Pens sign F Mike Comrie

The Pens continued their bargain shopping today by adding Mike Comrie. Comrie signed for one year at a low price of $500,000.

Every article I've seen has noted that Comrie "hasn't score more than 13 goals since 2007-08". This has to be one of the dumbest statements I've seen recently. While it is true factually, it is also true that Comrie played just 43 games last year and managed 13 goals. That puts him at about 25 for a complete season.

Also consider that he's been stuck with some pretty bad teams lately - the Isles and the Oilers (yikes!)

Here's the thing that I'm wondering - who is going to play the right side on the top two lines? All of the potential candidates are left-handed.

Still, it was an excellent signing by Ray Shero. Comrie wants to prove he still has lots of gas in the tank, and the Pens will give him every opportunity to prove it.

Berkshire Hathaway (and Marek Svatos)

The results are normally inconsistent when you have a non-sports publication writing about the NHL. This article over at Forbes is just that - it raises some interesting points but falls flat on others.

Given that the article compares the Penguins to Berkshire Hathaway, I knew I had to read it. Berkshire, if you don't know, is probably the most successful company in the world. It is run by Warren Buffett and a single share of the stock currently costs $115106 (for a Class A share). The cheaper shares used to cost 1/30th of that (so still over $3500) until they recently split the stock. Buffett is called the Oracle of Omaha (where Berkshire is based) and is the world's most successful investor.

The immediate implication of the article title is that the Pens are brilliant not only in the moves that they make, but also with the timing that they make them. Buffett is famous for his attitude of "be fearful when others are greedy and be greedy when others are fearful".

Anyway, the article, by Mike Colligan (a writer over at thehockeywriters.com), makes some interesting points:

• Asham had other offers that were better, but came to Pittsburgh because he thought it was the best shot to win the Cup.
• Several examples of players accepting less to play in Pittsburgh
• An interesting contrast with the Blackhawks, as Chicago has had to dismantle a large part of their secondary cast this summer while the Pens opened the wallet and signed two premier defensemen.

I do have a few issues with what Mr. Colligan writes, however:

• Sid is cited as taking less to stay in Pittsburgh, but the article makes it out to be better than it is. Sid signed for $8.7m per season and the article implies he could be receiving $11.88m. While it is true that he could renegotiate his contract to get that maximum, when he signed the deal, the salary cap was lower and the maximum that Sid could have signed for was a hair over $10m. Still, it was nice of Sid to provide the discount.
• The Blackhawks issues this off-season were partially due to aggressive spending (hello, Brian Campbell), but also due to an offer snafu last year that forced the Blackhawks to sign several players to contracts that were much larger than what they ordinarily would have received (see Versteeg and someone else I can't remember - Seabrook or Sopel?)
• A bizarre advertisement, essentially, for Marek Svatos at the end, citing Svatos as one of the players that the Pens have the luxury of choosing. I'm sure Svatos would love to play for the Pens (heck, anyone that is in danger of falling out of the NHL would love to), but he hasn't played well for two years running. While the earlier part of the article shows how Berkshire picked up quality companies, the last example of Svatos doesn't line up.

All told, however, I think it was an interesting way to consider how the Pens are perceived around the NHL by players and their agents.

Penguins sign W Arron Asham

The terms are one year, $700K.

It's a low risk move to be sure, but do the Pens need more gritty players? Here's a list of the potential third and fourth line players on the roster right now (and I'm assuming Staal and Dupuis are in your top 6, given the lack of other options currently):

Cooke, Rupp, Talbot, Adams, Kennedy, Asham, Godard

I guess the question is, do you want Asham filling a temporary role in Pittsburgh for a year, or would you rather see someone like Tim Wallace or Dustin Jeffrey getting an extended look on the roster? This signing might say more about the lack of confidence in some of the young guys than anything else.

Maybe given the potential changes on the third line, Shero sees the value in adding a responsible forward that can play either wing and occasionally chip in on offense.

Penguins sign D Paul Martin

Wow.

Ray Shero was completely serious when he talked about two big signings on the blue line.

The Pens have signed Paul Martin to a five year contract worth $25M. Martin has been a solid player on the blue line for several years for the Devils. He is 29, so the Pens have him under control for the prime years of his career.

Martin was hurt last year and only managed 22 games. His injury history isn't bad prior to that, playing over 70 games three straight years.

This was a bold move by Ray Shero. He clearly signaled that the blue line was the area most in need of help by the moves he made.

Penguns sign D Zbynek Michalek

Five years, $20M. Michalek is a stay-at-home kind of defenseman, but he's just 27 years old.

I'm a bit surprised at the amount, but not the term. You know Ray Shero likes to get long term stability for players under 30.

Not sure if this signals the end of the pursuit of Hamhuis. You'd think so, because they're very similar players. Both are more defensively oriented and both play on the penalty kill. On the other hand, the Pens are missing that #1 defenseman right now. They could sell Hamhuis on that spot.

Gonchar to the Senators

Per TSN, the Senators have signed Sergei Gonchar to a three year contract worth $5.5M per season.

He also has a no-trade clause.

It is a shame to see Sarge leave, but I think it was smart of Ray Shero not to offer the third year and also not to go above Gonchar's previous salary. It takes guts not to cave in and overpay a player of the caliber of Gonch.

I'll certainly miss watching him play.

Hopefully he'll get a nice ovation when he returns to Pittsburgh. He deserves it.

Who writes these headlines?

From the Tennessean... here's a link to the original article, for when they change it...

Penguins acquire D Dan Hamhuis

The Pens acquired the rights to D Dan Hamhuis from the Flyers last night. They'll have exclusive negotiating rights with Hamhuis until Wednesday.

Obviously this has been noted as a hedge against losing Gonchar. My question is: Is there any way the Pens could sign them both?

I don't know if you sign Sarge long term, no matter what, but the Pens have about $12,000,000 in cap space. If they can get both for $8,000,000...

I'm not sure it is feasible, given that the Pens need help up front in their top 6, and those players are usually expensive. You don't want to go through the season with Max and Pascal in your top 6 for the season. Right now, your top 6 forwards are: Sid, Geno, Kunitz, Talbot, Dupuis and... Is Tangradi ready?

So, probably not going to happen, but interesting to think about. The cost for the hedge is probably a bit on the high side - a 3rd round pick next year. If it nets them either Sarge or Hamhuis, however, it will have been worth it.