The future of the NHL & hockey is now a Penguins player. Despite having learned his NHL destination at the NHL Draft Lottery, Sidney Crosby said he still had a case of the butterflies Saturday morning as the official word that Pittsburgh would become his NHL home and the Penguins his NHL team approached. The Penguins wasted little time with theatrics on this selection. No time-out to ponder the pick, no red herrings that perhaps there was a last minute change of heart and a deal was in the offing. Almost from the moment NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman put the Pens on the clock, the Pittsburgh contingent, headed by Mario Lemieux, GM Craig Patrick, President Ken Sawyer and head scout Greg Malone moved to the stage to add yet another electrifying player to the team's history, joining Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr and Pierre Larouche as highly skilled offensive players. Lemieux, of course, leads that list and the Pens' player-owner said there is no doubt that Crosby, the incredibly talented center from Rimouski Oceanic of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, will begin the 2005-06 NHL season with the Penguins. Name: Sidney Crosby Position: C Shoots: Left Height: 5-11 Weight: 190 lbs Birthdate: 1987-08-07 Hometown: Halifax, Nova Scotia Junior Team: Rimouski Océanic





Expect this jersey to be the hottest selling one among the neutral hockey fans

According to Italian media reports, Inter Milan’s Francesco Coco is set to join Ajax. Press reports state that Coco has left Inter’s preseason training to travel to the Netherlands in order to sign for the Dutch giants. If the transfer is finalized then Coco would have resisted interest from other clubs especially Bolton and Everton in England and Olympiakos in Greece. The 28-year-old defender is a player that has never quite fulfilled his vast potential. In fairness, injuries have dealt a severe blow to his career. In fact, the left-sided back has barely played in the last two years because of long-injury lay-offs. Coco has been at Inter for three seasons. In 2002 he was dealt to the club by AC Milan in an exchange for Clarence Seedorf. Coco never quite settled at Milan, the Rossoneri loaned him to three different clubs, Vicenza, Torino, and Barcelona. With Ajax defender Maxwell injured and on the way out at the end of the season, Coco could be a natural replacement on the left side for the Dutch club.

Manchester United have emerged as the clear favourites to sign Real Madrid’s on-the-way-out striker Michael Owen. Many believe that it’s only a matter of time for Owen to leave the Bernabeu after the arrival of Brazilian frontline duo Robinho and Julio Baptista and United are reportedly preparing an £11 million offer for the prolific hitman. Though Owen has played nearly his entire career with United rivals Liverpool, the player may be keen on a move to Old Trafford especially in a World Cup season. Sir Alex Ferguson has been a longtime admirer of the 25-year-old. That said, reports suggest that Arsenal may be interested in Owen as well after their failed attempt to woo Baptista. Owen mostly played the role of supersub in his first season at Real, though his goals per game ratio was still impressive. Owen has previously stated that he would only consider a move to England should he leave Real.



Song for the day - "Good Enough" - SARAH MCLACHLAN