Penguins trade for top pick, make Fleury No. 1

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Pittsburgh Penguins can only hope they have half the success with their latest No. 1 pick as they did with their last.

The Penguins so wanted goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to rebuild their franchise around that they traded up two spots Saturday in the NHL Draft to make sure that they got him. That made Fleury the team's first top pick overall since 1984 when they took Mario Lemieux, now the team's owner.

"We decided that the best place to start building is in the goal," Penguins general manager Craig Patrick said.

"This was perfect timing for us. ... We're very fortunate to be in the third position because Florida wanted to make sure they got a good pick out of the draft. ... Worked out very well for both of us."

The first three rounds of the draft were held on Saturday. Rounds 4-9 will be conducted today.

Fleury, from Cape Breton of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, is 6-foot-1 and 172 pounds. He is a strong skater with a hybrid style and a knack for making big saves. He led Canada to a silver medal at this year's World Junior Championships where he was named the tournament's best goalie.

He faced enough pressure just being the second goalie ever taken No. 1 following Rick DiPietro in 2000. Now he gets to follow Lemieux as the Penguins' latest top pick.

"I think that that's great to be the second one, but I don't know him personally," Fleury said of Lemieux. "But I know he's a great guy and also a hockey player. I am really looking forward to meeting him."

Complete draft list in Scoreboard on Page 2B.