While most were home preparing for the holidays, members of the 2004-2008 Penguins Elite and Black teams were busy protecting their home turf at the 2017 Mid-Winter Classic.

Over 50 teams from as far away as Florida and Canada descended upon Pittsburgh from December 15-17th to play in the 2017 Mid-Winter Classic. Games were played at seven Pittsburgh locations including; the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. 2004-2008 birth years were represented as teams battled for the top seed in this year’s mid-season showdown.

In the 2008 division, the Pens Elite team finished tournament play with a 2-2-0 (W-L-T) record, finishing strong with two wins to close out the tournament. The Pens Black team finished the tournament 1-3-0, closing out the tournament with a big 4-3 win against Rochester.

In the 2007 division, both the Pens Elite and Black teams finished the tournament with 2-2-0 records. The Markham Majors captured the championship with a 3-2 win against Plymouth Victory Honda.

The success started to come for the Penguins in the 2006 division. The Pens Elite team cruised to the tournament win with a 5-1-0 record, outscoring opponents 30 to 10. The Pens Black team also fared well, finishing the tournament with a 2-1-1 record.

In the 2005 division, the Pens Black continued their winnings ways, finishing the tournament 4-1-1, and capturing the 2005 Letang Division Championship. The Pens Elite team suffered two nail-biting losses to start the tournament before finishing the tournament with a win and a tie.

The 2004 Pens Elite team went undefeated, outscored opponents 34 to 9 on route to the tournament championship. The Pens Black team also enjoyed a successful tournament going 2-2-0, losing to the Elite team 11-5 in the semi-final game.

All teams now look forward to the holiday season for a short re-charge before the season continues in 2018.