Kuklas Korner]

To complete the hat-trick of ex-Pens, here's video of Hal Gill's first tour around the facilities with Montreal. Good luck up there, big guy. But wearing the number 75? [Kuklas Korner]

Penguin killers (noun): those frustrating players that put points on the board playing against Pittsburgh at a much higher rate compared to their output against teams not wearing black and vegas gold. [Faceoff Factor]

Boston pulls a switcheroo for their defense: Aaron Ward's out and Derek Morris is in. [TSN]

The Bruins see Aaron Ward as their #2 defenseman. The Bruins apparantely didn't see much of Ward's work with the Rangers this spring. [NESN]

From Canes Country: 83% of voters find re-acquiring Ward "a good deal". 83% of an online fanbase is a very ringing endorsement. [Canes Country]

Carolina also signed forward Tuomo Ruutu to a three year deal worth an average of $3.8 million a year. A lot of money for a guy who's career highs are 26 goals and 54 points or a worthy deal for a player that can bring a lot of other aspects to the ice? [TSN]

Why aren't restricted free agents getting offer sheets from other teams? Wysh offers the state of the economy and GMs not wanting to become targets or pariahs amongst their peer. Another good point: any big market that would throw $4-6 million at a guy like Phil Kessel don't have that kind of cap space. I think another factor could be that Dustin Penner and Tomas Vanek, the two most notable offer sheets in this CBA haven't exactly lived up to the expectations of their new contracts. [Puck Daddy]

A lot of fimiliar names on this list of players that'll likely have to retire since they haven't generated much interest for finding a team in2009-10. Is this the end of the line for mainstays like Jeremy Roenick, Chris Chelios and Brenden Shanahan? [The Hockey News]

The Capitals raised $9,500+ for the fight against cancer with a mostly friendly game of hockey. Perhaps best of all? The Commonwealth of Virginia took home the victory over the Marylanders. Check out the recap and some pics here. [Peerless Prognosticator]