PITTSBURGH – The Penguins’ locker room this morning looked like a Blues’ alumni reunion. Winger Bill Guerin is in his second season with the Penguins, after winning a Stanley Cup last year. Goalie Brent Johnson signed on to be the backup to Marc-Andre Fleury this season. And then there’s defenseman Jay McKee, who after being bought out by the Blues last summer hooked on with the Penguins.

McKee said that it took him a while to get over the Blues’ decision to release him, but he’s thrilled to have landed in Pittsburgh. McKee is wearing No. 74, the same number he wore in Buffalo and at the start of his career in St. Louis. He had seven blocked shots in the Penguins’ 4-1 win over Tampa Bay recently, and he has 28 blocks on the season, which ranks first in the NHL.

The Pens are 7-1 heading into Tuesday’s game against the Blues.

“Things are good,” McKee said. “I think as a team we’re playing well and we’re putting up wins. It’s been a team effort and everybody is raising the level of those around them. I think I’m part of that. I’m pretty happy with the way things are going.”

Blues general manager Larry Pleau was the person who delivered the news to McKee about his buyout. He said it was pretty hard to swallow when it happened. About two or three days after his release, McKee had the chance to talk to Blues President John Davidson, who helped him better understand the situation in St. Louis.

“As a player, to go through something like that, there’s a lot of questions in your head,” McKee said. “JD was real open and expressed to me how he felt and it made me feel a lot better. I was questioning whether there was something I did wrong . . . I just didn’t know. It was a move that I wasn’t prepared for, but he made me feel a lot better about the decision they made and why. There’s a business aspect to this game and it’s not always the enjoyable part. I went through something that I understand now and it was the best for both sides.”

McKee signed a one-year deal in Pittsburgh worth $800,000. According to the terms of his buyout in St. Louis, he will make $1.6 million from the Blues this season and $1.6 million next season.

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There is good news in Pittsburgh regarding the team’s new arena: Construction is going very smoothly and workers expect to have it completed by August. This will be the Penguins’ final season in 50-year-old Mellon Arena.

The new arena is directly across the street from Mellon Arena in downtown Pittsburgh. Take a look:

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I wrote in today’s Post-Dispatch about the personnel changes on the Blues’ power play. The most notable change is Erik Johnson being replaced by Carlo Colaiacovo on the right point on the No. 1 unit.

To recap, here’s the No. 1 unit: Colaiacovo, Paul Kariya, Brad Boyes, David Backes and Andy McDonald.

The No. 2 unit: Johnson, Patrik Berglund, Keith Tkachuk, David Perron and T.J. Oshie.

After an 0-for-10 rut on the power play, the Blues were 2-for-6 on the power play in Saturday’s 5-0 win over Anaheim, and each unit had a goal.

“We needed to change our power plays,” Blues coach Andy Murray said. “We went three games where our power plays weren’t particularly strong and needed to change something. Our second power play is set up as a shooting power play. We have our first power play set up as one that can make plays. Carlo’s mobility across the blue lines allows us to access the down-low plays.”

Johnson seemed enthused about playing on the second unit.

“We just hit a little skid and Andy wanted to change it up,” Johnson said. “Obviously he mixes and matches the forward combinations a lot, so I guess he wanted to do that with the power play. I’m thrilled with the unit. I’m on with Osh, Bergy, Perry and Walt . . . that’s one heck of a unit. I saw the change as a positive and I was really happy to get moved to that unit. As great as it was being on the other unit, it’s pretty cool to be on the other unit.”

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I caught some grief today from Carlo Colaiacovo. Evidently I picked the wrong word to write in the newspaper when describing his power-play goal Saturday in Anaheim. You may remember that it was a hard shot from the blue line.

Here’s what I wrote: “Colaiacovo scored on the Blues’ second power play, flicking in a shot from the blue line 2:35 into the second period, opening a 2-0 advantage.”

“Flicked?” Colaiacovo said this morning. “How about ripped!”

Great, now we’ve got English teachers on the team.

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Who will the Blues put in between the pipes Tuesday against Pittsburgh? Even though Chris Mason is the clear-cut No. 1 goalie, a case could be made for Ty Conklin to get the chance to follow up his shutout. Also, Conklin played in Pittsburgh two years ago and is familiar with the Penguins’ shooters.

My take is that if the roles are defined as they are – Mason the No. 1 and Conklin the No. 2 – then this game should go to the team’s No. 1 goalie. The Blues have back-to-back games Friday and Saturday and they can split those starts.

JR