Lightning Add Ryan Shannon and Alexandre Picard

The Tampa bay Lightning have announced that they have signed right wing Ryan Shannon to a one-year contract worth $625,000 and left wing Alexandre Picard to a one-year, two-way contract. The financial terms of his deal were not disclosed. In 79 games last season with the Ottawa Senators, Shannon had 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points. Picard appeared in 59 games last season with San Antonio of the AHL, scoring 24 goals and 22 assists for 46 points and 84 penalty minutes. Shannon is a decent signing for the Lightning, as he will bring some two-way skill and versatility to the forward lines. Look for him to start the season on the third line. Picard adds some energy and grit to the forward lines, but will likely spend much of next season in the minors.

Penguins Sign Alexandre Picard, Re-Sign Brad Thiessen

The Pittsburgh Penguins have announced that they have signed defenseman Alexandre Picard and goaltender Brad Thiessen to one-year, two-way contracts. Picard's deal will pay him $600,000 at the NHL level, while Thiessen's contract will pay him $525,000 at the NHL level. In 43 games last season with the Montreal Canadiens, Picard had three goals and five assists for eight points. He missed the last seven games of the regular season and all seven of Montreal's playoff games with a foot injury. In 46 games last season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL, Thiessen posted a 35-8-1 record, seven shutouts, a 1.94 GAA, and a .922 save percentage. He has yet to appear in an NHL game. These aren't bad signings for the Penguins, as both players will bring plenty of depth to the team at their positions. Picard has some puck-moving skill and skates well, although he is a bit inconsistent in his scoring. Given the depth on Pittsburgh's blueline for next season, Picard will likely start the season in the minors. Thiessen has been an excellent goaltender at the AHL level and is more than likely ready to see some NHL action as a backup goalie. However, given the Penguins' depth in goal next season with Marc-Andre Fleury and Brent Johnson, Thiessen will likely start the season in the minors.

Canadiens Sign Defenseman Picard, Re-Sign Alex Henry

The Montreal Canadiens have announced that they have signed defenseman Alexandre Picard to a one-year, two-way contract and re-signed defenseman Alex Henry to a two-year, two-way contract. The financial terms of both deals were not disclosed. These aren't bad signings for the Canadiens, as both players will provide adequate defensive depth for the club. Picard has some puck-moving skill, while Henry brings lots of toughness and grit to the blueline. However, given the depth on the Canadiens' defense for next season, Picard and Henry will likely be competing for a roster spot at training camp, along with prospect P.K. Subban.

Coyotes Re-Sign Forward Alexandre Picard

The Phoenix Coyotes have announced that they have re-signed left wing Alexandre Picard to a one-year contract. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. He was acquired by the Coyotes from the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 3 in exchange for forward Chad Kolarik. In nine games last season with the Blue Jackets prior to the trade, Picard had no points. He also appeared in 58 games with Syracuse and San Antonio of the AHL, scoring 26 goals and 24 assists for 50 points. This is really just a depth signing for Phoenix, as Picard is likely to spend most of next season in the minors, where he will provide plenty of scoring depth for San Antonio.

Coyotes Acquire Picard from Blue Jackets for Kolarik

The Phoenix Coyotes continued to be busy right up until the 3 PM trade deadline by acquiring left wing Alexandre Picard from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for right wing Chad Kolarik. In nine games with the Blue Jackets this season, Picard has no points. He has two assists in 67 career games with the Blue Jackets. Kolarik has yet to appear in an NHL game. This is really just a depth move for both teams. Picard will give the Coyotes suitable offensive depth on the wing on their checking lines, while Kolarik could give the Blue Jackets decent offensive depth on the wing if he is able to make the team next season.

Senators Acquire Cullen from Hurricanes

The Ottawa Senators added some offensive depth to their line-up today by acquiring center Matt Cullen from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for defenseman Alexandre Picard and their second round pick in the 2010 Entry Draft. In 60 games with the Hurricanes this season, Cullen has 12 goals and 28 assists for 40 points. Picard has appeared in 45 games with the Senators this season, scoring four goals and 11 assists for 15 points. Not a bad swap for both teams. Cullen brings the Senators some much needed offensive depth and will center either their second or third line. He also brings to the Senators plenty of two-way depth and lots of skill on the power play. Despite playing for his fourth team in three seasons, Picard brings plenty of promising offensive skill to the Hurricanes' blueline. He should also bring some skill to the Hurricanes' power play given his five power play points this season.

Senators Trade Meszaros to Lightning

Defenseman Andrej Meszaros is on his way to the Sunshine State. After a contract dispute lasting several months, the Ottawa Senators resolved the situation on Friday night by trading Meszaros to the Tampa Bay Lightning for defensemen Filip Kuba and Alexandre Picard and San Jose's 1st round pick in the 2009 Entry Draft, which the Lightning had acquired in the Dan Boyle trade earlier this summer. Sources say that Meszaros is expected to sign a six-year contract with the Lightning that will average $4 million per season.

***UPDATE*** The Tampa Bay Lightning announced today that they have signed Andrej Meszaros to a six-year deal worth $24 million. Here is how the deal works out:

$2.5 million in 2008-09
$3.25 million in 2009-10
$4 million in 2010-11 and 2001-12
$4.75 million in 2012-13
$5.5 million in 2013-14
*salary figures come from nhlnumbers.com

The deal averages out to $4 million per season.

Meszaros and Ottawa GM Brian Murray had been locked in contract talks all summer. There were reports that Meszaros was seeking a deal worth $4.5-5 million per year, while the Senators were offering close to $3.5 million.

The trade also came after much speculation in recent days that Meszaros was going to receive an offer sheet from an unknown team. Rumors began to swirl shortly thereafter that Tampa Bay was the team that was going to sign Meszaros to the offer sheet, but lacked the appropriate compensation to do so, as they had traded their 3rd round pick in 2009 to Pittsburgh in order to get Ryan Malone and Gary Roberts. More rumors began to surface that Tampa Bay was attempting to reacquire the pick from Pittsburgh, but Penguins GM Ray Shero declined to make the trade and be associated with an offer sheet.

Meszaros scored nine goals and added 27 assists for 36 points in 82 games last season, while accumulating 50 penalty minutes. In three NHL seasons, Meszaros has 26 goals and 84 assists for 110 points.

Kuba had six goals and added 25 assists for 31 points and 40 penalty minutes in 75 games last season. Picard had three goals and three assists for six points and 10 penalty minutes in 24 games last season with the Philadelphia Flyers and Tampa Bay.

The trade provides the Senators' blueline with experience in Kuba and a prospect defenseman in Picard. Kuba and Picard's combined salary of $3.8 million will make it more affordable for the Senators to pursue the scoring winger they have been seeking all summer. In all, the deal gives the Senators short-term help in Kuba and some help down the road with the 1st round pick and if Picard should develop into a star NHL defenseman.

The Lightning gain a promising young defenseman in Meszaros, but the experience on their blueline is relatively thin now. Meszaros, Matt Carle, Paul Ranger, and Shane O'Brien are the most experienced defensemen in Tampa Bay, all with three years of experience or less. With a lack of experience and defensive depth on their blueline, the Lightning would likely have to trade one or two of their forwards to address this problem. In all, the trade should work out well for the Lightning in the future.