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Re-signing Gonchar and Letang priorities for Shero
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KITCHENER, Ontario -- Penguins general manager Ray Shero said yesterday that re-signing Sergei Gonchar is a priority and working out a new deal with Kris Letang is important, too.
That doesn't necessarily mean either defenseman will have a new contract anytime in the near future.
"I sat down with [Gonchar] last week for a little bit, just to kind of get things started," Shero said. "Those [talks] will continue a little bit, to a certain extent, and we'll see what happens.
"He certainly is a guy we'd like to extend, to have him around Pittsburgh. He's done a fantastic job for us. Hopefully, at the end, it will work out."
Gonchar is entering the final season of a five-year contract worth $25 million and, if not re-signed before July 1, will be an unrestricted free agent. Letang is going into the last season of a three-year deal and will be a restricted free agent if he doesn't get a new contract by then.
"We'll probably explore something [with Letang] at some point," Shero said. "He's a big part of our future. He did a really good job last year in terms of improving as a player.
"He certainly has a way to go in some areas to improve, but he made good steps last year."
First Published September 9, 2009 12:52 am
