Kukla's Korner Hockey

Gonchar Wants To Stay In Pittsburgh, But Money Will Matter
by Paul on 05/15/10 at 12:16 PM ET
Comments (8)
from Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review,
“Walking out of here and not knowing if you’re going to come back, it’s not a great feeling,” Gonchar said. “But we have plenty of time until July 1.”
Gonchar said he met with Penguins general manager Ray Shero yesterday and plans to speak with him again before the opening of free agency. His agent, JP Barry, agreed in March to resume negotiations after the season….
“I’d like to stay here, but the deal has to work for both sides,” Gonchar said. “We’re not going to look at my contract and say it’s the last one. We’re going to weigh in everything - the city, the fans, the length of it, the teammates, the coaches.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Pittsburgh Penguins, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: sergei+gonchar
Comments

That quote sounds like a guy with one foot on the dock…
Besides, he’s a crummy one-on-one defender, $6+ million could be spent much better elsewhere.
Posted by Nathan from the scoresheet! on 05/15/10 at 01:43 PM ET

UMMM No way in Hell do I want that Chute Puller Back.
yep Nathan he is a Train wreck even Strength, Very good on the PP, But the Pens can’t Pay him 5,6 Mill a year for being PP specialist
Posted by Evilpens on 05/15/10 at 01:45 PM ET

It was almost like he was disinterested during Game 7, but I doubt that was the case…..
I can’t see GMRS re-signing him at $5M a year though, just too much for a 36 year old d-man…. And it doesn’t sound like Gonch will take too much less…..
We shall see….
Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 05/15/10 at 01:45 PM ET

After watching Gonch basically roll out a red carpet for Travis Moen’s path to the net in Game 7, I don’t want him back.
Posted by NHLJeff from Denver on 05/15/10 at 01:49 PM ET

I change my mind frequently on whether Gonchar should stay or go. Ultimately, everything boils down to cost and return. At the right price I think Gonchar adds something useful and somewhat unique to the current roster. Something not easily replaced from within the system nor through the free agent market.
Pinpointing the acceptable cost of retaining Gonchar’s services is something I gladly leave in Shero’s hands.
Posted by Moq from Denmark on 05/15/10 at 01:52 PM ET

Please let him go, ever since they signed Letang long term, he has stopped trying….
Posted by Greg on 05/15/10 at 11:16 AM ET
I’m willing to bet I haven’t watched nearly as many Penguins games since the Letang extension as Greg or other Penguins fans have, but in the few I did watch, I noticed the same thing. He was a completely different player than he was last year.
He seemed disinterested in doing the necessary hard work to play good defense. His passing and offensive zone play was still pretty good, but he was soft in his own end.
Last I heard was that he was asking for $5M per for 4 years. I hope he has severely come down from that platform as I only think he’s worth $5M if he finds his work ethic again and probably only for a max of two years at that.
Shero will do what’s right for his club, he’s one of the league’s best GMs.
Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 05/15/10 at 02:01 PM ET

If I was Shero I would just have a tape of that Travis Moen short-handed goal were Gonchar got walked around on… and just keep looping it saying… how much do you want? (rewind) how much do you want? (rewind)
Posted by pgoody on 05/15/10 at 02:48 PM ET
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Please let him go, ever since they signed Letang long term, he has stopped trying….
Posted by Greg on 05/15/10 at 01:16 PM ET