In the opening days of training camp, Eric Fehr could sense that the Pittsburgh Penguins hadn’t had much rest since winning the Stanley Cup in mid-June.
That fatigue affected the runner-up San Jose Sharks more than it did the Penguins early on. But both teams are again among the best in the NHL at the quarter mark of the regular season.
So much for the Stanley Cup hangover.
“There’s challenges that come with playing late into last year, but I think kind of the belief and trust and what we need to do and understanding our roles, that part of it’s there,” Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby said. “When you talk about teams that kind of go through that, sometimes it’s fatigue, other times it’s maybe your mindset.”
Fehr said the Penguins’ mindset is “hungry,” though unsatisfied is perhaps a better word.