Canadian Press

9/18/2006 3:38:36 PM

MONCTON, N.B. (CP) - No 'C' for Sidney this season.

Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Michel Therrien ended the speculation Monday, delaying for now the inevitable inheritance of the captaincy by 19-year-old superstar centre Sidney Crosby.

''As an organization we've decided this year not to have a captain,'' Therrien said after practice at the Moncton Coliseum. ''The biggest reason why is out of respect for what Mario Lemieux did for this franchise. So we decided for this year that there's no rule that we need a captain. So we'll keep doing what we did when Mario retired last year.''

That means they'll carry three alternate captains, and although Therrien wasn't ready to announce who they'll be, it's a given that Crosby is one of them.

''For me, my focus is on being a better assistant captain,'' Crosby said two hours earlier when asked about the captaincy. It wasn't clear at that point whether he knew of Therrien's decision.  

''But that's the last thing on my mind right now,'' Crosby added. ''I'm worried about having a great start.''

Crosby wore an 'A' during his rookie season last year after the mid-season retirement of Mario Lemieux. The Penguins have not had a captain since Lemieux retired in January. The star forward wore the 'C' from 2001 to 2006. He was also Pittsburgh's captain from 1987 to 1997, prior to his first retirement.

Unless Therrien changes his mind, Crosby will have to wait at least until next September to put the 'C' on his jersey. The decision by the Penguins comes two weeks after fellow young phenom Alexander Ovechkin turned down the captaincy in Washington.

''Yes I saw that,'' Crosby said of Ovechkin's decision. ''I think in one of his quotes he said it was because of the language, which is fair. But it's up to each individual guy. I think that shows a lot for them to offer that, I'm sure they have a lot of confidence in him.

''He wants to be the best player he can and if wearing the 'C' isn't going to make him do that then he has the right to turn it down.''

It may prove to be a wise call on the Penguins' part. Crosby is still a young man, after all, and putting more on his plate may be a little premature.

''One thing we have to realize is that he's only 19 years old,'' Therrien said about expectations for Crosby's second season. ''Last year as an 18-year-old, with all the pressure that came with it, he was able to take on that pressure and that challenge. We want to make sure again that he's well-surrounded and concentrating on what he has to do on the ice.

''We believe he's going to have another good season.''

Early indications appear to foreshadow a monster year. The buzz since the Penguins' camp opened last Friday has been Crosby's increases speed.

Somehow the 102-point Calder Trophy runner-up added another gear this summer, which isn't comforting news for the rest of the league.

''He's definitely faster and more powerful out there,'' said linemate Colby Armstrong. ''You see him with the puck, not too many guys can knock him off. It's amazing to see. He worked his butt off this summer and it's paid off.

''Did you see the size of his butt and his legs? The guy's a freak,'' Armstrong added with a laugh. ''You look at my chicken legs, I hobble just to keep up with the guy.''

Crosby, who will begin the season between Armstrong and newcomer Nils Ekman, worked on his leg strength in the off-season.

''Yeah I think I'm a little faster,'' said Crosby. ''It takes time to get your timing back but I definitely feel a little bit stronger and a little bit faster.''

In the meantime, Crosby is trying to soak up the few days his team is spending in Atlantic Canada. The native of Cole Harbour, N.S., is looking forward to lacing them up in front of friends and family in Halifax on Tuesday night when the Penguins open their pre-season schedule against the Ottawa Senators.

Then it's a game here on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia Flyers. The Pens are using Moncton as their home base this week, and the locals are thrilled.

Not even Election Day in New Brunswick could take Crosby off the front page. A picture of his Sunday arrival at the airport ran above the fold in the Monday's (Moncton) Times and Transcript with the headline ''NHL superstar happy to be back.''

Below the fold were the pictures of Liberal leader Shawn Graham and Progressive Conservative leader Bernard Lord.

''It's nice to be home,'' said Crosby. ''With two games in three days there's not much time to see much but it's nice to be in the Maritimes. I'm looking forward to playing here.''

What a difference a year makes for Crosby, who was able to show up at camp without a Super Bowl-like media contingent awaiting him.

A year ago 12 different Canadian media outlets showed up to cover Sid The Kid's first few days as a pro. This year it's been much quieter, which doesn't change a thing from his perspective.

''I came in last year and there was a lot of buzz but it didn't affect what I did on the ice. I still had the same approach,'' said Crosby. ''I came in this year with the same mentality. No matter if there's lots of media or none, you have to go out there and do to same thing.''