Penguins sign Chris Conner
So this definitely went under the radar because of the holiday and this player’s realitive anonymity. The Penguins signed Chris Conner — a 25 year-old winger previously with Dallas — to a contract with terms yet to be released.
Thanks to Stephanie over at TSCSP for the tip. Faceoff-Factor also has him as signed to the Penguins, along with Tony over at the Confluence.
He is one of those guys that, so far, has been pretty productive at the AHL level but has struggled to do so in the NHL. He’s 5-8, 175 pounds — a speedy winger. He’s a guy that welcomes scrapping along the boards and has the potential to grow offensively.
He earned $500,000 as a Dallas Star so I can’t imagine GM Ray Shero signed him for much more than that.
Pitt football recruit list — July 4th update
So it’s summer time, which means little to no hockey news other than free agency, rookie camp and training camp.
We’re not just Penguins fans here, though they take full priority over everything else. Many of you are the same way, so this summer we’ll be posting other Pittsburgh sports news to keep things fresh and give our readers something to look at.
This post will be a work-in-progress. As Pitt football signs more players for the recruiting class of 2010, we’ll post it here along with a short bio of each player. We’ll also include our opinions on each player.
The list is up to 11 now. The newest recruit is another wide receiver. His name is Andrew Carswell and he is from Sto-Rox High School in McKees Rocks, PA.
Roster Outlook
Say thanks to Billy Guerin, Ruslan Fedotenko and Craig Adams.
But don’t just say it because they came back. Sure, we’re grateful for that. However, all three took pay cuts to stay with the team.
It allows for more cap room in an NHL economy that isn’t so great. There’s also the comfort of having chemistry as the top three lines are under contract.
The way things look right now look pretty similar to last year. It’s not a bad image to build upon.
Minor league moves
Guenin
There were other moves within the Penguins’ organization yesterday, June 3.
The Penguins signed Nate Guenin, a defensemen formerly of the Philadelphia Flyers, and saw Chris Minard and Jeff Taffe leave for greener pastures.
Minard was signed by Edmonton while Taffe signed with Florida. The terms of both contracts are unknown at this point.
Both were leaders on the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins last season and vital parts of their offensive attack. It will have great effects for the Pens’ AHL affiliate. However, they will have a much better chance at making it in the league with their new teams.
Petr Sykora’s future
According to the Associated Press, Ray Shero has interest in signing just one more player.
For those of you hoping to see Petr Sykora back, this means those chances are all but gone. Shero said he wants to add one experienced defenseman to the current blue-liners under contract.
‘‘We’ve been in touch with a number of guys that are unrestricted (free agents) so we’re going to wait and see,’’ said Shero, who won’t rule out a trade. ‘‘I think we’re in good shape — we want to find the right guy, the right fit.’’
He also said that he’s content with the current set of forwards he has. That means Eric Godard may stay — contrary to what many of us believed when Mike Rupp was signed as a free agent. However, Shero also wouldn’t say no to a possible trade.
Ruslan Fedotenko signs 1-year deal
UPDATE @ 11:14 p.m. — quotes from Fedotenko (click ‘read more’)
The Pittsburgh Penguins signed Ruslan Fedotenko today, 7/3/09, to a one-year deal worth a reported $1.8 million.
How Ray Shero got Fedotenko to sign for 1.8 is yet to be determined. It’s such a bargain for a player that was nothing but solid. Fedotenko reportedly attracted interest from a number of teams, and deservedly so — he now has two Stanley Cup rings and turned up his game up in postseason both times.
Free Agency Updates
We’ll list notable free-agent signings here. For other, more detailed updates, visit Faceoff-Factor. Those guys are documenting every player all day.
We’ll be shedding light on notable players.
Free Agent Signings
6/30 — Johnny Oduya re-signs with New Jersey. The deal is for 3 years and worth $10.5 million
6/30 — Rob Blake re-signs with San Jose for one year at $3.5 million
6/30 — Jay Bouwmeester signs with Calgary for five years for a total of $33.4 million
7/1 — Daniel and Henrik Sedin re-sign with Vancouver. Both contracts are identical: $6.1 million a year for five years
7/1 — Alexei Kovalev re-signs with Montreal for two years, $8.8 million
7/1 — Radek Dvorak re-signs with Florida for $1.7 million a year for two years
7/1 — Marian Hossa signs with Chicago: 12 years, $62.4 million
7/1 — Ty Conklin signs with St. Louis: 2 years $2.6 million
7/1 — Dwayne Roloson signs with the Islanders: 2 years $5 million
7/1 — David Booth signs with Florida: 6 years $25.5 million
7/1 — Mike Knuble signs with Washington: 2 years $5.6 million
7/1 — Donald Brashear signs with the Rangers: 2 years, $2.8 million
7/1 — Scott Niedermayer signs with Anaheim: 1 year, $6 million
7/1 — Eric Cole signs with Carolina: 2 years, $5.8 million
7/1 — Scott Clemmensen signs with Florida: 3 years, $3.6 million
7/1 — Hal Gill a Canadien: 2 years, $4.5 million
7/1 — PENGUINS SIGN MICHAEL RUPP: 2 YEARS, $1.65 MILLION
7/1 — David Koci signs with Colorado: $575,000, 1 year
7/1 — Mike Cammalleri signs with Montreal: 5 years, $30 million
7/1 — Mike Komisarek signs with Toronto: 5 years, $22.5 million
7/1 — Steve Sullivan remain a Predator: 2 years, $7.5 million
7/1 — Mathieu Garon signs with Columbus: 2 years, $2.4 million
7/1 — Marian Gaborik signs with the Rangers: 5 years, $37.5 million
7/1 — Brian Gionta signs with Montreal: 5 years, $25 million
7/1 — Chris Neil re-signs with Ottawa: four years, $8 million
7/1 — John Madden signs with Chicago: 1 year, $2.75 million
7/1 — Martin Havlat signs with Minnesota: 6 years, $30 million
7/2 — Mark Recchi re-signs with Boston: 1 year, $1 million
7/2 — Nik Antropov signs with Atlanta: 4 years, $16 million
7/2 — Adrian Aucoin signs with Phoenix: 1 year, $2.25 million
7/2 — Mikhail Grabovski re-signs with Toronto: 3 years, $8.7 million
7/2 — Rob Scuderi signs with Los Angeles: 4 years, $13.6 million
7/2 — Jordan Leopold signs with Florida: 1 year, $1.75 million
7/3 — Ryan Clowe re-signs with San Jose: 4 years, $15 million
7/3 — Ville Leino re-signs with Detroit: 2 years, ???
7/3 — PENGUINS SIGN NATE GUENIN: 1 year, $500,000
7/3 — Rangers signs Tyler Arnason and Corey Locke
7/3 — Mikael Samuelsson signs with Vancouver: 3 years, $7.5 million
7/3 — RUSLAN FEDOTENKO SIGNS WITH PITTSBURGH: 1 year, $1.8 million
Elsewhere, Dany Heatley is still supposedly being dealt around by Ottawa. Yesterday it was reported that Heatley was traded to Edmonton. That was denied by the winger, who currently has a no-trade clause that he has yet to lift.
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Chris & Dan | PPT
Bye bye to Scuds and the USS
The Penguins have bee super quiet so far in free agency. The biggest news has been the departure of two defensemen: Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill.
Defensive partners during the playoffs, the pairing will sorely be missed. Scuderi did the little things that led to spectacular plays. Gill was sometimes frustrating to watch, yet seemed to always do the right thing in the end.
Scuderi is now a Los Angeles King. He was signed on 7/2 to a four-year, $13.6-million contract. He will average $3.4 a year, much more than the Pens would/could have offered.
As for Gill, he’s back in Canada — this time in Montreal. He signed a two-year deal worth $4.5 million on 7/1.
Scuderi signs with L.A.
Rob Scuderi
Defensemen Rob Scuderi has signed with the Los Angeles Kings. The deal is for 4 years and believed to be valued at $13.6 million. The Penguins are believed to have offered Scuderi a 5 year deal worth $10 million.
This comes after defensemen Hal Gill signed with Montreal yesterday. Expect the Pens to make a move to sign a defensemen with their remaining cap space.
More to come…..
Team Info
Stanley Cup Champions
Penguins Win Series 4-3
Playoff Stats:
Points: Evgeni Malkin (14 G + 22 A) – 36 pts.
Goals: Sidney Crosby – 15 G
Assists: Evgeni Malkin – 22 A
PIM: Evgeni Malkin – 51 PIM
+/-: Sidney Crosby — +9
GAA: Marc-Andre Fleury – 2.61
SV%: Marc-Andre Fleury – .908
Regular Season Stats:
Points: Evgeni Malkin – 113 points (35 G + 78 A)
Goals: Evgeni Malkin – 35 goals
Assists: Evgeni Malkin – 78 assists
PIM: Eric Godard - 171 PIM
+/-: Rob Scuderi — +23
GAA: Marc-Andre Fleury – 2.66
SV%: Marc-Andre Fleury – .905
