The Pittsburgh Penguins announced the suspension of a recently acquired blueliner. While the news doesn’t come as much of a surprise, the potential ramifications do leave plenty of room for speculation.
The club announced on Sunday that it had suspended defenseman Egor Zamula for failing to report to its AHL affiliate, Penguins resident guru Josh Yohe noted.
The Penguins acquired Zamula in basically a minor-league trade, sending forward Philip Tomasino to the Philadelphia Flyers. The 25-year-old Zamula had fallen out of the Flyers’ lineup, landing him on waivers.
The Flyers were reportedly willing to terminate Zamula’s contract. However, the chatter suggested that Philly wanted to trade him instead. The club got its wish, getting Tomasino from the Penguins.
As for the Penguins, Zamula provided some AHL depth. As Yohe noted, the Penguins don’t really have much room for Zamula at the NHL level. However, Zamula views himself as an NHL defenseman. That situation prompted the Russian bluelier to decline reporting to Pittsburgh’s AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Consequently, the Penguins suspended the blueliner. Such a situation could lead the Pens to terminate his contract. While there’s no indication that could be the case, the Penguins may consider a contract termination at this point.
If the Penguins went that route, the club would lose nothing. They essentially traded Tomasino, an AHL forward, who had little impact at the NHL level. Zamula was not in their plans anyway. So, if the Pens cut ties with the blueliner, it would free up a valuable contract spot.
Penguins May Find Another Team for Zamula
Injuries have taken their toll on teams across the league. This weekend, several clubs have reported various players hitting the shelf. As such, clubs may get desperate enough for depth. That situation could mean the Penguins might find a taker for Zamula.
Of course, such a situation would mean Zamula playing in the NHL. Since Zamula has already cleared waivers, the Penguins would be in no rush to trade him. Nevertheless, one would have to think that a team might get desperate enough to kick the tires on the Russian rearguard.
Pens Lose Nothing by Terminating Zamula
Part of the chatter surrounding Zamula was the possibility of Philly terminating his contract. Zamula’s agent, Daniel Milstein, pulled off a similar move with the former St. Louis Blues, now Montreal Canadiens forward Alexandre Texier.
However, the Penguins traded for Zamula, basically resetting the clock on that situation. That being said, the Pens may opt to terminate Zamula’s contract at this point. If they did, the Penguins would essentially lose nothing. If anything, the team would gain cap space and another contract slot. The club currently has 40 of 50 contracts allotted. So, cutting ties with Zamula offers another contract the team could take on.
As it stands, the Penguins have buried a substantial chunk of Zamula’s $1.7 million cap hit. Currently, his cap hit accounts for just $550K on the Pens’ books. Considering he’s in the final year of his contract, Pittsburgh can afford to let the clock run out.
Zamula will be an RFA at the end of this season. He comes with a $1.4 million qualifying offer. It’s more than likely that the Penguins will decline said qualifying offer. That situation would automatically make Zamula a UFA.
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