Late on the morning of March 4, Miroslav Satan looked forlorn as he sat by himself on a curb in a parking lot outside BankAtlantic Center in Florida while a handful of his Penguins teammates participated in an optional practice inside.

No cell phone reception in the big arena, he explained, and he was waiting to hear whether another team had picked him up on waivers.

The call never came, the Penguins' salary cap became in danger of overflowing later that day after they traded a draft pick for winger Bill Guerin, and the team decided its only choice was to assign the veteran winger and his $3.5 million salary to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League.

Satan, who has 354 goals in his NHL career and is a veteran of more than 1,000 games, could have chucked the rest of the season, maybe gone home to Slovakia to wait there to see what happens when he becomes an unrestricted free agent in July.

"I thought about it, but it would take away from me the chance to be in the playoffs, and now I am, so I think I made the right decision," Satan said yesterday when he returned to Mellon Arena and traveled with the Penguins to Montreal for the team's regular-season finale tonight.

Teams gain a little salary-cap space toward the end of the season because of technicalities in the NHL rules, so the Penguins were able to recall Satan for this weekend. The cap doesn't apply during the playoffs, which start next week.

Satan cleared re-entry waivers at noon, 37 days after his call never came in Florida.

"We are happy to have Miro back," said Dan Bylsma, the Penguins' interim coach, adding that it was too soon to say whether Satan -- who was not eligible for the 11 a.m. practice yesterday -- would be in the lineup tonight or what kind of role he would have in the playoffs. "He's a quality player, and we're adding a guy who can help us out."

Satan, 34, was signed as a free agent last summer with the hope that he would mesh with center Sidney Crosby or at least settle in as a top-six forward. Instead, he got shifted around and often wound up on the third or fourth line. He had 17 goals, 36 points in 65 games before his demotion.

In a bit of irony, his game had picked up after Bylsma took over Feb. 15. He had three goals, one assist and a plus-minus rating of plus-2 under the interim coach.

In that sense, Satan said he was no different than anyone else on a team that has been on a tear under Bylsma and has earned a playoff spot.

"Since the coaching change -- everybody has been writing about it, talking about it -- it looks like a different team," Satan said. "The team is doing well. Hopefully, we can keep it going."

While he was with Wilkes-Barre, Satan had three goals, nine points in 10 games. Various reports credited him with being upbeat and a good influence, especially with the younger players.

"You try to use the time you have as best as you can, no matter what situation you are in," he said. "That's all I tried to do, not only this past month but basically throughout my career."

He didn't see a reason to mope.

"I don't see what was hard about it," he said of accepting the demotion. "It wasn't that hard."

Although it's possible Satan will be a bystander in the playoffs, teams that make a long postseason run -- as the Penguins did last year when they reached the Stanley Cup final -- often dip into a large pool of players.

Bylsma seems to have confidence that he can call on Satan.

"I coached Miro with the [New York] Islanders three years ago as an assistant coach," Bylsma said. "I'm comfortable with what he can do. He can add in a lot of different ways and is a real good player in this league and can put up numbers. That's what we're adding.

"The situation was unfortunate and part of hockey a few weeks ago, but to be able to add him to the roster right now is a good thing for our team and a good thing for Miro."

Satan understands that things are different now from his earlier days in the NHL, thanks to the current collective bargaining agreement and salary cap.

"Things changed, and they might even change more," he said. "It might get more difficult for teams to maneuver under the cap, so it is what it is."

In the meantime, he appreciates the chance to return to the NHL.

"I expect to help the team," Satan said. "That's why I signed with Pittsburgh, and that's why I went through the last month.

"Now it seems like the playoffs are right around the corner, so whatever role I will get or whatever ice time, I will try to use it to help the team as much as I can."

Matchup: Penguins at Montreal Canadiens, 7:08 p.m. today, Bell Centre.

Internet: Live game blog at Empty Netters

TV, radio: FSN Pittsburgh, WXDX-FM (105.9).

Probable goaltenders: Marc-Andre Fleury for Penguins. Carey Price for Canadiens.

Penguins: Are 17-3-4 since Dan Bylsma became interim coach. ... Are 19-15-6 on road. ... Are 1-2 vs. Montreal, 7-11-1 vs. Northeast Division.

Canadiens: Are 6-5-4 since GM Bob Gainey took over as coach. ... Have been awarded club-high 5 penalty shots, including 3 in past 5 games. ... D Patrice Brisebois is 2 goals shy of 100 for career.

Hidden stat: The Canadiens have not been shut out at home since March 18, 2008 (3-0 by Ottawa).