Penguins Send Their Best Player To Europe For A Month
"He's expected to be the man," Pittsburgh GM Craig Patrick said in a statement released by the team. "He's going to benefit an awful lot from the pressure."
The junior training camp begins December 11, and the tournament concludes January 5, effectively removing Fleury from the Pittsburgh lineup for a month. He stopped 38 of 42 shots in his last start, Saturday's 4-3 loss to Edmonton. He might play against Vancouver on Wednesday before reporting to Team Canada.
Routinely facing over 30 shots per game, Fleury was one of the league's top goaltenders in the early days of the season. But his performance has sagged badly since the beginning of November, with 34 goals against in his last 10 appearances.
Given that he is the Penguins' best player and only remaining box office draw, there has been considerable debate in Pittsburgh over Fleury's status. Some say the Penguins owe it to their fans to keep the star goaltender around all season. Others suggest Fleury needs a break from all the losing. NHL Players sent to the World Junior event often return to their junior league teams for the balance of the season once the tournament is over, putting their pro careers on hold until the following season. But that won't be the case with Fleury. "He'll be back with us when the world championships are over," says Patrick.
Fleury is one of several NHL rookies eligible to participate in the tournament, which is restricted to players under the age of 20. National teams would love to add players like Boston's Patrice Bergeron, Carolina's Eric Staal, Minnesota's Brent Burns (all from Canada), L.A.'s Dustin Brown (USA) and Washington's Alexander Semin (Russia). But it is expected that few, if any, of them will be released.
Update, Dec. 10: The Minnesota Wild have announced that forward Brent Burns will join Canada for the World Junior Championship. Burns has appeared in 15 games for the Wild this season.
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