Mark Moran, The Citizens' Voice                   Joe Mullen on the bench for the Baby Penguins in a recent game against Norfolk.

Photo used on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette web site December 20th, 2005.
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Penguins Notebook: Mullen coach at Wilkes-Barre

Tuesday, December 20, 2005

By Dave Molinari, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Joe Mullen is the new coach of the Penguins' American Hockey League affiliate in Wilkes-Barre and he knows exactly what he'll be looking to change when he takes over today.

His address.

Other than that, Mullen -- fired as a Penguins assistant during last week's coaching staff purge -- doesn't plan to tinker with anything. Especially the system installed by former Baby Penguins coach Michel Therrien, who replaced Eddie Olczyk as coach of the Penguins on Thursday.

"Those guys are playing hockey really well," Mullen said. "They've got a good thing going down there. [Maintaining it] is all I'm going to try to do."

Mullen, with assistance from former Penguins coach Rick Kehoe, guided the Baby Penguins to a 2-1 record last weekend. And, in the process, he realized he wouldn't mind running a bench for the first time in his career.

"This weekend was to see if he liked the idea of being a head coach," Penguins general manager Craig Patrick said. "He was not sure he did when he was on his way down there; but after three games, he's convinced that he can do it, and he wants to do it."

Mullen will serve as the Baby Penguins' coach for the rest of this season, beginning with a game in Bridgeport tomorrow. He will get an assistant coach, but Patrick would neither name the people under consideration for the job nor set a timetable for hiring one.

Mullen, a Hall of Famer who scored 502 goals during a 17-season career in the NHL, is a quiet sort -- "We talked about his personality, how he has to step out of his shell to be a head coach," Patrick said -- but there's no question about his grasp of the game.

"He knows hockey, he knows the system we're playing, here and there," Patrick said.

And Mullen knows enough to recognize that the Baby Penguins have a good grasp of Therrien's system and enough veteran leadership from guys like Alain Nasreddine (who was named a player-coach yesterday), Chris Kelleher and Colby Armstrong to all but guarantee they won't stray from it very often.

"They work hard, and they're a good bunch of kids," Mullen said. "Very coachable and very dedicated to what they're doing. ... When they know the system, and it's imbedded in their heads the way it is, it kind of makes it easy. It's a real good situation to walk into."

Malone not an Olympian

Penguins forward Ryan Malone has suspected for a while that his lackluster play this season might cost him a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.

Last night, when Team USA's roster was announced, his fears were confirmed.

"It's a little disappointing," he said. "I thought ... if I had a good start to the year, I was in position to make it. But for whatever reason, I just didn't have a good start.

"Hopefully, when I'm 30, I can try again."

Malone, 26, has six goals and six assists in 32 games.

Lemieux, Recchi miss practice

Forwards Mario Lemieux (heart) and Mark Recchi (groin) were the only Penguins to sit out yesterday's practice, and Recchi said he hoped to be ready when they face Philadelphia 7:38 p.m. Friday at Mellon Arena.

Lemieux is expected to be out at least a couple of weeks, but Recchi, injured during the Penguins' 4-3 loss in Buffalo Saturday, rode a stationary bike yesterday and "absolutely" hopes to play against Philadelphia.

Recchi was hurt midway through the first period against the Sabres -- "I chased a guy down the ice, and I felt it pull right away," he said -- but continued to play into the second.

"I just kept trying to go," said Recchi, whose groin injury is a career first. "I really had a tough time. By the end of the second, I couldn't push [off]."

Right winger Ziggy Palffy, who has been bothered by groin problems, said after yesterday's practice, "It's not too bad," although he added that, "I didn't want to push it too hard."

Left winger John LeClair, dogged by hip and groin issues, reported no problems after the workout, and said he intended to play against the Flyers.

"Everything's good," he said. "I'm looking forward to Friday."

Slap shots

The NHL's holiday roster freeze kicked in at midnight and runs through midnight Dec. 27. During that period, players on NHL rosters cannot be traded, waived or otherwise reassigned, although recalls from the minor leagues are permitted. ... Lasse Pirjeta has a goal and an assist since being demoted to Wilkes-Barre Thursday, while center Maxime Talbot, sent down at the same time, has a goal.

(Dave Molinari can be reached at 412-263-1144.)

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