Salary Cap: Salary Cap & Roster Building | Countdown to Free Agency (Cap Details + Links in First Post)

[JTG]

All I ever hear is how much players like the area. A lot of them seem to move back here after they retire.

Maybe it's a situation where you have to live here for a while to truly appreciate it.

I had a similar post dialed up. Pittsburgh doesn't have the glitz and glamour, but it gives enough to do and Pittsburghers are good sports fans - they typically respect a pro athlete's privacy. I think the guys who really appreciate Pittsburgh have kids.

 

[LOGiK]

I had a similar post dialed up. Pittsburgh doesn't have the glitz and glamour, but it gives enough to do and Pittsburghers are good sports fans - they typically respect a pro athlete's privacy. I think the guys who really appreciate Pittsburgh have kids.

Theres always Monroeville

 

[Andy99]

Maybe people are pissed you can’t get pizza there anymore?

Wait...what happened to Mineo’s?

 

[LOGiK]

Lets end the night on a funny note eh.

 

[USMC607]

I honestly can't remember, I can only post to hf when I quote a poster. It's been broken since draft day.

Ya its gotta be because the quote I see above ur comment isnt what ur actually commenting on. But something else entirely.

This site is struggle bussing.

 

[Return of the Paek]

Wait...what happened to Mineo’s?

Ate there tonight, it’s still operational.

 

[EightyOne]

Lets end the night on a funny note eh.

certainly better than the last...oh...65 pages?

Philly still sucks!

 

[jay caufield forhead]

to heck with Johnson how bout 6 years 36 million to orpik and 5 years 25 million to kunitz,. trade brassard and kessel make it happen. then sit back watch this thread implode on itself

 

[Honour Over Glory]

to heck with Johnson how bout 6 years 36 million to orpik and 5 years 25 million to kunitz,. trade brassard and kessel make it happen. then sit back watch this thread implode on itself

This sort of post is beneath you, stop it. Be better. Be the poster honorary Pittsburgh Penguins Captain, Mr. Rogers, knows you can be.

 

[FreeBobbyFarnham]

to heck with Johnson how bout 6 years 36 million to orpik and 5 years 25 million to kunitz,. trade brassard and kessel make it happen. then sit back watch this thread implode on itself

How about we fire Sully and bring back Johnston and Bylsma as his assistant.

 

[Tom Hanks]

How about we fire Sully and bring back Johnston and Bylsma as his assistant.

Our new GM will trade Crosby too since he’s not a good fit for MJ

 

[PensPlz]

Theres always Monroeville

What's wrong with Monroeville

 

[LOGiK]

What's wrong with Monroeville

If you want a long(er) drive to city and prefer dullness and mundane as the preference. It's there.

 

[DeadPuckEra]

What's wrong with Monroeville

I’ve been near there for the last 11 years of my life...

The short answer: everything

 

[DeadPuckEra]

If you want a long(er) drive to city and prefer dullness and mundane as the preference. It's there.

Dullness and mundane? That’s Upper st Clair

You come to Monroeville for the action. Like the adrenaline rush you get when you’re trotting through Monroeville mall on a Friday night and gun shots start ringing out.

 

[LOGiK]

Dullness and mundane? That’s Upper st Clair

You come to Monroeville for the action. Like the adrenaline rush you get when you’re trotting through Monroeville mall on a Friday night and gun shots start ringing out.

Haven't been there in a decade. So it is comparable to my SEDC barry farms 'green line metro' experience to the city.

Anyone live in DC and know green line? Green line is like the poo that flows in from healthy waters.

 

[DeadPuckEra]

All I ever hear is how much players like the area. A lot of them seem to move back here after they retire.

Maybe it's a situation where you have to live here for a while to truly appreciate it.

Can I be honest, a lot of former athletes, especially hockey players have jobs with the organization or media at their disposal once they return to Pittsburgh.

I think that may have more to do with it than simply returning because they liked it here. These rust belt cities are all the same, all charming little towns who think they’re special and unique - but they’re literally all the same. Outside of Detroit, which is basically the apocalypse.

 

[DeadPuckEra]

Haven't been there in a decade. So it is comparable to my SEDC barry farms 'green line metro' experience to the city.

Anyone live in DC and know green line? Green line is like the poo the flows in from healthy waters.

They turned a vacant retail space into a satellite Monroeville PD at one point.

 

[Peat]

Swear Sheahan played on the 2nd PP more than that. Maybe I'm wrong about him not being a 3C. But I still think bones is a better C because of his offensive abiltiy.

Maybe Sheahan improves on that this year, but he is very vanilla offensively. Bones was a bit more skilled and a slick passer, and scored more goals.

I'm not gonna argue too much with Bonino being a bit better. He looks a bit more skilled to me too, although Sheahan kicked on a bit there with his confidence back. Some of his breakaway moves were nice. He only got 2nd PP time here once he got into that groove.

I am vaguely optimistic he can kick on a bit more for getting his confidence back and from picking up a few more things from Sid, but good luck to the kid showing that on L4.

All I ever hear is how much players like the area. A lot of them seem to move back here after they retire.

Maybe it's a situation where you have to live here for a while to truly appreciate it.

Pittsburgh is a hell of a lot nicer than I first expected it would be. But it's not a big city. And if you love big city amenities and have money to burn, nothing matches them.

 

[EightyOne]

So after reading some of your posts...

Regarding the city from a player's perspective....

...it really doesnt ever make sense for us to get our hopes up about big name free agents signing. Ever.

And those who we do sign will be the B/C/D level guys. And those who do, aren't gonna do it for super cheap because they are already sacrificing with location.

So suddenly, it becomes pretty clear why JR has 'not dont crap to address our issues in the off-seasons' and why players like Jack Johnson might be making over $3 mil to come here.

Without good drafting or trades, the Pens would really suck...there is just no attraction for 'stars' to come there willingly.

If Crosby and Malkin weren't uncommonly loyal, would either be in this organization by choice?

 

[DesertedPenguin]

So after reading some of your posts...

Regarding the city from a player's perspective....

...it really doesnt ever make sense for us to get our hopes up about big name free agents signing. Ever.

And those who we do sign will be the B/C/D level guys. And those who do, aren't gonna do it for super cheap because they are already sacrificing with location.

So suddenly, it becomes pretty clear why JR has 'not dont crap to address our issues in the off-seasons' and why players like Jack Johnson might be making over $3 mil to come here.

Without good drafting or trades, the Pens would really suck...there is just no attraction for 'stars' to come there willingly.

If Crosby and Malkin weren't uncommonly loyal, would either be in this organization by choice?

By all accounts, the Penguins run a first class organization. Lemieux and Burkle have established a reputation for hiring good people who care about the players (even if they aren't always actually good at their jobs).

Players have a lot of amenities here, they're given more help when it comes to adjusting to the city than other teams give, etc. Sid and Geno care about winning, so as long as they can do that and get treated well, they'd be happy even if it was an even smaller market.

The only reason the Pens haven't been getting big free agents is because they haven't been in the market for one. They've always been near the cap ceiling since Sid and Geno signed their big deals. They've re-signed a bunch of other guys in years past to extensions. So there hasn't been a ton of wiggle room.

Put it this way: If the Pens suddenly had cap space and a need for John Tavares, they'd be a favorite to land him. No question. Their reputation for treating players well and their commitment to winning are two huge selling points when the dollars are just about even.

Edit to add: As for other teams in Pittsburgh, the Steelers are just like the Pens. Highly respected owners who spend to the max and don't have a lot of room to add flashy free agents because they tend to give out extensions and keep players around instead.

The Pirates are the opposite. Great facilities, cheap ownership with poor reputation. So high profile free agents aren't interested (and the Pirates aren't interested in them either). But the players who live here love the city. Andrew McCutchen was traded to San Francisco but kept his house here and has said he'll move back here when his career is done.

 

[PensPlz]

I’ve been near there for the last 11 years of my life...

The short answer: everything

I just bought here house in 2014 and based on a very recent appraisal it's increased in value by 17%

So there's that. Not all bad!

 

[EightyOne]

By all accounts, the Penguins run a first class organization. Lemieux and Burkle have established a reputation for hiring good people who care about the players (even if they aren't always actually good at their jobs).

Players have a lot of amenities here, they're given more help when it comes to adjusting to the city than other teams give, etc. Sid and Geno care about winning, so as long as they can do that and get treated well, they'd be happy even if it was an even smaller market.

The only reason the Pens haven't been getting big free agents is because they haven't been in the market for one. They've always been near the cap ceiling since Sid and Geno signed their big deals. They've re-signed a bunch of other guys in years past to extensions. So there hasn't been a ton of wiggle room.

Put it this way: If the Pens suddenly had cap space and a need for John Tavares, they'd be a favorite to land him. No question. Their reputation for treating players well and their commitment to winning are two huge selling points when the dollars are just about even.

Edit to add: As for other teams in Pittsburgh, the Steelers are just like the Pens. Highly respected owners who spend to the max and don't have a lot of room to add flashy free agents because they tend to give out extensions and keep players around instead.

The Pirates are the opposite. Great facilities, cheap ownership with poor reputation. So high profile free agents aren't interested (and the Pirates aren't interested in them either). But the players who live here love the city. Andrew McCutchen was traded to San Francisco but kept his house here and has said he'll move back here when his career is done.

But, still, basically, why should we--as fans--ever expect a flashy signing or think that we are really ever in the running?

Just accept the fate that in-house and trades are how they will be good. And that if players are signed, it isn't gonna be at a price or a skill level we all want.

Debating player signings is cool and all. But what feels like a million pages of Jack Johnson arguments is making me wonder why the f*** fans expect anything MORE than that? It is aggravating and annoying to read this same old piss and vinegar.

It is never going to happen, unless the team is such garbage they decide to firesale, get to cap minimum and rebuild---in which case, they still wont land top free agents because no one is going to sign with a basement team. It will be rebuilt via draft all over again.

The teams run too well with too many decent to good players (generally). Pirates not included--any good players they accidentally develop are gone at the yearly trade deadline scuttle.

 

[Don'tcry4mejanhrdina]

Sometimes big free agent signings aren't that great. Remember before Crosby's rookie season? The Pens signed Gonchar, Palffy, Recchi, Thibault and Leclair. Those are all pretty big names.

Well, Gonchar was absolutely terrible the first half of the season. Thankfully he turned it around. Recchi turned out to be a solid signing especially considering his age but it wasn't without rumours of a beef between him and Crosby. Leclair was a broken down corpse who's shining moment was injuring Malkin during a pre-season game and Palffy just gave up and went home. Thibault....well, he wasn't even the average starter they were hoping he could be, what a pile of steaming crap.

It still makes me angry with Palffy. He was a damn good player and Crosby could have had an elite winger for at least his first few years in the league. After all of these years, there's still only been one 30 goal scorer who played with Sid and that was Kunitz, 1 season. Ugh....

 

[Peat]

The Pens' interest/capability for big FA signings doesn't in any way excuse or explain the Johnson signing. Expecting the team to use its cap space wisely, both now and in the futures, isn't the same as expecting big name FAs. It's normally the opposite if anything.

And there's certainly nothing to link us being in on with Johnson with missing other FA targets. We've only been reliably linked to 3, of which Johnson is the only dman. There's nothing to say we've been in on the other FA dmen, most of whom don't have hugely better reputations in the hockey world.


As for expecting a flashy signing - probably not. But that's on the team's situation, not the city's reputation - that and the fact there's a general lack of big flashy FA signings in hockey anyway.