It has been a busy day blogging about possible Penguins free agent signings. This time Stanley Cup Game 7 hero Max Talbot has signed with the Filthadelphia Flyers earning a 5 year $9 million deal and Mike Rupp signed a 3 year $4.5 million deal.
As pictured above, Talbot was famous for "shhhhing" the crowd of Filthadelphia during the Penguins 2009 Stanley Cup run. Now, Talbot will be joining the hated rivals and the loss of Talbot may hurt Penguin fans more than losing Jagr.
Rupp was only with the team for 2 years and I will not miss him, but I know he was a fan favorite among many Pittsburghers.
The bigger loss was Talbot. Talbot was arguably the biggest fan favorite among niche, hard core, casual, and hockey fans alike. There was something about Maxime that everyone loved and his status as a locker room favorite was evident in the HBO series 24/7 Pens/Caps. As if Pittsburghers were not already incensed at the Flyers signing Jagr and the way the deal went down, Talbot changing sides will lead Pittsburghers to their breaking point.
The question remains: Who will be booed?
Will both Jagr and Talbot be booed?
Only Jagr?
Only Talbot?
The three games against the Flyers are sure to be the hottest tickets of the season for Penguins fans this season. If you are lucky enough to get your hands on tickets hold on to them, especially for the December 29 game which will be included in the HBO series 24/7 Flyers/Rangers as part of the lead up to the 2012 Winter Classic in Filthadelphia.
It has been one of the most interesting days for NHL Free Agent signings in recent memory. Regardless of the losses, the Penguins are still a top contender for Lord Stanley this coming season.
Losing Talbot and Rupp is a little heartbreaking. Losing Jagr the way we did is a little infuriating. But, you know what is the same today as it was yesterday? Pens are better than the Flyers. Pens are better than the Capitals.
ReplyDeleteYa I am def not worried about the Flyers, and the great thing about the Flyers signing those guys is that they can't sign someone better than them now.
ReplyDeleteI'm still not sure who on earth would offer Talbot a five year deal that basically pays him $2 mil a season for the next three seasons. Seems an awful lot for a guys who scores less than ten goals a season, and who hasn't played as good since his shoulder injury.
More interesting to me is if Jagr's stuff is still hanging around the arena come 24/7.