Marc-Andre Fleury remembers not being able to look at the Joe Louis Arena clock, which felt like it was moving at a glacial pace. Sidney Crosby recalls the agony of not being able to be on the ice for the final seconds, sidelined with an injury. Matt Cooke thinks back to the ecstasy of when the clock hit zero, jumping over the boards the instant the final horn sounded.
The players involved all have different memories that stand out from the Penguins’ 2009 Stanley Cup championship, but that victory and title run forever linked the players on the ice and on the bench that night in Detroit.
The Penguins are honoring that 2009 Cup team before today’s game against Tampa Bay, and many were on hand watching practice Saturday.
“I never really thought how tight it would be until you actually won with guys,” former forward Tyler Kennedy said. “People always tell me, ‘Oh you’ll never forget the team you won it with.’ When I come back and see these faces, it’s just like old times, you know? You’re telling stories and having fun.”
Five players from that 2009 team — Fleury, Crosby, center Evgeni Malkin, defenseman Kris Letang and winger Chris Kunitz — are still on the Penguins. When Fleury saw his former teammates in the stands in practice, he offered up a wave of his glove from the ice.
“Guys gave everything they had on the ice, but off the ice it was a great group,” Fleury said. “A lot of laughter. As a group, in general, we were very close all together.”
Attendance won’t be perfect today, as several members of the 2009 team are still active NHL players; Kennedy’s former center, Jordan Staal, has a game for the Hurricanes at the same time as the Penguins.
For those who have retired, though, the ceremony is a chance to reminisce about, as Ruslan Fedotenko called it, the “pinnacle” of one’s hockey career.
“For every part of who I am, Pittsburgh is home,” said Cooke, who is currently coaching high school hockey in Minnesota. “If there ever were a situation where we were moving back here, my family would do it in a heartbeat.”
There was one part of this trip back that was a bit odd for Cooke, though.
“It’s weird not seeing the rink [Civic Arena] across the street, even though I ended up playing three years in this arena,” he said. “History was made in that other rink. It’s weird to not see it exist. Just a cool experience being around. Brings back great memories.”
Back at it
The Penguins will make their 2017 debut today when they take on the Lightning, while Tampa Bay will be playing its second game in as many days.
The first period could indicate pretty quickly whether the Penguins are rusty or rested coming off their “bye week.” The Penguins last played Dec. 31 against Montreal.
“We tried to have a good pace in practice, have the right tempo,” Fleury said. “There’s nothing like playing games, right? I think we’ve got to make the most of practices and we’ll be well-rested.”
Coach Mike Sullivan said he and his staff tried to put together a plan going into the break that would maximize the rest, yet still have the team prepared coming back from the week away.
“For me, that’s all we can do,” he said. “Now it’s about mindset. It’s about being ready to play and not easing into a game, but making sure that we’re ready to play right from the drop of the puck.”
Busy sports day
The Penguins delayed the start of today’s game until 5 p.m. to accommodate the Steelers’ 1 p.m. playoff game. They’re also hoping the fans that show up at PPG Paints Arena will be in a celebratory mood, rather than a mournful one.
“People get excited about sports and love their sports here, so we're definitely pulling for [the Steelers], want to see them do well,” Crosby said. “Hopefully we can do our part, get a big win. It's fun when everyone's getting behind every team here.”
The team announced doors to the arena will open at 3:30 p.m., and the end of the Steelers’ game will be played on the main video board as well as TV screens throughout the building.
Over it
Sullivan said Fleury and winger Carl Hagelin, both of whom missed Friday’s practice due to illness, will be ready to play today.
Sam Werner: swerner@post-gazette.com and Twitter @SWernerPG
First Published: January 8, 2017, 5:00 a.m.
