WILKES-BARRE, Pa. -- Mario Lemieux didn't have a training camp last season and still averaged 1.77 points per game, scoring 76 points in just 43 games.

	Lemieux

Imagine what he could be like with a training camp.

"I think it's going to make a huge difference for me, maybe not early in the season, but toward the end," Lemieux said. "I thought last year I was maybe faster than I was in the past for a period of about a month. I felt as good as I ever did. My back was strong, so that allowed to me skate very well."

But Lemieux began to feel the effects of missing camp as the season wore on and in the playoffs. This season, he'll get the conditioning benefits of nearly a month of practicing with his teammates before the season begins.

Lemieux planned to play in five of the Penguins' nine exhibition games, but two of those were canceled because of last week's terrorist attacks. Now, he plans to play in three of the remaining six exhibition games.

He will make his preseason debut Saturday at First Union Arena, but will suit up for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pittsburgh's American Hockey League farm team, in a game against the Penguins. Lemieux's other two scheduled exhibition games are at home Monday against Atlanta and on Sept. 29 against Columbus.

Lemieux believes three preseason games are enough to prepare him for the rigors of his 14th regular season. His long-range goal is to be physically primed for the playoffs.

"We're a long way from the playoffs," he said. "I've got the whole year to get ready. It's a long season. I feel I'm in pretty good shape now. It's just a matter of playing a few games, getting the feel of the game, the speed and timing. I'm able to adjust pretty quickly."

Teammates have noticed Lemieux is in excellent shape. He reported to camp at 227 pounds, 20 fewer than when he began his comeback last December.

"He's skating as well as he skated back in the day," said linemate Kevin Stevens. "He's really going to have a huge year. He's flying."

If his back stays healthy, Lemieux might soar all season long. A Montreal-based company detected an imbalance in his hips last season and prescribed a stretching regimen. That, combined with the work of back therapist Tom Plasko and rigorous on-ice training with former teammate Jay Caufield has Lemieux in perhaps the best shape of his career.

Still, Lemieux plans to sit out several road games -- mostly the road game in back-to-back sets -- to preserve his back.

"If I start having problems, then I have to go back to getting measured again to make sure my alignment is straight," he said. "If it's not, they know exactly how to fix it."