SYOSSET, NY— Pittsburgh turned a slew of disappointing seasons and high draft picks into a team that is now a perennial contender. So maybe it’s no coincidence the Islanders will open against the defending Stanley Cup champions after trying to emulate the Penguins rebuilding model.

John Tavares, the No. 1 overall draft choice, signed a three-year entry level contract worth almost $900,000 per season that could escalate to as much as four million dollars annually if incentives are reached. Should the 18-year-old center make the Islanders out of training camp, his first NHL game action will come against former top overall draft picks in Sidney Crosby and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.

“It’s really not going to change the way I think or the way I live my daily life or approach the game,” Tavares said at the team’s Iceworks facility.

The contact came during the last day of prospect camp. Tavares was named the fourth top overall draft selection in Islanders history during June’s draft in Montreal and will now compete for a roster spot right away when the club assemblies for the Saskatoon-based training camp.

“It’s good to be here and officially be part of the organization,” Tavares said. “It’s nice to have it behind me but it’s not going to change me.

“I still have to work on a lot of things, getting physically stronger and getting my pace up to NHL standards.”

General manager Garth Snow worked with Tavares to reach an agreement early in the offseason. It took the Islanders until Oct. 2 to sign last year’s first round pick Josh Bailey, who missed the first 14 games with an unspecified lower body injury.

The Islanders will not have to worry about a holdout and Tavares said he can concentrate on preparing for the season instead of worrying about the game’s business aspect.

“He’s a driven kid and obviously we’ve said all along he’s another piece of the puzzle of what we’re trying to build here,” Snow said. “He’s going to fit in nicely with the group that we have.”

Scott Gordon led the practice for the team’s prospects and other invited young players that started Friday and concluded yesterday.

The Islanders head coach said the sessions were designed to be instructional instead of a way to evaluate skills, though Gordon said he came away impressed with the teenage Tavares’ poise and offensive skills near the net.

“Sometimes it looks like he has three sticks to the defender’s one stick in his ability to do the things he does with the puck,” Gordon said. “His nose around the net is a unique talent and to me that was the most evident thing about his game that really stood out.”

Almost 500 people attended Tavares’ public press conference last week and a similar crowd lined up to get into the practice facility here on Sunday when a scrimmage was open to the public. Before his first shift, Tavares already has helped generate excitement to a team that finished the season last in attendance.

“It’s great to see the fan support in the middle of July when they could be on the beach instead of in a cold rink,” said Calvin de Haan, the Islanders other first-round pick and a former teammate of Tavares in the OHL. “It’s an exciting time for this team. They’re rebuilding and we have a lot of talent coming up through the system.”

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