Free Agent Frenzy 2015

Post by **Kicksave** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 8:46 am

Happy Brandon Saad Phil Kessel Free Ageny Frenzy Day, Everyone!

Will Brandon Sutter be traded today?

Will the Pens get Semin?

People to watch on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/TSNBobMcKenzie
https://twitter.com/Real_ESPNLeBrun
https://twitter.com/JoshYohe_PGH
https://twitter.com/Dejan_Kovacevic
https://twitter.com/TheHockeyNews
https://twitter.com/emptynetters
https://twitter.com/MolinariPG
https://twitter.com/Brian_Metzer
https://twitter.com/DougMaclean
https://twitter.com/MikeColligan

Post by **scb147** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 9:01 am

You forgot Rossi

Post by **shmenguin** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 9:04 am

yohe is firmly in the rossi zone. not worth listening to in any capacity.

Post by **Kicksave** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 9:08 am

Has Yohe went full-Rossi?

Post by **meow** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 9:11 am

You never go full-turd-sandwich

Post by **meow** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 9:13 am

meow would like to go on record as saying I don't like the pre-July 1 interview period because too many deals happen at 12:01 and I can't digest them quick enough.

Post by **Avyran** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 9:18 am

I think Yohe has not gone full Rossi & is still decent at covering the Pens... though he, like Mackay & others, spent WAY too much time tweeting GMJR's every move at the draft. His articles on DK's site have been enjoyable to read.

Post by **FLPensFan** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 9:56 am

Avyran wrote:I think Yohe has not gone full Rossi & is still decent at covering the Pens... though he, like Mackay & others, spent WAY too much time tweeting GMJR's every move at the draft. His articles on DK's site have been enjoyable to read.

I think that was due to being sent to cover an event for a team that was likely to do not much of anything, including drafting.

Post by **Kicksave** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:10 am

https://twitter.com/MarkMaddenX/status/ ... 2611064832

Post by **Avyran** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:12 am

Thanks, captain obvious!

Joking aside, it makes me happy to see that more reporters (I think Yohe & Molinari also suggested it) are saying this.

Post by **No Look Drop Pass** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:12 am

I will not only be not surprised, but I will also be thrilled.

Post by **darkstar57** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:17 am

so i guess we arn't signing Semin now

Post by **FLPensFan** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:19 am

I will be very interested to see what JR pulls off. In a weak free agent class, LW is extremely weak, and the Penguins need a good top 6 LW not named Kunitz or Dupuis. After Belesky, the best LWs are Erik Cole, Scottie Upshall, Jiri Tlusty, Sean Bergenheim, and Curtis Glencross. I have a bad feeling we are going to end up with Tlusty. Even looking at LW in the NHL that are signed, I really don't see many that are top 6 capable that "might" be able to be traded for. I'd still be looking at Skinner if he could somehow be acquired without giving up Maata, Pouliot, or Kapanen. Seems unlikely thought. The other option would be Frolik. It may be an overpayment at 5M, but the fact that Frolik can play all 3 forward positions makes him attractive, and I like the plan (if it is indeed the plan) to play him top 6 until Kapanen is ready then move him down to 3rd line.

Post by **mikey** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:21 am

Matthias is a better option than Upshall and Bergenheim for our purposes at LW, for what it's worth...don't forget him. Semin can also play the left side so that his shot comes from the middle of the ice.

Post by **Avyran** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:22 am

FLPensFan wrote:I will be very interested to see what JR pulls off. In a weak free agent class, LW is extremely weak, and the Penguins need a good top 6 LW not named Kunitz or Dupuis. After Belesky, the best LWs are Erik Cole, Scottie Upshall, Jiri Tlusty, Sean Bergenheim, and Curtis Glencross. I have a bad feeling we are going to end up with Tlusty. Even looking at LW in the NHL that are signed, I really don't see many that are top 6 capable that "might" be able to be traded for. I'd still be looking at Skinner if he could somehow be acquired without giving up Maata, Pouliot, or Kapanen. Seems unlikely thought. The other option would be Frolik. It may be an overpayment at 5M, but the fact that Frolik can play all 3 forward positions makes him attractive, and I like the plan (if it is indeed the plan) to play him top 6 until Kapanen is ready then move him down to 3rd line.

I believe the player you're looking for is "Plotnikov." Plotnikov.

I'm actually really excited to see how the guy can play (if he signs, of course).

Post by **slappybrown** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:23 am

shmenguin wrote:yohe is firmly in the rossi zone. not worth listening to in any capacity.

Post by **FLPensFan** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:25 am

darkstar57 wrote:so i guess we arn't signing Semin now

I think people thinking Semin is a slam-dunk are going to be disappointed. Everyone says, oh, the Caps did this one year at a time deal. Of course his agent is going to pump him up, but I've heard 5-8 teams interested in him. If your plan is to offer him a 1 year deal, I would not expect him to sign.

My guess, 2-3 year deal for 3.5-5M is what it will take.

Post by **FLPensFan** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:26 am

Avyran wrote:
FLPensFan wrote:I will be very interested to see what JR pulls off. In a weak free agent class, LW is extremely weak, and the Penguins need a good top 6 LW not named Kunitz or Dupuis. After Belesky, the best LWs are Erik Cole, Scottie Upshall, Jiri Tlusty, Sean Bergenheim, and Curtis Glencross. I have a bad feeling we are going to end up with Tlusty. Even looking at LW in the NHL that are signed, I really don't see many that are top 6 capable that "might" be able to be traded for. I'd still be looking at Skinner if he could somehow be acquired without giving up Maata, Pouliot, or Kapanen. Seems unlikely thought. The other option would be Frolik. It may be an overpayment at 5M, but the fact that Frolik can play all 3 forward positions makes him attractive, and I like the plan (if it is indeed the plan) to play him top 6 until Kapanen is ready then move him down to 3rd line.
I believe the player you're looking for is "Plotnikov." Plotnikov.

I'm actually really excited to see how the guy can play (if he signs, of course).

I'm interested to see what he can do, but I think counting on him as top 6 off the bat could be trouble. If he signs with the Penguins today, I'll be very interested to hear Rutherford's comments. That should tell you a lot on where they view him fitting in.

Post by **meow** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:32 am

FLPensFan wrote:My guess, 2-3 year deal for 3.5-5M is what it will take.

I would do the lower numbers for this just because it patches a hole and we don't lose any assets.

Post by **Avyran** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:32 am

FLPensFan wrote:I'm interested to see what he can do, but I think counting on him as top 6 off the bat could be trouble. If he signs with the Penguins today, I'll be very interested to hear Rutherford's comments. That should tell you a lot on where they view him fitting in.

Ah, I agree. I do think, however, that trying him is better than going overboard on Frolik or other FA / trade options. It reflects more on my personal outlook of the Pens as a whole - I'm not interested in overpaying to shore up the holes of the team, and would much rather try these medium risk, high reward deals that won't handcuff the team with a bad contract. I also think that, in order to be a cup contender, the players already on the team (looking specifically at the non-elite guys like Perron, Kunitz, Cole, Maatta, etc) have to play like Stanley-Cup-winning players; it won't be fixed by a signing or two.

Thus, I'm not too concerned about the FA signings this year. Players like Plotnikov & Semin can turn into the Richards / Hossa-esque deals that push the team to a finals. Players like Frolik & Beleskey can turn into the Bickell deals that just hinder teams in the future.

I definitely agree on hearing Rutherford's comments. I'm curious to see how the Pens organization itself views guys like Tikhonov, Plotnikov, etc.

Post by **shmenguin** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:35 am

the practical move is to be conservative this week and hope for the best, while privately acknowledging that this isn't going to be our year.

...but, understandably, this isn't how it works.

Post by **meow** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:58 am

Ramo back to Calgary. 1 year - $3.8 million
Ribeiro back to Nashville. 2 year - $7 million
Eichel to sign with Sabres (good move).

Post by **Kicksave** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:59 am

meow wrote:Source of the post Eichel to sing with Sabres (good move).

What is he singing?

Post by **Kicksave** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 11:01 am

https://twitter.com/Real_ESPNLeBrun/sta ... 5180698624

Post by **FLPensFan** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 11:07 am

Kicksave wrote:
meow wrote:Source of the post Eichel to sing with Sabres (good move).
What is he singing?

I suggest Money by Pink Floyd.