LOOKING AHEAD
Penguins vs. Canadiens, 7:38 p.m. Thursday, Bell Centre, Montreal. TV, radio: Fox Sports Net; WWSW-FM (94.5); WBGG-AM (970).
NOTEBOOK
Coach Eddie Olczyk gave the Penguins, who rallied to earn a 3-3 tie Saturday in Philadelphia yesterday off. They are scheduled to resume practicing at 10:30 a.m. today at Southpointe.
It's the nature of faceoffs that they usually get attention only when they lead to something dramatic, such as a goal, so it's not surprising that there wasn't much talk about how Mike Eastwood cleanly beat Michal Handzus of Philadelphia on a defensive-zone draw with 62 seconds left in regulation Saturday. Eastwood's victory denied the Flyers a chance to set up in the Penguins' end, which went a long way toward assuring the Penguins would get a point to show for their comeback from a 3-0 deficit. And while Olczyk is emphatic that, depending on the precise circumstances, Mario Lemieux "would be my first guy" to handle a must-win draw, Eastwood acquitted himself well in the first two games, going 13-15, the same mark as Lemieux. The Penguins were 59-73 on faceoffs in their first two games, and do not have anyone who has won more than he lost.
Although Dick Tarnstrom recorded the Penguins' first goal of the season during a power play at 10:14 of the second period Saturday, the game was another special-teams train wreck for the Penguins. They gave up a short-handed goal for the second game in a row -- "We have to be a little more careful," Lemieux said -- and also allowed the Flyers to score with a man-advantage. The Penguins' power play is 1 for 6, which means it has given up more goals than it has scored, while their opponents have gone 2 for 10 with the extra man. The Penguins have shown few signs of being able to realize Olczyk's objective of ranking in the top five in the league in power play and penalty killing, although it's easy to understand why he has set such a lofty goal. "You always want to shoot for the top," he said. "If you can get those special teams in the top five, it's probably going to gain you somewhere between a dozen and 20 points over the course of the season."
For all the talk of rebuilding and a youth movement, the Penguins' lineup is well-stocked with thirty-something veterans such as Lemieux, Eastwood, Kelly Buchberger, Reid Simpson, Brian Holzinger, Steve McKenna, Drake Berehowsky and Marc Bergevin who are counted on to provide leadership and stability. Olczyk said that, while walking toward the team bus after the Penguins' 5-1 loss at Columbus in their preseason finale, he saw Bergevin do just that, pulling Marc-Andre Fleury aside for a pep talk in the wake of Fleury's lackluster showing. "He walked with Marc all the way to the bus -- I really didn't understand what he was saying, because he was speaking in his native tongue [French] -- but that's the type of people we have on our team," Olczyk said. "That means a lot. You talk about having that experience, those veteran guys around to help young players. You see a lot of communication going on from guys like Reid Simpson, Steve McKenna, Kelly Buchberger and Mario to Ryan Malone and Marc-Andre Fleury and Brooks Orpik. It's invaluable."
Fleury has a simple approach to his job -- "I try to stop the puck," he said. "Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't" -- and it has served him pretty well to date. And while he appears to have few significant weaknesses, no one will mistake him for, say, [Devils G] Martin Brodeur when he's forced to handle the puck. Olczyk allowed that he would have liked to see Fleury do that a bit more during his four preseason appearances but doesn't seem to be holding it against him. "Playing within your limitations and not trying to do too much, that's maturity," Olczyk said. "That's why he's so ahead of a lot of other 18-year-olds, especially in goal."
Malone picked up his first NHL point Saturday when he assisted on the Aleksey Morozov goal that capped the Penguins' comeback from a 3-0 deficit. "Obviously, the first point's good to have, and I'm just glad to help out," Malone said. He allowed that earning an assist registered with him when he returned to the Penguins' bench, but that wasn't the case as the scoring sequence unfolded, mostly because Malone was immersed in his work. "It's just [another] game," he said, "and you're used to playing the game your whole life."
RW Konstantin Koltsov, who earned a job on the Penguins' No. 1 line with his strong play in training camp, played a significant role in the Penguins' comeback Saturday. His screen on Flyers G Robert Esche made Tarnstrom's goal possible, and he picked up the lone assist on a Lemieux goal at 5:07 of the third that pulled the Penguins within one. His work didn't go unnoticed by Olczyk, who suggested that Koltsov has benefited from having veteran linemates. "[Lemieux] and [Martin Straka] really have helped [Koltsov] along," Olczyk said. "[In the opener, Koltsov] was kind of feeling his way, probably trying a bit too hard. [Saturday], he fit right in, and did a lot of good things on the forecheck."
Sebastien Caron isn't the Penguins' goalie of the future, and probably won't even be their main goalie of the present unless Fleury is injured. Nonetheless, his 32-save effort Saturday was an enormous factor in the Penguins' rally, because he kept Philadelphia from putting the game out of reach several times. "[Caron] kept us in there," Olczyk said. "Sebastien Caron played extremely well when we needed him to."
Bryan Trottier, a member of the Penguins' Stanley Cup teams in 1991 and '92, has moved back to Southwestern Pennsylvania. Trottier was fired as coach of the New York Rangers midway through last season but remains on their payroll as a pro scout. Trottier attended the Penguins' regular-season opener Friday and said he should be able to do much of his talent assessment at Mellon Arena.
MINOR-LEAGUE REPORT
Sunday's result
WILKES-BARRE SCRANTON (1-1) did not play.
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Penguins Report, 10/13/03