Pens 2, Flyers 3

Shitty way to open the new arena, but what can ya do? Let me start by saying that Consol is absolutely amazing! All I could say when I walked in was, "Wow". The first thing I noticed was how open and spacious the place was. The second thing I noticed was that it didn't smell like the Igloo. Not the the Igloo smelled bad, but it had a unique odor. The seats were incredible, and the crowd noise was unbelievable. Now for pics:



This sign will take some getting used to.




The old barn.




Love this window display!



Another pic of the Igloo.



The new guy on the block.




Pregame warm-up.



The banners.



R.I.P. Barbero. They had a really nice tribute video during one of the T.V. time-outs, followed by the biggest standing ovation I have ever seen.



Matt Cooke with some clean-up duty.



Ben Lovejoy...who I didn't get to see play. :-(




Tangradi is a beast.




This was a great idea. When they melted the ice at the Igloo for the last time, they saved a bottle of the water. Lemieux christened the new arena at center ice with it. Solid.



It's always a great day for hockey in Pittsburgh!



In case you didn't know what night it was.



Almost time for the inaugural faceoff.



Blurry faceoff.



Best license plate ever! I was actually wearing my Straka jersey, and I waited in the parking garage for this person, but they never showed up, and I was getting hungry.

Anyway, key points:

1. The Pens just seemed like they were lacking the chemistry that they had in the preseason. Hopefully they'll get back into the groove soon.

2. Everyone seemed like they were trying to get too fancy with the puck. Just put it on the net.

3. Lots of shots, but they didn't have much quality.

4. Philly's goaltending situation is just bad. Who the fuck is Bobrovsky anyway?

5. How big of a game did TK and Tangradi have? Nice to see TK back to normal. I hope he can keep it up.

6. I think Craig Adams saw more ice time in this game than he's ever seen in his life.

On a better note though:

Avs 4, Hawks 3

If you have never seen these two teams play against each other, you really should. Always fast-paced and exciting to watch. Avs win in OT. My man Galiardi was all over the place. This team is going places this year. They've matured a lot from last season, and I can't wait to see how well they do this year.

That's all for now. I'll have a recap of tonight's game against the Habs as soon as I watch it. TTFN! :-)

Mike Modano is a traitor

So the rumor is now official: Mike Modano has signed with the Wings for one year for the price of 1.25 million. Is anyone else as pissed about this as I am? I mean, here you have a true veteran, one who has played for the same team that drafted him for his entire career (which is sadly becoming more and more of a rarity), who says he is going to retire, and then decides on one more year...with another team. If I was a Stars fan, I would feel pretty betrayed. I know that some of you may think I'm a hypocrite because of what happened with Ray Bourque, but that was a different scenario. Modano has already been able to lift the Cup. Bourque didn't lead everyone on by saying he was going to retire, and then change his mind at the last second. I'll say it before and I'll say it again: if he would have went to Minnesota, I wouldn't be that pissed. Think about it (if you're a Pens fan): What if Mario had a longer career in Pittsburgh, only to do the same thing that Modano has done? While I would be happy that he was still playing, I would still be pissed that he moved to a different team.

Speak of pissed off fans, this is a good read, especially the comments that follow the article. Caps fans and their sense of entitlement, I tell ya.

On a happy note, Marty Turco has signed with the Hawks. I'm glad to see him given a chance, and with the departure of Niemi, I think he might have a chance to redeem himself. Stars fans gave him a hard time, not thinking that maybe, just maybe, their shit defense might be part of the problem. I think that a change of scenery is what Turco needs, and getting rid of that pointless and horrible thing known as "The trapezoid" wouldn't hurt things either, but that's a rant for another day.

By the way, has anyone heard anything about Billy G's fate? Last I knew, he has talking with the Isles and the Pens, but that was a few weeks ago.

Have a good one kids, and stay cool, that global warming has been a killer this summer.

Awards show...

So the awards show was pretty much as I and a lot of other people expected...a lame bit of fluff as always. I only got through about half of it before I shut it off. The presenters, for the most part, were horrible and not funny at all (I'm looking at you Jay Mohr). Here's an idea: get REAL celebrity hockey fans (Denis Leary, Kevin Smith, Vince Vaughn), and some women who know at least SOMETHING about the game to present the awards. I think it would be fun to have a contest for the fans where the winner gets to present an award (and not the Lady Byng...I'm talkin a real award here). The only good part about the ceremony was the skit with Ryan Getzlaf and Bobby Ryan.



Funny shit right there.

In other news, the Hawks have begun their Stanley Cup winning liquidation. Dustin Byfuglien, Brent Sopel, and Ben Eager are the first casualties, being traded to Atlanta for Marty Reasoner, prospect Jeremy Morin, the New Jersey Devils' first-round pick (No. 24 overall) and the Devils' second-round pick (No. 54 overall). Honestly, I think this was a win-win situation for both teams. The Hawks got a lot from the deal without having to dole out a lot of money, and have a little bit of wiggle room in the salary cap now. Atlanta got some solid, proven players, and everyone knows they could use it. What's left to be seen is if the Thrashers will trade their new acquisitions for a bag of pucks and a jock strap. Have a good one, and try to stay cool...it's been hot as hell here.

Chicago Blackhawks...2010 Stanley Cup Champs

Pens fans can all breathe easy now that we know we don't have to see the Flyers lift the Cup. First, let me say that JR's emotional breakdown on network T.V. was one of the most awkward and uncomfortable things I have ever seen, and I've watched the movie "Happiness" three times. This may make me sound like a huge cornball, but how awesome was Milbury's response, "It's O.K., I never won one either."? Anyway, congrats to the Hawks for all they have accomplished. And as much as I hate the Flyers, I have to give them credit. They went through a lot this year, and managed to battle back. Also, Pens fans, please don't be pissed about Hossa being able to lift the Cup this year. Let it go, now everyone can call it even. I will try to continue blogging occasionally during the summer, but the posts obviously won't be as frequent. I'll probably end up posting some non-hockey related crap just for shits and giggles. Well, that's the off-season for ya! Have a nice summer kids, and I'll see more of ya in the fall!

Stanley Cup Finals, Game 5

I would have posted this earlier, but Blogger was having some issues for most of the day. Here's things as I saw them:

1. What was going on with that awkward pregame? I was hoping that Pierre would get snowed by JR or Milbury.

2. Quenneville continued switching the lines around like he did in Game 4, and came up with some great results. Changing things up a bit gave the Hawks their energy back and jump-started the star players.

3. Speak of being jump-started, welcome back to the playoffs Dustin Byfuglien! He was creating some great scoring chances as well as taking down any of the pylons he could find. I could watch highlights of the hit he put on Pronger every day for the rest of my life.

4. Chicago, with the exception of a few short moments of the game, completely dominated Philly. The Flyers' defense looked abysmal. I think Pronger went and kicked some puppies after the game to try to make himself feel better. That was by far one of the worst games I've ever seen him play. I love how the Hawks were able to put him off his game by using some of the same tactics that he himself had used earlier in the series. They really seemed to be getting under his skin.

5. Dave Bolland, Patrick Sharp, and Dustin Byfuglien all played amazing this game. Hopefully they can keep it up next game.

6. Philly has their whole team to blame for this loss. It wasn't just Leighton, it was everybody.

7. Niemi made some key saves after completely fucking up on Philly's first goal. Even if you think you have the puck, you should at least take a very quick look to make sure.

8. Why couldn't the 2nd Philly goal have gone in off of Hartnell's face?

9. Speak of Hartnell, what the hell did he think he was doing when he almost took Kopecky's head off with his elbow? Then again, it's Hartnell, I don't think he's capable of thinking about anything.

10. Some people will look at the penalty that Seabrook took for closing his hand on the puck and think it was a stupid move. It was really the only thing he could do in that situation. He kept the puck out of the net, but wasn't in a good position to just drop it in front of himself.

11. I will never understand why linesmen don't have jurisdiction to call penalties if the blind frickin refs don't see them. They should have been looking right at Campbell when he was high-sticked. Incredible that they missed that one. Stevie Wonder could have made that call.

12. And of course during the 2nd intermission we get to hear JR and Milbury talk about how someone needs to get in a fight.

13. The Hawks need to keep up their physicality on Pronger, not just because it's fun to watch (and it really, really is), but it seems to be very effective.

14. Briere's cut was stitched surprisingly fast. It's like Philly has a surgical pit crew.

Everyone rest up and enjoy the off day tomorrow. Game 6 is going to be huge. Hopefully Ohio is done getting destroyed by storms. I'm getting kind of sick of the rain.

Stanley Cup Finals, Game 4

Hawks 3, Philly 5

I'm just going to go into the key points...no need to drag this one out.

1. With Philly's defense paying so much attention to Kane and Toews, the Hawks need to keep relying on scoring depth to help them win games. I'm surprised that it took this long for Quenneville to break those two up and place them on different lines.

2. Chicago's frustration really showed in this game. They need to keep their emotions in check, and stop taking so many penalties. This is where experience in the Finals is key. The kids just need to keep calm and focus. Philly knows this, and they are doing everything possible to get under the Hawks' skin, including having Pronger steal the pucks.

3. Niemi came out strong, but as the lack of support in front of him grew he started to look more shaky.

4. The Hawks need to shoot the puck quicker. Don't try to make fancy plays, just shoot the puck and go in for the rebound.

5. This game just goes to show how important faceoff wins are. Just look at the faceoff win by Toews that resulted in the Hawks' second goal. There were many other moments in the game that were decided by faceoffs as well.

6. To be a fly on the wall of the Hawks' locker room during the second intermission...I would just love to know what was said to light a fire under their asses.

7. It all ended up being too little too late for the Hawks. If they had played the whole game the way that they played in the third period, this game would have had a much different outcome.

So there ya go. Also, on another note, the Avs have signed Peter Budaj and David Koci to one-year contracts. Budaj should be given more chances to play next season in my opinion. Not that there's anything wrong with Craig Anderson, I just think that Budaj's ability is being written off.

Stanley Cup Finals, Game 2

Philly 1, Hawks 2

Another entertaining game! Here's the key points (and in case you've ever wondered, I tend to write better in list form).

1. After feeling each other out in game 1, both teams looked a lot more comfortable. The goalies looked a lot less shaky, and the defense made less mistakes.

2. Who couldn't love the collision between Carter and Carcillo? I just loved the little side-step by Kopecky. I'm liking him more and more every game. He isn't afraid to shoot the puck and play a physical game.

3. Philly's power play looked very disorganized. No one seemed to be in sync with each other, and everyone just looked like they were out of position.

4. Joel Quenneville has the angriest eyebrows ever.




5. Everyone is mentioning the shitty quality of the ice. It's frickin June people, and the temperatures in Chicago have been a little above average.

6. As I stated before, I really like Kopecky. He reminds me of T.J. Galiardi, and does a great job of getting under people's skin. He also wears the number 82, just like my favorite player when I was growing up, Marty Straka.

7. Has the Hossa curse been lifted? We'll have to wait and see.

8. It was great to see Niemi back to his old self. Everyone has a bad game every once in a while...it happens.

So there you have it. I would also like to give a shout-out to my new followers! Thanks for reading! See ya tomorrow!

Stanley Cup Finals, Game 1

Philly 5, Hawks 6

This was one of the most fun games I've seen for a while. I finally got to watch a game live instead of having to DVR it, which was pretty awesome. Anyway, key points of the game...Go Hawks!

1. How entertaining was this game? Physical play, neither team with more than a one goal lead, and both teams being very offensive-minded. Both teams came out strong, and I must admit that Philly played a lot better than I thought they would.

2. Chicago needs some discipline. You know it's bad when Philly was the more disciplined team. There were, however, some calls that were missed (the high stick on Seabrook) or just generally fucked up (sending Campbell to the box instead of Hjalmarsson) by the officials.

3. Was NBC glitchy for the first period for anyone else, or was it just my shitty Time Warner cable acting up again?

4. I think that both teams were a little sloppy defensively, which is part of the reason why this was such a high-scoring game.

5. I liked Chicago's penalty killing unit in this game. They weren't afraid to get aggressive.

6. How great was Brouwer in this game? He just always seemed to be in the right spot at the right time, and it really paid off.

7. I was a little surprised that Leighton wasn't pulled after the 4th Chicago goal. I think Philly could have used a little more motivation at that moment in the game.

8. Mike Milbury doesn't like "touchy-feely" stuff, but Pierre McGuire does...there's a huge shock. Beat Pierre with his own shoe, Mike.



9. Both teams showed the type of scoring depth that gets teams to the finals. Philly had 5 different goal scorers, while Chicago had 5 as well.

10. Even though Byfuglien didn't record a point in this game, he made his presence known with his physicality. He was, however, a minus 3 for the night.

So there ya have it. Have a nice Memorial Day weekend kids, and I'll be seeing you for Game 2. Have a burger or hot dog for me, I have to work.

Conference Finals, Game(s) 3

Philly 1, Habs 5

About frickin time! The Habs had the crowd behind them, and finally woke up to play some hockey. They did everything right and had a strong performance by Halak. Key points of the game:

1. Nice first goal of the game by Cammallari. Give an assist to the ghosts of the Forum for the strange bounce off of the boards.

2. The Habs finally decided to get physical with Philly. They need to keep it up.

3. Chris Pronger totally sucked.

4. This game had some really bad quotes from the commentators. My personal fave was "The constipated Montreal offense got flowing a little", or something to that effect. What would possess someone to say that? Another good one was, "You know you're trailing in a game when your goalie is in the middle of the bench like a grocery stick." The only thing I can even guess a grocery stick is is the divider that you put on the belt to separate your purchases from someone else's.

5. How amazing was the crowd? At the end of the game, you would have thought the Habs just won the cup.


Sharks 2, Hawks 3
The only thing I really have to comment on in this game is the fact that Versus didn't show the Chicago anthem. They have amazing anthems, and it just pissed me off not being able to see it. Auntie N is still a beast.


On another note, the only Philly player I like (I know, I know), may be back in action tomorrow. Ian Laperriere has some balls. How are you going to block a shot with your face...twice in one season? One of my favorite videos of all time:



You can't help but like Lappy (or as his teammates called him after he lost his teeth, "Mumbles"). The man has guts.

Conference Finals, Game(s) 2

Habs 0, Philly 3

Yet another ugly game. The "unstoppable" Halak had another horrible game, as did the rest of the team. I wouldn't be surprised to see Carey Price in net for game 3. Montreal needs to play a more disciplined game. Philly has been capitalizing on the power play, and pointless penalties are just making things worse. Cammalleri had more shots on goal than he did in the first game, yet still hasn't scored a goal in this series. The Habs need more production from him as well as Gomez and Gionta. Philly lucked out that Leighton was cleared to play just a week before Boucher was injured during the last series. He has been playing wonderfully, and doesn't look rusty at all. As for game 3, the Habs need to get the crowd into the game and keep them there. If they give a goal up early, the crowd element will be null and void, and the Habs really don't need that. That's one thing that I've always loved about hockey; the fact that the crowd can have a huge impact on the players. Go Habs!

Hawks 4, Sharks 2

I'm pretty much giving up on analyzing this series. It's just too much fun to watch, and I don't want to have to wreck it by picking it apart. I will say this though: Niemi (or Auntie N, as I've started calling him) is a fuckin beast.

Sorry for the extremely late post. I'll try a little harder next time. Thanks for reading!

Conference Finals, Game(s) 1

So the Sharks-Hawks game was very entertaining and fast-paced. Niemi continues to impress me with his play, and after the first period I thought the Sharks were going to dominate this game. Thankfully I was wrong. As for the Habs-Philly game...well, we all know what happened there. They looked a lot like the Pens did in game 7. They couldn't make good plays for shit, and the unstoppable Halak wasn't quite so unstoppable after all. Watching the Habs in that game makes you think, "Man, THAT is the team that knocked us out of the playoffs?". I think they need to step up the physicality of their game if they expect to come out of this series alive. Their small size isn't helping...they look like a bunch of midgets compared to Philly. I'm still sticking with my predictions...we'll see if I'm right.

On another note, I've been having problems posting comments on people's blogs. I can post on my own, just not anyone else's, so if anyone out there has any suggestions, please let me know. Also, can anyone tell me what the roman numerals mean in UFA IV? I can't find any info on this anywhere. Thanks!

Why did it have to be Philly?

Honestly, WHY!? I guess now all of us Pens fans are now stuck rooting for the Habs. Honestly, as horrible as this sounds, the only team in the running now that I wouldn't mind seeing win the Cup is Chicago, and I don't really want to see them win either because of Hossa. Anyway, here are your predictions for round 3.

Chicago over San Jose in 6 games. I think I might be using my heart a little more than my head in this one.

Habs over Philly in 6. Ditto.

We'll see how this plays out, and if Philly makes it to the finals, I'll probably puke.

I didn't want to say I told you so...

But...I told you so.