offseason

ain't no one paying 4 mil for Rodrigues.
Just forget that.
He can be gone.

Bozak should retire.

I feel like 3.9M isn’t that steep. I think you’re paying for potential down the stretch seeing that he has shown flashes of being a great complementary piece. But maybe 4 is a little high.

But yeah aside from Bozak and needing to give more than Gruden for someone to eat Zucker’s contract, I think these decisions are really good.

Side Note: Before I get people saying ‘Oh but ZuCkEr isn’t a BaD pLaYeR’, it’s the 5.5M that teams don’t want to spend on him so yes you would have to throw something more to offload all of it.

potential he's 29 next year.
I'd rather take 3.9 million to FA than waste it on ERod.

As for Zucker, I think you are kidding yourself. AZ like 1/3 of a team signed for next year. They will need not only forwards but cap space to hit floor.
The goal for Zucker on any team will be to flip him at TDL for assets if they can get him to score points. It won't cost much for the penguins to move him.
The only issue will be if Zucker blocks the move. That's the only issue.

I get the Rodrigues thought but for 3 years at 3.9, it’s not a big risk for a 29 year old who has shown signs of turning the corner.

As for Zucker, you can’t just say that because Arizona needs a team they should take him for just about anything. The idea is that Zucker is paid a little more than he’s worth at this point and 5.5M is not something many teams are going to pay a lot for to add to a competitive roster because it limits moves for better players at similar prices.
Also, if it’s Arizona picking him up it’s because they’re getting assets for him. They’re not picking him up for almost nothing to fill out their roster or win a cup. And they’re certainly not doing it to help Pittsburgh with their cap space

no it is a risk, and one PIT doesn't need to take nor will. Hextall is smarter than that. Someone else can make that mistake although I doubt anyone will.

As for Zucker, yes I can and I did. AZ needs players, they will have a hard time bringing them in. No one is flocking to go there right now especially when they are taking on cap dumps. They need to hit cap floor. Instead of over paying someone on a long term deal it's easier to pick up a rental who can be flipped. They aren't picking up Eriksson or Ladd here. Zucker has talent. They also are showing their hand picking up guys with 1 year left.
Just look at the Ritchie trade. The Dman TOR got back is worth at least a 3rd. They took on a year of Ritchie for the difference between a 3rd and a 2nd.
They have 0 hope of Ritchie being flipped. But Zucker they do. Considering they need cap without it being long term and they have decent odds of flipping him out for a return. I don't see it costing them to move him. AZ is not the only team as well. A team like BUF could use Zucker as they need older players in the locker room of a rebuilding team. BUF would also benefit from flipping him at TDL.
So this idea he's a dump with no value is absurd. Lots of teams know there is value there. All they have to do is feed him the puck and tell him to shoot and pad his numbers and they get a return on a flip.