PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins are about to get the news they've waited months to hear: Mario Lemieux is ready to announce that he will play at least one more season.

Team officials anticipate that Lemieux will reveal at a news conference Thursday morning that he plans to play the 2003-04 season, the 16th of his injury- and retirement-interrupted career.

Lemieux began working out six weeks ago -- something he almost certainly would not be doing if he wasn't planning to play -- and he intends to resume his usual on-ice conditioning program next month.

Lemieux, who will be 38 in October, said at the team's annual golf outing earlier this week that he has had no back discomfort or physical problems since last season ended.

"If I feel 100 percent physically, I'd love to play," Lemieux said. "After a couple of months of rest ... I feel pretty good."

With the Penguins just beginning to rebuild following consecutive losing seasons, Lemieux dropped hints at the end of last season that he would retire. He wore a number of jerseys and played with two dozen numbered sticks during the Penguins' final home game April 2.

One of the most gifted offensive players in NHL history also suggested that he wasn't up to the challenge of playing with younger, far less skilled teammates who couldn't take advantage of the scoring opportunities he creates. The Penguins have won only 27 of their last 91 games, their worst such stretch since Lemieux's early days with the team in 1984-85.

However, Lemieux apparently had a change of heart during the offseason. Even after dealing most of their veteran players at the trading deadline in March, the Penguins still could put a top line of Lemieux, Martin Straka and Aleksey Morozov on the ice. They will also have their fastest team in years, which could benefit Lemieux during odd-man rushes.

Lemieux also said during the golf outing that he feels it is important to work out nearly year-round. Before he retired in 1997, Lemieux did little, if any, offseason conditioning work.

"When you get up to 37, 38, it's a different regimen," he said. "You have to work hard at it. But it's something I enjoy doing now, more than earlier in my career. I feel it's important if you want to be one of the top players in the league."

A return by Lemieux would also be a significant boost to the Penguins at the box office. Without Lemieux in the dual role of owner-player, their marketing campaign would be built around inexperienced coach Eddie Olczyk and a cast of little-known players, at a time when many pro sports teams -- including the Penguins -- are scrambling to sell tickets.

Maintaining his visibility as a player could boost the Penguins' efforts to land an arena financing deal. The Penguins are working with state officials to free up funding for a planned $280 million arena across the street from 42-year-old Mellon Arena, the NHL's oldest and, in a few months, its smallest venue.

Lemieux also has some additional incentive to play again. The sixth-leading scorer in NHL history with 682 goals, 1,010 assists and 1,692 points, he didn't score a goal in his final nine games last season, the longest such streak of his career.