Who needs ESPN? The signing of right wing Eric Fehr to a two-year contract, reported to be worth $2.2 million per year, was brought to us the old-fashioned way: via Twitter, from Uno Seis himself while he summers at his cabin in Winkler, Manitoba. Take that Greenwich!

We know what you’re thinking: Do a joint “Two More Years” celebratory party at Front Page on July 31st! We would, but sadly Fehr intends to spend the rest of the summer in Manitoba before returning to D.C.

Speaking of D.C., Fehr made the most of his breakout 2009-10 campaign with the big club, scoring 2.71 points per 60 minutes on the ice at even strength. That was a better clip than Malkin, Marleau and Stamkos, albeit it against much weaker competition. With a GVT of 8.9 for the year, the 24-year-old goal scorer appears to be a solid 3rd-line player with 2nd-line upside. And that is going to be the question going into next season: Does Fehr log some time on the second line, where he should face some stiffer competition, or be a fixture on the third line paired with Chimera and possibly Perreault?

While starting 53.6% of his shifts in the offensive zone on a team known for its prolific offense is a definite advantage, that was about average for Washington’s forwards.  Improvement is needed in directing pucks to the net, as his CORSI of -5.5 relative to his teammates was on the low side.  However, Fehr reported on his press call that this is his first healthy offseason since his time in juniors, so he’s “expecting some big things next year.”

Some similarities can be seen in the career path of Alexei Ponikarovsky, who consistently scores 20 goals year in and year out and at age 30 had a similar cap hit, making Fehr a reasonably priced option for the next two years with some significant upside.