Penguins have more time to negotiate long-term deal with Fleury

From Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

The Penguins yesterday filed for salary arbitration with goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, a move that gives the club more time to negotiate a long-term deal with him.

Had the Penguins not filed for salary arbitration Fleury could have become a restricted free agent July 1. By filing, the Penguins extend their exclusive negotiating time with Fleury by a month or more.

Arbitration hearings are set by the National Hockey League and take place between July 20 and Aug. 4. The Penguins are free to continue negotiating with Fleury between now and then.

“By filing for salary arbitration it gives us extra time to negotiate with Marc-Andre,” Penguins general manager Ray Shero said. “As a result of the filing, Penguins fans are assured Marc-Andre will be under contract with our club next season. We remain committed to negotiating a contract with him in the near future.”

Read the remainder of the article here.

The NHL needs to modify its arbitration system, but that conversation is for another day. As for Fleury, I’d say there is little chance that the team takes him to arbitration. Arbitration can be very hard on a player’s confidence, and I don’t see the Penguins going that route with their young netminder. Thus, we should expect the two sides to come to terms on a long-term deal within the next month or so.