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Hockey Hall of Famer Paul Coffey

Defenseman Paul Coffey, whose blazing speed, breathtaking skill and winning attitude helped transform the Penguins of the early 1990s into Stanley Cup champions, was inducted into the team's Hall of Fame last month. PSR chatted with the NHL great.

Q: How often do you get back to Pittsburgh?

A: Not enough. I haven't been back since I stopped playing. But, it's nice to be back.

Q: How nice is it for you to be inducted into the Penguins Hall of Fame?

A: It's great. It's a huge honor. I have been lucky since my career ended that I had a chance to go into the Hockey Hall of Fame and get my jersey retired in Edmonton. This is tied for first with all of those things. This came as a little bit of a surprise, but I really enjoyed almost five years here in Pittsburgh. I took a lot of pride in wearing that jersey. I am happy to be here. I have three young kids so it's nice to be able to share it with them.

Q: Your two sons who came to Mellon Arena with you were wearing Sidney Crosby Penguins jerseys - don't they have any Paul Coffey Penguins jerseys?

A: It's funny. About two months ago, my four-year-old told me his favorite player is Sid the Kid. I said 'That's great; I can live with that.' He also said, 'Yeah Dad, I have a favorite Edmonton Oiler, too.' I said, 'That's great, who is that?' He said, 'Wayne Gretzky,' (Laughs). I don't think he even knows I played hockey. With my kids picking Sidney Crosby as a role model, you can't go wrong there. I have heard the kid speak on numerous occasions and he respects the game and the players before him.

Q: What do you think of Sidney as a player?

A: The sky is the limit. He's been in the league a couple of years now and done everything that's been expected of him. If he continues to improve like he is - and I am sure he will - then the sky is the limit for him. He's going to take this franchise on his shoulders, which he has done in his first few years, and continue to grow. He has the determination and makeup. He's going to be a marked man, which is a strong word, but he's in the class of Wayne and Mario, where guys are going to be hard on him every night and he's got to be at his best. When he is, it's just going to make him a better player.

Q: How would Paul Coffey have defended Sidney Crosby?

A: He is one of those guys, and I keep reverting back to Wayne and Mario, that you can never totally defend, but hopefully you can somewhat isolate him a little bit. He's going to score on you, it's just how many. You just have to play as best you can against him.

Q: Do you like watching him?

A: Oh yeah. From a pure fan's standpoint, it's very entertaining to watch him play.

Q: It's been 20 years since you were traded to Pittsburgh on Nov. 24, 1987, following a contract dispute in Edmonton. What did you think about that when you first heard it?

A: I was excited. The Edmonton thing had pretty much run its course. I knew something was going to happen. I had been talking behind the scenes to Eddie Johnston a little bit and there was a chance he was going to pull off the deal here in Pittsburgh, which I was excited about - to play with an up-and-coming player like Mario. Our first game here, we were down 4-0 to Quebec and ended up coming back and beating them. We had a pretty decent run at it. About a week into being here, and I was staying with Danny Quinn at the time, I remember saying to myself, 'Man, what have you gotten yourself into here?' There seemed to be such a lot of work that needed to be done with this organization. I was lucky enough to play with some great players and a great organization in Edmonton. I just wanted to add anything from those past experiences here to here that I could. Eddie Johnston and everyone else involved with the team back then wanted to get better and were receptive to listening. You look back now, 20 years later - Stanley Cups, arguably the top player in the league right now and a new arena on the horizon and things are in great shape here in Pittsburgh.

Q: You played in such an exciting era of hockey and then the game got sort of bogged down in the late 1990s and early 2000s. What do you think of the NHL now?

A: I love it. I have to be honest with you, I think six years ago I wasn't watching a lot of hockey because it was too predictable - it was going to be 2-2 with five minutes to go to overtime. Now, it's exciting and your skilled players are allowed to play and the ones that maybe aren't so skilled know they have to get better and they are getting better. I think, from a pure fan's point of view, it's real exciting to watch.

Q: Did you realize when you were playing just how exciting it was to be in the NHL and the things you were accomplishing?

A: You don't because you're just living in the second and what's going on right then. If I would have known it was going to be that much fun, maybe I would have taken a little better care of myself and maybe played longer, I don't know? (Laughs) It was a lot of fun. For me, I feel very blessed to have had a chance to play with all those great players. I still say probably the most-exciting year I ever had a chance to participate in was probably 1989 when Mario got 199 points. That's not taking anything away from Wayne when he had 212 and 215. From a pure talent point of view and taking the team on his shoulders - we all watched Mario's tapes and he used to beat guys four or five times and then decide to shoot. It was very exciting.

Q: Standing in this lockerroom, what kind of memories come back to you?

A: Lots. I just told Mario in the back room there that they have done a fabulous job in this lockerroom not losing sight of what has happened here in years gone past and keeping the commitment. You can't help but think of the Pittsburgh Penguins when you walk into this dressing room. If you're a present-day player right now and you're not quite sure what you're doing, as soon as you walk in here, you certainly know what you're doing - you're representing the Penguins and that's great. I am sure with the new arena, in the new dressing room, you can sometimes lose coziness when you're building a new rink, but I am sure they will try to keep it cozy like this and keep it team-oriented.

Q: Do you skate at all still?

A: Yep. I help coach my son's team and skate with some musician buddies back in Toronto.

Q: Do you still cram your feet into small skates?

A: No, no. I have matured now. They are nice and comfortable now and tied loose. (Laughs)

Q: No problems with the normal-size skates?

A: I have always had back problems and that's an ongoing thing. I have to constantly get stretched out and adjusted. I think having the bigger skates helps, though.