2002–03 Pittsburgh Penguins season
The 2002–03 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the Penguins' 36th season. The team finished fifth and last in the Atlantic Division and did not qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Off-season
Regular season
The Penguins were shut out an NHL-high ten times, tied with the Calgary Flames, Minnesota Wild and Nashville Predators.Final standings
Schedule and results
Player statistics
;Skaters;Goaltenders
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
Awards and records
Transactions
The Penguins have been involved in the following transactions during the 2002–03 season:Trades
| February 9, 2003 | To Calgary Flames ---- Andrew Ference | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- conditional 3rd round pick |
| February 9, 2003 | To San Jose Sharks ---- 2003 conditional 5th round pick | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Shawn Heins |
| February 10, 2003 | To New York Rangers ---- Alexei Kovalev Dan LaCouture Janne Laukkanen Michael Wilson | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Rico Fata Richard Lintner Mikael Samuelsson cash Joel Bouchard |
| March 9, 2003 | To New York Islanders ---- Randy Robitaille | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- 2003 5th round pick |
| March 11, 2003 | To Tampa Bay Lightning ---- Marc Bergevin | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Brian Holzinger |
| March 11, 2003 | To Calgary Flames ---- Shean Donovan | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Micki Dupont Mattias Johansson |
| March 11, 2003 | To Phoenix Coyotes ---- Jan Hrdina Francois Leroux | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Ramzi Abid Dan Focht Guillaume Lefebvre |
| March 11, 2003 | To Boston Bruins ---- Ian Moran | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- 2003 4th round pick |
| March 11, 2003 | To San Jose Sharks ---- Wayne Primeau | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Matt Bradley |
| May 12, 2003 | To Tampa Bay Lightning ---- 2003 9th round pick | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Marc Bergevin |
Free agents acquired
Claimed via waivers
Lost via waivers
Player signings
| Player | Date |
| Jean-Sebastien Aubin | June 25, 2002 |
| Brendan Buckley | June 26, 2002 |
| Mario Lemieux | June 26, 2002 |
| Konstantin Koltsov | July 15, 2002 |
| Francois Leroux | July 16, 2002 |
| Jamie Pushor | July 30, 2002 |
| Rick Berry | July 30, 2002 |
| Ville Nieminen | July 30, 2002 |
| Andrew Ference | July 31, 2002 |
| Dan LaCouture | August 1, 2002 |
| Randy Robitaille | August 1, 2002 |
| Shean Donovan | August 1, 2002 |
| Matt Murley | August 2, 2002 |
| Alexei Morozov | August 7, 2002 |
| Alexandre Daigle | August 13, 2002 |
| Zenon Konopka | September 1, 2002 |
| Colby Armstrong | September 3, 2002 |
| Rob Tallas | September 3, 2002 |
| Josef Melichar | September 9, 2002 |
| Michal Rozsival | September 9, 2002 |
| Tom Kostopoulos | September 9, 2002 |
| Matt Hussey | September 27, 2002 |
| Alexandre Daigle | October 4, 2002 |
| Tom Barrasso | June 18, 2003 |
Other
| Name | Date | Notes |
| Herb Brooks | August 16, 2002 | Hired as director of player development |
| Rick Kehoe | April 15, 2003 | Fired as head coach |
| Eddie Olczyk | June 11, 2003 | Hired as head coach |
| Tom Barrasso | June 18, 2003 | Retired |
Roster
Draft picks
Pittsburgh Penguins' picks at the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club Team |
| 1 | 5 | Ryan Whitney | Defense | United States | Boston University |
| 2 | 35 | Ondrej Nemec | Defense | HC Vsetín | |
| 3 | 69 | Erik Christensen | Center | Canada | Kamloops Blazers |
| 4 | 101 | Daniel Fernholm | Defense | Sweden | Djurgårdens IF |
| 5 | 136 | Andy Sertich | Left Wing | United States | Greenway High School |
| 5 | 137 | Cam Paddock | Center | Canada | Kelowna Rockets |
| 6 | 171 | Robert Goepfert | Goaltender | United States | Cedar Rapids RoughRiders |
| 7 | 202 | Patrik Bartschi | Forward | Kloten Flyers | |
| 8 | 234 | Maxime Talbot | Center | Canada | Hull Olympiques |
| 8 | 239 | Ryan Lannon | Defense | United States | Harvard University |
| 9 | 265 | Dwight LaBrosse | Goaltender | United States | Guelph Storm |
;Draft notes
- Compensatory pick received for loss of Group III free agent Garth Snow.
- Compensatory pick received from NHL as compensation for Group III free agent Garth Snow per Michel Leduc.
- Compensatory pick received from NHL as compensation for Group III free agent Marc Bergevin.
Farm teams