Pens Points: Sid, Pens Start Skating In New Complex

Good morning one and all and happy Monday!

Hockey is nearly back! Pens pre-season tickets go on sale tomorrow (Tuesday, August 18) at 10 am. [Penguins]

During the last 10 days we followed the opening festivities of the Penguins new practice and sports medicine complex, the 185,000 square-foot UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry Township. [NHL.com]

The new complex will also have many facilities open to the public, and many in the Pittsburgh community have already visited the swanky new digs. [Penguins.com]

Take a visual tour of the Penguins new jewel, which they hope will allow them to successfully host the NHL training combines in the future. (Click the link and then open the first gallery at bottom left.) [Trib]

Marc-Andre Fleury was the first Pen to visit the complex and conduct an interview from his stall in the dressing room. Michele Crechiolo catches up with Flower. [Penguins]

The captain is certainly excited for the kick-off of his 11th (!) NHL season. After wrapping up his hockey school in Cole Harbour, 87 is already back in Pittsburgh and today begins optional daily skates at the new practice complex joined by Dupuis, Kunitz, Fleury, Scuderi, Clendening, Cullen and Plotnikov (in a few days). [Trib - Mackey]

From around the NHL, Daniel Briere has announced his retirement from the NHL after 17 seasons. Happy trails to the player who always came up big in the postseason, summing up 53 goals and 63 assists in 124 playoff games. [The Score]

For some hockey offseason study, here is a very detailed analysis of the 1-3-1 neutral zone forecheck employed in Stanley Cup Finals. Do check out this blog - it's a treasure trove of hockey knowledge. [JenLC13]

NHL offseason improvement rankings - who got better, who got worse? If you add Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel to your roster you will be up top on any such list, but the Pens don't fare too poorly. [Sportsnet]

The Maple Leafs have added Jack Lemaire to the staff as the special assignment coach, whatever that's supposed to mean. Lou Lamoriello at his best. [Maple Leafs]

More rankings: In Goal Magazine ranks top 50 NHL goaltending prospects for 2015-16. Where do Matt Murray and Tristan Jarry rank as of right now? [In Goal Mag]

I thought this was interesting as I remember some of those being developed - top 5 hockey innovations that totally missed the mark. [Original Stix]

Last but not least, former NHL great Pavel Bure, who was forced to retire at 31 due to injuries, is leading the push for the new veteran league called World Legends Hockey League, in which retired players 45 and older could play. Hey if I can still watch Bure, Fedorov, Lidstrom, and Selanne - sign me up! [Euro Hockey]