Goodbye old friend...

The last game at Civic/Mellon Arena...ever. I don't think it has completely sunk in yet. Before I start picking apart the game, I have to say thank you to the Pens for a great season. I will also say congrats to the Habs...I really underestimated you guys, and you deserve to advance. If you end up playing Philly, I'll be rooting for you the whole way. Here's some pics, and key points to the game:

The tickets:





The big screen outside of the arena:








In case you didn't know what game it was:




And one of the worst pics ever taken of me, after the game, after I've been crying:




Key points:

1. What was up with Sid taking that penalty so early in the game?

2. I'm usually one of the first people to defend Flower, but the 1st goal he let in was a softy. He didn't look really confident the whole game. The blame can't be completely on him though. Just like in game 6, the defense left him out to dry.

3. At first, I didn't really understand why Disco decided to sit Letestu for Poni, but then I realized that Poni is another big body in front of the net. And he did have an assist at least, so it wasn't all bad.

4. The giveaways were just fuckin ridiculous. 20!? They were passing the puck way too much, instead of just trying to skate with it up the ice. This is due, in part, to Montreal's defense, they've played very well.

5. Everyone just seemed either really tired or really indifferent. Understandable, considering all of the hockey these guys have played the last two years.

I won't keep going on about the amount of suck that I witnessed last night.

Leaving the arena was one of the most difficult things I've ever done. After the game, they had a nice tribute video on the Jumbotron. Everyone was crying, and they were having trouble getting fans to leave the building. I have so many fond memories of the Igloo. I paid a little extra for it, but I was able to get seats right near where my dad and I used to sit when I was younger (we had partial season tickets). He just passed away last summer, and being able to sit in the same section for this game meant a lot to me.

After the game, we watched the players leaving, and a lot of them stopped to sign autographs before they left, including Flower, which speaks volumes about those guys.

On a lighter note, when I went outside to smoke during the first intermission, I saw someone who looked really familiar. I had to ask, but it looked like John from Hockeytshirt.net. Turned out it was, and he was there with Tommy. They were both impressed, since no one has recognized them at games before. I bitched since they haven't posted any new videos since January, and they told me they would try to post more. Here's hoping, those guys are great! If you have the time, do yourself a favor and watch their videos.

R.I.P. Civic/Mellon Arena 1961-2010