Minutes into free agency, the Pittsburgh Penguins signed winger Brandon Tanev to a six-year, $21 million contract, carrying an annual average of $3.5 million. Last season was a career best for Tanev, as he scored 14 goals, and added 15 assists for a total of 29 points. Over his four-year career with the Winnipeg Jets, he had 51 points in 195 games. While he doesn’t have a lot of points over nearly 200 games, he has 278 hits over his career. Pittsburgh needs a better balance of speed and physicality, and that’s where Tanev comes in. Personally, I think this was a good and a bad signing. It’s a good signing because we added a player who can play anywhere in the line-up and can provide a physical presence on the ice. But, it’s also a bad signing because we committed to a 27-year-old player for the long term and a lot of money who has barely scored at a 0.25 P/G pace over his career. Who knows, maybe he can score 30 goals this season with Crosby and Guentzel, but we won’t know until October and it doesn’t seem likely. He could be the Jack Johnson’s of forwards, in that it looks good at first, but by the end of the year, everyone hates it and wants him gone.
Hockey Addict 