Pre-season game against Columbus date change.

The pre-season game at Mellon Arena between the Pens and the Columbus Blue Jackets has been moved to Tuesday, September 15th. The game was originally scheduled for Friday, September 25th.
The conflict in the schedule was due to the G-20 Summit taking place the 24th through the 25th.

Pre-Season schedule.

Home games against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets highlight the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2009 pre-season schedule.

The Stanley Cup champions will open the pre-season against Toronto on Friday, Sept. 18 at Mellon Arena (7:30 p.m.).
The Penguins also will play host to Columbus on Friday, Sept. 25 at Mellon Arena (7:30 p.m.)

The six-game schedule includes home-and-home matchups with Toronto and Columbus, as well as road games at Montreal and Detroit.

The Penguins’ 2009 pre-season schedule:
Friday, Sept. 18, TORONTO AT PITTSBURGH, 7:30 p.m.
Monday, Sept. 21, Pittsburgh at Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 22, Pittsburgh at Toronto, 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 24, Pittsburgh at Columbus, 7:00 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 25, COLUMBUS AT PITTSBURGH, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 27, Pittsburgh at Detroit, 5:00 p.m.

-pittsburghpenguins.com
http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=436624

Pens win final Pre-season game against Jokerit.

The Penguins won their final pre-season game today 4-1 against Jokerit. Malkin, Fedotenko, Kennedy, and Dupuis scored for the Penguins. Dupuis had an empty-netter with 13 seconds left. Crosby added 3 assists. Jokerit's Janne Lahti scored on a penalty shot in the third after being upended by Brooks Orpik.
Fleury and Sabourin split playing time.
This means that the next game action will be Saturday, when the regular season opens against Ottawa in Sweden! I am extremely excited for this season to get underway.

Fedotenko to play Left Wing on Crosby's line against Jokerit.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/penguins/s_590781.html?source=rss&feed=8

Ruslan Fedotenko may not start the season on the first unit with Sidney Crosby and Miroslav Satan, but it will be that way Thursday in Finland against Jokerit for a preseason game. Of course, nobody expects to see great chemistry on a new line but if things go well, who knows? Fedotenko says being on a line with Sidney Crosby, or any line for that matter, is not something you can go "home and study." It is a "play and see" arrangement. So, let's just wait and see for ourselves.

Sykora is still out with a sore throat and other flu-like symptoms and he also did not take part in the scavenger hunts that took place today. He is expected to be back to practice Wednesday though.

Scavenger Hunt in Sweden.

The Pens have had a rushed preseason schedule and that also means less time for team bonding. However, Pens management found a way of fitting it into their cramped schedule. What better way than team scavenger hunts in Sweden?
http://fans.nhl.com/groups/Bridgestone_NHL_Premiere_2008__Stockholm/blogs/21091
The link is a blog from an NHL.com writer about his adventure with "Team Volvo," which consisted of Hal Gill, Evgeni Malkin, Eric Godard, and John Curry. They finished well behind the other groups, it took them over 4 hours to complete the hunt! However, Gill made sure it was not boring. Cracking jokes and carrying around a viking horn made the journey that much more fun for this group! It was also great for sightseeing, as part of its purpose other then bonding, and they were all over taking a bus ride and a boat ride and of course walking.
Here are some links for photos from "Team Volvo's" journey and other teams as well from NHL.com and feel free to look through more on NHL.com.

http://fans.nhl.com/groups/Bridgestone_NHL_Premiere_2008__Stockholm/photos/89757
http://fans.nhl.com/groups/Bridgestone_NHL_Premiere_2008__Stockholm/photos/89758
http://fans.nhl.com/groups/Bridgestone_NHL_Premiere_2008__Stockholm/photos/89759
http://fans.nhl.com/groups/Bridgestone_NHL_Premiere_2008__Stockholm/photos/89760

2nd pre-season game tonight against Tampa Bay. Malone in line-up.

It is well known that a handful of former Penguins now play for the Tampa Bay Lightning. One of the most popular being Ryan Malone. A player born and raised in Pittsburgh and who came to be a fan favorite. I knew Malone would be leaving once I heard that he was the last one in his stall with his uniform still on and crying after the loss in game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. He knew his time in Pittsburgh was over and therefore, so did I. Now, he says that he would have taken less money to stay here and that he was sure a deal could have been done a long time ago. Yes, Shero was holding out on a few players to see what would be best for the team and Malone may have been brushed to the side a little bit. However, I do not blame either side for the split. Malone apparently had offers he could have accepted, whatever the reason behind it, he did not. Shero was holding out hope for Marian Hossa to sign here and was wondering how much money it would take to do so. Then, the business side of hockey came in, a deal could not be reached between Malone and the Pens and Malone's rights were traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning, along with Gary Robert's, another fan favorite. It would be easy to pin the blame on Shero or Malone for this matter, but there is no point in doing so. These things happen and I wish Malone the best of luck with his career and I will always be a fan of his. He had his best season last season on a line with Evgeni Malkin, and I am sure he is gracious for that opportunity and his time here in Pittsburgh.


However, I do hope that the Pens have an exciting pre-season game tonight and I hope the outcome goes in our favor. Tonight's game will not be filled with the Pens best players, that is to be expected in pre-season games though. This is a game where many players looking to make the final roster will have to give their best skill to make the decision hard. Whoever does not make the team, it is their own fault.