The Penguins might be old, but they're definitely not showing it.
The NHL's most seasoned team briskly skated to a 6-2 win over one of the league's top teams, Tampa Bay, Saturday night at PPG Paints Arena.
Pittsburgh got six goals from six different players, as the team's core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust all flexed their muscles.
This group averages over 30 years of age per player. But, so far, that's not been a detriment, at all.
"None of us players think that way," said Guentzel, who scored and assisted another goal. "We all believe in our team and the depth we have. It's just a number and we know what we want to do at the end of the year. We've just got to stick to our game and we can play with anyone."
Age, perhaps, is even working to the Penguins' advantage. They look to be without much rust — Bryan excluded — and have played crisp through two games, scoring 12 goals already.
"I just think we're excited to play," Guentzel said. "We were all kind of eager after how last season ended."
Carrying the edge from last year's stinging, 7-game loss to the Rangers into a new season is easy. How Pittsburgh maintains that, however, will be the challenge for Mike Sullivan and his team.
"They're a proud group," he said. "They have an appetite to win. To a man, the core group of players that have been here, they're hungry to win.
"We see it every day. They're willing to put the work in. They're willing to make the sacrifices every day."
Crosby, in particular, has been spectacular through the two games thus far, racking up six points, including a first period goal and then a pair of assists Saturday.
He is keeping a bigger perspective on things, but still seems to feel the importance of the strong start.
"We all understand the points we get now are the same points that add up at the end of the year," he said. "You want to start off on a good note regardless.
"If there's any extra motivation, it would definitely be there for us."
Now, the Penguins hit the road for the first time. They'll play six of their next seven without the boost provided by two solid crowds at PPG Paints Arena.
But that's nothing daunting to such an experienced team, and Sullivan has the luxury of relying on that while trying to keep the train rolling here early.
"It doesn't happen by accident," he said. "You've got to put the work in every day. You've got to go out and earn it in this league every day.
"We have good players, but a lot of teams have good players. It takes more than good players to win. You need a certain level of commitment to win. And I think our guys display that."
