Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Knightfall" data-source="post: 2922716" data-attributes="member: 2012">Panthers sign Salei for four yearsTSN.ca Staff7/2/2006 6:28:53 PMSUNRISE, Fla. – Florida Panthers General Manager Mike Keenan announced today that the club has agreed to terms with unrestricted free agent defenceman Ruslan Salei.Sources tell TSN that the deal is worth $12.1-million over four years."Ruslan is a top tier defenseman who we are extremely pleased to acquire," said Keenan. "He is a big, physical, competitive player that can log a lot of ice time and will be looked upon as a leader on our blue line. It was our goal to sign an experienced defenseman and we feel we have addressed this need with the acquisitions of both Salei and Bryan Allen, helping to considerably improve our club."Salei, 32, has appeared in 594 career NHL games, all with the Anaheim Ducks, scoring 105 points and adding 735 PIM.The six-foot-two, 205-pound defenseman posted the best numbers of his professional career last season tallying 19 points in 78 games played, playing on the Ducks' top defensive pairing.Before joining the Panthers, Salei was the longest tenured Anaheim player and held the franchise record for most games played by a Ducks defenseman. Salei was originally drafted by Anaheim with their first choice (ninth overall) in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft.</blockquote>