Wednesday, December 13, 2006
By Shelly Anderson, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
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Practice at Mellon Arena yesterday was supposed to last 30 or 40 minutes, but after the routine drills, many of the Penguins' players got into a four-on-four scrimmage that lasted another half-hour and ended because they were ordered off the ice.
Missing from the whole session were just three players -- defensemen Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney, who lead the team in ice time, and the old guy.
That would be Mark Recchi, who often skips optional skates and occasionally is given days off when the team is in a busy stretch while his younger teammates rarely miss a chance to practice.
Now that winger John LeClair's career with the Penguins -- and perhaps in the NHL -- appears to be over, Recchi is the last old man standing. He's at least six years older than all of his teammates and could be the father of many.
Don't, however, expect him to trade his hockey stick -- the composite Warrior model he started using last spring -- for a walker anytime soon.
Recchi might have been born the year Richard Nixon was elected president, but he is 38 going on 28, judging from the jump in his legs and his spot on the stats sheet.
"I'm really impressed with Mark Recchi, the job that he's doing on the ice, the job that he's doing in the dressing room with those young kids," Penguins coach Michel Therrien said of Recchi, who is tied for third on the team with 22 points, including seven goals, and is plus-5.
"You want to have leaders, and he's a true leader. But to be able to lead, you've got to perform. Recchi's doing a fantastic job."
Since a four-game stretch in early November with no points, Recchi has 13 points (six goals, seven assists) in 15 games going into a home game tonight against Philadelphia, one of three other teams Recchi has played for in the NHL between his three stints with the Penguins.
While LeClair, 37 -- whose skates and equipment hang almost symbolically in the locker stall next to Recchi's -- saw his ice time dwindle and his role diminish this season, Recchi has consistently played on the first or second line, sometimes switching from his natural right wing position to the left side, and is averaging more than 19 minutes per game.
"I feel good out there," Recchi said.
"I think I'm faster now than I was when I was younger. I think a lot of it is learning how to do it. You don't have to spend a ton of time; you just have to do the right things. I've been fortunate to be able to stay healthy and do those things to keep my legs to where they need to be."
Recchi has played a good bit with Sidney Crosby, the team's leading scorer who is half Recchi's age.
Crosby can't vouch for Recchi's claim of being faster now than in years past, seeing as how Crosby was a year old when Recchi broke into the league with the Penguins in the 1988-89 season. He doesn't need the comparison to know Recchi isn't over the hill.
"For him to be flying the way he is, it's unbelievable," Crosby said. "It shows how hard he works off the ice and how committed he is to making sure that he competes at this level.
"He's skating well out there, so we can create plays fast."
And create points -- 1,287 in his career.
"It's nice. It means you're helping," Recchi said. "But I don't always look at that. I know I've played really good games and haven't gotten a point."
Recchi is durable, with his days off rarely coinciding with game days. He has averaged 76 games per season since 1989-90 for a total of 1,285 NHL games and set a league record by playing in 570 consecutive regular-season games between 1991-98. He and the New York Rangers' Jaromir Jagr, 34, are the only players from the Penguins' 1991 Stanley Cup championship team still active in the league.
At 5 feet 10, 190 pounds, Recchi hasn't had the benefit of a long reach or a big frame. It hasn't limited him.
"He's such a competitor," Therrien said. "He's not 6-4 and over 200 pounds, but he's been around the league for a long time. He competes and competes and competes. For the young players to see he's 38 years old and he still has the passion to play the game, he sets such a great example for the young players."
Even if he needs to rest those old bones once in a while.
(Shelly Anderson can be reached at shanderson@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1721.)
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