CANONSBURG, Pa. - Mario Lemieux has been too good for too many years to believe his Penguins will be bad much longer.
So before Lemieux and the handful of other Pittsburgh veterans went through their first practice of training camp Friday, they talked about all the predictions that they will be the league's worst club.
"We don't care about the rest of the hockey world, really," Lemieux said. "Everybody's picking us to finish 30th and that's fine and that's something we talked about. All that matters is that we're in this together and we know what we can do. I think we'll surprise a lot of people."
They were a surprise the past two seasons, but for the wrong reasons: Pittsburgh missed the playoffs and won 55 of 164 games. The back-to-back failures led to the cost-cutting roster makeover that left them with one of the youngest lineups in pro sports.
The Penguins have 17 players 25 or younger competing for spots on the roster. They might begin the season with two goalies, Sebastien Caron and No.1 draft pick Marc-Andre Fleury, whose combined age is only a couple of years more than Lemieux, soon to be 38.
Even the coach is relatively young and inexperienced. Eddie Olczyk, who never has coached at any level, will be the same age as Lemieux when the season starts.
Still, Lemieux thinks a combination of speed, youthful skill and a defense-first system designed to instill patience on a historically wide-open team will make the Penguins playoff contenders.
"We've got to make the playoffs. That's the message we got in the meeting we had with the coaching staff" and general manager Craig Patrick, Lemieux said.
"Our only goal is to make the playoffs."
To get the most out of what is expected to be the league's lowest-paid team, Olczyk envisions a system that blends a star-smothering style like that employed by the Wild and Mighty Ducks with one that permits offensive creativity.
Lemieux shed at least 10 pounds during the most active offseason of his career and is visibly lighter than at any time since ending his 44-month retirement in December 2000.
BLUE JACKETS: Defenseman Luke Richardson was announced as team captain. Richardson is entering his 17th season and second with Columbus, and has appeared in 1,183 career games.
FLAMES: Defenseman Rhett Warrener, acquired in a July trade with Buffalo, signed.
STARS: Goaltender Marty Turco, who has been offered a $12-million, three-year contract, was not at the team meeting Thursday that marked the beginning of training camp, officially making him a holdout. Turco set a modern record last season with a 1.72 goals-against average.
USA-CANADA AGREEMENT: USA Hockey and Hockey Canada reached an agreement on the transfer of junior players across the federations. The one-year agreement clears the way for players who join teams across the border to be eligible this season.
