Introducing the WeBelieveInOrange Mailbag Segment

We’d be lying to you if we didn’t admit that our activity this summer has been anything close to acceptable, but we’ve had plenty of reason. Between personal scheduling conflicts and Ilya Kovalchuk hogging the headlines, it’s been quite a boring summer in Philadelphia. The off-season started out very hectic, got crazy and confusing rather quickly, and then decided it’d be time to simmer down again after some free agency moves by the orange and black.

A few weeks ago, we reached out through various social networking mediums and asked our readers for ideas on a new segment to add to the blog. After an alarmingly low response, a week later, we asked again. That time, we got a good 50-75 responses on possibilities for things to add to the site. At this point in time, some of your suggestions cannot be fulfilled, but they’ve been taken into consideration for the future. They’re excellent, but we don’t have the resources to pull them off at the moment.

We made a list of five segment suggestions that got a ton of votes from our Twitter followers and Facebook friends, and the selection of our new segment seemed unanimous; The WeBelieveInOrange Reader Mailbag segment was born.

Once a week, either Friday or Monday, we’ll be taking all of the questions that you, the reader, leave for us during the previous week, and answering them in one big post. Questions can range anywhere from personal questions about the writers to our opinions of players and things surrounding the team.

How To Ask

You can submit your questions to one (or all) of our social networking pages. Shoot us an @mention on Twitter (@WBinOrange), leave a comment with your question on our Facebook page, or shoot us an email at mailbag@WeBelieveInOrange.com. Or, you can simply just leave us a comment here on the blog. We always love to read those.

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An ode to you, Simon Gagne: a Philadelphia idol

Let’s take a few minutes to forget about this entire day. Let’s forget that we’ve known that this day would be coming. Let’s forget about Paul Holmgren’s shortcomings as a cap-era NHL General Manager. Let’s, for a second, forget about all of the Flyers’ cap problems, present and future. Let’s take a few minutes to honor one of the classiest individuals to put on the orange and black.

Bobby Clarke drafted Simon Gagne with the 22nd overall pick in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. Simon Gagne played his first game as a Philadelphia Flyer on October 2nd, 1999 against the Ottawa Senators; I night that I remember clearly. Just ten days later, in a game against the Washington Capitals, Gagne tallied his first two NHL goals. Simon Gagne wasn’t always my favorite player. In fact, he didn’t become my favorite player until the 2001 season when he scored one of the prettiest goals I have ever seen. Simon Gagne made the NHL All-Star team that season. He played in-between Mario Lemiux and Joe Sakic. Gagne never really talked about that game to the media, but former Flyer captain Keith Primeau once told the Philly media that Gagne couldn’t stop talking about how amazing it was to be playing alongside two of his childhood idols.

I molded my own playing style after Gagne’s.

I would love to continue to ramble on about the things that helped me discover Simon Gagne as my favorite NHL player, but it would just take entirely too long.

This is an ode of nothing but the best wishes for Simon, wherever the rest of his career takes him. This is an ode to the man who nearly sent me tumbling over the mezzanine in section 210A when he scored an overtime goal to send the Flyers to a game seven in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning. An ode to the man, no matter how painful the loss, would never shrug away from the media. We may not see Simon Gagne as a leader in the locker room, or even, at times, on the ice, but I see Simon Gagne as a role model and the type of person that every hockey player should strive to be. A player who can over come the worst of adversities. A player who doesn’t know the meaning of “quit”. A player and a gentleman who was always willing to give back to the Flyers, the city of Philadelphia, and the fans that loved him so much. A player who always kept quiet and did what was asked of him, no matter how big the odds.

We’ll miss you, Simon. I can’t get my #12 Lightning jersey quick enough. A big part of me will be smiling if you pull off one of your OT winners against the Flyers this season.

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BREAKING: Simon Gagne reportedly traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning

According to several sources around the hockey world, the Flyers and Lightning have come to an agreement with a trade involving Simon Gagne. We’re still unsure of the return, but continue to check back for updates.

UPDATE: 2:35pm – D Matt Walker & a 4th Rd Pick headed back to Flyers

Sad day in Flyerdom.

I leave you with this.

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Flyers Re-Sign Dan Carcillo

The Flyers and Dan Carcillo have avoided arbitration as the sides have agreed on a one-year deal.  It’s believed to be worth $1.075 million.  Last season with the Flyers, Carcillo played in 76 games scoring 22 points (12+10) and totaling 207 PIM.  He played in 17 games during the playoffs scoring 6 points (2+4) and totaled 34 PIM.

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A Trip to Prospect Camp 2010

The Flyers prospects took the ice today for the second of five sessions scheduled  at the Skate Zone in Vorhees, NJ. The prospects weren’t on the ice yesterday, but they were staying fit in Stone Harbor, New Jersey at the annual Trial on the Isle.

Offensive Standouts

We’ll start off with Shane Harper (RW, Everett – WHL, Contract signed Mar. 4th, 2010), who I was actually the least impressed with today. He just didn’t seem like he knew what he was doing on the ice. Messed up a lot of drills in practice, missed many passes, and fired many passes and shots off-target (Jeff Carter version 2.0?) He regained some of all that in the scrimmage, but was still mostly invisible throughout.

Mike Testwuide (RW, Colorado College – WCHA, Contract signed Mar. 19th, 2010) is a prototypical power forward. He’s got a huge frame that’s filled out well. He’s a quick and solid skater who can win battles in the corners, which he did almost all day today. Testwuide boasts a decent and accurate shot, but really failed to do anything with it in the scrimmage, which isn’t saying much for a game that ended 1-0. He and Eric Wellwood were on the same page which was nice to see out of prospects who rarely play with each other this early in their careers.

Speaking of Eric Wellwood (LW, Windsor – OHL, Drafted 6th round in 2009), he continues to impress me every time I see him. By far my favorite of the prospects. He’s probably around a year — or less — from seeing AHL time, with NHL time not following too long after that. He’s a fast, gritty player who sees the ice well. Always makes good, crisp passes that seem to hit targets in stride perfectly. Wellwood is always extremely involved in the play and he’s a hard guy to miss, which reminds me of Claude Giroux’s defensive abilities in this instance.

Luke Pither (C, Barrie – OHL, Contract signed Mar, 4, 2010) was somewhat impressive today, especially during the scrimmage.  He showed off the flash for one sequence.  He swooped in and kicked a loose puck up to his stick and burst into the offensive zone.  He then sidestepped a defender, and was in on Nic Riopel, he tried going back across the crease and Riopel stayed with him and made the stop.  He may have been able to bury the rebound had the defender not stepped in and the officials lost sight of the puck.  Other than that, he was solid today, no major mistakes.  He’s certainly got the potential and the skills.  Keep an eye on him.

What is there to say about Zac Rinaldo (C, London/Barrie – OHL, Drafted 6th round in 2008), who resembles a heat seeking missile. Literally, Rinaldo hits anything and everything that’s wearing the opposite color. Aside from — at all times — being a bully on the ice, Rinaldo shows plenty of other skills. He’s got a decent shot which we saw more of in drills, since he was too busy being a missile in the game, which is somewhat worrisome. Whether or not Rinaldo will succeed in the NHL depends on his ability to refine his playing skills. He’s not the biggest guy, either. At 5’11, 169LBS, he’ll be easy to knock off the puck at the NHL level. If he can fill his frame and work on his puck skills, he’s got a great chance of being a cross breed of Darroll Powe and Dan Carcillo.

Finally, Andrew Rowe (LW, Michigan State – CCHA, Contract signed May 6th, 2010) caught our eye as the day went on, mainly because we had a rough time figuring out who everyone was until the scrimmage, since nobody was wearing names or numbers. Although he can show a slight lack of judgement in his cross-ice passing, he’s certainly a player who plays a well rounded game and has the tools to become a great player, hopefully at the NHL level.

Defensive Standouts

Marc-Andre Bourdon (D, Adirondack – AHL, Drafted 3rd round in 2008) stood out today, only because of how calm and collected he was. It may just be that I was watching a player with at least AHL experience playing against a bunch of recently drafted amateurs, but he really just knew what he was doing. He didn’t make any glaring errors, but also didn’t show much that was outstanding. He just played hockey, very well. Because of the Flyers latest commitments to the defensive position, it could be a few years until Bourdon sees NHL time. Hopefully he isn’t traded, and actually sees that time in Philadelphia.

Nick Luukko (D, Gunnery Prep, Drafted 6th round in 2010) actually showed me more than I thought he would. Shows a lot of poise and patience at the point and never tried to do more than he should have with the puck. Of course, he’s got a long way to go before entering the professional level, but he’s certainly a defenseman that does what he’s supposed to do. At the moment: nothing more, nothing less.

Oliver Lauridsen (D, St. Cloud State – WCHA, Drafted 7th round in 2009) is huge. Lauridsen is a physical player who can definitely throw big hits. For his height, 6’5, he’s a very smooth skater. It’s surprising, actually. His point shot wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t great, either. He made a few good outlet passes during the game.  Didn’t make any big mistakes in that regard, got the puck out nicely or chipped it off the glass when needed.  He stayed in position pretty well while defending the rush.  Blocked a shot or two.  With his size, he’s got a hell of a reach which he used well, knocking the puck loose a few times.  He did well in the corners and in front of the net, thanks to his size which he really uses well.  He’s not going to give the offensive numbers, but he should make a very reliable defensive-defenseman.  And did we mention he’s huge?

While a lot of the tryout players didn’t show me much today, Jesse Dudas (D, Bloomington – IHL – Corpus Christi – CHL, tryout) really stood out to me for some reason. He had a hell of a shot from the point and was very smart with the puck. More so than previously mentioned  Nick Luukko. Who knows if he’ll see anything more than a tryout here in Philadelphia, but he can definitely splash into the NHL someday if he plays his cards right.

Goalies

Sergei Bobrovsky (G, Novokuznetsk – KHL, Contract siged May 6th, 2010) didn’t see much action today and we didn’t get to see him on the other rink, so there isn’t much to write on him.   Bobrovsky’s a tough read right now, he’s dealing with new gear.  And any goalies know how rough that can be.  So some of his awkward movements/saves may be related to that.  Hopefully he’ll get accustomed quickly and there will be more information about him available quickly.

Brian Stewart (G, Northern Michigan – CCHA – Adirondack – AHL, Contract signed May 6, 2010) looked pretty solid today.  He made some nice saves during the scrimmage.  Including one sprawling stop with  the paddle.  He got knocked down behind the net after a collision with one of his own defenders and quickly scrambled back up and dove across the crease to stuff a rebound attempt.  He also challenged shooters well, taking the angles away.  He also seemed to anticipate things well, which was more noticeable during drills early on.  Quite a few times he’d slide across as the shooter got the puck, leaving him nowhere to shoot it but directly into him.  Much like Riopel last year, he was a pleasant surprise in goal.

Nic Riopel (G, Adirondack – AHL – Moncton – QMJHL, Drafted 5th round in 2009) was solid again this year.  He really impressed us last year and stood out quite a bit.  He started out pretty rough in the AHL this year, but was outstanding once he returned to the QMJHL.  From last year, he seemed to improve his lateral movement.  He’s still very solid positionally.  While he wasn’t tested during the scrimmage, he made the saves when needed.  I look at the Pither sequence here.  He stayed with him as he cut cross-crease and got his leg pad on it.  He still looks like one of the better goalie prospects in the system.  Should be interesting to see if he can land the backup job in Adirondack behind Backlund, or if he gets loaned out to another AHL team or the ECHL.

Thanks to Geoff Detweiler over at Broad Street Hockey, we’ve embedded a video of Riopel practicing over on the other rink, which we missed completely.  So, here’s that.

A Slideshow of Photos From Today
(Individual shots can be found on our Facebook page)

Thanks for reading. If there’s anyone that we missed that you wanted to know more about, don’t be afraid to leave a comment down below. We’ll either edit the post or leave a response comment.

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Reports: Flyers and Nikolai Zherdev Agree to Deal

Reports out of Russia indicated that Zherdev has agreed to join the Flyers.  However the local media here is yet to confirm.  We’ll stay on top of things and update when we can.  Everyone knew the Flyers needed a winger, Zherdev could be that guy.  Zherdev has bounced between the NHL and Russia during his career.  His last stint in the NHL was with  the Rangers in 08-09, where he played all 82 games and scored 58 points (23+35.)  He spent this past season in Russia with Mytishchi Atlant of the KHL.  He scored 39 points (13+26) in 52 games.

Zherdev certainly brings the skill, but the knock on him has been his consistency.  He goes hot-and-cold often, and can sometime be a liability in his own end.  If he can find the chemistry here in Philly, this may be a good signing for the Flyers.  Adding Zherdev would likely spell the end of Carcillo, depending arbitration results.  And Zherdev wold slot in as the Flyers top winger on the right side.

Stayed tuned for further updates on Zherdev.

4:25PM – Deal is still not official.  Both parties confirmed interests.  SanFilippo reports that Zherdev’s KHL team reports the deal as finished.  Other sources expect it to be complete within the next 24 hours.   Stay tuned for more.

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Russian website confirms Flyers interest in Ilya Kovalchuk

A frustrating and confusing off-season just got a little bit more odd. The trade rumors are getting difficult to keep track of.

While many sources are claiming that Ilya Kovalchuk is on Long Island today in New York, fine tuning his alleged deal with the Islanders, a Russian website has posted an article claiming that the Flyers are among three teams interested in acquiring the prized sniper. Kovalchuk’s agent, Yuri Nikolayev, is said to be the source behind this information, making it all the more credible. Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Colorado are all said to be in negotiations with Nikolayey and Kovalchuk.

But this makes absolutely zero sense. Just yesterday, the Flyers had asked Simon Gagne to waive his NTC so they could potentially move his salary to re-sign players and make a run at a free agent goaltender. Today, they’re targeting a $7.5-10 million forward.

The Flyers would have to move a lot more to even consider acquiring Kovalchuk.

As of now, it looks like the deal with the Islanders is a sure thing. Doesn’t make this any less odd.

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Flyers Free Agency Opening Day Round-Up & Grades

For hockey fans around the world, July 1st is simply a hockey holiday. For Flyers fans, July 1st usually means many tense hours of waiting to see how the team’s current general manager is going to handcuff the team this season. Paul Holmgren may have done just that today, unless he has some more moves up his sleeve.

As of now, it’s really hard to say, but it’s easy to speculate. So, here’s a recap and some grades of everything that happened today in Flyerdom (aside from our blog being mentioned by the Philly Daily News on Twitter, which makes me incredibly happy).

Jody Shelley
Former Team: New York Rangers
Contract Worth: 3 years, $3.3 million ($1.1 million per)
Grading the Signing: Can I go lower than F?

A text message came across my phone earlier to alert me that the Flyers had signed Jody Shelley to a 3-year, $3.3 million contract. I legitimately thought it was a joke at first and until this very second, as I type this, I’m still absolutely baffled that I had to find out this was a real signing. The fact that we signed Jody Shelley isn’t what is making me absolutely irate. What is bothering me, is the fact that Jody Shelley is being paid $1.1 million a year. Jody Shelley entered the NHL in the year 2000. Since then, he’s scored a mere 17 goals and has a total of 49 points. Yes. In 10 years, Jody Shelley, who is making $1.1 million with the Flyers for the next three seasons (unless God saves us and he’s traded), has scored 17 goals.

I can’t wait to hear Paul Holmgren’s explanation on the Jody Shelley signing, because I really want to know what was going through his head when he offered Shelley this contract. Last season, Shelley made $725,000. Last year, he scored two goals, both against the Flyers in the 81st and 82nd games of the season. Sure, Jody Shelley fights. Jody Shelley is a tough guy. However, Paul Holmgren can’t justify this contract to me like he did with Dan Carcillo and tell me that Jody Shelley is “going to be a fan favorite,” because that’s simply not going to happen and even if it did, there’s no reason to have a $3.3 million fan favorite, when you are letting Arron Asham walk away. Simply mind boggling. I can’t find the positives here. If you see some bright light at the end of the tunnel here (no, I’m not talking about the end of Shelley’s contract), leave a comment, please.

Sean O’Donnell (who is not Jody Shelley)
Former Team: Los Angeles Kings
Contract Worth: 1 year, $1 million
Grading the Signing: B+

Just shy of grading O’Donnell an A here, but not going lower than a B+. While I would have loved to see plenty of other names backing our blue line, the experience and grit that O’Donnell will bring creates another solid pairing for the Flyers and can effectively relieve Timonen and Pronger from their big minutes. Don’t look for O’Donnell to score a lot of points, because that’s not his game. In 1,104 games, O’Donnell has just under 200 points. He’s a defensive defenseman by the book. A guy who isn’t afraid to lay you out coming across the blue line. Frankly, that’s something I’ve been dying to see on this Flyers team for quite some time. In the +/- category, O’Donnell has finished in the minus category just three times. Twice early in his career with the Kings, who didn’t have particularly good teams and once with the Minnesota Wild in 2000, their expansion year. Overall, O’Donnell is a +85 in his 15 year career. Don’t expect many goals to be scored while Sean is on the ice.

Only downside? O’Donnell is 39 going on 40. That makes him older than Chris Pronger. One has to worry about the potential of injury, but O’Donnell has missed just 5 games since 2005. But now he’s playing under the Flyers wonderful medical staff, so…….

Another note to this signing: O’Donnell was on the 2007 Ducks team that won the Stanley Cup. Also on that team? Chris Pronger. O’Donnell said that his friendship with Chris Pronger swayed him into signing here.

Hopefully a solid addition to our blue line, but questions remain.

Andrej Meszaros
Former Team: Tampa Bay Lightning
Contract Worth: 4 years, $16 million ($4 million per year)
Grading the Signing: C+/B

The Flyers acquired Meszaros in a trade with the Lightning minutes before the free agency rush started. Looking at this trade from a player specific aspect, this isn’t a bad deal at all. Meszaros is young (drafted by the Senators in 2004) and in the latter stages of his development. He faired pretty well on a Tampa Bay team that wasn’t all that spectacular. You won’t see much of Meszaros on the first two pairings. In fact, you probably won’t see him there at all unless he can out-play the $3.2 million Braydon Coburn.

When you take a look at this deal from outside the box and see what was also available earlier today at this price, it kind of makes you double take on Meszaros’ name a little bit. A few of the options that were available on the market today and their salary cap hits: Kurtis Foster ($1.8 million), Anton Volchenkov ($4.5 million), Henrik Tallinder ($3.375 million), Toni Lydman ($3 million), Derek Morris ($2.75 million), Zbynek Michalek ($4 million). Most of these guys have more upside than Meszaros or would be a better fit to the Flyers system.

Braydon Coburn
Contract Worth: 2 years, $6.4 million ($3.2 million per year)
Grading the Signing: B-

Another one of those in the “hard to grade” category. If we are grading this contract based on the Coburn of last regular season, this is stupid. If we are grading this on the Braydon Coburn we saw in the playoffs and in the Finals, this isn’t that bad of a deal. Coburn had a fairly abysmal regular season and three-quarters through the season, many people didn’t think he’d even make it to this point. Coburn’s stats didn’t do justice to his mindless play, because they weren’t bad. His decision making and turnovers were horrible and showed no signs of turning around.

Coburn was simply brilliant throughout most of the playoffs and the Finals and only showed a few mental lapses; but nothing like we got used to during the regular season. His physical play began to dominate the opposition and his ability to choose a smart outlet pass (one of his weaknesses) got increasingly better as the playoffs went on.

It’s not the greatest contract the Flyers have ever offered a player, but Coburn definitely has the talent to make it worth it. Question is, which Coburn will show up on October 7th?

Michael Leighton
Contract Worth: 2 years, $3.1 million ($1.55 million per year)
Grading the Signing: B-

The feel good story of this past season will have another couple of chapters added on to it.  Arguably, the biggest question for the Flyers heading to July 1st was between the pipes.  The only guys under contract were Brian Boucher and Johan Backlund.  And it was likely that Backlund would be given the starting job in Adirondack to get playing time.  Essentially, leaving the Flyers with one NHL goalie.  At the draft, they kicked the tires with Evgeni Nabokov. The two sides soon found themselves far apart, and Nabokov hit the market this afternoon.  Secondly, there were rumors of the Flyers showing interest in Dallas’ Marty Turco.  The Flyers offered Turco a deal but he turned it down, believing that there would be a good market today for his services.  At this time, both Turco and Nabokov remain UFAs.  Then last night, the reports surfaced that Leighton and the Flyers agreed to an extension, before he was set to hit the market as an UFA.  At that point in time, it seemed like a really great move atleast from the money stand point.

As today progressed, the Leighton deal changed its looks frequently.  As the Flyers acquired Sean O’Donnell and Andrej Meszaros to give the third defense pair a significant upgrade, this looked like a great idea.  Then, some of the other UFA goalies started to go off the board, and this wasn’tlooking as nice.  Potential targets like Dan Ellis (TB $1.5 million per over 2 years,) Chris Mason (ATL $1.85 million per over 2 years,) Antero Niittymaki (SJ $2 million per over 2 years,) and Marty Biron (NYR $875k per over 2 years) went for the same money, if not cheaper.  And all of those guys are proven guys, as compared to Leighton.  That’s not saying he can’t handle it, but do you trust him as much as those guys that have held the #1 spot before?  And does the addition of what can now be considered a legitimate third defense pair changed your opinion at all?

What We May or May Not Lose

• Thank you so much Jody Shelley, for effectively ending Arron Asham’s tenure as a Philadelphia Flyer. During Ash’s two years here, he embodied nearly everything it meant to be a Philadelphia Flyer. Unlike several other goons who I won’t name at this point in time, Asham isn’t typically known to take stupid penalties and for a guy who plays as physically as he does, that’s surprising. Asham, in my opinion, is more deserving of any money that Holmgren would give Carcillo or Shelley. Asham creates scoring chances, and while his finishing skills are lackluster, a chance is a chance for someone else to bury home, which this team proved time and time again last season. Letting Asham walk was a severe mistake and now we have Jody Shelley to thank.
• Daniel Carcillo and Darroll Powe are both RFAs and should come fairly cheap. In my eyes, Carbomb is a downgrade from Asham and will likely be more expensive. He will also end up in the penalty box more than Asham would have. “Fan favorite” or not, it’s clear that most of the time, Carcillo doesn’t know how to channel his emotions properly. We’ve seen it time and time again. Darroll Powe, when not on the penalty kill, skates fast and hits people. That’s pretty much all he does. He’s definitely not a high energy guy that you want to lose, but the Flyers just don’t have a spot for him in my eyes, unless it’s Shelley’s spot. I think he’d fit great on a team like the Coyotes who play a high tempo, fast paced game.
• Just a few hours ago, Nick Kypreos of SportsNet tweeted that the Flyers may be looking to unload Simon Gagne’s contract to clear cap space (thanks, Shelley). Simon Gagne is my favorite player of all time, so I simply can’t sit here and write something unbiased in reference to this. To me, Simon Gagne needs to retire a Philadelphia Flyer. If there was anyone I wanted to lift the Cup this season, it was Simon Gagne. Flyers fans of my generation probably can’t remember a time without Simon Gagne. Bias aside, Gagne is VERY injury prone. He’s missed 83 games in the last three seasons, mostly because of concussions; an injury we’re all too familiar with. My buddy Travis over at BroadStreetHockey summed this up perfectly and wrote what I can’t, because it’ll hurt too damned much. So, go there and read for yourself. You’re welcome, Travis.
• Oh, and Jody Shelley. Are you KIDDING me Homer?! Seriously?!

That’s all. Stay tuned over the course of the next few days. We’ll have plenty more good stuff for you to read.

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Flyers add Sean O’Donnell and…..

Sit down, because you might fall over. Oh, and put down anything in your hands, because it may end up going through your TV sets.

We’ll start with the good news first, I guess. The Flyers have signed veteran Sean O’Donnel to a one-year, $1 million deal. O’Donnel, who was on the Anaheim Ducks’ Stanley Cup roster in 2007 (with Chris Pronger), has missed only five games since 2005. Quite durable, as well. O’Donnel is an Ian Laperriere type of fellow. He’ll lay down in front of nearly anything and do whatever it takes to win. Certainly an upgrade for the Flyers defense. Oh, and he likes to fight Rangers, too. O’Donnel is a large overhaul to our third pairing that we so desperately needed.

In other, not so awesome news, Paul Holmgren has added Jody Shelley at an outrageous price of $1.1 million for three years. Mistake if you ask me. This likely spells the end of Daniel Carcillo and Darroll Powe, who are both seeking new contracts. This move puts the Flyers right up against the cap. Literally. Something has to be coming.

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Flyers acquire Meszaros from Lightning

In a somewhat shocking and surprising move, the Flyers have acquired Andrej Meszaros from the Tampa Bay Lightning for a second round pick. The 24 year old who was originally drafted by the Ottawa Senators in 2004 had 6 goals and 11 assists in 81 games with the Lightning last season.

Meszaros brings a $4,000,000 cap hit and is signed until the end of the 2013-2014 season.

More to follow…

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