The Face of a Franchise

Teppo's back, and I don't think his my heart can take it. From WGR550:

The Sabres have signed veteran defenseman Teppo Numminen to a one-year contract today. Numminen missed all but one game last season with a heart ailment. The 40-year old underwent successful heart surgery in September of 2007. The deal is worth $1.1 million.

Numminen has been with the Sabres since the 2005-06 campaign. He has 620 career points in 1315 games played.
The official announcement is expected to come later today.

$1.1 sounds like a lot for a 6/7th defenseman, but he is a veteran that is going to give the team a huge boost in confidence. He brings a leadership role to that team that just wasn't there last year, and his absence is one of the many, many reasons the team struggled. When you consider what we are paying certain other players to perpetually under perform, that price for Teppo may turn out to be a steal.

I for one am glad to see the deal made. Coupled with the addition of Rivet, it's been a pretty nice summer for our defense. Add in the development of Balls Sekera and I am officially satisfied with the Sabres roster heading into camp.