Penguins offseason thread

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Are Maatta & Bennett eligible for LTIR tho? I'll admit IDK how it works exactly.

 

[thedddd]

Are Maatta & Bennett eligible for LTIR tho? I'll admit IDK how it works exactly.

Trust me neither do I but I thought it won't kick in until the season starts anyway (or I think there is a buffer period). If they won't be eligilble for LTIR they have 6 d-men and space to call up Megna or Kapanen so this roster is basically going to be it this season.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Trust me neither do I but I thought it won't kick in until the season starts anyway (or I think there is a buffer period). If they won't be eligilble for LTIR they have 6 d-men and space to call up Megna or Kapanen so this roster is basically going to be it this season.

Let's hope it works out

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Rumorville has us in the running for Kevin Hayes.

 

[thedddd]

Rumorville has us in the running for Kevin Hayes.

For what the Rangers paid for him i would have been ok with the Pens making an offer. On the other hand I am fine with keeping that space for Kapanen.

 

[Toddyd77]

Hayes had to sign an entry level deal so the money wasn't really the issue. He wants to be in the NHL immediately and was looking for a good team where he could play right away.
He is friends with Chrieder so that prob went a long way into him joining the Rags.
He woulda been good for the Pens though as he is big and can skate and has good offensive instincts.

On a seperate note: Hayes was rumored to land with the Pens because he is related to Tom Fitzgerald.
Is anyone getting kind of tired of players rumored to be locks to sign or be traded to the Pens due to being friends or family with a player or someone in the organization.(see Parise, Kumelin ect)

 

[thedddd]

You know I didn't realize he had to take an entry level deal. I thought they considered him as an UFA and could sign for what he wanted. I learned something new.

Anyway yeah I agree with the ties to the Penguins all the time and it does get old. Every rumor as it seems involves the Penguins and it gets old fast.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

MAF's situation has gotten interesting. I don't see us being a legit contender unless MAF is on top of his game. On the other hand, it's too tempting to trade MAF to dump salary & pick up draft picks. Do you guys think we should keep him, trade him, or let him go for nothing?

 

[scoutyjones2]

MAF's situation has gotten interesting. I don't see us being a legit contender unless MAF is on top of his game. On the other hand, it's too tempting to trade MAF to dump salary & pick up draft picks. Do you guys think we should keep him, trade him, or let him go for nothing?

You keep the best goalie the Pens have ever had since he is young still and affordable

 

[evolver115]

Keep Fleury. Ride him this season and hope he elevates his game 'a la Matty Niskanen because he's performing for a new contract. If Fleury fizzles in the post-season in 2014-15, this won't be a very hard decision to make in regards to what to do with him.

I liked the pickup of Greiss to back up MAF, and there is Tristan Jarry waiting in the wings for possibly next season.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Keep Fleury. Ride him this season and hope he elevates his game 'a la Matty Niskanen because he's performing for a new contract. If Fleury fizzles in the post-season in 2014-15, this won't be a very hard decision to make in regards to what to do with him.

I liked the pickup of Greiss to back up MAF, and there is Tristan Jarry waiting in the wings for possibly next season.

I think Greiss will be our starter by the end of the season. I say MAF is gone by the deadline. If we're going to lose MAF, might as well get something for him IMO.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Pens' new goalie?

 

[Toddyd77]

MAF's situation has gotten interesting. I don't see us being a legit contender unless MAF is on top of his game. On the other hand, it's too tempting to trade MAF to dump salary & pick up draft picks. Do you guys think we should keep him, trade him, or let him go for nothing?

I think the organization has real doubts about fleury o else they would not have brought in Greiss to replace Zatkoff when his first year as a NHL backup was actually decent. the problem with Fleury is they are rolling the dice either way. If he plays well and you trade him you can get a pretty good return. If he plays well and you don't trade him he's gonna be more expensive to sign and the Pens need cap space. If he plays poorly he has little trade value and the Pens probably aren't doing well in the standings.
Overall I think the pens have to keep him and ride him till he drops the ball. The goalie market is kinda slow right now with most teams having settled on a starter or tandem. Sanjose would like to trade Niemi but not sure if he would be an upgrade over fleru or if the sharks would even want fleury.

On a interesting Hypothetical note. If Vokoun had stayed healthy and continued to play at the level he had been would the Pens still have Fleury or would they traded him and let Vokoun be the mentor to the younger goalies?

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

I think the organization has real doubts about fleury o else they would not have brought in Greiss to replace Zatkoff when his first year as a NHL backup was actually decent. the problem with Fleury is they are rolling the dice either way. If he plays well and you trade him you can get a pretty good return. If he plays well and you don't trade him he's gonna be more expensive to sign and the Pens need cap space. If he plays poorly he has little trade value and the Pens probably aren't doing well in the standings.
Overall I think the pens have to keep him and ride him till he drops the ball. The goalie market is kinda slow right now with most teams having settled on a starter or tandem. Sanjose would like to trade Niemi but not sure if he would be an upgrade over fleru or if the sharks would even want fleury.

On a interesting Hypothetical note. If Vokoun had stayed healthy and continued to play at the level he had been would the Pens still have Fleury or would they traded him and let Vokoun be the mentor to the younger goalies?

Yeah true, things would've been much different if Vokoun didn't get blood clots. Just for the record, I love MAF to death, but if we aren't going to keep him after this season, might as well trade him IMO.

 

[evolver115]

Pulled this from the Trib Pens Blog:

When defenseman Christian Ehrhoff learned that the Buffalo Sabres planned on buying him out of his contract, he listed for his agent a group of teams he wanted to play for — ones he identified as having a legitimate shot at winning the Stanley Cup.

Only a few minutes into free agency on July 1, one of those teams landed Ehrhoff for a one-year deal worth $4 million, largely considered one of the better bargains of an otherwise upside-down day.

“I think the biggest thing that happened this summer — and we were very fortunate — was with Ehrhoff,” general manager Jim Rutherford said. “We knew (Matt) Niskanen was going to deserve to get a big contract. It was going to be hard for us to fit him into our cap.

“The fact that Ehrhoff got bought out and was willing to come here on a one-year deal, at his salary, that, as I sit here today, makes me feel more comfortable than going into camp wondering where our younger defensemen are going to fit in.”

The Penguins have a ton of young, talented defenseman, but bringing in Ehrhoff should, at minimum, serve as a solid bridge until those guys are ready.

An all-around defenseman who finished first in power play time for the Sabres and second on the penalty kill, Ehrhoff led all Buffalo players with 27 assists. His 33 points were tops for any Sabres defenseman. Ehrhoff even blocked 119 shots, seconds on Buffalo.

“I’m an all-around defenseman,” said Ehrhoff, who averaged 23 minutes, 54 seconds last season. “I think I can play wherever they need me — power play or penalty kill. I can log high minutes. I’m excited to see where and how I fit in.”

Ehrhoff, 32, has been extremely durable, playing in 587 of 622 games over the past eight years. He set career-highs with 14 goals and 50 points while helping Vancouver to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2010-11.

In 692 career games, Ehrhoff has 69 goals and 244 assists and is a plus-51. He has 34 points in 73 postseason contests.

“After I got bought out, I sat down and told my agent some teams that I thought had a good shot at winning,” Ehrhoff said. “The Penguins were on the short list. They called, and everything happened really quick. I’m excited to be here.”

On Tuesday after an informal workout at Consol Energy Center, I asked Ehrhoff, who signed before former Penguins Matt Niskanen and Brooks Orpik went to Washington, whether he thought about playing with those guys or whether he expected them to be gone.

That wasn’t a huge factor either way, Ehrhoff insisted.

“I didn’t know how the team would end up, how the defense would end up,” Ehrhoff said. “It was kind of obvious that those guys weren’t going to stay, at least it seemed that way. That didn’t really play into my decision. I wanted to be on a good team. I think even with those guys leaving we have a good group of players here.”

This move was probably the most significant made by the Pens from a personnel standpoint. Ehrhoff is a proven, durable and reliable commodity in the NHL. He is essentially replacing a guy (Niskanen) who, until this most recent season, never had lived up to his first round draft potential. This signing could turn out to be a coup for Pittsburgh in the coming season. Ehrhoff could be considered a likely candidate to take a slightly less amount in a long term deal, because he has the buyout from Buffalo that will pay him $12 million over the course of the remaining years on the old deal.

 

[pixburgher66]

Pulled this from the Trib Pens Blog:


This move was probably the most significant made by the Pens from a personnel standpoint. Ehrhoff is a proven, durable and reliable commodity in the NHL. He is essentially replacing a guy (Niskanen) who, until this most recent season, never had lived up to his first round draft potential. This signing could turn out to be a coup for Pittsburgh in the coming season. Ehrhoff could be considered a likely candidate to take a slightly less amount in a long term deal, because he has the buyout from Buffalo that will pay him $12 million over the course of the remaining years on the old deal.

I always forget the Pens got him. I was traveling on FA day, got on my plane at like 11:58, had to turn my phone onto airplane mode at like 12:07, and that was the last thing I saw. Still blown away. Frankly, I think he was the best Dman on the market.

 

[evolver115]

I always forget the Pens got him. I was traveling on FA day, got on my plane at like 11:58, had to turn my phone onto airplane mode at like 12:07, and that was the last thing I saw. Still blown away. Frankly, I think he was the best Dman on the market.

I've sometimes overlooked this deal myself during the offseason just because of the disappointment with losing in 7 to the Rags, the fallout with Dan and Ray, and then the almost comical amounts of money that were thrown at what would best be described as the Penguins second tier d-men in Orpik and Niskanen during free agency frenzy.

Ehrhoff is better than Niskanen. The most appealing part about it is the Pens are improving their top four and spending less than market value to do it! That is huge for a team that is supporting two superstar like contracts in Geno and Sid.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Pens' lines & ratings according to NHL 15...

L1: Kunitz (86) - Crosby (96) - Dupuis (85)
L2: Bennett (82) - Malkin (92) - Hornqvist (85)
L3: Spaling (83) - Sutter (84) - Downie (83)
L4: Comeau (82) - Goc (84) - Adams (77)
D1: Maatta (84) - Scuderi (81)
D2: Martin (85) - Letang (88)
D3: Despres (80) - Ehrhoff (85)
G1:Fleury (88)
G2: Greiss (84)

 

[Todd1a]

Pens' lines & ratings according to NHL 15...

L1: Kunitz (86) - Crosby (96) - Dupuis (85)
L2: Bennett (82) - Malkin (92) - Hornqvist (85)
L3: Spaling (83) - Sutter (84) - Downie (83)
L4: Comeau (82) - Goc (84) - Adams (77)
D1: Maatta (84) - Scuderi (81)
D2: Martin (85) - Letang (88)
D3: Despres (80) - Ehrhoff (85)
G1:Fleury (88)
G2: Greiss (84)

Darn good team! Cup winner on the game

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Darn good team! Cup winner on the game

Agreed, only bad player is Adams