Baby Penguins'
By Bob Grove

Often lost in the Baby Penguins' recent march to the Calder Cup Finals was the holistic view of Pittsburgh's first five seasons as owner and operator of its own American Hockey League franchise.

The Wilkes Barre/Scranton Penguins have established themselves as a popular brand in the northeastern corner of the state while playing in a beautiful new building. They have also deposited the development of players squarely in Pittsburgh's control.

It's a long way from the late nineties, when Craig Patrick was sending players to Syracuse, an affiliation shared with Vancouver and coached by a Canucks' hire.

"Having our own development program where the ice time for our players isn't determined by other people has been tremendous," says Patrick. "Going to the finals in two of the last four years has meant a lot, too. It's a very successful franchise."

TK breaks out

After five pro seasons, forward Tom Kostopoulos had a breakthrough 2003-04. He played a career-high 60 NHL games, then captained the Baby Penguins to the Calder Cup Finals while finishing as their playoff scoring leader.

It was a piece of uncanny timing for the 25-year-old, because he became an unrestricted free agent, having completed three pro seasons by age 25 while playing fewer than 80 NHL games.

There's no reason to believe other teams won't be interested, but Kostopoulos seems likely to make every effort to re-sign with the Penguins. He now has his foot firmly in the door with the team and coach Ed Olczyk, and it's possible leaving Pittsburgh might bring him a little more money but a lot less NHL roster security.

"Anytime you go somewhere new, there are risks," says Kostopoulos. "I haven't really thought too much about it. I'm going to wait and see what Pittsburgh does.

"I'd like to re-sign with the Penguins. I think they know me better than anyone else. My personality and my character are some of my best traits as a player, and they know that better than anyone."

Asked if the Baby Penguins' playoff push turned into a showcase for anyone in particular, Patrick was guarded: "A lot of guys played well. But since we're approaching contract time, I'm not going to get into it."

Century Mark

Hockey training long ago became a year-round endeavor for NHL players, but Kostopoulos, Brooks Orpik and Konstantin Koltsov might be wise to back off their summer routine a bit. All three are coming off lengthy seasons.

Including preseason games, Koltsov played 114 games, Orpik 111 and Kostopoulos 109. Olczyk agrees those are big numbers. "They don't cheat," he said. "But they're young guys, and the experience they gained will really help them in the future."

No Return on 68

Three years after the Jaromir Jagr trade and the Penguins are still waiting.

Michal Sivek missed the AHL post-season with a torn labrum, injuries cost Ross Lupaschuk all but eight games and Kris Beech - the most highly-rated prospect of the three former Capitals who were traded for Jagr - continued to fall short of expectations. Injuries have plagued the 23-year-old Beech, but the bottom line is that he's being passed by other Pens' prospects.