ppg paints arena address
PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins aloft addition Stanley Cup banderole Wednesday, and again aloft the blind on a new division with a 5-4 overtime accident to the St. Louis Blues.
To the Penguins, the moment that 2017 banderole accomplished the rafters in PPG Paints Arena, abutting those from 1991, 1992, 2009 and 2016, their anniversary of acceptable back-to-back championships was over and the adventure adjoin aggravating to win three in a row began.
In their opener, the Penguins showed they accept some assignment to do. They were awkward with the bogie at times and in their arresting reads adjoin the rush. But they battled aback from bottomward 4-2 in the third aeon to tie it on goals from Sidney Crosby and Conor Sheary afore Alex Pietrangelo won it for the Blues 1:15 into overtime.
[RELATED: Blues survive assemblage by Penguins, win in overtime in opener]
"I anticipate we played hard. I didn't anticipate we consistently played smart," Pittsburgh drillmaster Mike Sullivan said. "We gave up a cardinal of affairs off the rush. I anticipate we gave up three goals off the blitz area we had numbers back. We're not acquainted the threats abroad from the puck. Sometimes we're over-backchecking. We've got numbers aback and we're still giving up affection scoring chances. Those are aloof capacity we've got to get bigger at if we're activity to accept a adventitious to win amateur consistently."
After convenance Tuesday, Sullivan declared, "This is a new season. It's a aboriginal challenge. We're a new team."
The new claiming is a difficult one. No aggregation has won the Stanley Cup in three afterwards seasons aback the New York Islanders did it four seasons in a row from 1980-83.
But the Penguins' new aggregation looks a lot like the one from the antecedent two seasons. Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel, Kris Letang and Matt Murray were amid the 12 players in their calendar Wednesday who own rings from 2016 and 2017.
Some key pieces from their championship amount accept confused on though.
Video: Penguins accession 2016-17 Stanley Cup banner
Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and larboard addition Chris Kunitz, who forth with Crosby, Malkin and Letang fabricated up the Fab Five that won the Stanley Cup three times with Pittsburgh, were not there to see the new banderole raised, but anniversary was animated audibly aback his angel appeared in the 2016-17 highlight video played during the pregame ceremony.
Fleury is with the Vegas Golden Knights now afterwards actuality called in the NHL Expansion Draft, and Kunitz active with the Tampa Bay Lightning as an complete chargeless agent. Also gone from aftermost season's aggregation are defensemen Trevor Daley (Detroit Red Wings), Ron Hainsey (Toronto Maple Leafs) and Mark Streit (Montreal Canadiens), and centers Nick Bonino (Predators) and Matt Cullen (Minnesota Wild).
Daley was the alone one to accomplish it aback for the arena commemoration Monday.
"It's life. It's a business," Malkin said. "We accept that every year we see a altered face, a altered team."
The Penguins' four new faces -- advancement goaltender Antti Niemi, defenseman Matt Hunwick, centermost Gregg McKegg and appropriate addition Ryan Reaves -- were the aboriginal to be alien during aperture night festivities. They accustomed a balmy accession from the army and again stood on the dejected band as the heroes from aftermost division were animated one by one.
Crosby, the Penguins captain and Conn Smythe Trophy champ as MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs the accomplished two seasons, came out last, bringing the Cup with him. Aback accessible abode anchorperson Ryan Mill asked the players to footfall advanced and get afterpiece to the banderole afore it was raised, the four new Penguins initially remained uncomfortably behind, attractive borderline whether they were declared to participate.
Video: STL@PIT: Crosby hammers home backlash for PPG
Reaves eventually led them advanced to accompany the blow of the group.
"We weren't a allotment of that aftermost year and that was their appropriate moment, so I don't anticipate we capital to intrude," McKegg said. "But it was appealing agitative watching that banderole go up."
McKegg, who is aggravating to alter Bonino as the third-line center, did his allotment Wednesday, acceptable 13 of 17 draws, putting in some able assignment on the amends annihilate and ambience up Sheary's attached ambition from the appropriate amphitheater with 5:20 larboard in the third with a nice cross-ice pass. Hunwick, who like McKegg was active as complete chargeless abettor July 1, struggled at times, but he wasn't the alone one.
Even added than aftermost season, aback they alternate about all of their 2016 Stanley Cup team, the Penguins will be a assignment in advance with added new faces potentially actuality added to the mix afore the playoffs activate in April.
General administrator Jim Rutherford has been acceptable anniversary of the accomplished two seasons at free weaknesses and award replacements, and he acceptable will seek to do the aforementioned this season.
Video: Pens players, admirers blab Cup celebrity as banderole raises
Bonino, Daley and Carl Hagelin angry out to be key in-season additions in 2015-16. Aftermost season, he traded for Hainsey and Streit to strengthen the arresting depth.
This season, alike afterwards McKegg's solid opener, Rutherford ability feel the charge to accompany in addition third-line center.
"I don't anticipate we're any altered than any added teams in the League in a faculty that we're all a assignment in progress," Sullivan said. "We're all aggravating to get bigger to try to become the best aggregation that we can be aback the stakes get aerial at the end of the season."
