Brewer Dealt $16 Million Over Four Years To Avoid Free Agency

Tampa Bay Lightning General Manager Steve Yzerman has perhaps his biggest task ahead of him in the coming months with the need to ink pending restricted free agent (and NHL 12 cover athlete) Steven Stamkos to a new deal. But he made a little time Friday ahead of the NHL Entry Draft to re-sign an important defenseman from their postseason run. The Lightning and former first round (fifth overall) pick of the New York Islanders from 1997, Eric Brewer, will remain together for at least the next four seasons at the price tag of about $16 million.

Brewer was acquired late last season by the Lightning from the St. Louis Blues for propect Brock Beukeboom and a third round selection in tonights draft. He went on to player 22 regular season games for Tampa Bay, putting one goal and an assists with a plus-5 rating en route to the playoffs. In his first postseason showing since 2003 with the Edmonton Oilers, Brewer added a goal and six assists while remaining a steady defensive presence for Tampa Bay.

The two concerns that come along with the 32-year old veteran are his health and his consistency. This is not the first big-money deal he has come across, as he is coming off a four-year, $17 million that he signed as a member of the Blues. He was a great leader, but questions did arrise as to whether he played his best hockey on a nightly basis. He's also been a bit limited due to injuries over the last few seasons. The 76 games he played between Tampa Bay and St. Louis last year were the most since he suited up for 77 back in 2007-08. Otherwise, he played just 54 games in 2009-10 and 28 in 2008-09.

In Tampa Bay, he won't carry as much of the workload as he did a lot of the time in St. Louis and can afford to remain more of a defensive presence than force an offensive push thanks to the many scoring threats the Lightning have on their roster. Staying healthy and working off the upswing in his game that came during the playoffs last year could make him a valubale asset to the Lightning for the duration of the deal.

Brewer's contract will count as a $4 million annual cap hit, which may be a bit less than he actually would have seen had he hit the free agent market. And it helps the Lightning work toward at least hitting the minimum allowable payroll of $48.3 million, as they currently sit at about $41 million. Of course, Stamkos' eventual deal will likely do more than enough to make them cap complient.

Lemieux Emerges To Vent Against NHL ... Again

This past weekend was not a good one for the Pittsburgh Penguins. They were brutalized both on the ice and on the score sheet by the New York Islanders Friday night before heading to Madison Square Garden for a matinee matchup against the New York Rangers that resulted in a come-from-behind loss. And to make matters worse, their delusional co-owner, Mario Lemieux, emerged from his cave to express his disappointment with the league he has always had issue with. Surprise, surprise! 

With thoughts of Brent Johnson’s knockout punch to Rick DiPietro that left the oft-injured Isles starter on the shelf for four-to-six weeks with facial fractures still on their mind, New York entered their rematch against Pittsburgh with intentions of garnering some revenge. What ensued was a game that saw 346 total minutes in penalties and a 9-3 shellacking by the Islanders over the undermanned Penguins.

Following that fiasco was a set of suspensions and fines by league disciplinarian Colin Campbell. The Penguins’ only punishment was an automatic 10-game suspension to Eric Godard, who left the bench in defense of Johnson when Michael Haley pursued a fight with the netminder. As for the Islanders, the organization received a $100,000 fine while Trevor Gillies received a nine-game suspension for delivering several blows to the head of Eric Tangradi and Matt Martin got a four-game ban for sucker punching an unsuspecting Maxime Talbot in the head.

None of that was good enough for the Penguins owner.

Flyers Deal Gagne To Tampa Bay For … For … Not Too Much

 

With a payroll reaching over the salary cap and a few more players left to be signed, the Philadelphia Flyers needed to gain some cap relief. The player they chose to turn to was left wing Simon Gagne, who spent the entirety of his 10-year NHL career with the Flyers and had one year remaining on his contract that pays $5.25 million. On July 2, he reportedly agreed to waive his no-trade clause. That claim was later disputed by Gagne, but he understood the situation the Flyers were in and knew the writing was on the wall for an end to his tenure in Philadephia.

His future, like all the other left wings still sitting on the free agent market, hinged largely on the decision made by Ilya Kovalchuk. So, when Kovalchuk decided on Monday afternoon to remain in New Jersey, it appeared as if a whole new market opened up for Gagne. The Los Angeles Kings’ failed pursuit of Kovalchuk would have instantly made them a serious player for Gagne, as they reportedly already had interest in him.

But just a few minutes after Kovalchuk’s re-signing with the Devils was announced, a trade involving Gagne was also made. He was acquired by the Tampa Bay Lighting for defenseman Matt Walker and a 2011 fourth round draft. And just like that, as if he didn’t already look like one, General Manager Steve Yzerman became one of the smartest GMs in the league in just the few short months he’s held the position with the Lightning.