Veterans Roberts, Chelios to sit for Game One

May 23, 2008 - 11:41 PM TORONTO (Ticker) -- Gary Roberts did not receive the birthday present he was hoping for on Friday.

According to a report by the Globe and Mail, Roberts was informed by Pittsburgh Penguins coach Michel Therrien that he would not be in the lineup for Game One of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.

Celebrating his 42nd birthday Friday, Roberts was not pleased to hear the news he would be a bystander for the opener of the best-of-seven championship series.

"Of course I'm not happy about it, but I understand," Roberts told the newspaper. "It's been a year of being in and out, with my health issues."

Roberts, who won the Stanley Cup with Calgary in 1989, missed the final three games of the Eastern Conference finals against Philadelphia with pneumonia. However, the veteran left wing insists he is physically able to participate in the sport's marquee event.

"I feel good now," he said. "The meds are working. I'm as healthy as I've been all year. If I get my chance, I won't let my teammates down."

The 2007-08 campaign has been a difficult one for Roberts, who recorded three goals and 12 assists in just 38 games. He suffered a broken leg on December 29 against Buffalo and did not return until the regular-season finale vs. Philadelphia on April 6.

In the opening game of the conference quarterfinals against Ottawa, Roberts scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner. But he sat out the final two contests of that series as well as the first three of the conference semifinals vs. the New York Rangers with a groin injury.

Detroit defenseman Chris Chelios, who is the oldest player in the NHL at 46, also is unlikely to play in Game One of the Finals on Saturday.

A two-time Stanley Cup champion, Chelios missed the clinching Game Six of the Western Conference finals against Dallas with a leg injury. The three-time Norris Trophy winner has not registered a point but has collected 10 penalty minutes in 14 games this postseason.