About that recap post...

I lied. Studying comes before that blog. Anyway, I'm on winter break now, so at least for the next three weeks I should be recapping every game. Bye for now! Go Pens! Go Avs!

Angry recap post later...happy fun post now.

I saw the first installment of 24/7 last night (I ordered HBO for just one month so I could see it), and I wasn't disappointed at all! The show is absolutely amazing! Being able to see the behind the scenes action and watch the players interact with each other is really something special. I've said it before and I'll say it again: the NHL really needs to market its players' personalities more. Lovejoy and Test Tube got a little face time when all of the furniture from their hotel room was moved into the hallway in Buffalo as a prank. One of my favorite moments from the show was when the team was on the plane going to Buffalo and Fleury calls Max a douche. For those who might not know, here's the (probable) reference. They showed some pictures of Ovie when he was younger...yeah, dude has looked like a douche since he was about 8 years old. Another part that amazed me was at the beginning of the show when they show Engelland getting stitches after a fight. Just the little things that you never get to see: the difference in attitudes in the locker rooms, coach going up to Ray Shero's office with a ranking of players based on their performance the last game they played, the Pens Christmas party and all of the guys' kids...I hope they release this on DVD so more people will be able to watch it. If you don't have a chance to see it, Seth from Empty Netters has pretty much the whole transcript.

On a happy Avs note: the Hannan curse is still going strong. Since he has traded to the Caps, they haven't won a game. On another note, the Avs received Tomas Fleischmann in the trade...he had his first career hat trick last night in a 4-3 win against Chicago. At first I wasn't too sure how I felt about the trade, but given Chris Stewart's broken hand, they had to do something.

And another happy note: I FINALLY got my Christmas tree put up.



And that is one of my favorite Christmas commercials of all time! Anyway, angry, hate-filled post will come later when I need a break from studying for my Human Biology final. Bye for now!

Two weeks already!?

Damn, talk about not being on the ball! While I've had time to watch the games, I haven't had much time for quality recaps. Ohio is getting blasted by snow right now, and the wind chill her right now is -4. This week is finals week for me, so expect more recaps and holiday cheer next week. What else can be said about the Pens that hasn't been said already? Sid is a beast, everyone is playing out of their minds...beautiful! Big game tomorrow. It'll be a litmus test to see exactly where the guys stand. I think the hate is a much needed thing to fuel the fire. I have a fantastic stat about the record streak, but I don't want to type it in fear of a jinx, so I'll hold off. Anyway, holiday cheer right here:



If only the Pens could do something like that. How great would it be for Malkin to dress up like an elf?

As for the Avs, I haven't been able to keep up with them very much this year so far, so I don't have anything to say there. Anyway, I hope that wherever you are, you try to stay warm, and don't go out unless you have to. Go Pens! Stay warm and safe!

Pens 3, Rangers 1

The guys did it again! Apparently the Rangers haven't taken any time whining about the loss like a bunch of Caps fans, but we'll get to that in a minute. Key points:

1. Sid extends his point streak!
2. The Pens really made the Rangers defense pay for every mistake that they made.
3. Speak of defense, now that Michalek and Martin have turned into the players that everyone expected when they were both signed in the off-season, the Pens' D is a force to be reckoned with, both offensively and defensively. (That was probably the longest run-on sentence ever)
4. What else can anyone say about Letang? If he isn't a write-in on your all-star ballot, he should be. (And while you're voting for defensemen, vote for Liles while you're at it.)
5. Why the hell hasn't Comrie been traded yet?
6. I hope that Conner stays in the line-up and doesn't go back to WBS. The third line impresses me more and more every day.
7. I just had to laugh at Steiggy and Errey's bad jokes about Avery's picture in the Rangers media guide. Apparently, he's wearing a pair of blue-tinted sunglasses in the picture, prompting the comments, "He's a spectacle" and "He's a shady character". Say what you will about them, but at least they're amusing.
8. I will never stop hating Avery.

That's it for that. As I said earlier, the Rangers are bitching about the officiating. See here....and here.

In Avs news, everyone is still injured, but somehow they still manage to kick ass. Bad news on the injury front though...now Chris Stewart is out 4-6 weeks with an injury to his hand from a fight. Great. As for tomorrow's game against Atlanta, Winnik should be able to play, Foote is doubtful, Anderson will not be playing until Friday, and Galiardi and Van Der Gulik are still out indefinitely but are skating at least. Tomorrow night's game should be interesting, and I plan on watching it, since I might actually have time to for once. On another note, this just makes me sick...or wish I lived in Colorado. (I hope the link works) In case you can't see it, the Avs are having a Cyber Monday deal going. It's a holiday pack of one ticket to each of 5 different games, a puck autographed by either Liles, Stewart, or Duchene, an Avs scarf, and priority playoff seating...all starting at...$89! Lower bowl is $376, but still...that's just obscene. Well kids, that's all I have for now. Go Pens! Go Avs!

Pens 2, Sens 1

Wow, it's been about a week and a half since my last post already? Sorry guys, I've been pretty busy lately. I've had time to watch the games, just not enough time to write recaps though. I hope you all have had a good Thanksgiving with lots of turkey, merriment, and I hope you all took part in the tradition of listening to Alice's Restaurant. Time for key points:

1. What else can be said about Sid and his determination? After the Pens' slump, he has been playing like he's possessed.
2. Where are all the Fleury haters now?
3. This game was definitely more exciting than the last one against Buffalo. As much as I love hockey, I had trouble keeping eyes open for that one. That may have just been lack of sleep though.
4. I still don't see why Bylsma split up Malkin and Asham again. Those two had some amazing chemistry going on.
5. Why do normally shitty goalies have good games against the Pens? Like Leclaire...
6. I still love the Test Tube-Kennedy-Conner line, and I love the fact that they're seeing time on the power play. Kennedy lead the game with 6 shots. I think that we'll start really seeing some production from this line soon.
7. Speaking of the power play, all of a sudden it's good again. I hope it stays that way.
8. I still hate Chris Neil. How great was it that Fleury stuck up for himself the way he did in the 3rd period? I loved it!

And that's it. Another matinee game today, but I have to work, so I'll see it when I get home. Things are getting a little less hectic, so I'll start to have more time to do my recaps again...this last week had been sheer hell. Catch ya kids later!

Pens 2, Rangers 3

Sorry about the lack of weekend recaps...I was scratched due to illness. Key points:

1. So we know Comrie can fight...if we can just get him to start scoring goals.
2. Steiggy and Errey were in rare form. The money quote was Steiggy, "Sometimes I see things that aren't even there!" Honestly, I really don't mind them. At least they're entertaining. I had the misfortune of having to watch FSN Detroit the other night when the Avs played the Wings. If I ever have to watch their broadcast again, the mute will be on the whole time.
3. The Pens played very well for most of the game. They HAD this win. Everyone was playing with confidence, the defense was clicking...and then Michalek, as Seth from Empty Netters said, "forgot how to skate".
4. How big was Lundqvist? If he would have gotten a shutout, he would have deserved it. Stupid move breaking his stick and chucking it down the ice though. The Rangers' defense also played very well.
5. I like Chris Connor more and more every game. He's fast, and he's a good pairing with Test Tube and Kennedy. I can't wait to see more of this line once Kennedy is back in the lineup.
6. I don't even get excited about the power play anymore. At least it's more organized than the Avs' penalty kill, which is probably one of the biggest disasters ever known to mankind.
7. This sums it up:


At least something went right:
Avs 6, Blues 3

I didn't have a chance to watch this game, but it looks like John-Michael Liles is still tearing it up. 2 goals and an assist! Something of note from the highlights:



Duchene's first fight!

Well, let's just focus on kicking the Canucks' asses tomorrow night! Go Pens! Go Avs!

Pens 5, Lightning 1

They finally got back to their game! I just had a feeling that this would be a great game for Fleury...now for the key points:

1. Apparently the fans at Consol had a Fleury chant going before the national anthem. That's class right there. Meloche told him not to rely on the pokecheck...thank you for voicing the opinion of every Pens fan.
2. The defense looked much better, especially Michalek. Now he looks like how I expected him to. You couldn't really blame him much for the last couple of games since he was just coming back off an injury,
3. If I had to hear Steiggy and Errey say "1-3-1" one more time, I would have had to mute my television.
4. The Conner/Test Tube/Kennedy line looked pretty good. Keep Conner and trade Comrie. (I'm sorry to say it, since I had really high hopes for Comrie in the preseason, but he's just been terrible.)
5. The turnover problem wasn't glaring in this game, but it's still something they need to work on. When Martin almost turned the puck over to Stamkos, I nearly had a heart attack.
6. At some point, Steiggy and Errey were talking about how great the lighting is at the arena. From firsthand experience, I can tell you, it's like watching a game played on the sun. I've never seen that bright of lighting in an arena.
7. The Pens finally look like they might have some chemistry going. With so many new additions this year, the lack of chemistry at the beginning of the season comes as no surprise.
8. Max, Dupuis, and Adams all looked fantastic this game.
9. Goligoski seems to be back on his game after looking like shit for the past few outings. I hope he can keep it up.
10. Fleury was just a beast. I had a good feeling about him for this game, and even though it wasn't a shutout, it was close. He made the key saves at key times, and it helped that he had defensive support. Congrats on your 150th career win!
11. There were a lot of bad penalties taken in this game, but the penalty kill came up big. It could have been WAY worse considering how well the Lightning's power play has been this season.
12. The way he was playing all game, you knew Max was going to score.
13. Can Dupuis really be considered a secondary scorer anymore?
14. Congrats Engelland on your 1st NHL goal, which surprised the hell out of everyone watching this game.

What a huge win for the guys last night! Hopefully this will be a confidence booster, especially for Fleury. Now let's just hope that the consistency issue doesn't rear its ugly head.

In Avs news, they won 5-1 against the Jackets last night, and surprisingly no one got injured. Yay!

Bad news: I'm sick as hell.
Good news: I called off work, so now I get to see the game live tonight. Hooray for raking up a ridiculous amount of sick time!

Go Pens! Go Avs!