B21

Safe for work, right?

With all the turnover in Pittsburgh and the injuries to Maatta and Pouliot that may cost both of them a few weeks of the season this is going to be hard - but here goes.... (Caveat: This is once everyone is healthy.) 1/2 - Paul Martin & Kris Letang. Letang is as offensively gifted as they come. He can make the big play defensively but that's usually evened out by the big gaffe. Martin is a perfect complement. Strong in his own end, smart with the puck and is your textbook "puck moving defenceman. Both are capable of quarterbacking the PP. 3/4 - Olli Maatta & Christian Erhoff. Martin/Letang "lite". Erhoff not quite as gifted offensively as Letang but not nearly as "bad" defensively. Maatta I think ends up a better offensive player than Martin but not quote as good (bit still not bad) defensively. 5/6 - Rob Scuderi and either Robert Bortuzzo or Simon Depres. In an ideal world, this is Bortuzzo/Depres. But Scuderi was signed to be the shut-down guy...so short of him rapidly losing another step I think you see a lot of mixing and matching depending on the opponent. The Kids. Scott Harrington, Brian Dumoulin, Derrek Pouliot, Phillip Samuelsson. By all accounts, Harrington is ready to step in and fill the "Brooks Orpik" role. Pouliot's injury will slow down his development a bit but - as @flyercanuck told me - he could use some seasoning in the A. As for Dumoulin and Samuelsson - simply a numbers game but I have no worries of they were called into service due to injuries to the guys above them. Not spectacular but solid. I was lukewarm to the Scuderi signing because of the lenght of the deal (cap hit was OK) and the log jam he now creates. However, the Erhoff signing gives the Pens flexibility. It allows a Pouliot or a Dumoulin to get more experience. If it's clear they are capable - it's only a 1 year deal for Erhoff. If they become a trade chip the Pens can always try and extend Erhoff. Worst case - neither are ready and Erhoff walks as a F/A after the season.

Yeah - it took a lot of work. www.pittsburghpenguins.com/roster I was actually surprised they were updated. And agree on Pyant 100%.

Always curious.... Erhoff - #10 Downine - #23 Spaling - #13 Hornqvist - #72 Greiss - #1 Comeau - #17 (So I guess that spells the end for Pyatt. )

Yeah - have to agree here. The Recching Ball still lives in Pittsburgh. This moves makes a lot of sense.

I think the kid gets a fair shake....finally. One of, if not my biggest, issues w/ Pepto Bylsma was his handling of Depres.

We can only hope.

This.

Straight up for (edit) Pavelski?

This is dangerously close to collusion.

If the Pens can get $.80 on the $1.00 for Letang? I'd consider. It's not just what you would get in return - it's also what you could use that cap space for. Tyler Myers + $2,000,000 in cap space? Where do I sign? I agree it's unlikely though I think Buffalo would have a shot at his "list" if he has to submit 12 teams he cannot be traded to. Trying to think like Kris Letang.... Edmonton Calgary Winnipeg Ottawa Florida Tampa Bay Nashville Columbus Dallas Phoenix New Jersey NY Islanders

Wait - I'm confused....

I like the restructuring, too. It allows you to keep a good team together longer though it eventually will catch up with you. The money owed/cap hit doesn't go away - it's just deferred really. You need the two-pronged approach to salaries, too. Base salary and signing bonus...have to be able to move salary from one to another. Is there an ideal system now? No. But something combining elements of the NFL, NHL and NBA would work for me. I like a hard cap - no luxury tax if you go over (like the NBA and MLB do). I like the "Larry Bird Rule" and the mid-leven exception in the NBA. I like the system the NFL set up as far as how the guaranteed money works. You have to guarentee something. If that system were in place in the NHL, for example, maybe only half of VLC's salary is guaranteed. But - the NFL system only works because the NFL has - by far - the best revenue sharing system. There is still an advantage for larger markets but when your (arguably) most successful franchise of all time is based in Green Bay, WI (Population 107,000 / Metro 306,000) you are doing something right. According to Forbes, in 2013, all of the NFL's franchises were among the 53 most valuable franchises in the world. Says a lot.

Well the signing bonus - agreed to by the team and player - is all guaranteed. I don't think there is a formula for the rest of the guaranteed money. It's up to the team and player to come to terms on that. The players agree to all of the in the last round of collective bargaining but the NFLPA is probably the weakest of the 4 major sports unions, too. They may have conceded a lot of this in order to get a rookie wage scale in place during the last CBA.

@brelic Here's where it gets fun. You can "restructure" deals at any point. The Steelers have done it with Big Ben several times. He's a rare example of a long-term deal where you are almost assured of him playing out the contract. Example: Say Ben's cap hit for 2014 is $20,000,000. $18,000,000 base (doesn't matter if it's guaranteed or not - he's playing so he gets paid) and $2,000,000 of pro-rated signing bonus. The total bonus was $20,000,000 over the life of a 10 year deal. 2 years are left on the deal after 2014. The Steelers can take part of that $18,000,000 base and turn it into a "signing bonus". That means it gets pro-rated over the remaining years of the contract. It's a short term fix if a team is up against the cap but...it can (and often does) cause cap issues down the road. Example: $10,000,000 of that base gets moved to a signing bonus. The base for 2014 is now $8,000,000. That $10,000,000 gets added to the balance of the signing bonus. The balance was $6,000,000 - or a $2,000,000 cap hit for 2014, 2015 and 2016. Now it's $16,000,000 or just over $5,333,000 cap hit for 2014, 2015 and 2016. Tack that onto Ben's cap hit for 2014 and it's now $13,333,000 and not $20,000,000. But you added $3,333,333 to his hit in 2015 and 2016 and added to that "dead" money if you cut him (not likely but still).

It does. It might work but if the punitive end of a failed long term deal is not enough I can see larger markets just outbidding the smaller markets. Holmgren does/did that now because he's had outs...and gotten lucky. He found takers for Carter and Richards and was able to buy our Bryz and Briere. Your stuck with VLC, Streit and Pronger. Yes - the annual base salary is not always guaranteed. Only the signing bonus is along with whatever base salary the team and player agree is guaranteed. I'm not sure about length restrictions but the punitive nature of the deals keeps teams from signing absurdly long contracts to lessen the cap hits (yes on their being a cap as well). When you hear a player has signed a 5 year, $60,000,000 deal with a $11,000,000 signing bonus and $30,000,000 guaranteed you take it with a grain of salt. That deal was the deal Mike Wallace signed w/ Miami. http://www.spotrac.com/nfl/miami-dolphins/mike-wallace/ You see how "punitive" the deal is if the Dolphins decide to get out of the deal early ("dead" money). The cap hit is what the player is actually being paid plus the pro-rated signing bonus. The "dead" money is taking whatever is left of the "guaranteed" money hitting the cap...all at once. The Dolphins were smart. They had a lot of cap space for 2014 so a large amount of the guaranteed money hits the cap this season. If they had cut Wallace after 2013 (the first year of the deal) he would have counted $26,800,000 (!!!) against their cap (or about 20%). Hence, the guaranteed base salary was all of 2013, 2014 and part of 2015. Since none of the 2016 or 2017 base salary is guaranteed you'll see that the only "dead" money if they cut Wallace is what is left of the pro-rated signing bonues. In other words - if Mike Wallace underperforms from 2013 - 2015 he's not a Miami Dolphin in 2016. Makes sense, no?

I agree...to a point. The exit clause should be punitive as well though. Or else the Paul Holgrems of the world are going to keep handing out long-term deals to star players until they get one right. In that regard, I like that the NFL does with the signing bonuses. The bonus is a pro-rated hit over the life of the deal but if you cut the guy you have the option to eat the balance for the next 1 or 1-2 seasons.

Hey - I drink Coke and Pepsi. It's all about whatever is on sale.

He makes a good point about how the annual cap hit stays the same relative to a cap that will (likely) increase each year. Those deals may seem like to much now but what if (and I know it's an "if") the cap is at $90,000,000 in 5 years? I think that's part of the reason why the Crosby and Giroux deals look like such bargains right now. He's some food for thought, too. All of the players who - if they were free agents right now - would command at least $8,000,000(ish) per year are signed to deals that take them well into the end of the decade and often beyond. Crosby - 2025 Malkin - 2022 Giroux - 2022 Getzlaf - 2021 Perry - 2021 Datsyuk - 2017 OV - 2021 Suter - 2025 Weber - 2026 Doughty - 2019 Keith - 2023 Quick - 2023 Rask - 2021 The next free agents to be "worthy" (i/m/h/o) of a lengthy $8,000,000+ will be Stamkos and Kopitar after the 2016 season then Tavares after the 2018 season.

It's L'Oreal. Not cover girl. Though I doubt he is with Reebok and Under Armour. That's like being a spokesman for Coke and Pepsi. Makes sense he'd be on more in Canada.

FWIW, Crosby makes $4,000,000 per year in endorsements. (Per Forbes. 2012). http://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2012/11/28/sidney-crosby-tops-list-of-the-nhls-highest-paid-players/ This includes Reebok, Gatorade, Tim Hortons and Bell Canada. This is the most of any NHL player. Nothing to shake a stick at but not "OMG". Crosby is widely considered the "face" of the NHL and one of it's most marketable players. Comparable players in other leagues... Peyton Manning: $10,000,000 LeBron: $42,000,000 Kobe: $34,000,000 Even Carmelo Anthony ($9,000,000) and Amar'e Stoudamire ($6,500,000) make more in endorsements.

I agree completely. At the end of the day though, teams and players will find a way to structure the deals so the player is getting the "maximum" guaranteed money he's looking for. In the NFL, it's the signing bonuses. In the NHL - using your scenario - the contracts will be as frontloaded as the league allows. Just like someone is willing to pay a superstar $10,000,000 per year there will be someone willing to set up...say...an 8 year, $80,000,000 deal where the money paid out in the first 4 years (reasonable for a player to actually play) is 75% on the total contract value. $10 million cap hit but the actual salary each year (in millions) is 15, 15, 15, 15, 5, 5, 5 and 5. The NHL would have to allow that (unlike - for example - the Kovy deal - with 500K actual salary at the tail end of the deal).

I don't think Crosby's hometown discount was all that much. Could he have gotten $10 million per? Sure. So he saved the Pens $1,300,000 per - or about the difference between Chuck Kobasew and Chris Kunitz. If he took $7,000,000 maybe Hossa (or someone of a similar skill set) is a Penguin. Does he really make that much in endorsements? Aside from Reebok, I've never seen him in a commercial.

You didn't know? It wasn't an apple that fell onto Sir Isaac Newton's head. It was Hartnell.

I'm not sure but I think the NHLPA has enough clout to turn a player(s) into a pariah if they would do something along those lines (such as Crosby taking $3,000,000 per year for example). That said, any contract THAT far off the norm could not be used as a comparable for other contracts. Capitals: "So OV - Sid signed for $3,000,000 a year for 8 years. Let's start there, da?" OV: "Nyet. $10,000,000 per. Dollars. Not rubles." But let's just say Crosby signed for....$7,000,000 per. You are the Hawks negotiating with Kane and Toews. "Look fellas. Really - $10,500,000 is nice but your families are set for generations at $7,000,000 per, no? That saves us $6,000,000 per season. Do you want us to keep Hossa and Sharp on your wings and win a few more Cups? Or do you want more money + Chuck Kobasew and Chris Conner?" Easy for me to say - but I'd take the $7,000,000 in a heartbeat.