Orpik says Sabres never made him an offer
By John Vogl - News Sports Reporter
Updated: 07/03/08 10:02 AM
The Buffalo Sabres were convinced Brooks Orpik would command too much money. So they never even made him a contract offer.
The desire in Western New York to have a tough, home-grown defenseman on the Buffalo blue line didn’t reach HSBC Arena. The Sabres were never in the running for Orpik, the defenseman from East Amherst said Wednesday after re-signing with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
“They called my agent and asked what we were looking for,” Orpik said. “That was the only time we heard from them. They never came close to making a contract offer. They were way on the outside, to be honest.”
Orpik stayed in Pittsburgh after agreeing to a six-year deal worth $22.5 mil-lion. That’s $3.75 million per season, within an acceptable range during the summer shopping season. It’s the same yearly average Mike
Commodore received from Columbus on Tuesday for a five-year deal. Both are big, physical defensemen, which is what the Sabres were expected to be seeking.
“Certainly, we have an interest in Brooks,” Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier said hours before Orpik signed, “but what he’s going to be able to do in the marketplace is going to exceed where we’re prepared to go. That aside, I think he’s a very good young hockey player, and he’s going to do very well.”
The Penguins seem to think so. Orpik turned down an offer from Pittsburgh last week (which the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review said was worth $3 million annually), but the Penguins continued to push for the 27-year-old, especially after losing key players during the opening two days of free agency.
“He provides the kind of physical presence you need on a Cup contender,” Penguins General Manager Ray Shero said, “and his work ethic, preparation and determination are second to none.”
Regier said the Sabres are still seeking a defenseman, but nothing came of it Wednesday. The free-agent market continued to shrink. Trading partners dwindled. After those two developments, so did some of the Sabres’ options.
Eight blue-liners agreed to terms on the second day of free agency, and two others were traded. The New York Rangers sent 6-foot-3 Fedor Tyutin and 6-4 Christian Backman to Columbus for shifty winger Nikolai Zherdev and young center Dan Fritsche. Tyutin signed a four-year, $11.4 million contract extension in February, while Backman will make $3.4 million next season before becoming an unrestricted free agent.
“We’re still working,” Regier said. “We’re really looking for a defenseman, and I remain hopeful. . . . It’s hopefully about getting something [Wednesday] or [today] or whenever something happens, and just staying on it until we cover off what we need.”
Trades still appear to be the more likely route for the Sabres. The most prominent name available is Toronto’s Pavel Kubina, a 6-4, 244-pounder who had 11 goals and 29 assists last season. He has two years remaining on a deal that pays $5 million per season.
Calgary and Boston are rumored to be shopping defensemen, while Philadelphia and Detroit could have extra blue-liners at their disposal.
Paul Mara, Rob Blake, Jason Smith and West Seneca’s Aaron Miller are among those available via free agency.
“It’s as much about experience and fitting in with this group, as well as being sound defensively,” Regier said. “We’ll look at the offensive side, too. There’s a little room there, too.”
Regier made it clear he doesn’t want to get stuck giving the wrong player a long-term contract. He feels that could happen for other teams with several of this week’s signings.
“There will be a number of these players that will be on the market, available long before their contracts are up, and that’s a position we don’t want to be in,” Regier said. “We are looking at both short-term needs and long term because we’ve got a number of players that we want to sign and we want to keep here. They are players that are big contributors right now to our hockey club, and there are also players down the road.”
