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The 2003-04 NHL season was expected to be a rebuilding year for the Penguins, acquiring first overall pick Marc-Andre Fleury in the NHL Entry Draft and the hiring of new head coach (and former Penguin and commentator) Eddie Olczyk. Cost restrictions made the signing of Fleury rather tense. Fleury showed resolve with his excellent goaltending, and although the Penguins continued with the worst NHL record, Fleury showed that he could shrug off hard shots from some of the league's best players. However, more troubles besieged the Penguins when Lemieux suffered a hip injury early in the season. Months later it was determined that he would sit the rest of the season out to recover. The Pens then traded away star Martin Straka to the Los Angeles Kings and later had to send Fleury back down to his junior league team due to further money problems.

While the Penguins have suffered small-market syndrome for most of their existence, cost-cutting has prevented another collapse into insolvency, and financially, the team was one of the better-managed NHL franchises between its 1998 bankruptcy and the 2004-05 lockout. Thanks to significant post-season runs, the Penguins broke even in 2000 and turned a small profit in 2001. Failure to make the playoffs in the next three seasons hurt the team's bottom line, but the shedding of contracts kept the team afloat as other franchises, like the Ottawa Senators, faced significant losses or declared bankruptcy.

In the summer of 2004, the Penguins lost forward Aleksey Morozov, who decided to sign with the Russian league in the light of the impending lockout this season. However, the Penguins managed to re-sign one of their biggest fan favourites and former stars, Mark Recchi.

With the 2004-05 NHL season cancelled due to the NHL lockout, several Penguins still signed to the AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre Penguins played in the minors, while players such as Aleksey Morozov and Lasse Pirjetä honed their talents in the elite European and Russian leagues. On July 22, 2005, the Penguins won an unprecedented draft lottery, in which all 30 teams had weighted chances to win the first overall pick of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft July 30 in Ottawa, Ontario. With the choice, the Penguins chose superstar Sidney Crosby from the QMJHL.

See Also

• Pittsburgh Pirates Tickets
• Pittsburgh Penguins Tickets
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