PHOTO: ADOBE STOCK

The symbolism of the Penguin’s starting lineup of the Dan Muse era was undeniable, even if it was — to an extent — unintentional.Three geezers and two teenagers for openers on Broadway; there could be no better representation of the 2025-26 Penguins.Not that Head Coach Muse was seeking a defining moment prior to a puck dropping for the first time on Tuesday night.

He went with the geezers Sidney Crosby (38), Evgeni Malkin (39) and Kris Letang (38) for sentimental reasons, Muse acknowledged, given that those three were commencing their 20th season as teammates.

“I thought it was important they got to start that game together,” Muse said.

The decision to include teenagers Harrison Brunicke (19) and Ben Kindel (18) in the starting five was a matter of practicality for a coach who wanted to do what he could to ensure two players making their NHL debut wouldn’t be delayed by unforeseen circumstances.

But the real story was the rookie in net.

In opting for Arturs Silovs over Tristan Jarry, Muse established immediately he’s capable of making the tough decisions and the potentially controversial ones, as well as those that might submit to sentiment.

Here’s hoping he follows through on what he started by starting Silovs.

The Pens are going to need tough decisions, as former head coach Mike Sullivan might have put it, to move forward.

As was the case last season, the emphasis this season is on competing while continuing at all costs to identify the next wave of players who will make the Penguins not just playoff participants but legitimate contenders again.

That helps explain:

• Why there are five rookies on the 23-man roster, and there were four in Muse’s lineup on opening night.
• Why there were 13 players who dressed at the outset of last season but didn’t for Game No. 1 of this season.
• Why seven players ended up making their Penguins debut against the Rangers.

Yet as much as the Pens long to lurch toward the future, they can’t seem to let go of the past.

That’s why Crosby, Malkin and Letang are still a threesome.

That’s why play-by-play man Sean McDonough described the Pens on the NHL Network Tuesday night as a team that’s “sort of in transition.”

McDonough hit the nail on the head, again.

The Pens are trying to get younger, faster, better, etc.

But they’ve also ensured another season of nostalgia will be forthcoming.

And it’s hard to take a victory lap when you keep losing.

But goaltender is different.

Jarry doesn’t have the championship pedigree Crosby, Malkin and Letang possess.

All he has is a succession of seasons that ended badly with his fingerprints all over them.

You could argue he’s become the face of the Penguins’ post-Cups era malaise.

Not to suggest he’s been the only problem since the Pens stopped qualifying for the playoffs on an annual basis, far from it.

But nor has Jarry been part of the solution.

The Pens should trade him if they can.

But even in the likely event that they can’t, they still don’t have to play him (other than when Silovs needs a break)

Silovs might not be the answer, either.

But he’s not Jarry.

So if Silovs gets an extended look while Sergei Murashov, the presumptive long-awaited franchise goalie of the future marinates in the AHL, there’s really no downside attached to such an approach (other than the amount of money the Penguins are paying Jarry not to play).

Maybe the Pens discover they’ve stumbled upon something in Silovs, maybe he stands on his Latvian head.

But even if he doesn’t, Muse gets to send a message that ought to resonate:

Not good enough will no longer be tolerated for an organization that’s finally ready to move on in at least one critical aspect of the operation.

There’s enough in Silovs’ game and on his brief and inconsistent but still intriguing professional resume to afford him some runway to see if he’s capable of eventually taking off.

He may turn out to be a hell of a story for a team that’s celebrated the same old story for too long.

Mike Prisuta is the sports anchor/reporter for Randy Baumann and the DVE Morning Show. He’s also the host of the Steelers Radio Network Pregame Show and the color analyst for Robert Morris University men’s hockey broadcasts.