Senators, Wild, Flyers may be interested in Petr Sykora

by FrankD on Aug 31, 2009 2:20 PM EDT in News Comment 4 comments

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

"One. One team will pick me. Ah ah ah ah"

Rumors out of Ottawa suggest the Senators may be interested in Petr Sykora - if they can unload Dany Heatley. That's a big if but not entirely impossible. Will a team with some cap space swoop in and pick up Heatley? Or will this saga carry us straight through the preseason and into the first week of regular season play?

Chuck Fletcher, GM of the Wild and former AGM with the Penguins, may also be interested in picking up Petr Gunn. Many people expect the Wild to display a different style of hockey this season, one that is less defense-centric and more upbeat. Perhaps this comes with the territory when you sign a former front office guy from Pittsburgh, or maybe it's just a necessary move for fans who paid to watch paint dry last season.

Oh right - the Flyers. According to that same rumor, Philly may be interested in bringing Sykora on board for the 09/10 season. Can't say any fan of the Pens would be happy to see him go to a rival team, but this is where we all have to realize it's as much a business as it is entertainment. If Sykie needs a team to play on and Philly makes him an offer, it'll be hard to hold it against him for taking a leap across the state. There's always the consideration that Sykora didn't exactly fit the new style of play under Dan Bylsma, so fitting in with that of the Flyers may be even more of a stretch.

Special thanks to Becky for passing along the info.

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here is my question……………………………………. why?

by BDON911 on Aug 31, 2009 10:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I can’t see how the Flyer’s can afford anyone at this point given their cap situation. According to Hockey Buzz the Flyer’s only have about $1.2M worth of cap space left. Plus, the Flyer’s have enough skilled, young talent, and would be better served by giving guys like Giroux more ice time. I doubt Sykora would be satisfied with third line duties, which is the best the Flyers could offer him. Instead, I see Petr playing a prominent role on a team like the Kings, or Blues, and signing a 2-3 year deal for about $2-2.5M a year. He’s an established veteran, is a consistent 25-goal scorer, and doesn’t need to take a pay cut to win a cup, and probably has one last shot at a decent money contract.

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

by gorgalor on Sep 1, 2009 12:03 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I agree with the Flyers assessment. I don’t see how he’d sign with them for whatever low-ball number they can toss his way. But given the situation where they do offer him something decent and he does sign, let’s just hope he doesn’t turn around and say he did it because "he wanted to sign with the best team that has the best chance of winning the Cup."

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by FrankD on Sep 1, 2009 12:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m sure the Pens would spend all the remaining cap dollars they have to Sykora to make that statement. Those magic words have worked wonders for the Pens in the past…