With No.1 pick  Sidney Crosby signed, sealed and delivered and camp opening this week, the Penguins are set for their most exciting training camp in decades. While last season was lost to a labor dispute, the Penguins were well prepared for the time when they would finally hit the ice again. General Manager Craig Patrick cut salaries in the 2003-2004 campaign to ready his team for a salary cap that was inevitable for the league to survive.

      Minus a big TV contract that other major league sports generate,the NHL must rely on its loyal fans and small cable TV network (OLN) to pay the bills. Coach Eddie Olczyk will reap the benefits of having had a GM with the foresight to arrange a team full of veterans, promising youngsters and a chance to be a playoff team in the new NHL.

    

 

      Let's start at center where #87 Sidney Crosby should be a fixture for years to come.  His ability and promise along with the knowledge he will get from playing with Mario Lemieux could lead this Kid to stardom in his first season.  There is a weakness here though. You must have an experienced, vet to control the middle of the ice. There is talk of Ryan Malone moving to center and maybe even Lemieux going back to his natural position.  There is one free agent to consider. Yanic Perrault is 32 year old vet that has always been the top center to win face-offs, which is  a part of the game the Pens are lacking.. Maybe they will still add this piece to the puzzle.

     The Penguins are stong on the wings. Mark Recchi, John LeClair and Ziggy Palffy are among the elite scorers in hockey. There presence will guide the youthful talent of Tomas Surovy, Konstantin Koltzov and Rico Fata. This should be a strong unit if they can stay healthy. LeClair, Lemieux and Palffy are known to break down during the season.

     Defensively, the Pens made an outstanding move in picking up Sergei Gonchar. He is the top scoring defensemen in hockey and will add to an already potent power play.  Dick Tarnstrom and Ric Jackman can also move the puck effectively which is necessary in the faster NHL. The defensive defensemen that are important in protecting the goalie come in the form of Joe Melichar, Lyle Odelein and Brooks Orpik(unsigned).  Once again the Pens have rookies awaiting their chance. Ryan Whitney and Noah Welch will be wearing the black and gold either this season or in the near future.

    The steal of the summer could have been  Goalie Jocelyn Thibault. With him between the pipes the Pens have a veteran that will handle the pressure until Marc Andre Fleury gets his game up to standards necessary to play every night in the rigorous NHL.