Mario Lemieux has been too good for too many years to believe the Pittsburgh Penguins will keep being so bad for too much longer.
So before Lemieux and the few other remaining Penguins veterans went through their first practice of training camp Friday, they talked about the numerous predictions they will be the NHL's worst club this season.
"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 team the last two seasons, but for the wrong reasons, missing the playoffs while winning only 55 of a combined 164 games. The back-to-back failures led to the cost-cutting roster makeover that has left them with one of the youngest lineups in pro sports.
So before Lemieux and the few other remaining Penguins veterans went through their first practice of training camp Friday, they talked about the numerous predictions they will be the NHL's worst club this season.
"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 team the last two seasons, but for the wrong reasons, missing the playoffs while winning only 55 of a combined 164 games. The back-to-back failures led to the cost-cutting roster makeover that has left them with one of the youngest lineups in pro sports.
