2003–04 Pittsburgh Penguins season

2003–04 Pittsburgh Penguins
Division 5th Atlantic
Conference 15th Eastern
2003–04 record 23-47-8-4
Goals for 190
Goals against 303
Team information
General Manager Craig Patrick
Coach Ed Olczyk
Captain Mario Lemieux
Arena Mellon Arena
Team leaders
Goals Ryan Malone (22)
Assists Dick Tarnstrom (36)
Points Dick Tarnstrom (52)
Penalties in minutes Brooks Orpik (127)
Plus/minus Rob Scuderi (2)
Wins Sebastien Caron (9)
Goals against average Jean-Sebastien Aubin (2.98)
<2002–03 2004–05>

The 2003–04 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team's 37th season of play. For the third season in a row, the club placed last in the Atlantic Division and did not qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs. In an 18-game losing streak, they went 0–17–1 (one overtime loss). In the first 62 games, they were 11–42–5–4 for 31 points. In their final 20 games, they were 12–5–3–0, ultimately finishing with a 23–47–8–4 record for a last place finish.

Offseason

Head Coach Rick Kehoe resigned as coach during the off-season, where former team broadcaster Ed Olczyk was hired as his replacement.

Regular season

The Penguins struggled defensively, finishing 30th overall in the NHL in goals allowed, with 303. They struggled in short-handed situations, allowing the most power-play goals in the League, with 84, and finishing 30th overall in penalty-kill percentage, at 77.24%. Furthermore, they allowed the most short-handed goals in the NHL, with 15.[1]

Final standings

Atlantic Division[2]
No. CR GP W L T OTL GF GA PTS
13 Philadelphia Flyers 82 40 21 15 6 229 186 101
26 New Jersey Devils 82 43 25 12 2 213 164 100
38 New York Islanders 82 38 29 11 4 237 210 91
413 New York Rangers 82 27 40 7 8 206 250 69
515 Pittsburgh Penguins 82 23 47 8 4 190 303 58

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern Conference[3]
R Div GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
1 Z- Tampa Bay Lightning SE 82 46 22 8 6 245 192 106
2 Y- Boston Bruins NE 82 41 19 15 7 209 188 104
3 Y- Philadelphia Flyers AT 82 40 21 15 6 209 188 101
4 X- Toronto Maple Leafs NE 82 45 24 10 3 242 204 103
5 X- Ottawa Senators NE 82 43 23 10 6 262 189 102
6 X- New Jersey Devils AT 82 43 25 12 2 213 164 100
7 X- Montreal Canadiens NE 82 41 30 7 4 208 192 93
8 X- New York Islanders AT 82 38 29 11 4 237 210 91
8.5
9 Buffalo Sabres NE 82 37 34 7 4 220 221 85
10 Atlanta Thrashers SE 82 33 37 8 4 214 243 78
11 Carolina Hurricanes SE 82 28 34 14 6 172 209 76
12 Florida Panthers SE 82 28 35 15 4 188 221 75
13 New York Rangers AT 82 27 40 7 8 206 250 69
14 Washington Capitals SE 82 23 46 10 3 186 253 59
15 Pittsburgh Penguins AT 82 23 47 8 4 190 303 58

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

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

Schedule and results

2003–2004 Schedule
Legend:           = Win           = Loss           = OT Loss           = Tie

Player statistics

Skaters

Regular Season[4]
Player GP G A Pts +/- − PIM
Tarnstrom, DickDick Tarnstrom 80 16 36 52 -37 −37 38
Morozov, AlexeiAlexei Morozov 75 16 34 50 -24 −24 24
Malone, RyanRyan Malone 81 22 21 43 -23 −23 64
Kraft, MilanMilan Kraft 66 19 21 40 -22 −22 18
Fata, RicoRico Fata 73 16 18 34 -46 −46 54
Koltsov, KonstantinKonstantin Koltsov 82 9 20 29 -30 −30 30
Jackman, RicRic Jackman† 25 7 17 24 -5 −5 14
Surovy, TomasTomas Surovy 47 11 12 23 -8 −8 16
Kostopoulos, TomTom Kostopoulos 60 9 13 22 -14 −14 67
Holzinger, BrianBrian Holzinger‡ 61 6 15 21 -27 −27 38
Berehowsky, DrakeDrake Berehowsky‡ 47 5 16 21 -16 −16 50
Eastwood, MikeMike Eastwood 82 4 15 19 -18 −18 40
Bradley, MattMatt Bradley 82 7 9 16 -27 −27 65
Strbak, MartinMartin Strbak† 44 3 11 14 -11 −11 38
Pirjeta, LasseLasse Pirjeta† 13 6 6 12 3 0
Straka, MartinMartin Straka‡ 22 4 8 12 -16 −16 16
Meloche, EricEric Meloche 25 3 7 10 -6 −6 20
Orpik, BrooksBrooks Orpik 79 1 9 10 -36 −36 127
Bergevin, MarcMarc Bergevin‡ 52 1 8 9 -8 −8 27
Lemieux, MarioMario Lemieux 10 1 8 9 -2 −2 6
Melichar, JosefJosef Melichar 82 3 5 8 -17 −17 62
Boileau, PatrickPatrick Boileau 16 3 4 7 -16 −16 8
Wilson, LandonLandon Wilson† 19 5 1 6 0 31
Abid, RamziRamzi Abid 16 3 2 5 -5 −5 27
Focht, DanDan Focht 52 2 3 5 -23 −23 105
Sim, JonJon Sim† 15 2 3 5 -4 −4 6
Buchberger, KellyKelly Buchberger 71 1 3 4 -19 −19 109
Hussey, MattMatt Hussey 3 2 1 3 -1 −1 0
McKenna, SteveSteve McKenna 49 1 2 3 -10 −10 85
Scuderi, RobRob Scuderi 13 1 2 3 2 4
Murley, MattMatt Murley 18 1 1 2 -6 −6 14
Beech, KrisKris Beech 4 0 1 1 0 6
Baumgartner, NolanNolan Baumgartner‡ 5 0 0 0 -7 −7 2
Webb, SteveSteve Webb‡ 5 0 0 0 -3 −3 2
Simpson, ReidReid Simpson 2 0 0 0 0 17

Goaltenders
Regular Season[5]
Player GP GS TOI W L T OT GA GAA SA SV% SO G A PIM
Caron, SebastienSebastien Caron 40 37 2,212:35 9 24 5 2 138 3.74 1179 0.883 1 0 0 6
Aubin, Jean-SebastienJean-Sebastien Aubin 22 17 1,067:03 7 9 0 0 53 2.98 574 0.908 1 0 0 2
Fleury, Marc-AndreMarc-Andre Fleury 21 20 1,154:02 4 14 2 2 70 3.64 675 0.896 1 0 0 0
Chiodo, AndyAndy Chiodo 8 8 485:37 3 4 1 0 28 3.46 260 0.892 0 0 0 0
Brochu, MartinMartin Brochu 1 0 32:40 0 0 0 0 1 1.82 19 0.947 0 0 0 0

†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 Team only.

Awards and records

Player Award
Kelly Buchberger Player's Player Award
Rico Fata Edward J. DeBartolo Community Service Award
Mario Lemieux Star on Canada's Walk of Fame
Ryan Malone A.T. Caggiano Booster Club Award
Michel Briere Memorial Rookie of the Year Award
Steve McKenna Edward J. DeBartolo Community Service Award
Brooks Orpik Baz Bastien Memorial "Good Guy" Award
Dick Tarnstrom Leading Point Scorer Award
Most Valuable Player Award
Landon Wilson Pittsburgh Penguins Masterton Nominee

The team also set the NHL record for longest home losing streak, with 14 home losses.

Transactions

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 2003–04 season:[6]

Trades

June 21, 2003[7] To Florida Panthers:
Mikael Samuelsson
2003 1st round pick
2003 2nd round pick		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
2003 1st round pick (1st overall pick)
2003 3rd round pick
August 25, 2003[8] To Vancouver Canucks:
Johan Hedberg		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
2004 2nd round pick
November 30, 2003[9] To Los Angeles Kings:
Martin Straka		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
Martin Strbak
Sergei Anshakov
February 10, 2004[10] To Columbus Blue Jackets:
Brendan Buckley		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
Pauli Levokari
February 11, 2004[11] To Toronto Maple Leafs:
Drake Berehowsky		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
Ric Jackman
February 22, 2004[12] To Phoenix Coyotes:
Future Considerations		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
Landon Wilson
March 8, 2004[13] To New York Islanders:
Steve Webb		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
Alain Nasreddine
March 9, 2004[14] To Columbus Blue Jackets:
Brian Holzinger		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
Lasse Pirjeta
March 9, 2004[15] To Vancouver Canucks:
Marc Bergevin		 To Pittsburgh Penguins:
2004 7th round pick

Free agents acquired

Player Former team Date/Contract terms
Kelly Buchberger[16] Phoenix Coyotes July 31, 2003
Mike Eastwood[16] Chicago Blackhawks July 31, 2003
Martin Brochu[17] Verdun Dragons August 22, 2003
Patrick Boileau[18] Detroit Red Wings August 28, 2003
Drake Berehowsky[19] Phoenix Coyotes August 29, 2003
Reid Simpson[19] Nashville Predators August 29, 2003

Claimed via waivers

Date Player Previous team
October 3, 2003[20] Nolan Baumgartner Vancouver Canucks
October 22, 2003[21] Steve Webb Philadelphia Flyers
March 4, 2004[22] Jon Sim Los Angeles Kings

Free agents lost

Player New team
Alexandre Daigle Unsigned
Hans Jonsson Unsigned
Jamie Pushor Unsigned
Joel Bouchard[23] New York Rangers
Kent Manderville Unsigned
Mathias Johansson Unsigned
Rob Tallas Unsigned
Shawn Heins Unsigned
Ville Nieminen[24] Chicago Blackhawks
Vladimir Vujtek Unsigned
Richard Lintner Djurgardens IF
Jason MacDonald Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL)
Patrick Boileau Lausanne HC (Swiss)
Michal Sivek Sparta Praha (Czech)

Player signings

Player Date Contract terms
Ryan Malone[25] July 14, 2003 2-year contract
Dick Tarnstrom[26] July 29, 2003 2-year, $2.5 million contract
Mario Lemieux[27] July 31, 2003 1-year, $5.25 million contract
Rico Fata[27] July 31, 2003 Re-signed
Rob Scuderi[27] July 31, 2003 Re-signed
Toby Petersen[27] July 31, 2003 Re-signed
Matt Bradley[28] August 1, 2003 1-year contract
Milan Kraft[28] August 1, 2003 1-year contract
Sebastien Caron[29] August 22, 2003 3-year, $3.2 million contract
Andy Chiodo[30] August 21, 2003 Signed
Ramzi Abid[31] September 11, 2003 1-year contract
Marc-Andre Fleury[32] October 6, 2003 3-year contract
Ryan Whitney[33] April 7, 2004 3-year, $1.19 million contract
Maxime Talbot[34] May 26, 2004 3-year contract
Erik Christensen June 1, 2004 Signed

Personnel

Pittsburgh Penguins 2004 final roster
Goaltenders

Defensemen

Wingers

Centers

Pittsburgh Penguins 2003–04 staff
Executive operations
  • Ownership - Mario Lemieux
  • Chief Executive Officer - Ken Sawyer
  • Chairman - Mario Lemieux
  • President - Mario Lemieux
  • Executive Vice President/General Manager - Craig Patrick
  

Hockey operations

Draft picks

Pittsburgh had 11 picks in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.[35]

Round # Player Pos Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1 1[a] Marc-Andre Fleury Goaltender  Canada Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL)
2 32 Ryan Stone Center  Canada Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)
3 70 Jonathan Filewich Right Winger  Canada Prince George Cougars (WHL)
3 73[b] Daniel Carcillo Left Winger  Canada Sarnia Sting (OHL)
4 121[c] Paul Bissonnette Defence  Canada Saginaw Spirit (OHL)
5 161[d] Evgeni Isakov Left Wing  Russia Severstal Cherepovets (RUS)
6 169 Lukas Bolf Defence  Czech Republic Sparta Praha (CZE JR.)
7 199 Andy Chiodo Goaltender  Canada Toronto St. Michael's Majors (OHL)
7 229[e] Stephen Dixon Center  Canada Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL)
8 232 Joe Jensen Center  United States St. Cloud State University (WCHA)
9 263 Matt Moulson Left Wings  Canada Cornell University (ECAC)
Draft notes[36]

Farm teams

The AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins finished third in the East Division with a 34–28–10–8 record. They defeated the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, Philadelphia Phantoms and the Hartford Wolf Pack to win the Richard F. Canning Trophy as Eastern Conference Champions. They were swept by the Milwaukee Admirals in the Calder Cup Finals.

The ECHL's Wheeling Nailers won the Northern Division and the Eastern Conference with a record of 51–17–4. They lost to the Reading Royals in the first round of the playoffs. Pat Bingham won the John Brophy Award as the ECHL's coach of the year.

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2004.html
  2. ↑ "2003-2004 Division Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 26, 2012.
  3. ↑ "2003–2004 Standings by Conference". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 26, 2012.
  4. ↑ "2003–2004 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
  5. ↑ "2003–2004 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
  6. ↑ "History of NHL trades by the Pittsburgh Penguins for 2003-04". NHL Trade Tracker. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  7. ↑ "Panthers send top pick to Pens for No. 3, Samuelsson". SI.com. June 21, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Goalie was expendable after Caron signing". ESPN. August 26, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Kings send Strbak, Anshakov to Pens". ESPN. December 1, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Penguins acquire defenseman Pauli Levokari from Columbus". OurSportsCentral - American Hockey League (AHL) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. February 10, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  11. ↑ "Leafs trade Jackman to Penguins". ESPN. February 11, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  12. ↑ "Coyotes get future considerations". ESPN. February 22, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  13. ↑ "Islanders Trade Nasreddine For Webb". OurSportsCentral - American Hockey League (AHL) Bridgeport Sound Tigers. March 8, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  14. ↑ "Maple Leafs add veteran Francis". USA Today. March 10, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  15. ↑ "With Bertuzzi in limbo, Vancouver stocks up". ESPN. March 9, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Penguins sign Buchberger, Eastwood". ESPN. July 31, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  17. ↑ "Penguins re-sign G Caron, add G Brochu to mix". ESPN. August 22, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  18. ↑ "Penguins sign defenseman Patrick Boileau". ESPN. August 28, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Penguins sign Berehowsky, Simpson". ESPN. August 29, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  20. ↑ "Players claimed in 2003-04 NHL Waiver Draft". ESPN. October 3, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  21. ↑ "Penguins claim RW Webb off waivers". ESPN. October 22, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  22. ↑ "Roundup: Phoenix sends Sillinger to Blues for Johnson". USA Today. March 4, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  23. ↑ "BOUCHARD, SABRES AGREE TO MAKE DEAL". The Buffalo News Archives. July 12, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  24. ↑ "Erie Times - News". GoErie.com. July 30, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  25. ↑ Dejan Kovacevic (July 15, 2003). "Penguins sign South Hills native Malone". Post-Gazette. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  26. ↑ "Wednesday Roundup". SI.com. July 31, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 "Lemieux to return, Pens agree to terms with five others". ESPN. July 31, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 "Penguins sign Bradley, Kraft". ESPN. August 1, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  29. ↑ "Surprisingly, term is one of longest in NHL". ESPN. August 25, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  30. ↑ "Penguins sign goaltender Andy Chiodo". ESPN. August 21, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  31. ↑ "Penguins re-sign LW Abid". ESPN. September 11, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  32. ↑ "Penguins reach contract terms with No. 1 pick Fleury". ESPN. October 6, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  33. ↑ "Minn.-Duluth plays Frozen Four for title only". USA Today. April 10, 2004. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  34. ↑ Dejan Kovacevic (May 27, 2004). "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - May 27, 2004". Google News. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  35. ↑ "NHL Entry Draft Year by Year Results". NHL. Retrieved June 18, 2012.
  36. ↑ "2003 NHL Entry Draft Pick Transactions". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved June 18, 2012.