2000–01 Pittsburgh Penguins season – Wikipedia
NHL team season
The 2000–01 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team’s 34th in the National Hockey League. The team played 82 games under new head coach Ivan Hlinka, who replaced Herb Brooks, who stepped down to remain a scout with the team. The Penguins’ .585 points percentage meant that they were the only NHL team from the 1990–91 season to this one that had a points percentage above .500 every season.
The last remaining active member of the 2000–01 Pittsburgh Penguins was right wing Jaromir Jagr, who played his final NHL game in the 2017–18 season, although he missed the 2008–09, 2009–10, and 2010–11 seasons. His career is still going on as a member of the Czech Extraliga’s Rytiri Kladno.
Offseason[edit]
Herb Brooks resigned as head coach at the end of the previous season, but remained with the team as a scout. Ivan Hlinka succeeded Brooks as head coach. Former Penguin Joe Mullen became an assistant coach along with his former teammate Randy Hillier.
Regular season[edit]
The Penguins opened the regular season by splitting a two-game series against the Nashville Predators in Japan.
On December 9, 2000, it was announced by owner Mario Lemieux that he intended to come back as a player. Lemieux returned to the ice on December 27, 2000. Prior to the game, his number 66 banner was lowered from the rafters of the Mellon Arena with son Austin watching. Lemieux scored a goal and set up two others (including one on his first shift) in the Penguins’ 5–0 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Prior to Lemieux’s return, the Penguins were 15–14–6–1. After his comeback, the Penguins went 27–14–3–2 for a regular season record of 42–28–9–3 and a third-place finish in the Atlantic Division for a playoff spot. The Penguins were shut out only once all year, on October 28 against the New Jersey Devils. Only New Jersey scored more goals than Pittsburgh during the regular season. Jaromir Jagr had a stellar year, leading the team in goals (52), assists (69) and points (121). Alexei Kovalev had a career year, finishing with 44 goals and 51 assists for 95 points. Martin Straka finished second on the team in assists (68) and had 27 goals for 95 points, while Robert Lang had 32 goals and 48 assists for 80 points. In just 43 games, Lemieux had 35 goals and 41 assists for 76 points.
Final standings[edit]
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.
Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast
Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot
Playoffs[edit]
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals[edit]
The Penguins opened the playoffs against the Washington Capitals. It was their sixth meeting in the playoffs. The Penguins were shut out in Game 1, 1–0. Lemieux scored a goal and had an assist in Game 2, which was won by the Penguins, 2–1. Newcomer Johan Hedberg shut out the Capitals in Game 3. The Capitals won Game 4 in overtime, 4–3. However, game-winning goals by Lemieux and Martin Straka in Game 5 and 6 won the series for the Penguins, 4–2.
Eastern Conference Semifinals[edit]
The Penguins played the Buffalo Sabres in the conference semi-finals. The Penguins won Game 1 by the score of 3–0 and Game 2 by the score of 3–1. The Sabres won the next three games, pushing the Penguins to elimination. However, overtime-winning goals by Straka and Darius Kasparaitis in Game 6 and 7 won the series for the Penguins. Game 7 was Dominik Hasek’s last game as a Sabre; he would sign with the Detroit Red Wings in the off-season.
Eastern Conference Finals[edit]
The Penguins and the New Jersey Devils split the first two games of the series before the Devils took games three, four, and five to eliminate the Penguins.
Schedule and results[edit]
Regular season[edit]
| 2000–01 regular season[3] |
|---|
|
October: 5–4–1–0 (home: 3–4–0–0 ; road: 2–0–1–0), 11 Points |
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November: 6–4–2–1 (home: 3–1–1–0 ; road: 3–3–1–1), 15 Points |
|
December: 6–6–3–0 (home: 2–5–0–0 ; road: 4–1–3–0), 15 Points |
|
January: 8–5–0–1 (home: 5–2–0–0 ; road: 3–3–0–1), 17 Points |
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February: 7–3–1–0 (home: 6–1–0–0 ; road: 1–2–1–0), 15 Points |
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March: 8–5–2–0 (home: 4–2–1–0 ; road: 4–3–1–0), 18 Points |
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April: 2–1–0–1 (home: 1–0–0–0 ; road: 1–1–0–1), 5 Points |
| Legend: = Win = Loss = OT Loss = Tie |
Playoffs[edit]
| 2001 Stanley Cup playoffs[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (3) Washington Capitals – Penguins win 4–2
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Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (5) Buffalo Sabres – Penguins win 4–3
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Eastern Conference Finals vs. (1) New Jersey Devils – Devils win 4–1
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| Legend:
Win Loss |
Player statistics[edit]
Scoring[edit]
- Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
= Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
= Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
Goaltending[edit]
- = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
Awards and records[edit]
Awards[edit]
Broadcaster Mike Lange was also awarded the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award in 2001, thus securing his induction into the broadcaster’s wing of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Jaromir Jagr, Alexei Kovalev and Mario Lemieux were all selected to participate in the 2001 NHL All-Star Game. Lemieux captained the North American All-Stars and scored two points. Kovalev was a reserve for the World All-Stars and also scored two points. Jagr was voted as a starter for the World All-Stars, but could not play due to an injury.
Milestones[edit]
|
Making their NHL Regular Season debuts in 2000–01 were Roman Simicek, Toby Petersen, Billy Tibbetts, Greg Crozier, Milan Kraft and Johan Hedberg.
Transactions[edit]
The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 2000–01 season:[4]
Trades[edit]
| November 14, 2000 | To New York Islanders
2001 9th round pick |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Dan Trebil |
| December 28, 2000 | To St. Louis Blues
Dan Trebil |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Marc Bergevin |
| January 13, 2001 | To Minnesota Wild
Roman Simicek |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Steve McKenna |
| January 14, 2001 | To Philadelphia Flyers
John Slaney |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Kevin Stevens |
| January 14, 2001 | To Columbus Blue Jackets
2001 3rd round pick |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Krzysztof Oliwa |
| January 14, 2001 | To Atlanta Thrashers
Jiri Slegr |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
2001 3rd round pick |
| February 1, 2001 | To Tampa Bay Lightning
Matthew Barnaby |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Wayne Primeau |
| March 12, 2001 | To San Jose Sharks
Jeff Norton |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Bobby Dollas |
| March 13, 2001 | To Edmonton Oilers
Sven Butenschon |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Dan LaCouture |
| March 13, 2001 | To Columbus Blue Jackets
2001 6th round pick |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Frantisek Kucera |
Free agents acquired[edit] |
Free agents lost[edit] |
Player signings[edit]
| Player | Date | Contract terms |
|---|---|---|
| Darcy Verot | July 28, 2000 | |
| Sven Butenschon | July 28, 2000 | |
| Janne Laukkanen | July 30, 2000 | |
| Matthew Barnaby | July 31, 2000 | 1-year/$1.1 million |
| Rene Corbet | July 31, 2000 | 1-year/$825,000 |
| Josef Beranek | August 3, 2000 | |
| Dennis Bonvie | August 10, 2000 | |
| Valentin Morozov | August 16, 2000 | |
| Jean-Sebastien Aubin | September 24, 2000 | |
| Jason MacDonald | September 29, 2000 | |
| Mario Lemieux | December 11, 2000 | 1-year, $1.4 million |
| Darcy Robinson | June 4, 2001 | |
| Kevin Stevens | June 11, 2001 |
Draft picks[edit]
The Penguins selected the following players at the 2000 NHL Entry Draft at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary:[5]
- Draft notes[6]
- The Pittsburgh Penguins’ fourth-round pick went to the Montreal Canadiens as the result of a June 24, 2000 trade that sent a 2000 fourth-round pick and a 2000 fifth-round pick to the Penguins in exchange for this pick.
- a The Montreal Canadiens’ fourth-round pick (from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim) went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of a June 24, 2000 trade that sent a 2000 fourth-round pick to the Canadiens in exchange for a 2000 fifth-round pick and this pick.
- b The Montreal Canadiens’ fifth-round pick went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of a June 24, 2000 trade that sent a 2000 fourth-round pick to the Canadiens in exchange for a 2000 fourth-round pick and this pick.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins’ fifth-round pick went to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim as the result of a March 14, 2000 trade that sent Dan Trebil to the Penguins in exchange for this pick.
- c The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim’s ninth-round pick went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of a January 29, 2000 trade that sent Kip Miller to the Mighty Ducks in exchange for this pick.
Farm teams[edit]
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL finished second in the Mid-Atlantic Division with a record of 36-33-9-2 record. They defeated the Syracuse Crunch, Philadelphia Phantoms and Hershey Bears to win the Robert W. Clarke Trophy as Western Conference playoff champions. They lost to the Saint John Flames in six games in the Calder Cup Finals. John Slaney won the Eddie Shore Award as defenseman of the year.
The ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers finished last overall with a record of 24-40-8.
See also[edit]
- ^ Norton wore number 25 until Stevens was acquired.
References[edit]
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