To quote popular ’60s sitcom icon Gomer Pyle…”Surprise, surprise, surprise!” The Penguins have re-signed forward Danton Heinen to a one-year deal worth $1 million, which is actually a $100 K cut from what he earned on a “show me” deal last season.
And show us he did, to the tune of a career-best 18 goals, not to mention three more in the postseason.
The 27-year-old native of Langley, British Columbia turned down a more lucrative offer from Winnipeg because he likes the fit with Pens and wanted to play for a Cup contender. Refreshing, to say the least.
Apparently, the feeling’s mutual.
“We were very happy with Danton,” said vice president of hockey operations Brian Burke. “He’s a great kid. He had a good year for us. But by performing as well as he did, it puts us in an arbitration position that’s untenable.”
I really like Heinen, too, especially at the bargain-basement price. Listed at 6’1” and 188 pounds, he’s not a bruiser by any stretch. But he’s a smart, stealthy player who reads the game well and has a knack for finding the seams and soft spots in opposing defenses. Danton’s opportunistic and a decent finisher to boot, as evidenced by his shooting percentage of 13 percent, fifth-best on the black and gold behind some pretty select company.
He tends to be a bit streaky. And defensively he’s not a Zach Aston-Reese clone (although he’s more than adequate). But overall I like his game and what he brings to the table.
Signing Heinen goes a long way toward walking back the scoring depth that appeared to be lacking among the current crop. However, his addition puts us nearly $1.5 million over the cap limit according to CapFriendly.
Obviously, more moves are coming.
A final comment. Not to keep casting stones at the Kapanen signing…what’s done is done. But $1 million for Heinen vs. $3.2 million for Kappy?
Oy.
Hopefully, the flying (and star-crossed) Finn proves himself worthy the way Danton did.
Process. As hockey fans, we hear a lot about it these days. Sites like Natural…
I was reading some recent comments from long-time PenguinPoop reader Mike about the state of…
In their second player move of the off-season, both involving young’uns, the Penguins re-signed pending…
One of my favorite rock ballads is Don’t Know What You’ve Got (Till It’s Gone)…
I was working out at the gym Wednesday morning, minding my own business, when PenguinPoop…
The Penguins entered last night’s NHL draft lottery with an infinitesimal 1.5 percent chance of…
View Comments
I like it, but again with 3.2 for Kappy ..which is Ron's dumbest move so far.
There obviously has to be another move to get under the cap.
I like Danton, I like his game and the way he plays. And if he puts in another 12 -15 goals, kills penalties, block shots , definitely worth it.
So who gets moved? Where does Ron go from here?
Can he unload Pettersen for a 7th rounder, Buffalo has cap room and maybe needs a d-man.
Or is it Zucker..
Should be interesting.