Confirmed with Link: Penguins re-sign Letang to six-year, $36.6m deal

[AjaxTelamon]

Not that I couldn't possibly see Letang performing until he's 40 (dude is a gym rat) but wasn't Gonchar extremely well... bad... by the time he was 40?

Yes bad, but he was functional in his late 30's due to his PP skills and shot. But in the end this is a great deal that could crack open the window a bit more for the team, depending on how they deal with the cap space. I am not as worried GMRH will waste it as I would have been if it were JR though, I suppose. GMRH just has trouble making meaningful changes,

 

[Giskard]

Not that I couldn't possibly see Letang performing until he's 40 (dude is a gym rat) but wasn't Gonchar extremely well... bad... by the time he was 40?

I remember him being decent in the first year in Dallas at age 39/40 then declined before been traded to Montreal the last season

 

[Kristopher Letang]

I told y’all to relax. Letang isn’t stupid enough to play in Montreal.

I get it. He’s dumb… but not THAT dumb.

 

[Andy99]

Still on cloud 9.

Won't lie this signing is great.

Also I completely forgot we signed Rust already. What a great cap hit. No idea how Hextall managed that.

Ahhh…he’s giving out 6-year terms, that’s how…

 

[vodeni]

Maybe on the $9 mil but probably not for 4 years….I think we absolutely shelled out the max $ he would have gotten in FA— $36 mil….I don’t we think we saved there…I think we spread it out to help with the AAV, which was a must, but I don’t think Letang’s total $ on this deal we’re any less than he would have gotten in FA…Hextall certainly caved on that

I thought he was getting $38M-$42.5M for sure, I think he could have gotten that somewhere else.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Not that I couldn't possibly see Letang performing until he's 40 (dude is a gym rat) but wasn't Gonchar extremely well... bad... by the time he was 40?

Yeah he was, he was a training camp invite in 2015 to the Penguins at age 41 and he was atrocious.

Here's how Gonchar performed in his age 35-38 seasons:

Age 35: 50 points in 62 games with a -0.55% xGF%Rel with Pittsburgh in top pair usage
Age 36: 27 points in 67 games with a -0.55% xGF%Rel with Ottawa in top pair usage
Age 37: 37 points in 74 games with a -2.78% xGF%Rel with Ottawa in top pair usage
Age 38: 27 points in 45 games with a -1.83% xGF%Rel with Ottawa in top pair usage

I think Gonchar really fell off a cliff after leaving Ottawa. He had a bad year of production at age 36, but the rest seems pretty solid overall. After leaving Ottawa, he went to Dallas where he regressed to a bottom pair guy. His results weren't bad, but he was only playing bottom pair D usage.

This is generally what I expect out of Letang, outside of the bad age 36 season with production. He'll stick around at a good level for about 4 years and then he'll really fall off a cliff at age 39.

 

[HuskerTornado]

Never thought they'd be able to get the cap hit even cheaper than what he's at now. Don't care about the term, it just doesn't matter.

 

[edog37]

Isn't Tampa the 2nd oldest team in the NHL? I don't feel age is an accurate measure of a team's ability to contend.

In any give year, almost half the league can win the Cup... it's whoever gets the hottest at the right time. Every team tries to up their odds the best way they can by getting the best talent at the best bargain possible. Signing Kris Letang, still a top 10 defenseman in this league at 6.1 mil per year is probably a deal that 32 out of 32 teams would jump at... including Colorado and Tampa.

Malkin is not by default a detriment to cup aspirations. It all depends on how much of the cap he eats up compared to what he brings to the team on the ice.

Age of a team is absolutely a measure of a team's ability to contend. Tampa was older & it showed against a very young & fast Colorado. That said, if you want to compare, their two core players of Hedman & Stamkos were in their late 20s winning those Cups. That coincides with Sid, Geno, & Tanger doing the same in '16 & '17. Teams that feature a core of mid-30 somethings just don't win Cups in the salary cap era.

Going back, the last team to get hot at the right time & win the Cup was the 2012 Kings. All of the winners from that point on had either won multiple Cups and/or were favorites to do so. That's why I don't buy the statement that half the league can win the Cup.....the results don't point to that conclusion. I do agree about Letang. He still offers tremendous value at his age & the contract was far kinder to the team than I expected. Malkin absolutely is a liability. The team's 5 on 5 play absolutely was negatively impacted upon his return & his ability to produce 5 on 5 was likewise a hindrance. The guy was a -10 & scored half his points on the power play. The eye test was also very clear. Bringing him back at any price at this point is just wasted cap space.

But let's dive further....at what point do we turn the page? I like the Letang signing, but all it means is this team makes the playoffs. The cupboard is still barren of prospects in the system & the team hasn't won a playoff series since 2018. The team now is fast becoming what I saw in the mid 90s after the first two Cups....a country club atmosphere.

 

[Andy99]

I thought he was getting $38M-$42.5M for sure, I think he could have gotten that somewhere else.

I highly doubt it but it only takes one…I’d be surprised if $36+ million total $ was much of a discount

Age of a team is absolutely a measure of a team's ability to contend. Tampa was older & it showed against a very young & fast Colorado. That said, if you want to compare, their two core players of Hedman & Stamkos were in their late 20s winning those Cups. That coincides with Sid, Geno, & Tanger doing the same in '16 & '17. Teams that feature a core of mid-30 somethings just don't win Cups in the salary cap era.

Going back, the last team to get hot at the right time & win the Cup was the 2012 Kings. All of the winners from that point on had either won multiple Cups and/or were favorites to do so. That's why I don't buy the statement that half the league can win the Cup.....the results don't point to that conclusion. I do agree about Letang. He still offers tremendous value at his age & the contract was far kinder to the team than I expected. Malkin absolutely is a liability. The team's 5 on 5 play absolutely was negatively impacted upon his return & his ability to produce 5 on 5 was likewise a hindrance. The guy was a -10 & scored half his points on the power play. The eye test was also very clear. Bringing him back at any price at this point is just wasted cap space.

But let's dive further....at what point do we turn the page? I like the Letang signing, but all it means is this team makes the playoffs. The cupboard is still barren of prospects in the system & the team hasn't won a playoff series since 2018. The team now is fast becoming what I saw in the mid 90s after the first two Cups....a country club atmosphere.

uh, the 2019 Blues say hello….

 

[edog37]

I highly doubt it but it only takes one…I’d be surprised if $36+ million total $ was much of a discount



uh, the 2019 Blues say hello….

ok, forgot about St Louis, but the rest of the trend holds very well. Those winners were Chicago, LA, us, Washington, & Tampa.

 

[CascadiaPenguin]

This team is absolutely not rebuilding if they're giving Letang a 6 year deal.

The very concept of "rebuilding" right now, with 87 still playing great and with three years left, lies somewhere between absurd and offensive. Screw that ridiculous shit. Like Jim Valvano said "No one promised you tomorrow".

 

[molon labe]

I was hoping for 10 years 3M a year but I'll take it.


Seriously- thank you Kris. As with Rust, my fisticuffs are yours as this contract ages. Beaut. I know this has much more to do with your pals and your family - but us fans seriously appreciate it as well. Love love love this deal.

 

[CascadiaPenguin]

Not necessarily slamming Rossi here, but this was in his last The Athletic article, yesterday:

"Hextall spoke with the representatives for each player over the past two days and moved closer to Letang’s ask for a contract of at least four or five years, a team and several league sources said. Multiple league sources and a team source also said Letang would likely command a raise on his current $7.25 million annual salary, probably closer to the $8 million range."

 

[KrisLetAngry]

Not necessarily slamming Rossi here, but this was in his last The Athletic article, yesterday:

"Hextall spoke with the representatives for each player over the past two days and moved closer to Letang’s ask for a contract of at least four or five years, a team and several league sources said. Multiple league sources and a team source also said Letang would likely command a raise on his current $7.25 million annual salary, probably closer to the $8 million range."

I fully do believe a 3 year deal would have been like 8.25 million with a 4 year deal around 7.5.

So I don't think that's completely wrong if they are taking low term.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Not necessarily slamming Rossi here, but this was in his last The Athletic article, yesterday:

"Hextall spoke with the representatives for each player over the past two days and moved closer to Letang’s ask for a contract of at least four or five years, a team and several league sources said. Multiple league sources and a team source also said Letang would likely command a raise on his current $7.25 million annual salary, probably closer to the $8 million range."

Well, for the first 2 years of the deal, he got exactly that.

 

[Pens1566]

Not necessarily slamming Rossi here, but this was in his last The Athletic article, yesterday:

"Hextall spoke with the representatives for each player over the past two days and moved closer to Letang’s ask for a contract of at least four or five years, a team and several league sources said. Multiple league sources and a team source also said Letang would likely command a raise on his current $7.25 million annual salary, probably closer to the $8 million range."

Not to defend Rossi, but that's kinda what everyone was saying until like earlier today when word was probably starting to leak.

 

[OnMyOwn]

Well, for the first 2 years of the deal, he got exactly that.

Was just going to say this. Kris did get a raise in actual salary for the first part of the contract.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Broken clocks twice a day and all that is my take.

These guys also know they have been getting clowned by people in the media who aren't even in the region when it comes to team news so Rossi has probably been begging for a nugget for months.

 

[Peat]

Yeah, given how everyone reported that, it's probably the case that was the idea, they couldn't quite get over the hump on it, so they found a different idea in the 6 year deal.

 

[Flying Dego]

Awesome. Absolutely great deal.

Now give Geno a 4 yr 6M deal

 

[vodeni]

I ma happy for Tanger. Now lets find someone to QB our PP.

 

[Pens1566]

An added bonus is that it makes it easier/more likely to re-sign Rakell.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Looking at Letang's $6.1 million AAV is still just mind boggling to me.

He makes like $1.2 million more than Matheson does.

 

[Empoleon8771]

An added bonus is that it makes it easier/more likely to re-sign Rakell.

If you can get Malkin at $6 million a year, you have $9.3 million in cap space with 10 F, 7 D and 2 goalies. Even without trading Pettersson, the team comfortably has the money to re-sign Rakell.

I think the only way Rakell leaves is if he wants a substantial payday more than what he should be making. If he's coming in at $4.5 million or so, you can afford that easily. You just probably won't be able to keep both Kapanen and Heinen, you'd have to pick one or the other.

 

[DesertPenguin]

W00t! That is all.