Game Thread: Pens Last Week of the Regular Season

[3riverbabe]

You know what I love the most about the Pens making the playoffs? The Bruins didn't!

I'll drink to that!

The Bruins have peaked, I think. They're beginning a slow decline.

 

[evolver115]

I'll drink to that!

The Bruins have peaked, I think. They're beginning a slow decline.

Age, particularly in the case of Chara, finally caught up to them. They also bungled the cap last season. Boston had to pay a penalty this year to the tune of 4.7 million in dead cap money. That forced them to have to trade Johnny Boychuk, and they had to pass on resigning Iginla, who was the cause of the cap overage to begin with. The Penguins flirted with a cap overage this season, so hopefully Botterill and staff managed to stay compliant, because that would be a disaster if next season they were penalized to do something similar as to what Boston was forced to do.

The salary cap has really changed the landscape of the NHL. It wasn't an immediate shift, but now that the loophole of front-loading contracts has been closed, teams that are signing premium talent to new contracts face a nearly impossible task. Chicago is likely looking at their last hurrah right now, as both Kane and Toews new contract's kick in next season. That will force the Hawks to go from a combined cap hit between the two of their stars of 12.6 million to 21 million. They will have to make decisions very similar to what the Bruins were forced to do, this season if not for the exact same reason. Brandon Saad is a RFA at year's end. Something tells me he's played his last regular season game in a Blackhawks uniform.

The window of opportunity in the salary cap age of the NHL is brief, to say the least. It's very likely Pittsburgh's has maybe already closed. I'm hopeful that with the expected departures of Ehrhoff and Martin this offseason, maybe the Penguins will be in a position with that extra cap space to pursue a RFA, like a Saad, for example.

I'm thankful we saw them lift it, even if it was only once. We could be like those poor saps on the eastern side of the state who manage to get their only recent joy in hockey by beating the Pens in the regular season. You want to talk about cap mismanagement? Give the flyers numbers a glance. It's downright laughable. Point being; be thankful Penguins fans. It could be worse.

 

[mtm166]

Rangers in 5 and I'm being generous I think. This is gonna be quick and painful. This team has been done for over a month. D core has too many missing parts. Too many forwards that are in ridiculous goal scoring slumps. The whole bunch looks gassed. This all adds up to getting steamrolled.