The Penguins, Mario Lemieux said yesterday, are "real close" to re-signing General Manager Craig Patrick.
Which, he acknowledged, appears to be a whole lot closer than they are to trading Jaromir Jagr.
There never has been much doubt Patrick would return -- "As I've said all along, it's not going to be a problem," Patrick said yesterday -- and there's been even less that the Penguins would be receptive to trade offers for Jagr, mostly because he no longer fits into their salary structure.
Jagr wouldn't fit into the budget of most NHL teams. He is scheduled to earn about $20.7 million over the next two seasons, which severely restricts the number of clubs that could find room for him on their payroll.
And to date, there's no evidence any of those teams have made a serious inquiry about Jagr, let alone offered an attractive package for him.
"There aren't too many teams out there, obviously, with that kind of money," Lemieux said. "But there should be four or five teams interested.
"The guy still has four scoring championships in a row and, maybe with a new setting, he'd be back to where he was a couple of years ago.
"He's still only 29 years old and still has probably 10 good years left. I'm sure that when the time arrives, there will be a few more teams [expressing interest]."
Lemieux said the Penguins have no deadline for trading Jagr and insisted his personal relationship with Jagr -- who long ago admitted idolizing Lemieux -- did not deteriorate during the past season.
"I've always supported him, right from the start," Lemieux said. "Even this year, when he was going through a tough time, I always said that I supported what he was trying to do.
"He just had a bad year. Not so much on the ice, but mentally. That's something he has to work [through] this summer and, hopefully, get better."
Lemieux said the Penguins' payroll for next season is budgeted to rise by $2.5 million to $3 million, but that increase -- and more -- figures to be consumed by raises the Penguins' many free agents will receive.
There's no question that if the Penguins couldn't trade Jagr -- or if, for any reason, they simply would opt against doing it -- the impact on their lineup would be enormous. They would have to shed several front-line players to keep their payroll from becoming hopelessly bloated.
"Obviously, we don't want to be $10 million over budget," Lemieux said. "If we can't trade Jagr, we're going to keep him and go a different direction."
Just where Lemieux will fit in on next season's payroll remains to be seen.
His base salary when he came out of retirement was a pro-rated portion of $1.41 million, which was the league' average salary. Chief operating officer Tom Rooney, however, said Lemieux's total compensation for playing ended up being closer to $2.8 million.
Most, if not all, of the bonus money he earned was based on revenues generated after his return. He also earned a salary believed to be in the $700,000-$750,000 range as the Penguins' chief executive officer.
Lemieux was the biggest bargain in the NHL last season -- he earned about half as much in base pay as did Frantisek Kucera -- and is certain to work for well below market value again in 2001-02.
"I've been trying to negotiate with Craig," Lemieux said, smiling. "He's tough."
Precisely how much he will be paid might not be determined until the rest of the Penguins' payroll comes into focus a bit more. With so many prominent free agents needing new deals, it's hard to project how much money might be left for the player-owner.
"It's important that we sign the guys we need to sign," he said. "I can come in last again and see what's left."
Lemieux, who will turn 36 a few days into the 2001-02 season, plans to play in 65 to 70 games, including all of the ones at home. And, while he has not determined precisely which ones he will skip, he agreed that passing on the ones requiring the most grueling travel seems logical.
"Depending on the schedule, that's something I'll be looking at," he said.
Before that, there is the matter of getting physically ready for the demands of another season. Former Penguin Jay Caufield, who trained Lemieux in the weeks leading up to his comeback, will fill that role again in a month or so.
"I'm going to start in the next couple of weeks, just to get a [conditioning] base," Lemieux said. "Do the treadmill, the [stationary] bike, the Stairmaster, light weights, all that stuff. Then Jay's going to get a hold of me, probably in early August."
Patrick signing 'close'; Jagr's big contract limiting trade interest 
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