Lemieux: The best is yet to come for Penguins

CANONSBURG, Pa. (AP) _ Their confidence is up, their attendance is up, their scoring is up. Mario Lemieux has changed everything about the Pittsburgh Penguins in only a week. <br><br>Now, Lemieux says,

Wednesday, January 3rd 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

CANONSBURG, Pa. (AP) _ Their confidence is up, their attendance is up, their scoring is up. Mario Lemieux has changed everything about the Pittsburgh Penguins in only a week.

Now, Lemieux says, all he needs to do is ... start playing better?

Despite scoring seven points in two games and helping elevate Jaromir Jagr out of the longest scoring slump of his career, Lemieux said Tuesday he is not yet close to playing the way he can play.

Lemieux estimates it will take several more weeks for him to regain the leg strength, skating speed and instincts he had before his 3 1/2-year retirement.

After that? Not even Lemieux will speculate.

``I think we can be a lot better,'' Lemieux said. ``The more conditioning I get in the next couple of weeks, I can take my game to another level.''

Jagr, who has made a big jump on the NHL scoring leaders list in only two games, has no idea what level that might be.

Despite having played more with Lemieux than any other Penguins player, Jagr was among the most cautious before Lemieux began his comeback. Jagr warned that returning after so long a layoff would be impossible for nearly any other player and would be difficult enough even for one as skilled as Lemieux.

So, to expect the two goals and five assists _ four on goals by Jagr _ that Lemieux has produced? To Jagr, that's fantasy land.

``Of course, I'm surprised,'' Jagr said. ``I didn't want to get too excited because I know the game is very hard. The practices are different from the games, and some guy missing 3 1/2 years, it's pretty tough to play. So it's surprised me a lot.

``I didn't know he was going to play that well. With every practice and every game, he's getting better and better, and it's even more scary.''

The Penguins continue the four-game homestand that coincided with Lemieux's return by playing the Capitals on Wednesday. It is their first meeting since seventh-seeded Pittsburgh upset second-seeded Washington in the first round of the playoffs last season.

Pittsburgh will be trying to win its fourth in a row, which would be a season high.

``You want to keep winning once you start winning a few games in a row,'' Jagr said. ``You get a lot of confidence, you start winning one, two, three, you don't want to lose. The practices get easier, you have more fun during the games.''

Fun is a word that has returned to the Penguins' vocabulary since Lemieux returned. Practices are more spirited, even during routine conditioning drills, and their renewed confidence is unmistakable.

``When you add a player of that caliber, it boosts everyone's confidence, myself included,'' goalie Garth Snow said. ``Just having the best player in the world, it's awesome, We have a lot more energy.''

Snow has started all but two games in the month since former starter Jean-Sebastien Aubin injured a knee, but Aubin is practicing again and could play as early as Friday against Montreal or Monday at Washington.

Obviously, things have changed since he was hurt. Back then, Aubin found himself talking one day about how much he would have enjoyed playing with Lemieux.

``I've been lucky to play with Yags (Jagr), and I said I wish I could have played with Mario,'' Aubin said. ``Now that Mario's back, it's like a dream come true.''

With Aubin ready to play again, goalie Rich Parent returned to Wilkes-Barre-Scranton of the AHL. Parent had a 3.00 goals-against-average in four games, starting a pair of ties.

Lemieux's return is also helping the Penguins at the box office. They had standing room only crowds for his first two games, and fewer than 1,000 tickets for Wednesday's game and 500 for Friday's game remained on Tuesday.

Lemieux has downplayed that aspect of his comeback, pointing out the Penguins already were averaging nearly 1,000 per game more than a year ago. Also, the Penguins traditionally have most of their sellouts in the second half of the season after the Steelers' season is over.