The Colorado Avalanche are still hanging on to their status as a surprise team in the West based on their tremendous start. However their performance as of late has been anything but spectacular as they came into the Igloo last night for a match against the Penguins who have defied ordinary (Ugh I hate that slogan) and injury to remain one of the league’s elite teams this season.

Despite an early lead thanks to a power play opportunity, in the end Colorado was no match for the Penguins despite a good game plan of close checking that they maintained through the first 40 minutes of play. After that however the Pens took control.

After the Avalanche took the lead in the first the Penguins answered back in the closing second of the period, once again playing to the whistle, and scored to tied the game with just 0:07 left. The goal by Sidney Cosby was his 18th of the season and was assisted by none other than Michael Rupp, one of the hottest players on the Penguins right now. The goal resulted from a 2-1 break after a turn over at the Penguins blue line. Closing in on goal Crosby passed the puck to Rupp who dished the puck right back to Sid as Budaj followed the puck and moved to block Rupp from shooting.

The Pens out shot the Avalanche 14-6 in the period.

The second was a tight checking affair with Colorado outshooting the Pens 9-5 but the third was all Pens as they notched three goals on 14 shots compared to no goals on just one shot for the Avalanche.

Guerin (7) scored on the power play, a rare feat for this team, to give the Penguins a 2-1 lead and just as a 5-3 had expired. But the game was not decided until a pair of empty net goals late from Jordan Staal (7) and Sidney Crosby (19) sealed the deal. On the Crosby goal, Malkin passed to Staal who could have easily taken the shot, but he passed the puck over to Sid who put the puck in the cage.

In all Fleury stopped 15 of 16 shots and played well considering how he sometimes has poor performances when facing relatively few shots.

The Penguins with the win are now 20-9-0 and keeping pace with the Washington Capitals in the East for first place. Both teams have 40 points but the Caps have one fewer game although three fewer wins. Coming up this weekend the Pens will host the Chicago Blackhawks – now with extra Hossa!

Notes:

No Penguin was a negative last night in the plus minus column.

The Penguins are as of last night one of only two teams in the NHL to have not lost a game in overtime/shootout. The only other team with such a distinction is the Vancouver Canucks.

Pittsburgh’s 20 wins is tops in the league.

Pittsburgh’s power play is still terrible clicking at just 14.4% or third worst in the league.

Despite Sidney Crosby getting better in the face off dot this season, the Penguins are still not better than 50-50 as a team (49.5% to be exact or 17th out of 30 teams) meaning that Malkin, Staal and others are not carrying their own weight in this regard.

It could have been Montreal’s last visit ever to the Igloo last night. Baring an always possible playoff meeting between two Eastern Conference foes, Montreal will have to deal with that potentially last visit being a loss. With last night’s 3-1 victory, thanks to lots of on the ball … uh puck … saves by Fleury, the Penguins have pretty much trounced the Canadians this season by a goal total of 9-2. They have now won four straight against the Habs.

The Penguins took advantage of a Montreal squad that had to come from behind the night before and limited them to just 17 shots on net. Had there been more, the score might have turned out differently as Fleury definitely saved the Penguins bacon with several great plays and a little bit of luck. The Penguins accomplished the low shot total on Fleury by pressing the attack in the Montreal zone for most of the night.

The Penguins received goals from Crosby (12), Guerin (6) and Gonchar (3) to stake out a 3-0 lead heading into the third period that they would not relinquish. Crosby scored on a rare shot from high at the left circle that surprised Carey Price. Guerin bashed a loose puck between Price’s pads in the second and Gonchar took a puck right up the middle and opened up Price for the Penguin’s third goal.

The win was the Penguins 17th in 25 games this season and ties a team record. The club also won 17 of its first 25 in 94-95 and 95-96.

After last night the Penguins held on to first place in the East with 24 pts just ahead of Washington who also has 24 pts but fewer wins also in 25 games. Montreal sank to 12-12-1 and are still struggling with injuries.

The Penguins however must face a back to back test this week on Friday and Saturday. On Friday the Pens have to travel to Long Island for a 2:00 PM scrum with the 9-9-7 Islanders and then return home Saturday to host the 13-10-1 Rangers.

After loosing four games in a row as the Penguins injury situation looked bleak, the Penguins have since been getting more healthy and have gone 5-1 in their last six games.

When Mike Rupp fakes you out and puts the puck behind you, as a goalie you have every right to be a little upset. Cam Ward certainly did and while Mike Rupp is not a fourth line scrub and does have hockey skills, they don’t admittedly get showcased on a nightly basis. So when he came in on a two on one with Cam Ward sitting between the pipes, moved to the forehand and then at the last second, with Ward leaning, flipped back to his back hand and buried the puck to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead you could almost see Ward’s eyes rolling under his mask.

It was Rupp’s first goal of the season and it won’t be his last.

Malkin (3) scored early in the second to put the Penguins up 2-0 but the Hurricanes answered back in the third with two redirects from Ray Whitney (2, 3) to tie the game up and Cam Ward committed highway robbery on a point blank chance from Bill Guerin. Guerin was standing in the crease when the puck came to his stick and Ward was halfway passed the post but still was just barely able to snatch out his glove hand and put it right where the puck was headed into the net. A video review showed that while close his glove was not completely in the net which would have made the play a goal.

In overtime both teams played up and down the ice trying to end the game to no avail. Fleury was one again solid in goal stopping 27 of 29 shots on the night.

In the shootout it took a while to determine who would earn the extra point for the win. Fleury stopped Samsonov then Ward stopped Letang. In round two both Jussi Jokinen and Sidney Crosby found the net. Then came round three and both Ruutu and Guerin were stopped. Off to round four … Matt Cullen and Alex Goligoski both missed the net. Round five anyone? Fleury redeemed himself by stopping Whitney and Ward answered by stopping Evgeni Malkin who looked less than enthusiastic in his attempt. But it was round six that would decide everything.

Eric Staal was tapped for Carolina and Chris Kunitz got the nod for the Penguins. Fleury stopped Staal but Ward could not do the same against Kunitz. Kunitz buried his shot five hole against the Carolina net minder and the rest, as they say, is history. The Penguins capped a 5-0 road trip record to start the season and moved to 6-1-0 (12 pts) on the season.

They return home Saturday to face the Tampa Bay Lightning who are 2-1-2 and leading the once again anemic South East with just 6 points.

Notes:

- Chris Kunitz has been under a little heat this year for not having scored a goal during regulation or overtime. Although he has registered 4 assists and is a plus one, most people expect him to put the puck in the net playing along side Crosby and Guerin. The truth is that not everyone can score and sometimes players have droughts. It is not like Kunitz has not contributed and hopefully his goal in the shootout last night will silence some of his critics.
- Marc-Andre Fleury continues to make a case that he belongs on Canada’s Olympic team and possibly even be the starter. He is 6-0 with a .917 Sv% and a 2.27 GAA this season.
- -5? Yep that is what Sergei Gonchar is after six games this season. Maybe not that big of a deal you say? Well, he has 5 points himself (4 of which have come at even strength) … that means that he has been on the ice for 9 of the opposition’s even strength goals! The Penguins have allowed 17 goals (6 on the PP and 11 at even strength). That means that Gonchar has been on the ice for 82% (9 / 11 = .818%) of the opposition’s even strength goals which is unacceptable and I am sure Sarge knows that.

The Penguins are pushing the cap and as they do, signing both Fedotenko and Scuderi becomes less likely now that they have secured the services of Bill Guerin (1 year deal for $2 million) and Adams (2 yrs for $1.1 million). Guerin came in a little cheaper than I thought he would but by my calculations puts them just under $51,220,000 committed to next year’s team. With a cap of just $56.8 millions that means just about $5.6 million remains and with Fedotenko and Scuderi both seeking multi-year deals (and both demanding more money) than last year the odds of resigning them both or even one of them seems remote.

Fedotenko will probably want something in the realm of $2.5-$3 million (he made $2.25 last year) and Scuderi will command at least $2.5 (I think) to stay. That would put the Penguins right up against the cap. It is possible, but with uncertanty about how the cap will go next year after this one and with some other players also up for new contracts, the Penguins might well be leery about offering such contracts.

Free Agency starts tomorrow and the Penguins have a lot of work to do. But do not be surprised if you see some Wilke-Barre Baby Pens getting the call up to save cap room next season.

With the draft done the Penguins now have to concentrate on two days of intense negotiations with three free agents they would love to resign. Now, as much as I like each of these players and the roles they filled this year, none of them are that important that the Penguins should give up the sod farm to sign them. However there is no disputing that each of them fits well into the Penguins system and have played well with the team Chemistry.

First up is Rob Scuderi. It appears that Scuderi will not be signed to a contract by the July 1st deadline and will test free agency to see what teams will offer him. A deal with the Penguins would probably be $2 million a year (at most $2.5) for two or three years. Someone will probably offer him $4 million because that is what happens to free agents who are coming off a Stanley Cup victory especially ones that played the way Scuderi did. The problem is that teams have to consider that the salary cap only went up $100,000 next year and believe it or not will probably not increase much the next year after that and may even go down depending on the economy. These realizations may keeps teams at bay from offering such huge contracts to a defenseman that while he is a good shut down guy is not irreplaceable.

Scud will likely see who offers him the big money. If it is a perennial looser he may forgo it to come back. He may also decide to come back if the offers from other teams are not much more than $2.5 million or even $3.

Well, what about Ruslan Fedotenko? It is amazing how playing along side of someone like Evgeni Malkin can make teams that last year wouldn’t touch Fedotenko with a 50 foot pole all of a sudden have an interest in him. Ruslan was a good forward playing for a bad Islanders team however and people got to see what he was really capable of this year. Rumors are that the Penguins offer to Feds was not where either he or his agent wanted it to be and it is doubtful that the Penguins will budge much on their offer. Fedotenko will also likely test the free agent market to see what he is offered.

Then there is Billy Guerin. Guerin’s hefty salary this year means that in all likelihood to return he would have to take a million dollar pay cut to stay with the team and would probably only be offered a one year deal on top of that. Guerin’s gritty but old. He has another year or two left on his aging frame and someone is bound to offer him comparable money to what he was making this past season. The question is does Billy want the money or does he want to win?

Well, we will have to see.

Now here is the real problem for each of these players. If they decide to play the game of testing the free agent market they could loose out. The Penguins are not going to sit around and wait. They will be tendering offers to other free agents when the market opens up and there are players out there to be had in the Penguins price range. The question is whether or not the Penguins see them as a better fit for less money than any of these three.

The double edged sword can cut either way so be careful guys.

Rob Scuderi, number 4, the Scud Missile himself has a decision to make and so do the Pittsburgh Penguins now that the Stanley Cup is back in the ‘Burgh. Yes, the Finals are over. So too is the parade. And well, with some time to kill before Steelers start reporting for camp I have some time to think about things. Things like who among the free agents on the Pittsburgh Penguins roster should the Penguins even attempt to resign and who should they let go.

It’s life with a salary cap …

So let’s look at the list of Pittsburgh Penguins preparing to shop their services this off season:
Craig Adams, C
Mike Zigomanis, C
Mathieu Garon, G
Petr Sykora, F
Ruslan Fedotenko, F
Bill Guerin, F
Miroslav Satan, F
Hal Gill, D
Phillippe Boucher, D
Rob Scuderi, D

Now, let’s discuss …
Craig Adams – Adams was undoubtedly an upgrade on the fourth line over Godard although not much of an enforcer which you need during the regular season. Adams made $600,000 this season and could still be resigned for a reasonable price if the Penguins wanted him. He’s gritty but he’ll be a 4th liner and be a platoon guy at that in all likelihood.

Mike Zigomanis – Ziggy’s salary this year was $650,000. He’s a face off specialist and the team certainly suffered in that department after his injury. Having spent a lot of the season injured he could probably also be resigned at a reasonable rate. The problem is that the Penguins are absolutely stacked with quality role players or at least are right now. Once free agency is over this may be another story.

Mathieu Garon – Garon is a $1,000,000 backup to Fleury who wasn’t used much by the Penguins at all. The team has a glut of Goaltenders in the minors and they can let Garon go and recover some cap room. I just do not see Garon being invited back. Nothing personal.

Petr Sykora – Sykora had a price tag of $2.5 million this season. That’s pretty cheap for a scoring winger of his caliber. The problem is that his caliber has somewhat diminished it seems. He really did not perform well at all down the stretch which led to him being benched in favor of Miroslav Satan. My understanding is that Malkin likes Sykora and has a good rapport with him … but Malkin doesn’t need Sykora. Sykora will be 33 in November and while not a spring chicken he isn’t old and shriveled either. The problem is do the Penguins think that he can still score. If so, they might be able to resign him at his current value.

Ruslan Fedotenko – Now this is a guy I think the Penguins need to target for resigning. He made $2.25 million this year and complimented Malkin well. I would rather see him on Malkin’s wing than Sykora. Please, don’t take offense to that Petr, but he was definitely better and more consistent there than you were this season and if I were the Penguins I would be targeting Ruslan for a new contract. At 30 years of age he has the right mix of grit and scoring skills to be worth it. Take some of what you would pay Sykora and use it to resign Fedotenko.

Bill Guerin – Bad Boy Billy is one of those guys that I like and like a lot. Always have. Despite being 38, will be 39 in November, he looked to still have enough in him for one more year along side of Sid. $4.5 million might be a bit steep though, which is what he was making this year. I am wondering if he would take that or perhaps slightly less (considering where he is in his career) to remain a Penguin. Of course, at 38 and off of a successful Stanley Cup run maybe he is thinking of retiring. I really hope not and according to reports he has said he has no plans to retire and is looking to move his family to Pittsburgh IF the Penguins want him back.

Miroslav Satan – As much as I really enjoy all the jokes that just roll off the tongue because of having a man named Satan on the team eh, I don’t know about the Penguins interest in resigning him. He made $3.5 million this year and started out great but really had to reinvent himself as a 4th line winger. That was not what he was brought in to be and even though he played well in that roll you are not going to pay a man that kind of money to log under ten minutes of ice time a game. He’ll be 35 years of age when the season starts and he could be another guy that would just be better to let go unless he is willing to take a lot less money. Of course … he is also another candidate for retirement on a high note.

Hall Gill – Hal Gill, or more precisely Harold Priestley “Hal” Gill III, is one of those guys that you just have a hard time replacing. The man is huge and his wing span gives the opposition absolute fits while trying to enter the zone and cycling once in the zone. $2.1 million is not a bad price to pay for a shutdown defenseman like Gil and at 34 he might be coaxed to coming back at about that next year. But with a plethora of good young defensemen in the minors the Penguins may forgo him as an option on the blue line next year. I think that would be a mistake.

Phillippe Boucher – No waterboy jokes please! At $2.5 million Phillipe may be an odd man out. He came in highly touted as to what he was going to bring to the team offensively but played sparingly late in the season. You like to have defensive depth, but with the salary cap I just do not see him staying IF the Penguins target …

Rob Scuderi – Yes, I left Scuds until last for a few reasons. One of which is because I have a to say about him. Another reason is because out of all the free agents on the Penguins roster none are going to get more attention and interest than the man who night after night sacrifices life and limb and limb and limb to cause havoc in the defensive zone. Scuderi made a paltry $725,000 this season and is worth more; a lot more. I do not know that you can replace him for his current salary so if the price is right the Penguins have to try and bring him back. The kind of kamikaze style he plays just cannot be taught. It is instinctive. It takes a certain kind of … well … nut to play it. I mean that in the nicest possible way Scuds. And it is very hard to convince a guy to get into the path of pucks like he does for that price.

I say the Penguins have to make an attempt to sign him. Not for ungodly sums of money mind you, but something serious and in line with other defensemen on the team. I do not think that $2,000,000 would be unreasonable, but more than that just might be. That being said, if some team throws a bucket full of dollars at Scuds I would not begrudge him leaving for financial security. He’s 30 but you could sign him for 2 or 3 years I think and have a good investment.

Now, let the games begin!