The penguins' bright light

Hockey Digest, May-June, 2004 by Rob Rossi

SEATED, LEANING COMFORTably against the back of a wooden bench, Brooks Orpik is fairly aware of how to hit the on-coming rush of reporters, cameramen, and all the usual suspects who have made habit of finding him following a Penguins' practice. As he has learned over the course of his first full season in Pittsburgh, strong defense is all about reacting--not thinking.

And, so, while the camera lights shine on his sweat-streaked face, Orpik rather nonchalantly tells tales of playing in the NHL Young Stars Game, hanging with hockey's living legends over the All-Star weekend.

"It was a great experience," Orpik says.

Later, having tossed out his last made-for-TV answer on the subject, he shows none of the excitement expected from a hockey player, who, at 23, seemingly has the ice at his skates. "The Young Stars Game was a huge confidence build ... I mean, how can't it be? ... But I don't want to hang on it too much. It's over with."

So, too, is speculation that Orpik, the 18th overall selection in the 2000 Entry Draft, might continue a trend of highly touted prospects who didn't pan out in Pittsburgh. In fact, Orpik's development has proven a glaring bright spot during what can only be considered a nightmare season for the Penguins--one in which owner/captain/franchise Mario Lemieux played in just 10 games before pulling the plug due to an ailing hip; sagging attendance and finances played in role in the decision to send No. 1 overall pick and future franchise goaltender, Marc-Andre Fleury, back to his junior team; and the organization's continued struggle to secure funding for a new building to replace Mellon Arena, the league's oldest facility.

A few days removed from joining his teammate--rookie forward Ryan Malone, the Penguins' leading goal-scorer--in the Young Stars Game, Orpik was being touted by first-year coach Ed Olczyk as "a future captain" for a club that opened its first post All-Star break practice with a 10-point "cushion" in the race to finish with the league's worst record.

"It's really strange," Orpik admits. "My game is coming around, but the team isn't winning, and ..."

Tough is the task of taking praise when your team is struggling through a losing streak that surpassed its season-win total.

At Boston College, Orpik rarely lost or struggled. Known as a ferocious hitter with excellent defensive instincts, Orpik's famous physical style of play helped key the Eagles 2001 NCAA title. When the Penguins drafted him on the first round, reports ran rampant that the next Scott Stevens was coming to Pittsburgh--and the thought of such suited Penguins fans just fine. (In Pittsburgh, Ulf Samuelsson and Darius Kasparaitis, rank only behind Lemieux in terms of popularity.) With a star-studded line-up that included Lemieux, Kasparaitis, Alexei Kovalev, Robert Lang, and Martin Straka, and well-regarded young prospects such as Aleksey Morozov, Milan Kraft, and Kris Beech, many Penguins fans presumed that Orpik would show up, sure up the team's defense, and--voila!--the Stanley Cup would come back to Pittsburgh.

Funny thing happened: All the stars but Lemieux were traded, the well-regarded prospects didn't pan out, and the Penguins went into what general manager Craig Patrick described as "survival mode," trying to financially prepare for a potential shutdown when the current collective bargaining agreement expires. Lost in this mess was Orpik, whose time spent developing in the minors wasn't exactly what fans were anticipating.

"It takes a long time to learn how to play defense on the professional level, fans have to keep that in mind," responds Randy Hiller, Orpik's defensive coach with the Penguins. "Before you get to the NHL, you have to adjust to the speed of the pro game, and when you do get here, it takes many years to get your footing. There were high expectations for Brooks--from fans, coaches, and within the organization. But, really, if you look at his progress, where he's at in his development today, he's doing great."

Aside from a six-game stint with the Penguins last season, Orpik's first two professional years were spent in the AHL with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. While such a course of action is not unusual for first-round selections, Penguins fans remained skeptical of Orpik and what he represented: Only three of the club's past dozen top picks (Jaromir Jagr, Straka, and Markus Naslund) had developed into bonafide NHL stars; and, if Orpik was so great, why had the Penguins chosen defenseman Ryan Whitney out of Boston University with the fifth-overall selection in the 2002 Entry Draft?

When Orpik capped his second AHL season with comments critical of the Baby Penguins, coaches, and the Penguins' overall approach toward, and lack of success for, developing its young talent ... well, to say Orpik never imagined his NHL career starting the way it had is a major understatement.

"Those comments were blown up," Orpik says. "I wasn't the only player saying anything ... and I wasn't calling anybody out. And, anyway, since Edzo became coach in Pittsburgh, everybody in the organization is playing the same system--all the guys in WilkesBarre/Scranton are on the same page with the guys in Pittsburgh. That wasn't the case before. Everything is a lot better now."