Free Agent Hits: Clifford, Penner, Prospal and Jagr
  • John Hoven of Mayor’s Manor: Kings GM Dean Lombardi on talks with Kyle Clifford.

    “It gets closer every day, it’s whether it’s close enough,” Lombardi quipped. “I don’t think with all these guys we’re far apart. But, as we find out more and more as we get into this, unfortunately, every hundred-grand is…particularly when we’re a cap team, and the cap is coming down as we try and regroup. So, unlike in the past, it’s not as easy to say ‘Alright, let’s throw another hundred-grand on there and get ‘er done. Every nickel counts.”

  • Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider: Kings Lombardi on negotiations with Dustin Penner.

    “It’s one of those cap things, and I guess it’s safe to say I have a limited amount of cap space left, and there certainly isn’t going to be enough to – I mean his requirements. I talked to him the other day, and I just told him. I talked to his agent a couple days ago and ‘This is where we’re at. I’ve only got X amount left.”

  • Aaron Portzline: It seems unlikely that winger Vinny Prospal will be back with the Blue Jackets next season.
  • Jonathan Stout of Canes Country: Jaromir Jagr’sagent, Petr Svoboda confirms that the Hurricanes are on Jagr’s short list of teams he’s interested in. There are more than three teams interested in Jagr and there is no timetable for a decision.

    “A long story short, there are more than three teams,” he said. “Jaromir wants to be sure of the decision that he makes because he was in Philly, he was in Dallas, then in Boston. He wants to make sure he makes the right decision.”