PSR Showdown
What Wll Make The Pens’ Season A Success?

Just Make the Playoffs
By John Buccigross
ESPN

I was born in Allegheny General Hospital, played pond and street hockey in Indiana PA, and have a tattoo of Battleship Kelly on my left thigh. I want the Penguins to succeed. And I’ll be rooting for Edzo and the boyz while I lug around Barry Melrose’s vat of hair gel behind him here at ESPN. But, I believe the upcoming season will be a success for the Penguins if they just make the playoffs.

Mario Lemieux turns 40 opening night. Mark Recchi turns 38 on Feb. 1. John LeClair is a 36 year-old man whose back is in the same shape as Danny Murtaugh’s was when he managed the Pirates in 1975. Ziggy Palffy turns 34 next May. Sergei Gonchar is an elite offensive player, but not very defensive. Their goaltender, Jocelyn Thibault, is 4-11 in the postseason and has never won a playoff series. Read that sentence 23 more times before continuing. Thibault is also coming off hip surgery. He’s a small goaltender who becomes smaller with the leaner mandated equipment.

Four teams are locks in the East: Tampa Bay, Philadelphia, Boston, and Ottawa. I also like Atlanta, Montreal and New Jersey to be playoff bound. That leaves one spot among five teams: The Penguins, Islanders, Maple Leafs, Sabres and Panthers.

Islanders: The Penguins are better. However, Rick DiPietro frightens me. He could carry New York.

Maple Leafs: This team resembles the Pens. Except Toronto has no Crosby, no Orpik, and their goalie, Ed Belfour, turns 41 in April.

Sabres: This team will do well with the new NHL rules. Watch out for Thomas Vanek.

Panthers: Lots of good forwards, Roberto Luongo, and the demented Mike Keenan.

I don’t believe the Penguins should be considered a lock for the playoffs. The competition will be stiff and it won’t be easy. Considering from where they are coming from, making the playoffs would be a major accomplishment. Unless they acquire more depth, it shouldn’t be expected. Only hoped and rooted for.

John Buccigross is an anchor on ESPN’s SportsCenter.

Set the Bar Higher
By Mark Madden
ESPN Radio

Many factors must be considered when setting expectations for the Penguins:

¥ Will Mario Lemieux play more than a handful of games?

¥ Will the NHL stick to its "new" policy of refereeing by the letter of the rulebook?

¥ Can Eddie Olczyk motivate and guide stars the same way he did scrubs?

¥ Will Sidney Crosby live up to the hype?

The Lemieux question is crucial. If Lemieux can stay relatively injury-free and play 60 games, the Penguins will be one of the best teams in the East.

Even without Lemieux, the Penguins are a playoff team. Thibault, Gonchar, Palffy, Recchi, LeClair and Crosby will see to that.

If everything gets called, the power-play gives them a chance to finish first overall. If not, teams like the Flyers will trudge past them with bigger, stronger defensemen that are accomplished clutchers and grabbers.

To outsiders, Olczyk might seem a legitimate worry. Olczyk is, after all, not far removed from the broadcast booth. His grass-roots tactical approach in 2003-04 helped a scruffy roster of no-names improve all year, then go 10-4-3 over the season’s final month. But the no-names have given way to big names. Can Olczyk adjust?

No worry. Olczyk was once a big-name player himself. He knows the value of getting out of the way. His practices are crisp, his preparation detailed.

That leaves Crosby.

Crosby will take over the NHL sooner, not later. He’s already the third-best passer I’ve ever seen. You don’t need experience to get points in the NHL, you need instinct and talent. Crosby has an abundance of both, with an amazing degree of maturity to boot.

Crosby will elevate those around him, including Lemieux. He’s a top-10 scorer with a knack for big plays.

I expect the Penguins to finish in the top four of the Eastern Conference and to get through at least one playoff round. They could easily do better if Lemieux stays healthy and Crosby catches fire, two developments I consider likely.

Mark Madden hosts a sports talk show 3-7 p.m. weekdays on ESPN Radio 1250.