In Pittsburgh, discussing Marc-Andre Fleury will never go away.
Not ‘til Fleury comes back to the Penguins, and probably not even then.
The Penguins found themselves dragged back into the Fleury vortex Tuesday by an occurrence that had nothing to do with them.
Vegas unexpectedly traded Fleury to Chicago for a 23-year-old non-prospect who played as many ECHL games last year as he did American Hockey League games. Center Mikael Hakkarainen has never played in the NHL, and won’t.
It’s another salary-cap dump triggered by the NHL’s flat cap. Vegas just wanted to clear cap space. Chicago’s “offer” wasn’t a factor.
Fleury, 36, is the reigning and defending Vezina Trophy winner as the NHL’s best goalie. Vegas gave him away for nothing. That never happened to Jacques Plante.
The Penguins have $7.4 million in cap space. At least $1.5 million will go to winger Zach Aston-Reese, a restricted free agent who got a qualifying offer from the Penguins. (Evgeni Malkin being hurt could create cap room via Tampa Bay’s close friend, long-term injured reserve.)
Fleury’s cap hit is $7 million. GM Ron Hextall theoretically could have traded for Fleury now and fixed the cap later. That’s what his predecessor, Jim Rutherford, would have done.
Rutherford had a trade in place to re-acquire Fleury before this past season.
But Vegas owner Bill Foley vetoed that deal because of Fleury’s value to the franchise since its inception in 2017. All that loyalty and sentiment somehow vanished in a year’s time despite Fleury winning the Vezina. Foley didn’t call Fleury to tell him he’d been traded. Fleury found out on Twitter.
This was the coach overruling the owner. Peter DeBoer got hired to coach Vegas in January 2020. Goalie Robin Lehner was acquired in February of that year. DeBoer turned to Lehner every time an excuse beckoned. Fleury too often double-crossed DeBoer by playing great.
But a puckhandling mistake by Fleury arguably cost Vegas its Stanley Cup semifinal series against Montreal. Now Fleury is a Blackhawk, assuming he shows up in Chicago. There are rumblings that he won’t, but that’s not Fleury’s style. But his unhappiness is definite.
If the Penguins can still get Fleury, they should.
The Penguins need a goaltender. No one connected to the Penguins trusts Tristan Jarry after his horrific performance against the New York Islanders in the playoffs.
Whoever plays goal for the Penguins won’t be as good as Fleury and will be compared to Fleury non-stop all season. Fleury getting traded (but not to Pittsburgh) guaranteed that.
Fleury’s enthusiasm bubbled over. He illuminated the Penguins’ locker room. Since he departed, it’s been exactly the opposite: The locker room too often needs to lift the goalie’s spirits. If you’re a believer in chemistry, Fleury’s departure badly damaged the Penguins’.
Season-ticket sales aren’t what the Penguins would like. Their sellout streak of 633 seems in jeopardy. Fleury would fill seats.
There is often a new twist, but the discussion remains the same: It was the right move at the time, but the Penguins haven’t recovered from Fleury’s departure in 2017. They need him back, especially if they legit think the championship window is still open. (It’s not.)
It’s absurd. I feel like I’m writing the same column over and over. (Fortunately, I get paid over and over.) #JagrWatch lasted several weeks. #FleuryWatch is in its fifth year.
Will the Penguins yet get Fleury? I doubt it.
Then again, I thought Fleury winning the Vezina precluded Vegas trading him.
Penguins ownership and upper management value Fleury. But how much do Hextall and president of hockey ops Brian Burke value him? They weren’t here when Fleury was. Fleury doesn’t make Hextall and Burke feel warm and fuzzy.
One report says the Penguins aren’t interested in getting Fleury back. That’s likely true. If they wanted to re-acquire Fleury, they could have. He was available.
Will Fleury re-sign with the Penguins as a free agent after the coming season is completed? That’s yet another discussion.
It’s an extension of a non-stop discussion, really.
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July 28, 2021 at 08:31PM
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Mark Madden: If the Penguins can still get Marc-Andre Fleury, they should - TribLIVE
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