Free Agent Roundup: Miroslav Satan

by Lavender on Jun 21, 2009 8:00 AM EDT in Pittsburgh Penguins free agents

Miroslav Satan

#81 / Right Wing / Pittsburgh Penguins

Height: 6-3

Weight: 191

Born: Oct 22, 1974

	G	A	P	+/-	PIM
2008 - Miroslav Satan	17	19	36	3	36

If I had to use one word to describe Miroslav Satan, it'd be inconsistent.

With the Buffalo Sabres, he had his two best stretches of his career. From 1998/00, he had back to back 60+ point seasons, and, from 2001/03, back to back 70+ point seasons. That is all a far cry of what he did with the Pittsburgh Penguins however.

Satan started so hot to begin this season that some of us were thinking big things for Miro. That of course didn't happen. What did happen for Satan was a demotion from ~~Heaven~~ Pittsburgh to ~~Hell~~ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton after very poor play. While I agree it was deserved, I also respect the professionalism of Satan for taking the demotion and working hard in the AHL. After Satan's demotion, he was really able to get a better feel in the AHL, scoring nine points in ten games for the Baby Pens.

In early April, Miroslav Satan was recalled by the Penguins, cleared re-entry waivers, and eventually went on to win his first career Stanley Cup.

It was a whirlwind of a year with the Penguins for Satan, and, in my opinion, he finished it very strong. He didn't have Geno-esque numbers in the playoffs, but was a steady postseason figure after a really slow second-half regular season performance.

Poll

Should the Penguins resign Miroslav Satan?

Yes, perhaps a one year deal for less than last year's $3.5 million.

39 votes

Yes, but not if it means losing out on re-signing Fedetenko or Guerin.

282 votes

No, there are bigger names we need to re-sign.

588 votes

909 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Good work in the Playoffs but...

Satan played well and played hard during the Playoffs and obviously didn’t let his ego get the better of him upon getting demoted. Facts are though that he’ll be 35 right after the start of the season and he was making $3.5M, so unless he was taking a huge pay cut it isn’t even feasible to consider retaining his services. Again thanks for the effort and solid play but a guy making $3.5M should NEVER be playing himself into an AHL demotion! (Unless he was injured and doing it for Rehab which was not the case with Miro).

by Dutch71 on Jun 21, 2009 10:27 AM EDT reply actions

demotion

it also had to do with the salary cap after we acquired Kunitz

by BDON911 on Jun 21, 2009 10:48 AM EDT reply actions

Inconsistency is definitely one of those things that hit’s every guy designated as simply a “goal scorer.” With Satan it was a bit different though because at times it looked like he was ready to carry the team (first month or two of the season) and at other times he couldn’t have looked less interested if he tried. Then the playoffs rolled around and he really stepped it up when it counted. But to say he’s worth $3.5 mill again to play next season is definitely a no in my opinion, especially when you consider how tight the team’s cap is right now.

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by FrankD on Jun 21, 2009 11:35 AM EDT reply actions

I have a feeling that being a “goal scorer” means you score more goals than most players on the ice regardless of the consistency in which you score them. It’s like the non-alcoholic beer commercials where the tag line is, “What do beer drinkers drink when they’re not drinking beer?” If they ain’t drinking beer, then they aren’t beer drinkers. And you’re not a goal scorer if you can hardly manage 20 goals a year, especially when you’re playing with Crosby as your center. Time to allocate Satan’s dollars elsewhere.

"Oh, buy Sam a drink and get his dog one too!" - Mike Lange

by gorgalor on Jun 22, 2009 12:45 AM EDT up reply actions

i think what Frank is saying that Satan’s reputation is that of a “goal scorer”, that’s a reputation he earned by being a 30+ goal scorer 4 times. He is what he is now, and having proved that he’s not capable of keeping up with Crosby, i don’t see any way that he stays, at any cost.

by AronV on Jun 22, 2009 9:08 AM EDT up reply actions

For 8 years, Satan scored 26 or more goals. I don’t remember watching him too closely during that stretch, and would love to find a Sabres fan that could describe how his game has changed so dramatically over the last 3 years. The Satan that I saw with the Pens didn’t come close to someone that had ever pumped 40 pucks into the net over an 82 game stretch, like he did in 1998. The Satan I saw with the Pens seemed to get lost in the offensive zone, and never really was in a position to create a good scoring chance. He also seemed like a player with a decent shot, but not one that would give opposing goaltenders nightmares. Maybe he suffered an injury a few years back, or age has caught up with him? Regardless, when you have as many goals as Feds in as many games, it’s time to retire the goal scorer tag, IMHO.

"Oh, buy Sam a drink and get his dog one too!" - Mike Lange

by gorgalor on Jun 22, 2009 8:05 PM EDT up reply actions

Wave goodbye folks, no reason to keep him around.

Pittsburgh Black And Gold -- So new, it still smells like paint!

by JustinM on Jun 22, 2009 1:48 PM EDT reply actions

He is done!

Priorities for the Pens are Scuds, Guerrin, and Tenks. They can afford all three, I think, but no one else, except for maybe Ziggy. Satan was not worth the money this year and will be play in the NHL next year on a team with no shot for not much money. Thanks, I guess.

Life is about one simple choice, get busy living or get busy dying

by Dr Tre on Jun 23, 2009 8:27 PM EDT reply actions