Tyler Kennedy skating with Penguins, staying upbeat despite lack of contract offers
Tyler Kennedy hopes an offseason of uncertainty will pay off in the end.
As the summer begins to wind down, the unrestricted free agent is skating with some old Pittsburgh Penguins teammates and hoping the phone will ring with a contract offer or training-camp invite from an NHL team.
Kennedy, 29, is coming off a two-year, $4.7-million deal signed with the San Jose Sharks, who traded him to the New York Islanders during an injury-plagued 2014-15 in which he scored only six goals in 38 games. Still, he's remaining upbeat, and feels his current situation could prove to be a boon.
"I've got nothing to lose," Kennedy told Jonathan Bombulie of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "It might be good for me. Less pressure on me. I was making a little bit of money there, felt like I had to produce. Now I feel like I can do out there and play my game, my skating game."
"I feel great. I feel like I should've trained like this five years ago," he added. "It's not the situation you want to be in, but that's life. I think it'll make me stronger as a person."
Drafted 99th overall by the Penguins in 2004, Kennedy has appeared in 477 career games, with 86 goals and 199 points.
Whether he'll be afforded the opportunity to add to those totals remains to be seen.