NHL Castoff goalie Thibault will start for Penguins

He was waived once, but nobody claimed him and now returns.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- A week ago, Jocelyn Thibault was not wanted by any team in the National Hockey League.
Now he's starting for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The 30-year-old will be in goal tonight when the Penguins play host to the Minnesota Wild. New starter Marc-Andre Fleury did not practice Wednesday due to the flu, a day after leaving practice early.
"Jocelyn has been around a long time and seen a lot of things," Pittsburgh coach Eddie Olczyk said. "It's a good opportunity for Jocelyn. He's a veteran guy, so he should be able to handle any situation we put him in."
Thibault, who entered the league in 1993 as a first-round pick of the Quebec Nordiques, was traded for by Pittsburgh in August to act as a stopgap and mentor until Fleury, the No. 1 overall pick in 2003, was ready.
Struggled early
But, along with the rest of the 7-14-6 Penguins, Thibault struggled. He posted a 1-7-2 record, 4.38 goals against average and .880 save percentage. He was waived Nov. 29, but no team claimed him.
The Penguins elected not to force Thibault to play for Wilkes-Barre. Instead, they waived Sebastien Caron -- and then sent him to Wilkes-Barre after no team claimed him.
Fleury, meanwhile, was 10-0-2-2 with a 1.57 goals-against average and a .939 save percentage for Pittsburgh's American Hockey League affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. He was recalled a day before Thibault was waived.
Fleury's illness not serious
Fleury's illness is not considered serious and Olczyk said he will likely be in uniform as a backup tonight.
As a result, a week after being cast aside, Thibault is needed by Pittsburgh.
"The last week or so have been kind of weird," Thibault said. "It's something I'd never been through before. But at the same time, it reinforced the fact that you want to control what you can control. I enjoy coming to the rink and playing hard. I just need to get wins and forget about it."
Meanwhile, Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby skated on a line together during practice. The two lined up with Ryan Malone. The 40-year-old Hall of Famer and 18-year-old rookie have played together at even strength only sparingly this season.
All three players have been struggling offensively recently. Lemieux has two points in his last eight games -- including a four-game scoreless stretch, the worst of his career.
Crosby ends slump
Crosby had a goal Saturday in a 3-2 loss to Calgary for his first point in four games. Malone, who led Pittsburgh in goals in 2003-04, is enduring his second run of seven games without a point this season.
"We're just trying to get the ball rolling," Malone said. "We just need to keep it simple and work hard. [In the past] playing with Mario, I was trying to get him the puck as much as possible and relying on him to make me a better player instead of myself going out there doing it myself."
Also, forwards Ziggy Palffy and John LeClair -- who each missed Saturday night's game with injuries -- practiced Wednesday and could play tonight, Olczyk said. Palffy is "50-50" while he recovers from a groin injury.
LeClair has a sore groin himself, as well as other maladies in his lower body, but Olczyk said: "I expect Johnny to be in the lineup."