SB Nation User Blog: FrankD

Happy Fourth of July, Pensburghers

FrankD — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 15:21:37 -0000

I'd imagine free agency will take a bit of a break today. With that said, have a fun, safe day. Enjoy the fireworks, some BBQ action and most importantly (for most at least) a three-day weekend.

Pittsburgh Penguins re-sign Ruslan Fedotenko

FrankD — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:05:00 -0000

More photos » by Gerry Broome - AP

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The Pittsburgh Penguins and Ruslan Fedotenko agreed to terms that will keep him in the black and gold next season. Outside of it being a one-year contract I'm not sure what the details are just yet, but it's good to know Pitt will have a guy returning who really worked out well with the top lines last season.

[Update] The deal is for $1.8 mill. That really says a lot about Fedotenko and his drive to win another Cup. Granted he made just slightly more last season ($2.25 mill), but any guy who takes a pay cut to stay on a winning team has something more important on his mind - as in, another Stanley Cup.

Way to go Feds. Happy to see you back.

Penguins sign defenseman Nate Guenin

FrankD — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:39:02 -0000

Stick tap to Malsby for the heads up...

With regards to the history of signing Ryan Malone and Bill Thomas, the Pittsburgh Penguins once again added a local guy to the roster today with the signing of former Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Nate Guenin. Actually, he was more like a Flyers system guy more than a Flyers one, seeing as how he only played in a single game last year. However in the time spent manning the Philadelphia Phantoms' blue line, he managed to pull in four goals and 13 assists.

It's hard to say if Pitt plans on bringing this guy up to the Penguins' blue line or if he will step in for Wilkes-Barre as the lower part of a few lateral movements in the system. It's a fairly affordable deal either way, as Dave Molinari notes on the Post-Gazette's web site:

The deal will pay him $500,000 if he plays in the NHL, $105,000 if he plays in the American Hockey League.

Molinari also notes that the Pens may still have their eyes on Jay McKee, a defenseman from the St. Louis Blues. Ray Shero had a presser set for 1:30 today, so I'm sure we'll hear of Pitt's intentions soon enough.

Minnesota Wild interested in Ruslan Fedotenko?

FrankD — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:46:56 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sancya - AP

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We don't really do rumors here because let's face it - you can make any of that stuff up. But once a few reliable sources start chatting a player/team up as a serious suggestion, we're happy to take it into consideration as well.

The Fourth Period suggests the Minnesota Wild may be interested in Ruslan Fedotenko. Tank is allegedly still on Pittsburgh's radar and is expected to make a decision today on where he plans to play in 2009. Keep in mind the Wild have been linked to a few Pittsburgh free agents over the past three days, likely because former Pittsburgh AGM Chuck Fletcher is running the show now.

Fedotenko made $2.25 million last season as part of a one-year deal with the Pens. The same salary could be a fit as part of Pitt's $4.7 mill in spending cash. However, Rob Rossi suggests nothing is close with the Pens and a Ray Shero presser is expected soon.

Who's left on the free agent market?

FrankD — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 04:35:15 -0000

Who's left on the free agent market?

TSN has a great list of the players still available on the market. The link above brings you to the East. Here's who's left in the West. Any guys you feel would be a good fit in Pitt?

Rob Scuderi signs with Los Angeles Kings

FrankD — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 19:42:39 -0000

More photos » by Keith Srakocic - AP

Rob Scuderi, shot-blocking defenseman and back-up goaltender heads off to LA.

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Beat writer Rob Rossi confirms via Twitter that the LA Kings and Rob Scuderi have agreed to a deal. Can't wait to see what the details are.

Report on the Trib-Review's page suggest the following:

Terms are not known, but the Kings had offered a multi-year deal at what was believed to be a $3 million annual average salary.

The Penguins are believed to have offered a five-year deal at $10 million total.

I wonder what Scuds was looking for the most. The money or longevity? Five years at $2 mill per seems pretty low, given his stupendous display in the playoffs. But if the multi-year deal in LA is something like, three years, then it could be interesting. I doubt it's three, likely five if that's what he was offered in Pitt, but even still...

[Update] TSN reports the deal is four years, $13.6 mill (annual of $3.4 mill).

Pittsburgh Penguins free agency: Day 1 in review

FrankD — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 04:54:43 -0000

More photos » by Carlos Osorio - AP

I felt this picture added a level of calmness to an otherwise crazy day of rumors and signings.

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Over the past 24 hrs you've no doubt seen and heard stories of players coming and going throughout the league. If you need to play catch up on signings throughout the league I'd suggest checking out TSN's free agency tracker. If you're more interested in what's going on around the Penguins you're in the right place.

No one really expected the Pens to be big buyers on the market this year. After all, there's only so much cap space to work with and so many players in their price range. However the single addition to the Pens' roster after day one of free agency comes from within the division.

Mike Rupp, formerly of the New Jersey Devils, signed on to a two-year deal worth about $825K per year. Rupp is a fourth line forward who can also take faceoffs, known more for his fight total than his point total. Seeing as how the Penguins still have Eric Godard under contract, the addition has led to some speculation that a player or two may be on the move. In fact Godard is one of those players rumored to be in some sort of move with Pascal Dupuis. No obvious details of any kind out there yet, but the assumption is the Penguins are looking to retain Rob Scuderi and may need to open up more cap space. As of right now the Pens are about $4.7 mill under.

Another name to skip town today was Hal Gill, the monstrous defenseman whose slow skating and crease-clearing attempts really looked out of place with Pitt. The Montreal Canadiens picked him up for two years, valued at about $2.25 mill per.

Mathieu Garon, the Pen we hardly knew, signed a two-year deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets valued at $1.2 per. No way Pitt could've offered enough to keep him on and there may likely be no reason for it if they decide to call up John Curry from Wilkes-Barre as Marc-Andre Fleury's back-up.

Last but not least, the man many want to see back in Pittsburgh, Rob Scuderi. No news may be good news right now as teams initially interested in signing Scuds (Minnesota, New York Rangers, Lightning and Stars) continue to fill up cap space and similar style defenseman. Take for instance Minnesota, who today signed defenseman Greg Zanon to a three-year, $5.8 mill contract. Zanon fills the Wild's shot-blocking needs and unless Chuck Fletcher is really set on stockpiling another put-your-life-on-the-line defenseman, it's likely that we can consider Minnesota out of the mix for Scuds. Same can most likely be said of Tampa after signing defenseman Lukas Krajicek.

Miroslav Satan and Ruslan Fedotenko are still testing the market.

As we head into day two of free agency, the Penguins will continue their talks in filling a few holes and potentially move Godard and/or Dupuis to clear space. A back-up goaltender is also a consideration, but may be sent to the backburner as Shero and friends try to work something out with Scuderi.

As far as the Pens go, how do you think things were handled on day one?

With regards to the the entire league, which signing outside of Pitt do you think will make the most impact?

Rob Scuderi: Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars, New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning?

FrankD — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:25:19 -0000

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

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There's now more evidence than ever Rob Scuderi's play throughout the playoff run did not go unnoticed. According to Rob Rossi, a few teams rumored to be in on the shot-blocking defenseman include the Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars, New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Minnesota Wild shouldn't come as much a surprise, seeing as how former Pittsburgh AGM Chuck Fletcher is now running things. Similar to the Wild, the Dallas Stars have plenty of cap room available to make a serious bid on Scuds. The Rangers - well, what players (aside from Nik Antropov) aren't they rumored to have some interest in? As for the Lightning, I guess they just enjoy picking up Pittsburgh's UFA's every year.

Although Hooks reported that Scuds will give Pitt the last chance to bid, I can't see how they will be able to match any offers from teams with as much cap room as the Wild, Stars and Lightning.

2009 NHL free agency begins

FrankD — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:49:10 -0000

More photos » by David Duprey - AP

Scott Gomez joins the Montreal Canadiens.

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It strikes me as funny that only three days after the draft I'm seeing posts describing today as "Hockey Christmas." I guess it's fitting. Players may get a new city to play for and fans have someone new to cheer on. So, hockey Christmas it is.

If you haven't heard by now, Scott Gomez is no longer in Pittsburgh's division. He, along with Tom Pyatt and Mike Busto were shipped out to Montreal in exchange for Chris Higgins, Ryan McDonagh, Pavel Valentenko and the rights to Doug Janik. Habs Eyes on the Prize is screaming "Bad deal," while Blueshirt Banter has high hopes that the move opens up cap space for a bigger name.

There are plenty of big names on the market this year. Some, such as Marian Hossa, return to the market once again. The latest rumor out of Detroit suggests the Red Wings offered Hossa $4-million a year as part of a 10-year deal. Yes, ten years. Something tells me he had zero interest from the release of the offer, later confirmed when he openly rejected it yesterday. Why Detroit would want to limit their Stanley Cup chances over the next decade is beyond me...

If you're keeping your eyes on things today then it's pretty likely that you'll hearor see the Penguins tossed around in a few moves. Chuck Gormley from Philadelphia's Courier Post believe the Pens may be interested in Mike Knuble. In all likelihood the Flyers will look to retain Knuble. However with a cap hit of $2.8 million last season, that may even be a bit out of Pitt's price range.

Sure, there's going to be a lot of action going on today throughout the hockey world. SBN Hockey makes it easy for you with this nifty little free agency hub. Mirtle also listed the Top 100 UFAs and provides a little cheat sheet for teams around the league.

If you see something break, feel free to chat it up here or hit up the hub for some of the latest news from around the network.

SBN Hockey Radio premieres, tonight at 7pm

FrankD — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:30:06 -0000

SBN Hockey Radio premieres, tonight at 7pm

First episode of SBN Hockey radio airs tonight. I'll be joining Brandon from Defending Big D (Stars) and Travis from Broad Street Hockey (Flyers) to discuss the draft, free agency and big names still on the market. Call in at (347) 857-1323.