Training Camp 2010

And so, it begins.

With the Mellon Arena now officially (save for legal challenges) set for demolition and a new marketing slogan unveiled ("Destiny Has A New Home"), the Pittsburgh Penguins begin training camp 2010 today with a look of determination and vengence.  

Not unlike that in the above picture, in fact.

Before I go further, credit is deserved with respect to that brilliant piece of art, which was done up and done well by the guys at THEPENSBLOG .  It was so good and Training Day -- the actual movie with Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke from which the setting for the art comes -- is such a winning film, I just had to borrow it here.

Perceptions aside, the Penguins enter the 6th post-lockout season with 4 consecutive playoff appearances under their belt spanning 11 playoff series, two consecutive Stanley Cup Final appearances, and one Championship.   They will, undoubtedly, be on many short lists of Cup favorites again this year, but as their Head Coach Dan Bylsma likes to say, the foundation for winning in May and June starts in camp, and the Penguins certainly won't be the only team around the league kicking off their camp with excitement and optimism that they have a chance to go the distance in the coming season.

They also won't be the only team with storylines and questions, but since this is a PENGUINS blog, we only care about the ones germane to the local hockey club.

Right?

Right.

And so, with that -- and while Captain Sidney Crosby and company report for camp physicals and testing today -- let's look at the most pressing storylines and questions facing the team this season:

1) Will The Team Miss The Veteran Leadership Provided By Bill Guerin And Sergei Gonchar

As we all know, Gonchar was the first free agent -- notable or otherwise -- to sign a deal with a different team, leaping ship to sign a 3-year deal with the Ottawa Senators at about 12:20 PM on July 1, while Bill Guerin was not offered a new contract by Pens' GM Ray Shero and is now attending camp on a tryout contract with the arch-rival Philadelphia Flyers.

It's probably more sickening to face the realistic possibility that we may have to watch #13 where orange and black this year, but that aside, it is undeniable that both Guerin and Gonchar were steady, calming veteran leaders in the Pens' locker room for as long as they've been with the team. 

Guerin, in particular, was a huge factor when the Penguins won the Cup in 2009.

Sure, the Penguins still have respected veterans on the team.  Matt Cooke is one.  Mike Rupp is another.  But are their young players -- Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal -- ready to step up and be true leaders?  Personally, I think they're well-suited to do that, largely because of how battle-tested they've had to become, quickly, over the last several playoff seasons.  Nobody can deny Crosby's leadership, and Staal would be a realisitc Captain candidate on many other teams. 

Another guy you can't overlook on the leadership department is defenseman Brooks Orpik.  Like Staal, Orpik is a natural leader who has always been known as the conscience of the team.  He speaks his mind and isn't afraid to call out the group for poor performance.  It will be criminal if Orpik doesn't permanently don the "A" that Gonchar wore the last few years for the coming season. 

All in all, I don't believe the Penguins will be lacking in the leadership department this season.

2)  Will Evegni Malkin Return To Form?

While Malkin had a decent season last year by mortal standards with 77 points, we know he's capable of putting up a lot greater numbers.  The 2009 Art Ross Trophy winner was limited to some degree by injury last season, and that didn't help his cause, but there were many other games when he was notably quiet while in the lineup. 

I think Geno struggled with his emotions a little bit last year, too.  The injury got him down and, when coupled with his sometimes poor play, he got into a mental funk that he wasn't able to shake. 

When he's one his game, Geno is one of the three best players in the world, and while the Penguins may not need him at that level every night, there's no disputing that they need more from him than they got last season.  If he gets back his high level of play on a more consistent basis and flirts with the 40 goal/100 point barrier again, the Penguins won't complain.

Because I suspect we'll see a better season from #71, the bigger issue surrounding him this year may actually be where he bides his time.

Until just days ago, it appeared as if Bylsma was going to play Malkin at wing on the 2nd line with Staal, in an effort to boost the team's top 6 scoring and spread out some of the other guys who are capable of playing in a 3rd line role for the team.  The news that Gronk now won't be ready to start the season after another procedure related to his foot may change that.

Or it may not.

It seems as if Blysma is still going to give Geno some time on the wall, and maybe see if a guy like Hilary Duff's husband (a.k.a. Mike Comrie) can slide into the center spot temporarily.  I still think Malkin will now see a little more time at his familiar center position than had been anticipated, though.  At least initially. 

Either way, Geno's play -- and where he plays -- will be one of the most interesting storylines to watch both in camp and in the regular season this year.

3)  Will The Sum Of The Power Play Finally Equal Its Talented Parts?

With the personnel wearing black and gold on a regular basis, the Penguins should consistently produce a top-5 man-advantage unit.  For some reason, though, that has been lacking the last several years, as Pittsburgh has hovered around 20th overall in the league power-play rankings for long stretches.

Can they finally improve those figures this year?  It's going to be interested to track, because so much of what drove the power-play in prior seasons -- Gonchar quartbacking the unit on the ice and assistant coach Mike Yeo quarterbacking it from the bench -- is gone.

With the departure of both those guys, the Penguins will have an opportunity to try some new things, and while Gonchar was so effective and so smooth at getting his shots on the net and making all the little plays to drive the man-advantage engine from the center point, it's time to finally shake the power-play's underachiever label.

Bylsma is going to take over the job of overseeing the man-advantage, and he may very well decide to run the power play through the half-wall like we saw for so many years with a guy wearing #66 patrolling the ice in Pittsburgh.  If Crosby or Malkin don't take the stage there, whoever it is that takes Gonchar's place on the point will likely drive the group.

While he really needs to get better at hitting the net on a more consistent basis, I think Kris Letang deserves a spot on the top 5 both because of his skill and the fact that he's a right-handed shot.  But it's not likely that the man-advantage would run through him.  That would likely be through either smooth newcomer Paul Martin or holdover Alex Goligoski on the other side.

Martin is a great puck distributor, and I think he has the potential to show off some previously untapped offensive potential in Pittsburgh -- particularly on the power-play.  But my guess is that GoGo might get the first crack at playing the other point on the man-advantage.

Goligoski is very slick with the biscuit, and he sees the ice well.  He's played on the power play in Gonchar's absence before and has had decent success, which can't be surprising because he was always viewed as a power play quarterback dating to his time at the University of Minnesota.  That was always his game -- offense. 

It's hard to think the Penguins will do worse in that area, if only because they can't fall much further in the rankings.  But the real question is whether they will do better, and if so how much.  Again, this is a big question worth watching for the coming year.

4)  Will A Young Player Crack The Penguins Roster?

1-2 months ago, conventional wisdom was that the Penguins would finally have an opening or two for a young player to (hopefully) seize in this year's camp.

However, when Shero signed Aaron Asham and then Hilary Duff's husband, that view changed somewhat.

Now, with Staal on the shelf for all of camp and a week or two after that, the picture has changed again.

First of all, I think Shero did the right thing by adding those both Asham and Hilary Duff's husband.  The Penguins needed some depth and potential, and he added it with low risk.  AND, in bringing those two guys on board, he also created competition and sent a message to his young players that they aren't going to have anything handed to them.

At this point -- barring any trade or further injury throughout camp -- I think one young player has a chance to stick up front.  The question is, who's that going to be?

Will it be power-forward-in-waiting Eric Tangradi?  Tangradi -- who had his NHL debut last season in the team's regular season finale against the New York Islanders -- has trained as hard as he ever has this summer to try and crack the roster, and he seems to have added an edge to his game.  He's the protype of a player the Penguins need on their top 2 lines.  While I think the team hopes he has a great camp, I think they wouldn't mind sending him to Wilkes-Barre, having him dominate there for a month or two, then call him up.

Will it be Mark Letetsu?  Letetsu may be the most intriguing player to watch in camp, because he filled in quite capably on the third line last year in Staal's absence, and provides Bylsma with a right-handed face-off option there.  He's not a kid like some of the other Penguins' prospects and has come somewhat out of nowhere the last 2 seasons to be looked at as a guy who might realistically be able to fill a role and fill it well at the NHL level.   He may actually end up being the best fit for the team's needs right now.

Will it be Nick Johnson?  Johnson also filled in relatively well in spot top-6 forward duty last year, playing 6 games and scoring a goal.  Many think he has the most-balanced, NHL-ready skill set of anyone among the prospects in the Penguins' organization.

Will it be Dustin Jeffrey?  Jeffrey was drafted as a center several years ago, and initially, the feeling was that he had a ceiling on him as a 3rd/4th line role player in the NHL, but he moved to the wing full-time last year at Wilkes-Barre and played exceedingly well offensively.  On top of that, Jeffrey had a strong prospect development camp, and was one of the team's best players in the prospect camp that just ended earlier this week.

While a few other intriguing players are going to be watched for the potential final roster spot -- like veteran Ryan Craig and AHL pick-up Brett Sterling, to name two -- it's probably more likely for it to be taken by one of the 4 guys I already mentioned.

One last thing on young players making the roster:  While most people think that the Penguins' 6th blueline position will go to defenseman Ben Lovejoy, I wouldn't rule out the possibility that a young player could surprise in camp and steal it from him.

Can you say Simon Despres?

Despres was a great prospect when the Penguins' drafted him last year and the hulking, skilled giant has grown by leaps and bounds since then on the ice.  In just one year, Despres is already at the point where he's dominating his competition game in and game out at the junior level.  He did the same thing amongst his peers at the development camp and prospect camp.  He's going to be NHL-ready at any time now, and while he isn't AHL-eligible this season (which means he goes back to his St. John Sea Dogs junior team for one more year if he doesn't stick with the big club), the Penguins can keep him for up to 10 games before sending him back without losing a year from his contract.

Depending on how well Despres plays in the next 3 weeks, they may do just that.

Personally, I wouldn't be adverse to seeing him get that window to strut his stuff with the big club.  Staal had the same window 4 seasons ago and played so well that the team was forced to keep him.  Could the same thing happen with Despres?  It's possible.  But I think the team should take a hard look at that option because there's nothing wrong with bringing up Lovejoy at that time if Despres needs to be sent back down. 

I actually like Lovejoy.  He played well with the team in 12 games last year.  He was steady, didn't make mistakes, and showed a competent two-way game.  But Despres has a greater ceiling -- both offensively and defensively -- there's no question about it. 

While the Penguins' actually have other good, near-NHL ready prospects on defense like Brian Strait and Robert Bortozzo -- guys who will also be watched closely at camp --the question of whether Despres steals a spot in the Penguins' top 6 over Lovejoy will be the real blueline battle to keep an eye on.

5)  Can Marc-Andre Fleury Sharpen His Game And Focus Again?

It's hard to deny that Fleury had a below-his-capabilities regular season last year, and a playoff that didn't measure up to that level.  In fact, playing the most important position in hockey, one could fairly argue that had Fleury risen his game even somewhat in the post-season last year, the Penguins would have knocked off the Montreal Canadiens (and probably the Philadlephia Flyers, too) and could have been palying in their 3rd straight final.

As it was, Fleury may have been burned out a bit from all the high-stakes hockey he had played the last several years.  That, coupled with the 3-week break last seaons where he went away for the Olypmics but didn't see competitive action, might have -- in all fairness -- kept him from getting into a good rhythm.

But there's no question that the Penguins need that from Fleury.  They don't need him to have a sub 2.00 GAA, but they do need better from him.  If he can get back to making the timely save for the team, and focus on his consistency during the regular season, the Penguins will benefit greatly.  Fleury is never going to lead the league in individual goaltending numbers, but I, his teammates, and the organization are all more than happy to look past that if he is able to get back to just being above average and making the timely save.  That alone would go a long way to put the Penguins in position for another championship.

That's it boys and girls.  There obviously are other things worth watching in camp, too -- the impact of the Staal injury and the new-look Penguins' defense to name two -- but these topics should be at the top of everyone's list as we all get ready to roll with on-ice action beginning tomorrow morning.

The offseason was too long this year.  I'm excited to get back at it.  I know you are, too.

More soon.