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Penguins Make First 12 Roster Cuts

The Pittsburgh Penguins made their first training camp cuts today, re-assigning 12 players and whittling their camp roster down to 43.  Over the next 2 weeks, the Penguins will need to skinny the roster down by another 20 players to arrive at the 23 players required by September 30th for the start of the regular season.  General Manager Ray Shero announced that 10 players would be heading to the AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.  This includes forwards Aaron Boogaard, Zack Sill, Joey Haddad, Casey Pierro-Zabotel, Nick Petersen and Keven Veilleux.  Also heading to the AHL are defensemen Lane Caffaro, Brian Strait and Alex Grant and goaltender Jordan Parise.  The Penguins also re-assigned Nathan Moon to the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey league and released defenseman Jamie Hunt.  The roster moves leave the Penguins with 26 forwards, 13 defensemen and four goaltenders.

The entire Penguins team will head to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Thursday night to participate in a Black and Gold intra-squad game at Wachovia Arena.  The Stanley Cup will be in attendance as a team of Penguins headed up by Sidney Crosby will take on another team of Penguins headed up by Evgeni Malkin.  The game is sold out and proceeds will be donated to charity.  The Penguins will then return home to face off against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday evening at Mellon Arena, before taking their pre-season on the road.

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TK on Malkin’s Wing for Day 1 of Practice

On-ice practice began this morning at Mellon Arena for the Pittsburgh Penguins 2009/10 Training Camp.  The most notable news from today is that Tyler Kennedy was the first player to be paired up with Evgeni Malkin and Ruslan Fedotenko.  I am sure that this is just one of many pairings that will be evaluated on that line over the next few weeks after the departure of Petr Sykora/Miroslav Satan and the absence of Max Talbot while he is recovering from off-season surgery.  Coach Dan Bylsma noted that he is looking for a tenacious player that can add a “forechecking and puck-pursuit presence” to the Malkin line.  Based on what we saw from Tyler Kennedy last season, he would seem to be a natural fit.  He certainly brought those skills to the Staal line last season, where his development was quite noteworthy.  Pascal Dupuis back-filled Kennedy’s normal spot on the Staal line.

New acquisition Mike Rupp played on a potential fourth line with Craig Adams and Eric Godard.  Eric Tangradi played on a line with Wyatt Smith and Chris Connor, while Luca Caputi was on a line with Mark Letestu and Nick Johnson.  Free Agent Left Wing Ryan Bayda (formerly of the Carolina Hurricanes) was invited to camp/practice as a tryout.  Also at camp on a tryout is former UND goaltender Jordan Parise, Zach Parise’s older brother.   

As far as top defensive pairings, it was Mark Eaton – Kris Letang, Brooks Orpik – Sergei Gonchar, and Jay McKee – Alex Goligoski.  Ben Lovejoy was paired with Brian Strait.

Here are the full training camp team lineups as reported by Sam Kasan on the 2009 Training Camp Blog (click name for player profile):

TEAM A
Forwards:
Ruslan Fedotenko – Evgeni Malkin – Tyler Kennedy
Mike Rupp – Craig Adams – Eric Godard
Joey Haddad – Casey Pierro-Zabotel – Nick Petersen
Ryan Bayda – Zach Sill

Defensemen:
Mark Eaton – Kris Letang
Chris Lee - Deryk Engelland
Jonathan D’Aversa

Goaltenders:
Brent Johnson
Jordan Parise

TEAM B
Forwards:
Matt Cooke – Jordan Staal – Pascal Dupuis
Eric Tangradi – Wyatt Smith – Chris Connor
Wade Brookbank – Joe Vitale – Keven Veilleux
Nathan Moon

Defensemen:
Brooks Orpik – Sergei Gonchar
Brian Strait – Ben Lovejoy
Simon Despres – Robert Bortuzzo

Goaltenders:
Marc-Andre Fleury
Brad Thiessen

TEAM C
Forwards:
Chris Kunitz – Sidney Crosby – Bill Guerin
Luca Caputi – Mark Letestu – Nick Johnson
Paul Bissonnette – Dustin Jeffrey – Tim Wallace
Aaron Boogard

Defensemen:
Jay McKee – Alex Goligoski
Lane Caffaro – Nathan Guenin
Jamie Hunt – Alex Grant

Goaltenders:
John Curry

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Sharpen Your Skates, It’s Hockey Time!

It’s hard to believe, but hockey season is just a little over 3 weeks away!  Everything is about to shift back into high gear for the Penguins’ organization as 47 players and prospects report to training camp this Saturday, September 12th, when they will undergo physicals and fitness testing.  Practice starts on Sunday at Mellon Arena and is open to the public, free of charge.  Pre-season play kicks-off shortly thereafter with the Penguins hosting the Columbus Bluejackets on September 15th.  On September 17th, the Penguins travel to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for a “Black and Gold” intra-squad game.  Then, they return back to Mellon Arena to host the Toronto Maple Leafs on September 18th before heading out on a 4-game road trip to Montreal (Sept 21) , Toronto (Sept 22), Columbus (Sept 24), and Detroit (Sept 27).  The Penguins’ open the regular season on October 2nd by raising the 2009 Stanley Cup Championship banner to the rafters of historic Mellon Arena before dropping the puck against the New York Rangers.  It will be the last NHL home opener to be played in the long history of Mellon Arena. 

With training camp, pre-season, and regular season play nearly upon us, it is time to start looking at the challenges that face the Penguins in the coming season.  First and foremost in my mind, is the question of fatigue.  The Penguins have played a total of 208-games (164 regular season and 44 playoff games) in just the last 2 seasons.   That averages out to about one game every 3.5 days over the last 2 years.  The price to pay for a successful post-season is a short summer for mental and physical recuperation.  Fortunately for the Penguins, they are a young team and they finished the post season relatively healthy.  The mental recuperation, however, could be more challenging for both the players and the coaching staff as they need to quickly shift gears from the euphoria of being the league champions to being the team that everyone will raise their game against to beat.  Often referred to as the Stanley Cup hangover, the Penguins will have to quickly come to grip with the fact that, while they have climbed to the top of the tallest mountain, they are now back at base camp with everyone else.  It will take a lot of character (and a bit of luck) to battle their way back to the finals for a third straight year.

The next big challenge will be figuring out how to best fill the defensive roles vacated by Hal Gill and Rob Scuderi.  This will take time and evaluation by the coaching staff as training camp and pre-season play unfolds, and will probably continue to play out into the regular season.  Surely the Penguins will look to off-season acquisition Jay McKee, a veteran stay-at-home defenseman with ample shot-blocking prowess.  They will also likely depend on the services of Alex Goligoski on the blueline after the successful call-up role he played during Sergei Gonchar’s time on the injured reserve last season.  But a McKee/Goligoski pairing may not be the right combination, so look for some mixing and matching in the defensive pairings in the early going until the right mix of “shutdown” and “offensive” styles are found.  This challenge will primarily be one for the coaching staff to solve, but will require the defensemen to adapt to new roles and potentially new linemates.   

The third challenge will be figuring out how best address the loss of Petr Sykora and (to a lesser extent) how to bridge the anticipated 2-month gap until Max Talbot returns from off-season surgery.  The most pressing issue to sort out in training camp and pre-season is who to put on wing with Evgeni Malkin in place of Petr Sykora.  While Tyler Kennedy certainly could be an interesting mix with Malkin, I don’t expect the coaching staff to disrupt the exceptional 3rd line chemistry of Kennedy-Staal-Cooke.  Odds are that Pascal Dupuis will be called upon to step into Sykora’s spot, but don’t be surprised to see some different looks coming from the coaching staff through training camp and the pre-season.  I wouldn’t even be surprised to see rookie prospect Eric Tangradi getting a practice or pre-season look with Malkin, but I really don’t expect it to pan out….at least not yet.  A likely candidate to fill out the lower lines would be Luca Caputi, the 6′2″ winger that made the Penguins’ roster for 5-games last season.  The good news is that the Penguins have significant depth to draw upon to fill in the few vacancies at forward, and training camp will be where those fill-ins get sorted out. 

So, as hockey season bears down on us once again, it is time to get out your jersey and get ready for another great season from one of the NHL’s best and brightest young teams.  Be sure to check back with us as the season approaches and gets underway as we will continue blogging about the team we love to watch and cheer for, the Pittsburgh Penguins!

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Penguins Send 13 Players to AHL, Trim Roster to 29

As anticipated, Pittsburgh Penguins’ General Manager Ray Shero announced the next round of training camp cuts today, sending 13 players to the AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.  The 13 players sent to Wilkes-Barre includes forwards Kris Beech, Ryan Stone, Adam Henrich, Aaron Boogaard, Tim Wallace, Jonathan Filewich, David Gove and Christopher Minard.  It also includes defensemen Deryk Engelland, T.J. Kemp, Ben Lovejoy and Joey Mormina, as well as goaltender David Brown.  The cuts trimmed the Penguins’ training camp roster to 29 players

Of the 29 remaining players, the Penguins have retained 16 forwards, 10 defensemen and 3 goaltenders.  That list includes propsects Janne Pesonen, Connor James, Paul Bissonnette, Bill Thomas, Alex Goligoski, Danny Richmond, and John Curry.  With surgery/injuries affecting the normal Penguins’ defensive lineup, Defensemen Alex Goligoski and/or Danny Richmond could find themselves on the roster as the season starts.  There is potential for one or two positions on wing being open for competition, as well, as training camp and pre-season hockey winds down. 

The current roster includes the following players (by natural position,  not necessarily the position they are being played)

• Left Wing
  • Ruslan Fedotenko
  • Jeff Taffe
  • Matt Cooke
  • Janne Pesonen
  • Paul Bissonnette (Converted from D)
  • Connor James
  • David Gove
• Center
  • Sidney Crosby
  • Evgeni Malkin
  • Jordan Staal
  • Tyler Kennedy
  • Max Talbot
• Right Wing
  • Miroslav Satan
  • Petr Sykora
  • Pascal Dupuis
  • Eric Godard
  • William Thomas
• Defense
  • Sergei Gonchar
  • Ryan Whitney
  • Mark Eaton
  • Hal Gill
  • Kris Letang
  • Brooks Orpik
  • Darryl Sydor
  • Rob Scuderi 
  • Alex Goligoski
  • Danny Richmond
• Goal
  • Marc-Andre Fleury
  • Dany Sabourin
  • John Curry

The Penguins’ prospects will have two more opportunities to impress the hockey staff before the team leaves for Sweden on Saturday night.  It is uncertain whether the Penguins will make the final roster cuts before they leave.  While I wouldn’t be surprised by a few cuts, I don’t expect they will cut to the final roster since they will still have several more days of practice in Sweden and a final pre-season game in Finland on October 2nd before the season starts in Stockholm on October 4th.  I expect that the Penguins coaching staff will keep their options open and guard against any late injuries while on the road overseas.  Therefore, I expect at least 1 or 2 extra forwards and defensemen to make the trip to Sweden.

The Penguins return to Mellon Arena on Wednesday night to host the Toronto Maple Leafs.  The roster for the game has not yet been released.  The game will be aired nationally on TSN.

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Penguins’ Training Camp – Roster Cut by 9

With the shortened training camp, the Pittsburgh Penguins prospects are getting very little time to show their skills as they contend for the few potentially available spots on the roster, most likely 2 or 3 wing positions and possibly a defenseman.  This afternoon, following Day 3 of training camp, the coaching staff made 9 cuts, sending 6 players to the AHL and 3 more to the juniors.  The cuts whittled the training camp roster down to 42 players as the team prepares for the first pre-season game on Saturday night at Mellon Arena against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Heading to Pittsburgh’s AHL affiliate, the WIlkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, are forwards Luca Caputi (LW), Joey Haddad (LW), Dustin Jeffrey (C), Nick Johnson (RW), Mark Letestu (C), and Defenseman Jonathan D’Aversa (D).  The Penguins sent 2 players to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL).  Defensemen Alex Grant (D) was sent to the Saint John Sea Dogs and forward Keven Veilleux (C) was sent to Rimouski Oceanic.  Finally, forward Casey Pierro-Zabotel (C) was sent to the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League (WHL). 

Jesse Marshall over at the Faceoff-Factor has done a tremendous job of putting out detailed daily reports from training camp, and the Penguins website provides nice video coverage of daily scrimmages, practice, and locker room interviews.  You can use the following links to track the progress of the team through camp:

• Training Camp Day 1 – Wednesday, 17 Sep 08
  • Report:  Faceoff-Factor Report
  • On-Ice Video:  Scrimmage, Group A Practice, Group B Practice
  • Locker Room Interviews:  Miroslav Satan, Jordan Staal, Sidney Crosby, Ruslan Fedotenko, Hal Gill, Marc-Andre Fleury
• Training Camp Day 2 – Thursday, 18 Sep 08
  • Report:  Faceoff-Factor Report
  • On-Ice Video:  Scrimmage Video, Group A Practice, Group B Practice
  • Locker Room Interviews:  Dany Sabourin, Pascal Dupuis, Eric Goddard, Sidney Crosby, Sergei Gonchar, Darryl Sydor
• Training Camp Day 3 – Friday, 19 Sep 08
  • Report:  Faceoff-Factor Report
  • On-Ice Video:  Group A Practice, Group B Practice
  • Locker Room Interviews:  Max Talbot, Sidney Crosby

The first round of cuts leaves 42 players in camp, to include 24 forwards, 14 defensemen, and 4 goaltenders.  The current roster includes the following players (by natural position,  not necessarily the position they are being played)

• Left Wing
  • Ruslan Fedotenko
  • Jeff Taffe
  • Matt Cooke
  • Janne Pesonen
  • Ryan Stone
  • Paul Bissonnette (Converted from D)
  • Adam Henrich
  • Chris Minard
  • Connor James
  • David Gove
• Center
  • Sidney Crosby
  • Evgeni Malkin
  • Jordan Staal
  • Tyler Kennedy
  • Max Talbot
  • Kris Beech
• Right Wing
  • Miroslav Satan
  • Petr Sykora
  • Pascal Dupuis
  • Eric Goddard
  • Aaron Boogard
  • Jonathan Filewich
  • William Thomas
  • Tim Wallace
• Defense
  • Sergei Gonchar
  • Ryan Whitney
  • Mark Eaton
  • Hal Gill
  • Kris Letang
  • Brooks Orpik
  • Darryl Sydor
  • Rob Scuderi 
  • Deryk Engelland
  • Alex Goligoski
  • TJ Kemp
  • Ben Lovejoy
  • Joey Mormina
  • Danny Richmond
• Goal
  • Marc-Andre Fleury
  • Dany Sabourin
  • David Brown
  • John Curry

On Thursday night, the Penguins held a Town Hall for Season Ticket Holders that included a Q&A session with several players (Orpik, Malkin, Whitney, Fleury, Talbot, Crosby).  It was covered in a video over at the Penguins website on Pens TV.

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Pittsburgh Penguins 2008 Training Camp Preview

After a short summer break, the Pittsburgh Penguins are ready to hit the ice again as they get back to training camp this week.  Over the summer, the team saw some significant complexion changes with the exodus of some key role players.  Yet, despite the loss of Marian Hossa, Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, Ty Conklin, Jarkko Ruutu, Georges Laraque and Adam Hall, the Penguins have kept their young core of stars intact and have back-filled the losses with some quality, proven role players.  Among the new player acquisitions are Miroslov Satan (RW), Ruslan Fedetenko (LW), Matt Cooke (LW) and Eric Godard (RW).   The Penguins also have depth in their organizational talent pool and added to it by bringing in some new prospects to include Janne Pesonen, last season’s leading scorer in the Finnish Elite League.  So as the Penguins head into training camp, what should you look for in terms of new talent on the team?

Goaltending

There is no doubt who holds the top spot for the Penguins in net, as Marc-Andre Fleury silenced the critics last season with an outstanding run after returning from his extended high ankle injury.  The question will be how soon he finds his form this season, as he has historically had slow starts.  The big surprise last season was the play of Ty Conklin, claiming the #2 spot away from Dany Sabourin after Fleury went on the injured reserve for a couple of months.  To his credit, Dany Sabourin didn’t play all that bad, but Conklin was flat out spectacular and stole the stage from Sabourin.  One could even argue that Conklin’s play was partially responsible for Fleury ratcheting up his game to re-establish his top spot upon his return.  With Ty Conklin now off the roster, Dany Sabourin has the opportunity to re-establish himself as the backup netminder.  But the Penguins will likely be evaluating their options during camp with some netminding depth in the system.  In my opinion, the only potential challenger for Sabourin would be John Curry.  Curry stepped into the void left by Ty Conklin in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, and put together an impressive 24-12 run in the regular season.  He went on to backstop the baby Penguins’ 14-9 run into the Calder Cup Finals.  I expect Sabourin will prevail out of camp, but don’t be surpised if Curry finds his way into an NHL game later in the season.

Defense 

The Penguins defensive corps is the one area that remains largely unchanged from last season.  The Penguins have been handed a significant challenge, however, with Ryan Whitney leaving the lineup for a minimum of 3-months (possibly up to 5 months) as he recovers from off-season foot surgery.  Whitney’s role as an offensive defensemen will be missed, and will likely be an area that the Penguins look to address in training camp.  The Penguins will be getting Mark Eaton back into the lineup after missing most of last season with a torn ACL, but Eaton’s forte is in defense and not in offensive production.  There may also be some lingering questions about his durability after 2 back-to-back injury shortened seasons.  Perhaps Kris Letang will find this as an opportunity to increase his offensive game, but he still needs to focus on perfecting his defensive game.  Perhaps Darryl Sydor, rumored to be seeking a trade out of Pittsburgh, will be able to find the niche he was looking for by stepping up his offensive game.  However, I still expect the veteran to leave Pittsburgh at some point this season.  The most likely scenario in my mind will be for Alex Goligoski to find his way into the lineup coming out of training camp.  Goligoski had an impressive year with Wilkes-Barre last season posting 38-points (10G, 28A) in 70 games with a +15 rating.  He also netted 28-points (4G, 24A) in 23 playoff games with a +5 rating.  He also made his NHL debut last season, getting 2-assists in his 3 outings.   Other defensemen to watch at camp would be Alex Grant, TJ Kemp, Deryk Engelland, and Ben Lovejoy.

Offense

The Penguins offense remains strong despite the loss of wingers Marian Hossa and Ryan Malone.  In particular, they are rock solid down the center with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Maxime Talbot.  With Hossa and Malone out of the lineup, along with Roberts, Hall, Laraque, and Ruutu, the Penguins will use training camp to assess and shore up the wings.  They will look to off-season acqusitions Miroslav Satan and Ruslan Fedetenko to fill the void in the top lines.  It remains to be seen how well they will mesh with the talented Penguins’ centermen or how long it will take for the chemistry to develop, but it seems likely that they will flourish alongside Crosby and/or Malkin.  Elsewhere on wing, the Penguins have retained Petr Sykora, Jeff Taffe, Pascal Dupuis, and Tyler Kennedy, and have added newcomers Eric Godard and Matt Cooke.  The latter two were acquired to backfill the loss of Georges Laraque and Jarkko Ruutu.  Look for the Penguins management to really test out the combinations in camp, and to evaluate the talent they have within the system to find a set of wingers that work.  Perhaps the biggest and most anticipated wild card is Janne Pesonen, the Left Wing top scorer from the Finnish Elite League.  He will likely be the center of much attention and speculation as to a potential bid in the lineup.  The Penguins also have several NHL-tested prospects as a result of last season’s extensive injuries that will have a viable opportunity to break into the lineup.  This includes Connor James, Jonathan Filewich, Chris Minard, and Ryan Stone.  I would expect as many as 2-3 lower line wing positions in play going into training camp, with the burden being on the prospects to prove their case for being in the lineup. 

After last season’s challenges and ultimate success, I anxiously look forward to the start of the season.  The changes in the complexion of this team add to the excitement and uncertainty of what the new season will bring.  Training Camp will be the first, short glimpse before the season starts in just 3-quick weeks.  This coming season is sure to be exciting and will answer all of our current questions.  WIll Sidney Crosby be 100% recovered from the high ankle injury of last season?  Will Evgeni Malkin power back to the top of the points race after recharging his batteries in the off-season?  Will Jordan Staal ditch the sophomore slump and have a breakout year?  Will Marc-Andre Fleury shake off any early season jitters and will he be able to build on last year’s spectacular playoff run?  How will Miroslav Satan and Rusty Fedotenko fit in and produce?  Who will step up offensively on defense?  Will someone break into the lineup and be an enexpected force this season?  Who will be the enforcer?  Will the Penguins start slow and finish strong?  So many questions that will only be answerd in time!  Hockey is upon us!  Let’s Go Penguins!

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Training Camp Opens Next Week!

Let’s Go Penguins!  The long and winding road to the 2009 Stanley Cup begins on 16 September as the Pittsburgh Penguins assemble for Training Camp and then head into the pre-season.  In their first official meeting of the new season, the players will spend next Tuesday going through a spate of physicals, testing and meetings at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) facility on the South Side.  On Wednesday, 17 September, the players will assemble at Mellon Arena at 9AM for their first on-ice practice session.  They will continue to meet daily at Mellon Arena from 9AM-1PM through Friday, 19 September, before heading into 5 pre-season games.  All practice sessions will be open to the public and free of charge, with entry through Gate #1 opening at 8:45 AM.                

The Penguins will play their first preseason game at Mellon Arena against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, 20 September, before traveling to Tampa Bay on 22 September for their second game.  The Penguins then return to host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday, 24 September, before traveling to Toronto on Friday, 26 September.  The final preseason game will be an exhibition game against Finnish Club Jokerit on 2 October in Helsinki, Finland.  The overseas trip sets up their first two games of the season against the Ottawa Senators which will be played in Stockholm, Sweden, on 4 and 5 October.  The Penguins then return back to Mellon Arena for their home opener on Saturday, 11 October, against the New Jersey Devils.

Penguins 2008-09 Training Camp Schedule

Tuesday, Sept. 16

• 8-11am medicals, testing & photos
• 1:30-3:30pm ice available @ Mellon Arena (optional)

Wednesday, Sept. 17

• 9:00-10:00am practice group A
• 10:15-11:15am scrimmage – A vs. B
• 11:30am off-ice training – group A
• 11:30-12:30pm practice group B
• 12:45pm off-ice training – group B

Thursday, Sept. 18

• 9:00-10:00am practice group B
• 10:15-11:15am scrimmage – A vs. B
• 11:30am off-ice training – group B
• 11:30-12:30pm practice group A
• 12:45pm off-ice training – group A

Friday, Sept. 19

• 9:00-10:00am practice group A
• 10:15-11:15am scrimmage – A vs. B
• 11:30am off-ice training – group A
• 11:30-12:45pm practice group B
• 12:45pm off-ice training – group B

Saturday, Sept. 20

• 9:00-10:00am practice extras
• 10:30-11:15am practice game group
• 10:30am extras off ice workout
• 7:30pm vs. TAMPA BAY

Sunday, Sept. 21

• 9:00-10:00am group A practice
• 11:00am group B practice

Monday, Sept. 22

• 11:30am Practice (at Tampa)
• 7:00pm game @ TAMPA BAY
• 10:30am Practice (at Mellon Arena)

Tuesday, Sept. 23

• 12:00pm Practice

Wednesday, Sept. 24

• 10:30am practice
• 7:30pm game vs. TORONTO

Thursday, Sept. 25

• 12:00pm practice

Friday, Sept. 26

• 10:30am practice (@ Southpointe)
• 7:30pm game @ TORONTO

Saturday, Sept. 27

• 12:00pm practice

Penguins 2008-09 Pre-Season Schedule

• Saturday, Sept. 20th vs. Tampa Bay 7:30 PM
• Monday, Sept. 22nd at Tampa Bay 7:00 PM
• Wednesday, Sept. 24th vs. Toronto 7:30 PM
• Friday, Sept. 26th at Toronto 7:30 PM
• Thursday, Oct. 2nd at Jokerit (Finland) 6:30 PM

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Prospects Camp Set to Open Sept 9th

The Pittsburgh Penguins’ annual propsects camp will be conducted in Kitchener, Ontario, from Tuesday, September 9th, through Monday, September 15th.  The camp will open with 4-days of practice, followed by a 3-day series of games against prospects from the Florida Panthers, Ottawa Senators and the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

The prospects camp will be led by Wilkes-Barre/Scranton coaches Dan Bylsma and Todd Reirden.  As was the case last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ management, coaching and training staffs will be well represented at the camp.  Among others, Penguins’ coach Michel Therrien and GM Ray Shero will be on-hand to assess the talent in the sytem.  Two young players that they will likely be watching are defenseman Alex Goligoski and winger Luca  Caputi.

Alex Goligoski caught management’s attention during last season’s playoffs by scoring 28-points (4G, 24A) in 23-games, setting a new AHL playoff scoring record for defensemen.  He also tied the AHL record for points in a playoff season by a rookie.  Depending on how the Darryl Sydor situation works out, Goligoski could potentially be an early season backfill for Ryan Whitney who will miss the first couple of months while recovering from foot surgery. 

Luca Caputi also made a name for himself last season by scoring 51 goals in 66 games for the Niagara Ice Dogs of the Ontario Hockey League.  With the Penguins’ depth at wing remaining a question heading into the fall, he could find himself being called upon in the regular season to round out the team.

In all, the Penguins will send 24 players to prospect camp.  This includes the following 7 defensemen, 14 forwards and 3 goaltenders (click on any name for more detailed info):

Defensemen:

• Jonathan D’Aversa
• Alex Goligoski
• Alex Grant
• Jason Legault
• Ben Lovejoy
• Jake Muzzin
• Elgin Reid

Forwards:

• Aaron Boogard (RW)
• Luca Caputi (LW)
• Corey Cowick (LW)
• Jean-Michel Daoust (RW)
• Tommy Goebel (RW)
• Joey Haddad (RW)
• Dustin Jeffrey (C)
• Nick Johnson (RW)
• Cedric Lalonde-McNichol (C)
• Mark Letestu (C)
• Nathan Moon (C)
• Casey Pierro-Zabotel (LW)
• Keven Veilliux (C)
• Tim Wallace (RW)

Goaltenders:

• David Brown
• John Curry
• Patrick Killeen

For a complete and current listing of the young players that are “in the system” for the Penguins’ organization, go to NHLPens.com–>Rosters–>In the System.

On September 16th, immediately following the Prospect Camp, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ veterans will report to training camp.  More details about the Penguins’ training camp will be provided when released by the team.

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Final Pre-Season Line Tweaks in Action

The Pittsburgh Penguins are making final pre-season tweaks to prepare the club for the much anticipated start of the 2007-2008 NHL Season this week.  In addition to making the final roster cuts yesterday, the Penguins organization returned to the ice and got down to the business of adjusting the lines, practicing the system and getting ready for a strong start to the season.   

Coach Therrien is shuffling up the lines and the word on the street is that there will be a different look to the lines for the season opener in Carolina on Friday night.  If you were one of the hardcore fans that grumbled about player line placements during the pre-season, you will probably like the look of the line changes employed during the first post-exhibition practice on Monday.  They are likely a preview of what we will see on Friday night, and possibly longer if the combinations work:

Forwards

1. Jordan Staal—Sidney Crosby—Petr Sykora
2. Ryan Malone—Evgeni Malkin—Mark Recchi
3. Gary Roberts—Erik Christensen—Colby Armstrong
4. Jarkko Ruutu—Maxime Talbot—Georges Laraque

Defense

1. Mark Eaton—Sergei Gonchar
2. Brooks Orpik—Ryan Whitney
3. Darryl Sydor—Rob Scuderi

Perhaps the most encouraging element of this line-up is the movement of sophomore Jordan Staal from third line Center to first line Wing.  This will not only benefit Staal, but I believe it will pay dividends across the front line in terms of pure playmaking and scoring capability.  Last year, Jordan Staal mentioned the difficulty of getting used to the speed of the game and how quickly the play unfolds.  It is certainly understandable for a rookie to be challenged by the transition into the NHL.  This year, however, he will have to have his head and stick on a swivel if he is going to keep up with Sidney Crosby and Petr Sykora.  I think there is a real chance for some magical chemistry here, but only if Staal can handle all of the creative plays that Crosby is sure to initiate.

Another promising aspect of the line-up seen in practice on Monday is the appropriate use of Mark Recchi and Gary Roberts to round out the second and third lines.  These are the roles that these two players should play this year, ceding the way to the younger generation to pick up the torch and carry it.  Combined, they have decades of experience in the NHL and plenty of skill to boot, but they are the “greybeards” of the team and need to serve as the foundation upon which the youth and speed of the team can build upon.  

The line-up above uses the traditional arrangement of speed and skill up front, and increased grit as you go down.  There is tremendous depth in the forward lines with significant goal generating capability resident within each of the top three lines.  It will be a challenge for some teams to be able to roll the lines the way that Pittsbugh should be able to do this year.  This should bode well for the Penguins offensive game. 

On defense, the pairings are a bit surprising in that I would expect to see different matchings.  Certainly the Mark Eaton and Sergei Gonchar pairing is a welcome sign after their success early last year before Eaton was sidelined with a wrist injury.  As far as the pairings go, Perhaps Coach Therrien is attempting to shore up his defensive corps by ensuring that all of his defensive talent isn’t on the ice at the same time, leaving a possible weak flank with his lower defensive pairings.  Time will tell if these pairings (and the forward matchups for that matter) hold very long into the season.  I certainly hope that he finds a combination that works well and shores up the defensive corps. 

The Penguins have a couple more days to settle in before they start the long journey to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  Today, the NHL Center Ice Package was ordered and the HD TiVo-equipped 55″ HDTV sits ready for 82-games of glorious, pulse pounding, Penguins hockey action.  Let the games begin! 

Roster Final, USA Today Picks Pens

According to Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, the Pittsburgh Penguins have made the final four training camp cuts today.   The move was expected with the pending league deadline and brings their roster down to 22 players. 1 short of the 23 allowable, for the start of the NHL season.  It is unclear what the Penguins intend to do with the vacant 23rd spot, but it leaves the door open for another potential acquisition.

The following four players were assigned to the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins:

1. Ryan Stone (C)
2. Jonathan Filewich (RW)
3. Jeff Taffe (LW)
4. Kris Letang (D) 

The Penguins are in good stead to have good quality players like these on the short list for call-up throughout the season.  The time they have spent in training camp with the NHL veterans will serve both them and the team well down the stretch.  I expect we will see more of these fine young players as the season progresses.  

Adam Hall also signed a one-year, two-way contract.  Hall joined the Penguins just prior to training camp as a try-out and played in all six preseason games.  Defenseman Mike Weaver was also re-assigned to WBS, and has until Tuesday at noon to clear waivers. 

The Penguins are to submit their final roster to the league office by Tuesday, October 2nd.  The current roster is as follows:

Forwards

1. Sidney Crosby “C”
2. Mark Recchi “A”
3. Evgeni Malkin 
4. Jordan Staal
5. Petr Sykora
6. Colby Armstrong
7. Erik Christensen
8. Adam Hall
9. Maxime Talbot
10. Georges Laraque
11. Ryan Malone
12. Gary Roberts
13. Jarkko Ruutu

Defensemen

1. Sergei Gonchar “A”
2. Darryl Sydor
3. Ryan Whitney
4. Mark Eaton
5. Alain Nasreddine
6. Brooks Orpik
7. Rob Scuderi

Goaltenders

1. Marc-Andre Fleury
2. Dany Sabourin

The Penguins 2007-08 season opens Friday against the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, NC.  The Penguins home opener will be on Saturday when they host Anaheim.

In other news, USA Today writer Kevin Allen posted an interesting article in today’s paper that announces that “our pick is the Pittsburgh Penguins” to win the Stanley Cup this year, and provides their top ten reasons.  I personally don’t think this will be the year, although I think it is likely within the next 3 seasons.  My chief argument with the article is that it claims their defensive game is one of the top ten reasons that they will win the cup.  I, on the other hand, believe that the defense is currently the achilles heal of the team.  Unless they can dramatically improve on that aspect of the Penguins game, there will be no cup in Pittsburgh this year.  Nonetheless, the article is a good read.  There is also a very good, lengthy follow-up article with Allen on Pittsburgh Penguins.com.  It discusses in more depth how Allen compares this team to the Edmonton Oilers in the Gretzky days, and offers some countering opinions to my concerns about the Penguins defense.  Lastly, Joe Sager had an excellent interview with Kevin Allen on today’s Penguins Rink Rat Report.  Click HERE to here this interesting interview (12:01 Minutes).  You can also play the Rink Rat Report by selecting it from the Rink Rat Report player on the left sidebar of this page. 

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