Tuesday all doubt about who would be the Penguins seventh defensemen in the long term were laid to rest. On Tuesday the Penguins signed veteran blue liner Martin Skoula who, at 29, has the skills and the talent to partially fill the void left by the departures of Hal Gill and Rob Scuderi. With 185 points (41 G, 144 A) over his career he can contribute a little offensively when need be. Overall he is a good last minute addition to the club I believe although whether or not he will have the chemistry with the rest of the team and the ability to accept and play the Penguins system will remain to be seen.

The Penguins Defense is already stacked. This morning, without Skoula, the team site officially lists eight defensemen on the roster. The locks to be wearing black and Vegas Gold on opening day are Mark Eaton, Alex Goligoski, Sergei Gonchar, Kris Letang, Jay McKee and Brooks Orpik as the starting six. Nathan Guenin (a Sewickley native) and Ben Lovejoy appear to have had their hopes dashed of remaining with the team due to this signing unless the Penguins decide to carry an extra defenseman on the roster, something I think is highly unlikely. As of this moment Lovejoy remains on the roster while Guenin cleared waivers and is now in Wilkes-Barre.

One thing is for certain thought, just as with last year the Penguins will have a plethora of defensemen ready to step up when the inevitable injury bug bites.

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.