Penguins sign former No. 1 pick Daigle to tryout deal Aug 13, 2002 6:21 PM (EDT) By JOE MANDAK PITTSBURGH (AP) - Alexander Daigle, a former No. 1 draft pick who walked away from hockey two years ago, signed a tryout contract Tuesday with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins will pay Daigle, 27, a per diem allowance and cover his living expenses at training camp. If Daigle makes the team, the Penguins will negotiate a contract with him. Pittsburgh gave a similar deal last season to forward Stephane Richer, who made the season-opening roster and was later traded to New Jersey. A few weeks ago, Daigle appeared ready to go to camp with the San Jose Sharks. He apparently changed his mind when given the chance to possibly play alongside Mario Lemieux, who, like Daigle, is French-Canadian. Daigle chose to make his comeback with the Penguins largely because of their more wide-open offensive system. Toronto and St. Louis were also believed to be interested in him. "We thought it made sense for him, based on the environment and based on the style of play the Penguins are playing," Daigle's agent Pat Brisson said. "Alex provides a lot of speed and could definitely provide some offense." Daigle hasn't played since the 1999-2000 season, when he split time between the New York Rangers and the American Hockey League. He had eight goals and 18 assists in 58 games with the Rangers and six goals and 13 assists in 16 games with Hartford of the AHL. Daigle was selected with the No. 1 overall pick in 1993 by the Ottawa Senators but never achieved the stardom projected after he signed a $12.5 million contract. In 459 NHL games with Ottawa, Philadelphia, Tampa Bay and the Rangers, Daigle had 100 goals and 141 assists. Daigle left hockey to start a production company that produced a show featuring singer Sheryl Crow at the Formula One Grand Prix in Montreal in June. Several months ago, Daigle said he never really liked hockey and played it only for the money. "He was away from hockey for two years, but he's only 27 years old," Brisson said. "We spent a lot of time going to games together and he kept playing in our (adult pickup) league for fun. "Then six weeks ago he told me, 'If I can make a comeback, I want to play again. I don't want to embarrass myself, but I want to play."' Daigle has trained in Venice, Calif., for several weeks with players such as Chris Chelios, Anson Carter, Rob Blake and Keith Primeau. "The good thing was he was able to step back and see that he likes hockey," Brisson said. Daigle, who lives in Los Angeles, is expected to arrive in Pittsburgh about a week before training camp opens Sept. 12.
