Pens' track record in luring free agents

[firepower]

The team will probably be fine on D, especially with the rookies that mey crack the lineup(Despres, Morrow, Dumoulin, ect.). A veteran with a cannon for a shot wouldn't hurt. However I agree about the forward situation. Even if Shero doesn't want to (or can't) add the expensive pieces, at least add some grit. Tanner Glass is one piece, but get a couple more.

[pressure=9Pa]

Going on the original premise, there are maybe 5 teams in the NHL that have a good record post-lockout with "luring" free agents. The Pens will always struggle to be one of them the 87 and 71 on the roster due to the salaries they command. But, if you're asking would I rather make a big free agent splash 4-5 times in the next decade or have Sid and Geno locked up at below market prices for the next decade, I'll take option B and it won't take me long to decide.

[Fire0nice228]

I woulda loved to see Latendresse here, but like other posters have stated.. the Pens have their 'big fish' under contract already.. Crosby Neal Malkin Letang Fleury are big fish. Getting the bottom 6 up to snuff is far more important IMO. I mean I love to make a splash or have the big names as much as any but IMO Sutter and Cooke are the only ones worth diddly on the 3/4 lines

[Mr. Colby]

I woulda loved to see Latendresse here, but like other posters have stated.. the Pens have their 'big fish' under contract already.. Crosby Neal Malkin Letang Fleury are big fish. Getting the bottom 6 up to snuff is far more important IMO. I mean I love to make a splash or have the big names as much as any but IMO Sutter and Cooke are the only ones worth diddly on the 3/4 lines

Latendresse would be top 6 without question, as long as he could stay healthy.

Right now the Pens need one top-6 forward and one defenseman. I don't think there's any way we go into the season without adding another top-6 option at F. Defenseman can wait until the deadline since there are already a ton of options there.

Sid, Geno, Neal, Kunitz, Dupuis, _______
Sutter, Cooke, TK, Adams, Vitale, Glass, Tangradi, Jeffrey

Letang, Orpik, Martin, Niskanen, Lovejoy, Engelland, Strait, Bortuzzo


That's your list of waiver-eligible players that would probably get claimed. So basically if you want Despres on the big club, you gotta trade 1-2 of those defensemen or risk losing for nothing.

[shmenguin]

if everyone stays healthy, we don't "need" another top 6 forward. the situation isn't ideal, but i think we can survive. but if one of sid or geno gets hurt - there's no more backup plan with staal gone, so that's going to be a really, really bad deal.

[Mr. Colby]

I mean I guess we could get by for the first couple of months without adding a 2nd line forward... but that 2nd list of F's I listed above doesn't look so hot for 2nd line duty

[JoseCuervo]

while sutter isn't as offensively gifted as staal, he can certainly provide some offense. sutter isn't solely a shut-down center and plays a lot like a younger staal. He could certainly fit on the 2nd line for a short term barring any minor injuries.

[Idoit40fans]

They obviously like having the 3 center setup and now they have a guy getting paid money that slots him at that 3rd line. No pressure to move him up and out of position.

[JoseCuervo]

They obviously like having the 3 center setup and now they have a guy getting paid money that slots him at that 3rd line. No pressure to move him up and out of position.

I was responding to the posters who think that if sid or geno got injured then the team would be screwed since staal is no longer here to take their minutes. Though they've already proven they can still be successful without sid and geno in the lineup.

[shmenguin]

They got to the playoffs, but I don't think I'd describe 2011 as "successful"

[JoseCuervo]

The point is they can still win if one of them is injured for a while. Obviously, the pens won't get the cup if any of their knees explode, but that'd be the case even with staal here.

[Sarcastic]

The team will probably be fine on D, especially with the rookies that mey crack the lineup(Despres, Morrow, Dumoulin, ect.). A veteran with a cannon for a shot wouldn't hurt. However I agree about the forward situation. Even if Shero doesn't want to (or can't) add the expensive pieces, at least add some grit. Tanner Glass is one piece, but get a couple more.

If you think our D will be fine after what happened last year, then I have a bridge to sell you. We are 2 pieces away, and 3 if Martin stumbles again. Let's hope a prospect steps up and sticks this time around.

Agree on the forwards. I want to see Shero move out the little guys like Adams and Kennedy and bring in big bodies, 6'2 and up. We were one of the biggest teams a few years ago, I think we're one of the smaller ones now. Flyers and Devils used their size very well in the playoffs last year. We simply do not punish other teams anymore.

[sil]

I think it's becoming more and more clear that Shero is expecting the likes of at least one or two of Despres, Morrow, Dumoulin, Harrington, Samuelsson, etc... to prove they are, in fact, ready to play NHL minutes.

[no name]

Luring free agents ok yeah. But since the lock out how many good players have we lost to free agency... Scuds... Eaton... well my point is we are able to lock up our own. Once they are here. Alot of teams lose big names to free agency. Since Shero we have lost most of our guys on out terms.

[Sarcastic]

Luring free agents ok yeah. But since the lock out how many good players have we lost to free agency... Scuds... Eaton... well my point is we are able to lock up our own. Once they are here. Alot of teams lose big names to free agency. Since Shero we have lost most of our guys on out terms.

Agree, but I think we lost too much size and character along the way.

[DocEmrick]

We picked up Martin and Michaelek...granted they both suck now, but at the time they were "big" names. At least in their free agency class.

How many cups does Nash have? Weber? Suter? Granted, all top-notch players, but they're not going to make or break a team that's already front-loaded with two of the best players in the NHL + James Neal. Yeah, I'm disappointed that we lost out on Parise, but whatever. We'll find someone, it's not like we need a winger right this instance to suddenly fix all of our problems. I'd rather us fix the D first, or at least figure out where pieces like Despres and perhaps even Morrow are going to fit in in the long-term.

[shmenguin]

The point is they can still win if one of them is injured for a while. Obviously, the pens won't get the cup if any of their knees explode, but that'd be the case even with staal here.

I guess the question would be what would have happened last year if you swapped staal for sutter? I guess we still probably make the playoffs, just a lower seed.

...which would have actually been helpful

[Bioshock]

Nashville should put in an offer sheet for jakub voracek now.

Spoiler:

http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2011/011/4/5/troll_face_says_the_game__by_james_mizuhara-d36zguw.png

[pressure=9Pa]

I think it's becoming more and more clear that Shero is expecting the likes of at least one or two of Despres, Morrow, Dumoulin, Harrington, Samuelsson, etc... to prove they are, in fact, ready to play NHL minutes.

I think it's a given that one of them will prove capable. The problem is that it might take until January to figure out which one. I figure one will prove perfectly NHL ready, one will show good flashes but be inconsistant, two will prove that they're not ready yet, and one will flop. I realize there's no brilliant analysis above, but it's the most likely outcome. Your guess is as good as mine as to who will fill which slots.

[littlemoonboot]

I guess we've gone from "everybody wants to play for the Pens" to "nobody wants to play for the Pens" but the truth is somewhere in the middle. Players have their own lives and priorities, with a varying pool year to year, some things work out and some don't.

[Tico Rick]

So they don't like Mario's pool anymore?

[littlemoonboot]

So they don't like Mario's pool anymore?

Not since Matt Cooke crapped in it. Only it was actually just a Baby Ruth bar.

[brwi]

while sutter isn't as offensively gifted as staal, he can certainly provide some offense. sutter isn't solely a shut-down center and plays a lot like a younger staal. He could certainly fit on the 2nd line for a short term barring any minor injuries.

I don't think there is much of a drop-off from Stall to Sutter in terms of offense. They play a different style, though. Sutter is not a guy who is going to score a lot of goals in tight or head fearlessly into high traffic areas like Staal does. Sutter has better hands than Staal, but the reason why Staal's sometimes brick hands could be so frustrating is because he goes into the tough ice, reads the play very well, and puts himself in position to score goals(or totally miss the net over and over). Sutter isn't that hard-nosed. He's also not as good defensively as Staal either, but he's young and already proven somewhat and has good upside.

I'm not down at all on Sutter and have seen him play a lot. He's going to be a nice addition in shootouts and has scorer's hands while still being a good 2-way center that doesn't mind playing against high talent in his own end. Just don't expect him to be Staal's equal right from the start. He is a guy that can also move up a line if injuries dictate it, but he wasn't a 3rd line center in Carolina and winning the Selke or a big impact player that everyone in the NHL some how overlooked. He's more of a finesse player than a power forward like Staal and isn't that tough on the puck or in the corners either. He's not a wimp or soff, but his game isn't that similar to Staal's.

[ivand87]

All that needs to be said tonight regarding our frustrating offseason is this:

Thank you, Nashville!

Let's Go Pens!

[Godric]

I'll happily drive you to the nearest bridge.

You're a great human being