The Penguins have yet to engage in contract extensions with any of their pending free agents (restricted or unrestricted), GM Jim Rutherford told Jonathan Bombulie of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Instead, the team plans to wait until Pittsburgh finishes up their postseason run and then deal with contract talks at that time. While it potentially presents a situation where a bunch of deals need to get done in a short period of time, Rutherford noted he used the same idea during Carolina’s Stanley Cup run in 2006 and it worked quite well:
“When Carolina won the Cup in ’06, I think I had 13 free agents to sign in 10 days, and for me, it was a lot easier that way. Because you cut out all of the baloney in between. You go around and around about things that don’t even matter in negotiations. When you get down to the end, you get right to the point and get it done.”
The team has several free agents of note to deal with before the end of June. Defensemen Justin Schultz and Brian Dumoulin, as well as winger Conor Sheary are all restricted while center Nick Bonino and blueliner Trevor Daley are among those who are slated to hit the open market as unrestricted free agents in July which means Rutherford will have his work cut out for him when the playoffs end.
Other notes from around the East:
- Flyers prospect Samuel Morin recently underwent surgery on both of his wrists, notes CSN Philly’s Tim Panaccio. There has been no announcement as to when the injury occurred; Morin didn’t miss any action during his postseason run with Philadelphia’s AHL affiliate in Lehigh Valley. Morin is expected to make a push for a regular roster spot with the Flyers next season on what is likely to be a considerably younger back end.
- Although he won’t be available when the puck drops on Game One of their Conference Final series against Pittsburgh later today, Senators defenseman Mark Borowiecki is expected to be available around the midway point of the series, reports Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. In the meantime, the team will continue to rely on Ben Harpur and Fredrik Claesson to hold down that spot in the lineup.