By Greg
(Greg had a really nifty graph here with where the Pens' money is tied up next season, but it wasn't compatible. Believe me when I say it was awesome and had an effective use of Christmas colors.)
The total cap hit for next year’s Pittsburgh Penguins is currently $45.108 million. The NHL salary cap is expected to remain at $56.8 million, which leaves the Penguins with $11.692 million to work with. However, there will be some cap room that is not utilized in order to make a deal at the trade deadline. Approximately $6-7 million will go to restoring the defense, which leaves $4-5 million to sign three wingers.
Unrestricted Free Agents:
# | Name | Age | Position | 2009 Salary |
23 | Ponikarovsky, Alexei | 30 | LW | 2.1 |
13 | Guerin, Bill | 39 | RW | 2 |
26 | Fedotenko, Ruslan | 31 | LW | 1.8 |
24 | Cooke, Matt | 32 | LW | 1.2 |
55 | Gonchar, Sergei | 36 | D | 5.5 |
7 | Eaton, Mark | 33 | D | 2 |
4 | Leopold, Jordan | 30 | D | 1.8 |
72 | McKee, Jay | 33 | D | 0.8 |
High chance of return: Matt Cooke, Mark Eaton, Jordan Leopold
Some chance of return: Bill Guerin, Jay McKee
No chance of return: Alexei Ponikarovsky, Ruslan Fedotenko, Sergei Gonchar
Prospects who can make an impact:
Name | Age | Position | Contract |
Eric Tangradi | 21 | LW | EL |
Ben Lovejoy | 26 | D | UFA |
Mark Letestu | 25 | C | RFA (2012) |
Deryk Engelland | 28 | D | UFA |
Chris Conner | 26 | RW | RFA |
Dustin Jeffrey | 22 | C | EL |
Nick Johnson | 24 | RW | RFA |
Simon Depres | 19 | D | EL |
Here is a look at the Penguins’ current lineup to give perspective on what they are missing:
Chris Kunitz – Sidney Crosby – ???
Pascal Dupuis – Evgeni Malkin – ???
??? – Jordan Staal – Tyler Kennedy
Mike Rupp – Maxime Talbot – Craig Adams
(Healthy scratch: Eric Godard)
Brooks Orpik – Kris Letang
Alex Goligoski – ???
??? – ???
What does King Shero do now?
Priority No. 1: Get a solid defenseman without breaking the bank.
This is easier said than done, but it’s the most important aspect of the offseason for the Penguins. Anton Volchenkov is the top free agent on defense. He will be asking for $4-5 million per year, which the Pens cannot afford. It looks like Shero will be targeting Dan Hamhuis, a defenseman that he helped the Predators draft in 2001. At the age of 27, he is entering the prime of his career and would fit in well with this youthful Penguins team. Hamhuis would give the Pens a defenseman with grit and toughness that they desperately need.
Priority No. 2: Resign Matt Cooke.
This guy has an edge and tenacity that the Penguins need more of in their lineup. There is no way they can afford to lose him. He hits, scores, kills penalties, agitates, creates energy and provides leadership. Cooke's contract that has just expired was 2 years for $2.4 million. I know that Shero doesn't like giving long term deals, but Cooke will only be 32 years old next season. If he wants a 3 year deal, give it to him. He might be the best bargain on the team if we can get him for under $2 million per year.
Priority No. 3: Sign a top-six forward.
A lot of people want this to be the Penguins’ top priority. I don’t. Think of it this way…Crosby won the Rocket Richard (and deserves to win the Hart) while playing with a 38 year old right winger and a left winger who missed 32 games en route to the worst year of his career. Everyone seems to be crying for a big free agent signing or even trading Geno for a winger. I realize that Sid and Geno can’t polish crap, but signing a top scoring winger won’t make up for a defensive pairing of Leopold and Goligoski.
Bill Guerin is a great locker room presence and can grow an amazing mustache, but it’s apparent that he’s no longer top line material. See ya Billy…thanks for helping us win the Cup.
If the Penguins sign Matt Cooke and two solid defensemen, they will probably only have $2-2.5 million left to sign a scoring winger. I’m not going to embarrass myself and start throwing out names for a top line winger because I have no idea what Shero has up his sleeve. Nothing against Ruslan Fedotenko, but hopefully the next winger we sign is better than Ruslan Fedotenko.
The other top-six forward is probably going to be Eric Tangradi. Dustin Jeffrey, Mark Letestu, and Nick Johnson all had better stats than Eric Tangradi this year in WBS, which is pretty much all I can go from since Tangradi has only played one game for the Penguins. However, Tangradi is the only player in this group that has a shot at being used in a top-six role next year. The trio of Jeffrey, Letestu, and Johnson will only see significant ice time when players are injured or if Matt Cooke is not re-signed. Eric Tangradi might not be ready yet, but I think he’ll start the season with the team because it will save the Pens a lot of cap room.
My proposed lineup for next season:
Chris Kunitz – Sidney Crosby – ???
Pascal Dupuis – Evgeni Malkin – Eric Tangradi
Matt Cooke – Jordan Staal – Tyler Kennedy
Mike Rupp – Maxime Talbot – Craig Adams
(Healthy scratch: Eric Godard)
Brooks Orpik – Kris Letang
Alex Goligoski – Dan Hamhuis
Mark Eaton – Ben Lovejoy
(7th Defenseman: Deryk Engelland)
Pink Floyd – Money
I heard the beat writer for a paper in Wilkes-Barre Scranton say that Nick Johnson will break camp with the team and be with them all year. Something along the lines of not having the ceiling of Tangradi but being a better player right now. Maybe put him on that top line. Am I the only Pens fan that wouldn't be sad if we moved or scratched Kennedy for someone else in WBS?
ReplyDeleteYeah I'm not a huge Kennedy fan either. He tries hard, but that's not good enough when the goal is a Stanley Cup.
ReplyDeleteNick Johnson seems pretty legit. A lot of what our team will look like next year obviously depends on what Bylsma thinks of the player. I would like to see Letestu as a 4th line center, but Talbot on the 2nd line probably isn't the greatest idea. On that note, I am against the Malkin on Sid's wing experiment but at least it's more reasonable than trading Malkin. I realize that he can't take faceoffs (if Geno worked at it he could win them) but I like having teams match up with our insane depth. That fourth line can only be matched by a few teams and the third line is the best in hockey. If the four centers are Crosby, Staal, Talbot, Letestu we are definitely putting all our eggs in one basket. Give Staal some time on the power play or a winger better than TK and he'll score 30 goals, but I'd rather have him focus on the PK.
What if they scratched TK, put Talbot on Staal's wing and then had Letestu center the fourth line? I don't think you lose anything on that third line except the doofy faces TK makes.
ReplyDeleteCan I write a soccer post, but just not so stat-driven? My brain hurts from reading all those Jeff Clement stats.
ReplyDeleteMike did you see his IHOP%? Dude is hitting an unreal 3 pieces of bacon for every pankcake eaten after two pancakes on weekends in April-May.
Granted I will admit, I am not nearly as big a hockey fan as Jeff and the Pittsburgh crew,Hamhuis will go for more than five million. NHL GM's seem to go nuts on the opening day of free agency, wouldn't shock me to see him get around 6-6.5 million over 5 years. I am by no means saying I would pay it but some GM's are just willing to overpay badly to get someone to come (read-Edmonton Oilers).
ReplyDeleteI think you need to put Staal on the second line and center with Malkin, or maybe bring someone in that shifts Malkin to more a winger or at least be interchangable with him at center and winger, maybe a Matt Cullen type guy.
The top salaries for defensemen generally go to the scorers (Mike Green, Duncan Keith, Dan Boyle), puck movers (Sergei Gonchar, Sheldon Souray), or those that have the ability to shut down an opponent (Chris Pronger, Zdeno Chara). From what I understand about Hamhuis, he's solid but isn't going to score many goals and doesn't have the capability to be a shut down defenseman because he isn't very big (listed at 6-1, 200).
ReplyDeleteThis is from Rob Rossi's article on things the Pens need to do this offseason (which included a stupid suggestion to trade Malkin):
"Pursue Nashville's Dan Hamhuis, who at 27 can be offered a cap-friendly long-term deal. Offer him a $1.25 million bump to $3.25 million annually over four years. Sell him on joining a Cup contender. Let him learn from Orpik and grow into a blue-line anchor."
First, I swear I did not base my analysis off of this article, it just seems to be the figure that is going around NHL rumor websites.
Second, I realize that it is wishful thinking to have some random defenseman give a discount for the chance to win a cup, but it's happened before and it will happen again...hopefully with us signing Dan Hamhuis.
I forgot to acknowledge your suggestion Jeff.
ReplyDeleteYou want four centers on two lines?!?! Who is our third line center going to be? Eric Godard?
In that statement, I was keeping Crosby and Malkin on separate lines and Staal staying on the third. It was basically a way to get TK out and Letestu in. If I had my way, Godard would be cut.
ReplyDeleteI see now. I'm all for it!
ReplyDeleteGo Pens!