ST. PAUL, Minn. -- There will be no love lost if the Pittsburgh Penguins spoil Marc-Andre Fleury's start and 1,000th game celebration when the Minnesota Wild host the Penguins at Xcel Energy Center on Friday (8 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, BSWIX, BSN, SNP, SNE, TVAS).
"I root for [Fleury], except for when he plays the Penguins," Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said.
It will be Fleury's first start since Jan. 19 when he sustained an upper-body injury which sidelined him for five games.
It will also be the final game between Pittsburgh and Minnesota this season in what could be Fleury's last in the NHL. He is in the final season of a two-year, $7 million contract he signed with Minnesota on July 8, 2022 and can become an unrestricted free agent after the season.
"Obviously, 'Flower' means so much to this (Pittsburgh) organization, this city, with his contributions to the Penguins and helping establish itself with the excellence that they've carried on here and during his time," Sullivan said. "He was one of the most popular teammates that certainly I've been around. Just a high-quality person, a fierce competitor. And has an incredible body of work in this league."
Fleury will be honored Friday with a pregame ceremony for reaching 1,000 games, which he achieved on Dec. 31. The 39-year-old moved into sole possession of second place on the NHL's all-time wins list when he made 21 saves in a 5-0 win against the New York Islanders on Jan. 15 for his 552nd victory. Fleury trails only Martin Brodeur (691) in that category.
"He's a legend," Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin said of Fleury. "That's a guy you really looked up to when you were younger. To play on the same team is just really special for me. It's cool every day to see how he is and how good of a human being he is to be around."
Fleury was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2003 NHL Draft by the Penguins, with whom he played his first 13 seasons and won three Stanley Cup championships: 2009, 2016 and 2017. He is 552-324-92 with two ties, a 2.59 goals-against average, .912 save percentage and 74 shutouts in 1,008 games (979 starts) with the Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights, Chicago Blackhawks and Wild.
"There were some difficult decisions that had to be made with respect to that position (goalie with the Penguins)," Sullivan said. "Those decisions were never easy. Even the decisions leading up through the Stanley Cup runs, when we were utilizing both Matt Murray and 'Flower' at the time to try to help us win the Stanley Cup. They both played such a key role in helping us do that. Those decisions are never easy. They're always difficult."
Fleury was eventually claimed by Vegas in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft and spent four seasons there before he was traded to the Blackhawks in 2021 and the Wild in 2022.
He remains undecided about his future, whether that means retirement or searching for another team to play for next season.
"He's had quite the career," Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said. "Another milestone. It'll be nice to celebrate with him."
"…I think you just try to remember the great moments. Obviously, this will be a special one if that's the case (Fleury's last game against the Penguins). So yeah, I think in times like that, you reflect a little bit and then I think you look back at the great memories that you had."
But come puck drop, it'll be about the two points, not the emotions.
"Exactly, yeah. Need some bragging rights there," Crosby said.
Said Penguins defenseman Kris Letang: "…I think he can play a lot longer. He's so athletic. But it's one of those things, you know when you're done and when you're not. You just want to be happy for the person.
"But obviously, if it's the last time we face him, like Sid said, you want to score a big goal on him. You don't want give him a shutout or something, you know?"
NHL.com independent correspondent Wes Crosby contributed to this report
