Penguins open Consol Energy Center tonight
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The Penguins will play their first game in Consol Energy Center tonight against the Red Wings.
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Preseason games, especially the first couple, do not always appeal to NHL veterans, who often would rather wait a few days and let the youngsters duke it out.
It is different this year for the Penguins, who will play Detroit tonight in their exhibition opener. The 7:08 p.m. faceoff will be the first game at Consol Energy Center.
"Sometimes, going into the preseason, you want a couple of extra days before you get your first game, but, with the first game being the first home game here, guys were more so this year hoping they were in the lineup," Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik said.
He is getting his wish.
Coach Dan Bylsma did not reveal his entire lineup, but he is giving a nod to the historic context of the night by dressing three of the team's premier players.
"I did think about the game being the first game in this building, and it did play into some of the decisions about the lineup," Bylsma said. "I think Sidney Crosby should be in that game, the first game, and Evgeni Malkin and guys like Brooks Orpik who have been in the organization for a long time.
"They are playing that game because of that reason."
Crosby, the Penguins' top center and captain, appreciates the setting -- although years from now, the regular-season opener Oct. 7 against Philadelphia surely will be the one that is recalled as the first game at the new arena -- but he is the type of player who itches for competition under just about any circumstance.
"I'd rather just get right in there," said Crosby, who has not played since the Penguins were eliminated by Montreal in the second round of the playoffs a little more than four months ago. The past two summers were a lot shorter as the club advanced to the Stanley Cup final in consecutive seasons, winning the championship in 2009.
"Especially with the long offseason, the more you can get in there and get into that game environment, get hit and give hits, I just think the better off you are," Crosby said.
For him, the added part comes with making the transition from Mellon/Civic Arena to Consol Energy Center. They are across the street from each other but worlds apart in so many ways -- from where players park and enter, to a much larger, more plush team area, to entering the ice from their bench instead of a runway on the other side, to different ice, boards and glass.
First Published September 22, 2010 12:00 am
