For the rest of this year. They can't afford him, Malkin ( who will get a new contract after next season for BIG $$$) and Cindy.
Caps made some decent moves too. Fedorov is just a rental for the rest of this year to fill in for Nylander who is out for the year. Huet is better than Kolzig and may be resigned and Cooke is the agitator the Caps have been missing.
All that said, you're still a Zima guy.
I agree wholeheartedly. Marian Hossa is strictly a rental player, and nothing more. That was a given. I don't think the Pittsburgh Penguins are really concerned about that now. They want to win the Stanley Cup THIS SEASON. The fact they went 10-6-2 without Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury in the lineup... Knowing those two will be back in the very foreseeable future, and now adding Hossa, Pascal Dupuis, and defenseman Hal Gill to the mix, makes that team extra scary.
R. Shero was smart to make the move now. He wants to make a run at the Cup while the face of this Penguins roster is still intact. There is no way the Pens can afford to keep this team intact 5-7 years from now. One of Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, Ryan Whitney, or Sergei Gonchar will most likely have to go. The time is now. If they win the Cup, that ends up being one heckuva smart move by Mr. Shero. Sometimes you need to give up a bit of youth (which Pittsburgh did, but exudes an abundance of anyway) to make large strides to be the very best. They have looked after their PP, PK, and their 5 on 5 situation with this trade. With Malkin now showing that he can dominate, and become the best hockey player in the world without Sid the Kid in the lineup (23-21-22-43 in 2008), and Ty Conklin becoming Mikka Kiprusoff v.2, the Kipper of old... this team is showing that it is hungry.
Remember, Angelo Esposito was once dubbed as a potential 1st overall selection, has seen his career spiral downward after Alexander Radulov's departure from the Remparts. People now believe he was a benefactor of being Alexander's linemate, and thus his numbers were inflated. Once he had taken full control of the reigns to lead the team, he fell short. Thus why his stock had fallen down so much in the 2007 Draft. Erik Christensen is like a Pierre Dagenais, who was nothing more than a decent designated shooter used for shootouts. Of course Christensen's game is more polished at this level, but he isn't a great 5 on 5 player. He's better 1 on 1. Colby Armstrong is nothing more than a third liner who had the luck of playing with Sid the Kid. His timing and positioning is off. He needs a superior linemate to produce. With Sid, his numbers were inflated, but when he was dropped down to his regular duties, he was a 30-something guy. Heck, Sid can make anyone look good. He made Andy Hilbert into a point-per-game pivot, who has never amounted to much more than a depth role on most other teams.
On the flipside, the Penguins also got Pascal Dupuis in the Penguins/Thrashers deal. While he may never be able to replicate his season best 20 goals and 48 points with the Wild back in 02/03, he still can find the back of the net and give the Pens some scoring depth. That, and he has been decent in post season action (20-5-6-11).
So the Penguins didn't give up a ton as some people may think. Oh, Malkin has another year on his contract, if the Pens could persuade Geno to sign in the Summer of '09, they could resign Hossa to a one year contract. That's if Marian will even bite to make another run at the Cup. It's highly doubtful, but you never know.
btw I always thought of you as a Shirley Temple drinker Kit.