Penguins/NHL
Penguins don’t plan to get backed into a corner on the Justin Schultz situation
As Justin Schultz is two wins away from being a 2-time Stanley Cup Champion, will he be a Penguin in 2017-2018?
It’s 50-50 at this point with some executives around the league believing the percentages are higher than 50% that Schultz is moved.
As reported the other day, other NHL clubs see Schultz as the Penguins top off-season priority and not Marc Andre Fleury.
Mainly from the standpoint that Pittsburgh seeks clarity before the frenzy starts.
The growing sense is the Penguins are prepared to make a long-term offer in the coming days after the season ends and there’s not going to be much of a negotiation from where their number is going to be, per sources close to the situation.
The Penguins will move fast to put the ball in Schultz court.
Teams that have spoken with Penguins GM Jim Rutherford have been led to believe Pittsburgh won’t risk things getting to arbitration and would sell high [hide] on Schultz if a reasonable one year or long-term deal is not looking likely from the early stages.
Recent comments from Jim Rutherford have also caught the attention of other General Manager’s in that Rutherford’s sending a signal to Schultz’ reps at Newport Sports that he might not let things go to arbitration if they want to play hard ball.
“He’s the top priority when the season ends,” said Penguins GM Jim Rutherford to Ken Campbell of the Hockey News this week. “It’s not whether I can make it work, it’s more whether we can make it work. Him and us. Does he get a big raise? Of course he gets a big raise, which he well deserves, but we’re probably not going to be able to give him what he thinks he should get. We still control him for one year with arbitration, but then the arbitration number could come higher than what we can fit in the cap.”
MORE BUZZ
— Another burning question with Schultz is if he’s willing to do a long-term deal somewhere in the $4.25-$4.5 million per range, which is said to be around the max the Penguins would be willing to go, would they remain committed to Olli Maatta?
Pittsburgh see’s so much value in Maatta because of the cost certainty he has with his long-term deal.
— The Penguins have proved they can win without Kris Letang. The team, though, is fully committed to Letang long-term and have no plans to put his name out there and see if someone bites, sources say.
Despite the Penguins not having Letang for two of the last three postseasons and now dealing with a herniated disk, team doctors are confident there won’t be long-term issues with the neck injury.
— The Penguins are planning to have some pro scouting meetings next week and one area of focus will be on adding toughness for next season. Specific targets via trades and free agency will be identified and finalized.
More on this next week but Evander Kane is going to be a topic of discussion. Hard to find guys who have toughness and can also play. He’ll be discussed as an option but no firm decision whether the Penguins plan to pursue him. That will come after the scouting meetings.[/hide]
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