Penguins/NHL
Latest on Danis Zaripov
Will Evgeni Malkin get his wish and have Danis Zaripov flanking his left wing on opening night?
The ball is in the Penguins court, NHL sources say.
The Danis Zaripov camp informed the Penguins last week that Pittsburgh is one of two teams Zaripov wants to sign with, Inside Pittsburgh Sports has learned.
In fact, sources tell TIOPS Zaripov’s camp even made a [hide] proposal to Pittsburgh seven days ago of the term (1 year) and dollars Zaripov would want to sign with Pittsburgh. While not confirmed, the proposal was believed to be for around $2.5 million per season.
As of 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, though, Pittsburgh has yet to respond to the proposal and Zaripov’s agent hasn’t heard back from the Penguins in a week.
“They know what we want,” a source in the Zaripov camp tells TIOPS.
Despite the lack of communication between the two sides for a week now, the Penguins internally are still weighing the possibility, multiple team sources confirm.
Two primary factors:
1. Patric Hornqvist’s health, Pittsburgh wants to see where that goes. If it’s determined Hornqvist will miss more time than anticipated, signing Zaripov increases.
2. Mike Sullivan wanted to showcase the young wingers for the first week in camp before Pittsburgh made any commitment.
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