2005–06 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 2005–06 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team's 39th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The season was notable for being Sidney Crosby's rookie campaign. It would be the last time the Penguins missed the Stanley Cup playoffs until the 2019-20 NHL season.

2005–06 Pittsburgh Penguins
Division	5th Atlantic
Conference	15th Eastern
2005–06 record	22–46–14
Home record	12–21–8
Road record	10–25–6
Goals for	244
Goals against	316
Team information
General Manager	Craig Patrick
Coach	Eddie Olczyk
Captain	Mario Lemieux (Oct.–Jan.) Vacant (Jan.–Apr.)
Alternate captains	Sidney Crosby Sergei Gonchar John LeClair Mark Recchi (Oct.–Feb.) Josef Melichar
Arena	Mellon Arena
Average attendance	15,804[1]
Team leaders
Goals	Sidney Crosby (39)
Assists	Sidney Crosby (63)
Points	Sidney Crosby (102)
Penalty minutes	Brooks Orpik (124)
Plus/minus	Colby Armstrong (15)
Wins	Marc-Andre Fleury (13)
Goals against average	Marc-Andre Fleury (3.25)

Off-season

Pre-season

Pre-season: 2–5–2 (Home: 2–2–1 ; Road: 0–3–1) # Date Time Visitor Score Home Location/Attendance Record 1 September 19 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2-3 SO Columbus Blue Jackets Nationwide Arena 0-0-1 2 September 21 7:00 PM Boston Bruins 5-4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena 0-0-2 3 September 23 7:00 PM Ottawa Senators 3-0 Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena 0-1-2 4 September 24 7:00 PM Ottawa Senators 6-2 Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena 0-2-2 5 September 25 5:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2-3 Washington Capitals Verizon Center 0-3-2 6 September 27 7:30 PM Columbus Blue Jackets 2-7 Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena 1-3-2 7 September 29 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1-4 Ottawa Senators Corel Centre 1-4-2 8 September 30 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3-4 Washington Capitals Verizon Center 1-5-2 9 Oct. 2 7:30 PM Washington Capitals 1-7 Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena 2-5-2 Legend:           = Win           = Loss           = OT/SO Loss

Regular season

Sidney Crosby with the Penguins.

The Penguins struggled defensively, finishing 30th overall in goals allowed, with 310 (excluding 6 shootout goals allowed).[2][3]

Sidney Crosby

Sidney Crosby was selected first overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Penguins on July 30, 2005. Due to the labour stoppage in the previous season, the 2005 draft was conducted via a weighted lottery based on each team's playoff appearances and draft lottery victories in the last four years. This lottery system led to the draft being popularly referred to as the "Sidney Crosby Lottery" or the "Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes".[4]

On December 16, 2005, Michel Therrien named Crosby as an alternate captain for the Penguins. The move drew criticism from some hockey pundits, including Don Cherry, who claimed that Crosby had done nothing to earn the position.[5]

Crosby finished his rookie season with the franchise record in assists (63) and points (102) for a rookie, both of which had been previously held by Mario Lemieux. Crosby is the youngest player in the history of the NHL to score 100 points in a single season, and only the seventh rookie ever to hit the benchmark.[6] Overall, Crosby finished sixth in the NHL scoring race and seventh in the NHL in assists. Among Canadian NHL players, he trailed only Joe Thornton and Dany Heatley. While both Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals had impressive rookie campaigns, Crosby finished second behind Ovechkin for the Calder Memorial Trophy for NHL rookie of the year.

Through his first season, Crosby was accused by opposing players and coaches of taking dives and complaining to officials, which has been attributed to his youth.[7] During his rookie campaign, he was second on his team and fourth among all NHL rookies in penalty minutes, and is the only rookie to accumulate both 100 points and 100 penalty minutes in a single season in NHL history. This magnified his reputation for complaining to NHL officials.[8] Hockey analyst Kelly Hrudey compared Crosby to Gretzky, who had a similar reputation as a "whiner" in his youth, and suggested that as Crosby matured, he would mellow out and his reputation would fade.[8]

Mario Lemieux

After the lockout concluded, Lemieux returned to the ice for the 2005–06 season. Hopes for the Penguins were high due to the salary cap and revenue sharing, which enabled the team to compete in the market for several star players. Another reason for optimism was the Penguins winning the lottery for the first draft pick, enabling them to select Sidney Crosby. Lemieux opened up his home to Crosby to help the rookie settle in Pittsburgh and Lemieux also served as Crosby's mentor.

On January 24, 2006, Lemieux announced his second and permanent retirement from professional hockey at age 40. This followed a half-season in which he struggled not only with the increased speed of the "new NHL" but also with yet another threatening physical ailment, a heart condition called atrial fibrillation that caused him to experience irregular heartbeats.

Although he had put up points at a pace that most NHL forwards would be perfectly content with (22 points in 26 games) in his last season, Lemieux still remarked, "I can no longer play at a level I was accustomed to in the past."

Season standings

Atlantic Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	3	New Jersey Devils	82	46	27	9	242	229	101
2	5	Philadelphia Flyers	82	45	26	11	267	259	101
3	6	New York Rangers	82	44	26	12	257	215	100
4	12	New York Islanders	82	36	40	6	230	278	78
5	15	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	22	46	14	244	316	58

[9]

Eastern Conference[10]

R		Div	GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	Z- Ottawa Senators	NE	82	52	21	9	314	211	113
2	Y- Carolina Hurricanes	SE	82	52	22	8	294	260	112
3	Y- New Jersey Devils	AT	82	46	27	9	242	229	101
4	X- Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	52	24	6	242	239	110
5	X- Philadelphia Flyers	AT	82	45	26	11	267	259	101
6	X- New York Rangers	AT	82	44	26	12	257	215	100
7	X- Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	42	31	9	243	247	93
8	X- Tampa Bay Lightning	SE	82	43	33	6	252	260	92
8.5
9	Toronto Maple Leafs	NE	82	41	33	8	257	270	90
10	Atlanta Thrashers	SE	82	41	33	8	281	275	90
11	Florida Panthers	SE	82	37	34	11	240	257	85
12	New York Islanders	AT	82	36	40	6	230	278	78
13	Boston Bruins	NE	82	29	37	16	230	266	74
14	Washington Capitals	SE	82	29	41	12	237	306	70
15	Pittsburgh Penguins	AT	82	22	46	14	244	316	58

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

Schedule and results

2005–2006 Schedule
October: 1–5–5 (Home: 1–3–2 ; Road: 0–2–3), 7 Points # Oct Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 1 5 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–5 New Jersey Devils Mellon Arena (18,101) 0–1–0 0 2 7 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–3 SO Carolina Hurricanes Mellon Arena (18,787) 0–1–1 1 3 8 7:30 PM Boston Bruins 7–6 OT Pittsburgh Penguins TD Banknorth Garden (17,132) 0–1–2 2 4 10 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–3 OT Buffalo Sabres Mellon Arena (12,050) 0–1–3 3 5 14 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–6 OT Philadelphia Flyers Mellon Arena (19,566) 0–1–4 4 6 15 7:30 PM Tampa Bay Lightning 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins St. Pete Times Forum (17,132) 0–2–4 4 7 20 7:30 PM New Jersey Devils 6–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Izod Center (16,082) 0–3–4 4 8 22 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Boston Bruins Mellon Arena (17,565) 0–4–4 4 9 25 7:30 PM Florida Panthers 4–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins BankAtlantic Center (14,636) 0–4–5 5 10 27 7:30 PM Atlanta Thrashers 5–7 Pittsburgh Penguins Philips Arena (14,009) 1–4–5 7 11 29 7:30 PM Carolina Hurricanes 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins RBC Center (16,420) 1–5–5 7
November: 6–7–1 (Home: 2–3–1 ; Road: 4–4–0), 13 Points # Nov Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 12 1 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 OT New Jersey Devils Mellon Arena (10,134) 2–5–5 9 13 3 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–1 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (14,415) 3–5–5 11 14 5 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Boston Bruins Mellon Arena (17,565) 3–6–5 11 15 7 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–2 New York Rangers Mellon Arena (18,200) 4–6–5 13 16 9 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 0–5 Atlanta Thrashers Mellon Arena (14,046) 4–7–5 13 17 10 7:30 PM Montreal Canadiens 2–3 SO Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena (16,254) 5–7–5 15 18 12 7:30 PM New York Rangers 6–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Madison Square Garden (IV) (17,132) 5–8–5 15 19 14 7:30 PM New York Islanders 3–2 SO Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena (10,793) 5–8–6 16 20 16 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–2 OT Philadelphia Flyers Mellon Arena (19,687) 6–8–6 18 21 19 7:30 PM Philadelphia Flyers 6–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Wachovia Center (17,132) 6–9–6 18 22 22 7:30 PM Washington Capitals 4–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Verizon Center (16,978) 7–9–6 20 23 25 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Florida Panthers Mellon Arena (18,124) 7–10–6 20 24 27 5:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–4 Tampa Bay Lightning Mellon Arena (20,218) 7–11–6 20 25 29 7:30 PM Buffalo Sabres 3–2 Pittsburgh Penguins HSBC Arena (15,118) 7–12–6 20
December: 3–5–2 (Home: 3–1–2 ; Road: 0–4–0), 8 Points # Dec Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 26 1 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–2 New York Rangers Mellon Arena (18,200) 7–13–6 20 27 3 7:00 PM Calgary Flames 3–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Pengrowth Saddledome (16,626) 7–14–6 20 28 8 7:30 PM Minnesota Wild 5–0 Pittsburgh Penguins Xcel Energy Center (14,627) 7–15–6 20 29 10 7:30 PM Colorado Avalanche 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Pepsi Center (16,677) 8–15–6 22 30 12 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Detroit Red Wings Mellon Arena (20,066) 8–16–6 22 31 13 8:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 0–3 St. Louis Blues Mellon Arena (14,336) 8–17–6 22 32 16 7:00 PM Buffalo Sabres 4–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins HSBC Arena (16,648) 8–17–7 23 33 17 5:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Buffalo Sabres Mellon Arena (18,690) 8–18–7 23 34 23 7:30 PM Philadelphia Flyers 5–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Wachovia Center (17,132) 8–19–7 23 35 27 7:30 PM Toronto Maple Leafs 3–2 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Air Canada Centre (17,132) 8–19–8 24 36 29 7:30 PM New Jersey Devils 2–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Izod Center (17,132) 9–19–8 26 37 31 1:00 PM New York Rangers 3–4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Madison Square Garden (IV) (17,132) 10–19–8 28
January: 2–11–2 (Home: 1–5–0 ; Road: 1–6–2), 6 Points # Jan Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 38 2 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–3 OT Toronto Maple Leafs Mellon Arena (19,449) 10–19–9 29 39 3 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 6–4 Montreal Canadiens Mellon Arena (21,273) 11–19–9 31 40 6 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–6 Atlanta Thrashers Mellon Arena (17,209) 11–20–9 31 41 7 7:30 PM Atlanta Thrashers 4–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Philips Arena (17,132) 11–21–9 31 42 10 7:30 PM Edmonton Oilers 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Rexall Place (14,905) 11–22–9 31 43 11 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–6 Columbus Blue Jackets Mellon Arena (18,136) 11–23–9 31 44 13 8:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–4 Chicago Blackhawks Mellon Arena (20,541) 11–24–9 31 45 15 8:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–5 Nashville Predators Mellon Arena (17,113) 11–25–9 31 46 16 7:30 PM Vancouver Canucks 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins General Motors Place (15,681) 11–26–9 31 47 19 7:30 PM New York Rangers 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Madison Square Garden (IV) (14,272) 11–27–9 31 48 21 2:00 PM Philadelphia Flyers 2–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Wachovia Center (17,132) 11–28–9 31 49 23 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers Mellon Arena (19,726) 11–29–9 31 50 25 7:30 PM Washington Capitals 1–8 Pittsburgh Penguins Verizon Center (14,415) 12–29–9 33 51 26 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 SO New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (16,362) 12–29–10 34 52 28 2:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–7 New York Rangers Mellon Arena (18,200) 12–30–10 34
February: 2–4–1 (Home: 0–2–1 ; Road: 2–2–1), 5 Points # Feb Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 53 1 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 New York Rangers Mellon Arena (18,200) 12–31–10 34 54 2 7:30 PM Ottawa Senators 7–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Corel Centre (14,714) 12–32–10 34 55 4 2:00 PM New York Islanders 5–4 SO Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena (11,218) 12–32–11 35 56 6 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–5 Ottawa Senators Mellon Arena (19,877) 12–33–11 35 57 8 7:30 PM Boston Bruins 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins TD Banknorth Garden (15,603) 12–34–11 35 58 10 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 Carolina Hurricanes Mellon Arena (18,830) 13–34–11 37 59 11 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 6–3 Washington Capitals Mellon Arena (18,277) 14–34–11 39
March: 5–8–1 (Home: 3–5–1 ; Road: 2–3–0), 11 Points # Mar Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 60 1 7:30 PM Ottawa Senators 4–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Corel Centre (14,026) 14–35–11 39 61 4 7:30 PM Carolina Hurricanes 7–5 Pittsburgh Penguins RBC Center (16,293) 14–36–11 39 62 7 7:30 PM Tampa Bay Lightning 5–4 SO Pittsburgh Penguins St. Pete Times Forum (15,048) 14–36–12 40 63 8 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Washington Capitals Mellon Arena (14,374) 14–37–12 40 64 11 7:30 PM New Jersey Devils 3–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Izod Center (16,061) 15–37–12 42 65 12 7:30 PM Philadelphia Flyers 0–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Wachovia Center (14,904) 16–37–12 44 66 16 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–2 New Jersey Devils Mellon Arena (11,513) 16–38–12 44 67 18 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–4 Montreal Canadiens Mellon Arena (21,273) 17–38–12 46 68 19 7:30 PM Toronto Maple Leafs 1–0 Pittsburgh Penguins Air Canada Centre (15,174) 17–39–12 46 69 21 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–5 Ottawa Senators Mellon Arena (19,360) 17–40–12 46 70 24 7:30 PM New York Islanders 3–4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena (11,286) 18–40–12 48 71 26 7:30 PM Montreal Canadiens 6–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Bell Centre (14,807) 18–41–12 48 72 29 7:30 PM Florida Panthers 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins BankAtlantic Center (14,024) 18–42–12 48 73 31 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–0 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (15,210) 19–42–12 50
April: 3–4–2 (Home: 2–0–1 ; Road: 1–4–1), 8 Points # Apr Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 74 2 3:00 PM New Jersey Devils 3–2 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Izod Center (14,427) 19–42–13 51 75 5 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–6 New Jersey Devils Mellon Arena (13,118) 19–43–13 51 76 7 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–1 Florida Panthers Mellon Arena (14,776) 20–43–13 53 77 8 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 0–1 Tampa Bay Lightning Mellon Arena (20,844) 20–44–13 53 78 11 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Philadelphia Flyers Mellon Arena (19,756) 20–45–13 53 79 13 7:30 PM New York Rangers 3–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Madison Square Garden (IV) (15,155) 21–45–13 55 80 15 7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–5 SO New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (17,084) 21–45–14 56 81 17 7:30 PM New York Islanders 1–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Mellon Arena (12,282) 22–45–14 58 82 18 7:30 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–5 Toronto Maple Leafs Mellon Arena (19,392) 22–46–14 58
Legend:           = Win           = Loss           = OT/SO Loss

Playoffs

The Penguins did not qualify for the playoffs.

Player statistics

Skaters

Regular Season[11] Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Sidney Crosby 81 39 63 102 –1 110 Sergei Gonchar 75 12 46 58 –13 100 Mark Recchi^‡ 63 24 33 57 –28 56 John LeClair 73 22 29 51 –24 61 Ryan Malone 77 22 22 44 –22 63 Zigmund Palffy 42 11 31 42 5 12 Colby Armstrong 47 16 24 40 15 58 Ryan Whitney 68 6 32 38 –7 85 Michel Ouellet 50 16 16 32 –13 16 Ric Jackman^‡ 49 6 22 28 –20 46 Tomas Surovy 53 12 13 25 –13 45 Mario Lemieux 26 7 15 22 –16 16 Andy Hilbert^† 19 7 11 18 8 16 Josef Melichar 72 3 12 15 –2 66 Erik Christensen 33 6 7 13 –3 34 Eric Boguniecki^† 38 5 6 11 –2 29 Dick Tarnstrom^‡ 33 5 5 10 –10 52 Konstantin Koltsov 60 3 6 9 –10 20 Brooks Orpik 64 2 7 9 –3 124 Maxime Talbot 48 5 3 8 –12 59 Jani Rita^† 30 3 4 7 –6 4 Lasse Pirjeta 25 4 3 7 4 18 Matt Murley 41 1 5 6 –9 24 Noah Welch 5 1 3 4 0 2 Steve Poapst^‡ 21 0 4 4 –5 10 Rob Scuderi 57 0 4 4 –18 36 Andre Roy 42 2 1 3 –3 116 Shane Endicott 41 1 1 2 –9 43 Eric Cairns^† 27 1 0 1 0 87 Lyle Odelein 27 0 1 1 –10 50 Cory Cross^†‡ 6 0 1 1 –1 6 Matt Hussey 13 0 1 1 –5 0 Ryan Vandenbussche 20 1 0 1 0 42 Alain Nasreddine 6 0 0 0 2 8 Guillaume Lefebvre 9 0 0 0 –3 9 Rico Fata^‡ 20 0 0 0 –5 10 Niklas Nordgren^† 15 0 0 0 –4 4 Total 243 431 674 — 1,537

Goaltenders

Regular Season[12]

Player	GP	GS	TOI	W	L	OT	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Marc-Andre Fleury	50	45	2809:13	13	27	6	152	3.25	1485	0.898	1	0	1	0
Sebastien Caron	26	23	1312:18	8	9	5	87	3.98	733	0.881	1	0	1	0
Jocelyn Thibault	16	13	806:42	1	9	3	60	4.46	484	0.876	0	0	0	2
Dany Sabourin	1	1	20:33	0	1	0	4	11.68	14	0.714	0	0	0	0
Total		82	4948:46	22	46	14	303	3.67	2716	0.888	2	0	2	2

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.

Awards and records

• October 2005 – Sidney Crosby, NHL Rookie of the Month.
• Sidney Crosby, NHL All-Rookie Team.

Milestones

• Sidney Crosby played his first professional NHL game on October 5, 2005, against the New Jersey Devils, and registered an assist on the team's first goal of the season, scored by Mark Recchi in a 5–1 loss.[13]
• November 11, 2005 – Sidney Crosby beat Jose Theodore of the Montreal Canadiens to win his first career shootout.
• November 11, 2005- Mario Lemieux scores his seventh goal of the season, and the last of his career.
• November 22, 2005 – Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin face each other for the first time.
• March 12, 2006 – Marc-Andre Fleury gets a shutout by stopping 22 shots against the Philadelphia Flyers.
• March 29, 2006 – John LeClair scores the 400th goal of his career.
• January 24, 2006 – Mario Lemieux announces his retirement.
• April 13, 2006 – Sidney Crosby scores four points in one game, including his 90th point of the season.
• April 17, 2006 – Sidney Crosby becomes the youngest player to score 100 points in one season.

Transactions

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 2005–06 season:[14]

Trades

August 10, 2005	To Chicago Blackhawks 2006 4th round pick	To Pittsburgh Penguins Jocelyn Thibault
September 9, 2005	To Nashville Predators Kris Beech	To Pittsburgh Penguins conditional draft pick
December 9, 2005	To St. Louis Blues Steve Poapst	To Pittsburgh Penguins Eric Boguniecki
January 18, 2006	To Florida Panthers 2006 6th round pick	To Pittsburgh Penguins Eric Cairns
January 26, 2006	To Edmonton Oilers Dick Tarnstrom	To Pittsburgh Penguins Cory Cross Jani Rita
March 9, 2006	To Florida Panthers Ric Jackman	To Pittsburgh Penguins Petr Taticek
March 9, 2006	To Carolina Hurricanes Mark Recchi	To Pittsburgh Penguins Krystofer Kolanos Niklas Nordgren 2007 2nd round pick
March 9, 2006	To Detroit Red Wings Cory Cross	To Pittsburgh Penguins 2007 4th round pick

Free agents acquired Player Former team Contract terms Sergei Gonchar[15] Washington Capitals 5-year, $25M Zigmund Palffy[16] Los Angeles Kings 3-year, $13.5M Steve Poapst Chicago Blackhawks Lyle Odelein[17] Florida Panthers 1-year, $0.5M

Free agents lost Player New team Contract terms Landon Wilson HC Davos (NLA) Chris Kelleher Linköpings HC (Elitserien)

Claimed via waivers Date Player Previous team March 9, 2006 Andy Hilbert Chicago Blackhawks

Lost via waivers Date Player New team January 31, 2006[18] Rico Fata Atlanta Thrashers

Player signings

Player	Date	Contract terms
Noah Welch	August 3, 2005	3-year entry level contract
Ryan Lannon	August 3, 2005	3-year entry level contract
Rob Scuderi	August 9, 2005
Dany Sabourin	August 10, 2005
Jocelyn Thibault	August 10, 2005	Multi-year contract
Kris Beech	August 10, 2005	1-year qualifying offer
Shane Endicott	August 11, 2005	Multi-year contract
Colby Armstrong	August 12, 2005
Guillaume Lefebvre	August 15, 2005	Qualifying offer
John LeClair[19]	August 15, 2005	2-year contract
Josef Melichar	August 15, 2005	2-year contract
Matt Hussey	August 15, 2005	Qualifying offer
Matt Murley	August 15, 2005
Konstantin Koltsov	August 16, 2005
David Koci	August 17, 2005
Michel Ouellet	August 18, 2005	Multi-year contract
Dick Tarnstrom[20]	August 29, 2005	1-year/$1.6M contract
Sidney Crosby[21]	September 8, 2005	3-year/$850K contract
Mario Lemieux	September 9, 2005	1-year/$3M contract
Brooks Orpik	September 13, 2005	1-year contract
Tyler Kennedy	May 19, 2006	Multi-year contract
Micki DuPont	June 16, 2006
Evgeni Malkin	June 20, 2006	3-year entry level contract

Other

Player	Date	Details
Kevin Stevens	September 2, 2005	Hired as scout
Eddie Olczyk[22]	December 15, 2005	Fired as head coach
John Welday	December 15, 2005	Fired as strength & conditioning coach
Randy Hillier[22]	December 15, 2005	Fired as assistant coach
Shane Clifford	December 15, 2005	Fired as goaltending coach
Joe Mullen[22]	December 15, 2005	Fired as assistant coach
Michel Therrien[23]	December 15, 2005	Hired as head coach
Stephane Dube	December 15, 2005	Hired as strength and conditioning coach
Mike Yeo	December 15, 2005	Hired as assistant coach
Gilles LeFebvre	December 15, 2005	Hired as goaltending coach
Zigmund Palffy[24]	January 18, 2006	Retired
Mario Lemieux[25]	January 24, 2006	Retired
Craig Patrick[26]	April 20, 2006	Fired as GM
Ray Shero[27]	May 25, 2006	Hired as GM, 5-year contract

Roster

#	Nat	Player	Pos	S/G	Age	NHL Draft	Birthplace
20		Colby Armstrong	RW	R	23	2001	Lloydminster, Saskatchewan
18 or 23		Eric Boguniecki	C	R	31	1993	New Haven, Connecticut
33		Eric Cairns	D	L	31	1992	Oakville, Ontario
31		Sebastien Caron	G	L	25	1999	Amqui, Quebec
16		Erik Christensen	C	L	22	2002	Edmonton, Alberta
87		Sidney Crosby (A)	C	L	18	2005	Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia
14 or 23		Shane Endicott	C	L	24	2000	Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
29		Marc-Andre Fleury	G	L	21	2003	Sorel, Quebec
55		Sergei Gonchar (A)	D	L	32	1992	Chelyabinsk, Soviet Union
9		Andy Hilbert	LW	L	25	2000	Howell, Michigan
7 or 28		Matt Hussey	C	L	27	1998	New Haven, Connecticut
71		Konstantin Koltsov	LW	L	25	1999	Minsk, Soviet Union
10		John LeClair (A)	LW	L	36	1987	St. Albans, Vermont
11		Guillaume Lefebvre	LW	L	25	2000	Amos, Quebec
66		Mario Lemieux (C)	C	R	40	1984	Montreal, Quebec
12		Ryan Malone	LW	L	26	1999	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
2		Josef Melichar	D	L	27	1997	České Budějovice, Czechoslovakia
17		Matt Murley	LW	L	26	1999	Troy, New York
32		Alain Nasreddine	D	L	30	1993	Montreal, Quebec
15		Niklas Nordgren	LW	R	26	1997	Örnsköldsvik, Sweden
24		Lyle Odelein	D	L	37	1986	Quill Lake, Saskatchewan
44		Brooks Orpik	D	L	25	2000	San Francisco, California
7 or 59		Michel Ouellet	RW	R	24	2000	Rimouski, Quebec
33		Zigmund Palffy	RW	L	34	1991	Skalica, Czechoslovakia
11		Lasse Pirjeta	LW	L	32	2002	Oulu, Finland
28		Jani Rita	LW	R	24	1999	Helsinki, Finland
36		Andre Roy	RW	L	31	1994	Port Chester, New York
30		Dany Sabourin	G	L	25	1998	Val-d'Or, Quebec
5		Rob Scuderi	D	L	27	1998	Syosset, New York
43		Tomas Surovy	LW	L	24	2001	Banská Bystrica, Czechoslovakia
25		Maxime Talbot	C	L	22	2002	LeMoyne, Quebec
41		Jocelyn Thibault	G	L	31	1993	Montreal, Quebec
37		Ryan Vandenbussche	RW	R	33	1992	Simcoe, Ontario
4		Noah Welch	D	L	23	2001	Brighton, Massachusetts
6 or 19		Ryan Whitney	D	L	23	2002	Scituate, Massachusetts

Draft picks

NHL draft

Round	#	Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1	1	Sidney Crosby	Center	Canada	Rimouski Océanic (QMJHL)
2	61	Michael Gergen	Forward	United States	Shattuck-Saint Mary's (USHS-MN)
3	62	Kris Letang	Defense	Canada	Val-d'Or Foreurs (QMJHL)
4	125	Tommi Leinonen	Defense	Finland	Oulun Kärpät Jr. (Finland)
5	126	Tim Crowder	Right Wing	Canada	South Surrey Eagles (BCHL)
6	194	Jean-Philippe Paquet	Defense	Canada	Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL)
7	195	Joe Vitale	Center	United States	Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL)

References

• Player stats on Hockey Database
• Penguins game log on Database Hockey

1. "2005–2006 NHL Attendance – National Hockey League – ESPN". ESPN. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
2. https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2006.html
3. https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2006_games.html
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