Pens GM Ron Hextall answers questions on a potential Marc Andre Fleury trade

In case you missed the giant news yesterday, the Vegas Golden Knights effectively dumped veteran goaltender Marc Andre Fleury and his $7 million contract on the doorstep of the Chicago Blackhawks. 

But here's the thing... if you think the Blackhawks are getting a Vezina Trophy winning goalie for free... well... think again. Fleury's agent Allan Walsh reported that Fleury himself heard about the trade via Twitter and will consider his NHL future before committing to the Blackhawks. Fleury released a statement later on in the day essentially saying the same. There's a real belief out there that Fleury may elect to retire rather than report to the Blackhawks' training camp in September. After all, Fleury himself has gone on record saying that he'll only play for the Golden Knights or the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Which, of course, leads us to the Penguins. Pens GM Ron Hextall was asked specifically today about Fleury and it was clear that he was ready for the question.

Here's what Hextall had to say about Fleury when asked if he had anything to report on a potential Fleury to Pittsburgh trade:

"No, I don't have a lot. I think Marc-Andre has been a terrific goalie for a long, long time. I've got the ultimate respect for him, and obviously people around here speak very highly of him."

Call me crazy but I think that when Hextall says, "obviously people around here speak very highly of him", I'm thinking he's specifically talking about superstars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Time to get the old band back together?