Penguins/NHL
The Penguins have remained quiet on Miroslav Satan’s status but a decision on his future with the team will be made by Tuesday.
A source close to the team claims
Ray Shero would like to bring Satan back but with Philippe Boucher expected to come off of IR next week, the team will have to get very creative. There are some in the organization who fill Satan could still have a role on this team filling in for players on the top two lines that are injured.
Would Satan be a better option than Pascal Dupuis on the top-two lines in place of Petr Sykora or whoever that is scratched? According to my sources some insiders think so
Free Agency Outlook
While there has been a lot of talk about Jaromir Jagr possibly returning to the NHL, there is a much stronger chance that Alexei Kovalev returns to Pittsburgh than Jagr. Sources claim Kovalev’s family wants him to play in the East Coast and the lure of playing with Evgeni Malkin will be enticing for Kovalev. When it comes to management there seems to be mixed opinions.
Some of the old regime that remains in the front office has Kovalev at the top of their wishlist while others have concerns. It’s going to be very interesting leading up to free agency to say the least.
The Penguins primary target is finding a long-term winger for Sidney Crosby but if things go well with Bill Guerin they will look to retain Guerin for another year and find Evgeni Malkin a veteran winger while Tangradi and Caputi continue their development.
A lot of scouts speak very highly of Tangradi but I spoke to one who works out Michigan scouting the OHL at the Plymoth Whalers facility and he said Tangradi, 20, is dominating against younger players and the key is for him is going to be how he adjusts playing against older, stronger players next season in the minors.
The same for Casey Pierro-Zabotel. Both have a lot of potential and the sky appears to be limit for Tangradi but stats are sometimes deceiving when older players are dominating against younger players in the top tier leagues like the OHL and QMJHL.
Goaltender Mathieu Garon is expected to start against Ottawa on Saturday.
Philippe Boucher will return to practice later this week.
