The Sidney Crosby Show

Pens v Thrashers

2009-11-21T18:58:00.002-05:00

The good news keeps coming: Even though he took a puck to the face resulting in 10 stiches, BROOKSIE IS BACK!!! :) :) :) :) :)

Four down (Geno, Max, Gonch, & Brooks), five to go (TK, Kuni, Tanger, Gogo, & McKee)...

Mad Max will be playing on Siddo's line, so look for something special to happen there. We'll get to see our old friend Colby Armstrong. And don't forget there's definitely no love lost between Kovalchuk and our title man. We all know what happens when Sid gets mad, right? POINTS!

Get ready for a good one.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Personal Update

2009-11-20T19:25:00.004-05:00

Hey, I just wanted to let anyone who cares know that late last night, my Gram's doctors finally concluded that the risks of not doing surgery outweighed the risks of going through with it, so this afternoon, she had her gall bladder removed. It was the best we could hope for: she made it through with flying colors!!! :D :D :D :D :D

We kind of have to play it by ear to see if she suffered any long term effects on her mental capacities, but the surgeon and the doctors seem very optimistic. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to any of you who said a prayer or sent out a positive vibe into the universe for my Gram. I cannot even put into words how much that means to me.

Since there isn't a game tonight, I thought you might like to see a little more Killian. Here's a cute shot of the Red Baron (LOVE that nickname, Bill - it's perfect!) on my couch with his blanket:

Pens v Sens

2009-11-19T19:20:00.001-05:00

Folks, we've got GREAT news tonight...

MAX IS BACK!!!!!!

AND SO IS GONCH!!!!!

After losing half of the team to injury/illness, the return of these two key players is enormous. Their return is as important as Geno's return. However, all is not well: our honorary backup goalie, Jay McKee (who leads the league in blocked shots) is out for 2 to 4 weeks with an infected finger. Oy. Two steps forward and one step back... :(

Anyhow, you can pass the time until the game begins by checking out a video and some photos of our Captain with the Olympic Torch! :)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sidney Crosby Carries The Olympic Torch

2009-11-19T17:19:00.008-05:00

Last night, Sidney Crosby carried the Olympic Torch through his native Nova Scotia. Here are the highlights (there's a Chinese ad before the video, but the report itself is in English):

Congratulations, Sid. It is a well deserved honor. :)

What a Month

2009-11-17T15:56:00.004-05:00

As I said before, I'm not deliberately trying to neglect TSCS. I'm still getting accustomed to having a puppy that I have to monitor constantly, and my Gram has been on a health rollercoaster (we're not sure what's happening to her - she keeps getting sick, and doctors think it might be her gallbladder but she can't get surgery because it might kill her). Needless to say, life has been a little hectic around here.

(Greyhounds left to right:) Connor, Logan, Link, and Killian in a rare moment of calm. It's amazing how well behaved they can be when they're waiting for a treat. ;)

We did take a break from it yesterday and headed to Pittsburgh for the game. It was a really good time. I really needed the break. (Parking was insane, though!) The Guerin/Getzlaf brawl was the highlight of the evening for me, second only to meeting Iceburgh in the hall. He is as charming as ever. :) I got a few good pictures for you.

Gronk's shorty:

Siddo:

My first look at the new banner:

The coaches:

Guerin schooling Getzlaf:

The victorious team:

I thought this was weird... The attempt at smack talk fails epically because, um, ducks are birds too:

You have to ignore the grossness of the sidewalk to appreciate this last one:

I apologize for missing most of the beginning of this season. Things will hopefully calm down soon. I so miss doing The Show. :(

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Bruins

2009-11-10T19:10:00.002-05:00

Okay, I'm so not trying to ignore this blog on purpose. The Red Devil (a.k.a. Killian) is a handful of energy, and we still have to monitor him constantly because he wants to play but the Greyhounds are 8 times his size. In his defense, he's finally beginning to settle in a bit, but because woodstock and I are working the same shift this week, Big K has been spending 8 hours in a small room by himself and is a complete tornado when we get home. I'll post some more pictures of him soon. :)

Anyhow, we're watching this one online because Versus and DirecTV both suck. Even though the picture quality is terrible this time around, I somehow doubt it will be as painful to watch this game as it was to watch Saturday's. O_o

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Kings

2009-11-05T22:02:00.000-05:00

Tonight our Boys will be facing the Kings, which means we'll be seeing Rob Scuderi skating with the bad guys. No word on whether or not Sid will be in goal. ;) (How amazing was that save? All those summers spent in between the pipes while playing street hockey really paid off! What a player.)

The Pens are still taking names and kickin' arse. L.A. isn't going to know what hit them.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ Posted from my iPod Touch using the BlogPress App ]

Pens v Ducks

2009-11-03T17:43:00.002-05:00

Okay, I'm trying this iPod app again. The Boys begin a weeklong tour out West. Siddo has been a man on fire lately and shows no signs of slowing down. There won't be a recap tonight - these late games don't even start until my bedtime, haha!!! ;)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!

[ Posted from my iPod using the BlogPress App ]

Pens v Wild (L 1-2)

2009-10-31T17:58:00.005-04:00

Flower will be in net. Syko will be in the bad guys' uni. We will again be missing some key players... But we will still manage to get the job done. Bring it, Minnesota!

Oh, boy. Be careful what you wish for, eh? Minnesota (read: Backstrom) certainly brought it tonight.

FIRST PERIOD

"Count Steigula" welcomed us to the Mellon Arena. O_o
Gronk beautifully set Bourque up twice. On the second chance, Bourque was hooked by Belanger. The Pens didn't score on their advantage.
Following a shot from the point by Kobasew, the rebound went out in front for Brodziak. He promptly banged it into the net. [Pens 0, Wild 1]

Steelers star safety Troy Polamalu was shown wearing a Crosby jersey in Mario's box.
FSN PGH cut away to show the starting lineup introduce themselves when the Pens won a faceoff to the point to Super Duper for a 1-timer that tied the game. [Pens 1, Wild 1] Backstrom was completely frozen, so Duper basically had an empty net. He's worked so hard this season without reward, so it was nice to see him get one. :)

The Wild went at the Pens all the way to the end of the period. It paid off - with just 0.6 seconds left in the period, Belanger scored. [Pens 1, Wild 2]

SECOND PERIOD

A short clip from the warmup was shown: Syko gave a tap to Godard's shin guard to say hi as Siddo was gliding in and tapping Syko's guard for the same reason.
woodstock was irate as he noticed a woman seated in the row behind the glass behind assistant coach Mike Yeo was knitting.

Lots of offensive work by the Pens failed to pay off because Backstrom was stopping everything.
During one shift, Cooker lost his edge on a bad blade and fell then broke his stick.
Sid was called for slashing. On the ensuing penalty kill, Cooker got away with a trip. The Wild didn't add to their lead.
Gronk shot wide on a wide open net.
Then the highlight of the game (at least it was for me) happened. Zidlicky and Siddo got their skates tangled. Zidlicky ended up kicking Sid's left leg out from under him, which sent him hard into the boards. Predictably, Sid wasn't happy about that, so he responded by pushing him. They ended up whacking each other a few times before ultimately deciding to do the man dance. Advantage: Sid. Why? See for yourself.

Both players were assessed a slashing minor and a fighting major. Sid on the fight: "It's not something I want to make a habit of, but I was a little ticked off." Neither team scored as a result of these penalties.
With about 1:30 left in the period, Schultz slashed and broke Guerin's stick. The Pens didn't score on the abbreviated power play.

THIRD PERIOD

The Pens didn't score on the remainder of the power play, either.
Rupp destroyed Zanon with a big hit. He was slow to get up and even slower to get off the ice. So slow in fact that the Wild ended up taking a too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty because of it. Syko served the penalty. On the ensuing power play, Siddo's stick was slashed and broken but the infraction was not called. To make matters worse, while Sid was talking to the ref about it, the puck was dropped for the next faceoff without him. The Pens failed to tie the game with a man advantage.

Syko and Letang had an incident. They deliberately hit each other. In doing so, Syko brought his stick up and over Letang's face. Shockingly, BOTH men were called for coincidental high sticks. I'm not trying to be biased - I really didn't see why Letang was called. Either way, no one scored on the 4 on 4.
The Pens threw everything but the kitchen sink at Backstrom, but he just wouldn't budge.

Rupp and Scott were shown having words with each other. No punches were thrown, but both men were thrown into their respective boxes for unsportsmanlike conduct. (I wonder what they were saying that was that bad???) Again, no one scored on the 4 on 4.
With less than 2 minutes to go in the game, Adams had an amazing chance. It didn't end with a goal. It created a series of great chances for the Pens that culminated in chaos in front of Backstrom. Unfortunately the puck never crossed the goal line. In the frenzy, Belanger took a stick to the face that left him pouring blood out on to the ice. He left immediately for treatment.

The Pens pulled Flower in favor of the extra attacker, and even though they put forth a valiant effort, the tying goal remained elusive. The Wild walked away with the win, despite having 20 less shots on goal.

POSTGAME THOUGHTS

The Pens fought hard and played well, but Backstrom was a brick wall.
How about the Captain throwing down to try to get his team back into it?! There is one thing that irked me though. Both the Wild announcers (in the video above) and Steigy and Errey said that Sid picked a non-fighter. But think about it - this is only Siddo's 3^rd fight in 5 seasons in the NHL. He's not exactly a professional scrapper either, now is he?!

Next week the Pens go on tour out west. I'll be missing the Tuesday and Thursday game because I have to wake up early for a day job. But I'll make sure I have a post for you to comment on for those games.

Oh, and Happy Halloween!! :)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Blue Jackets (W 4-3 SO)

2009-10-30T18:17:00.006-04:00

The BlogPressLite app for iPhone/iPod Touch = EPIC fail.

I'm a little upset! I thought I published a post for the Canadiens game on Wednesday using the app. Evidently it did not work. :( I guess I'll just have to fire up the iMac when I want to post. So much for "There's an app for that!" It's just as well - I didn't recap the game because woodstock wasn't here to help me with Killian. He is, as his name means, small and fierce. He's just a big ball of energy, and right now our senior Greyhounds don't exactly know what to make of him.

LATE EDIT: It turns out that I am the epic fail. The post worked - but the date was October 3^rd so I didn't see it. I corrected the date and will be checking the settings on my iPod. Many thanks to good Friend of The Show Jaime for finding the missing post for me!

The calm before the storm... ;)

Anyhoo, speaking of the Canadiens game, how about our Captain?! What a player. Un-freaking-real. The hat trick was incredible, the win was amazing, but losing Geno for a few weeks due to a shoulder strain just plain stinks. But, just as they have done when our other superstars have been out, I have no doubt that the other Boys will pick up the slack.

FIRST PERIOD

This is the second away game that the Pens have worn their 3^rd jerseys - I was lucky enough to be on hand for the first one. :)
In Geno's absence, Gronk moved up to the second line.
Blunden was called for high sticking. With just 5 seconds left in Blunden's penalty, Umberger went for a shorthanded chance. He was hooked by Bourque. Neither team scored on their respective power plays.
The Pens went on an offensive attack, but Mason responded with a series of nice saves.
Cooker was called for high sticking, but the Pens successfully killed the penalty.

After going hard to the net, Siddo pushed a Blue Jackets defender into Mason. In response, Mason (while cowering behind the aforementioned defender) elbowed then popped Sid in the face. A scrum ensued.
The X-Files theme played. I wouldn't mention it, except that it was strangely out of place. Maybe if they had played other Halloween tunes it wouldn't have stuck out in my mind, but they didn't. Maybe I missed something...
Orpik got tripped at the blue line. Nash went for a shot on net. Johnson busted out two of the nicest saves I've seen all season. (That second toe save was un-REAL.) But the trip on Orpik wasn't called. Instead, he was called for slashing. ??? Nash scored on the ensuing penalty kill. [Pens 0, Blue Jackets 1]

With less than 2 minutes left in the period, Dorsett crosschecked Brooksie into Johnson, who seemed a bit shaken up afterward. A scrum ensued. Brooksie and Dorsett were assessed roughing minors, but Dorsett's was a double. Voracek served the second penalty for his teammate. The Pens didn't score on their abbreviated power play.

SECOND PERIOD

The Pens didn't score on the remaining 22 seconds on the power play.
A scary moment came when Vermette took Sid's left leg out in a big collision. Sid left the ice slowly. He was shown on the bench stretching his leg and wincing slightly, but he returned for his next shift. On the replay, it didn't look like it was done on purpose.
A little later, Vermette centered one from behind the net to Nash in the far corner for the goal. [Pens 0, Blue Jackets 2]
Bourque was again penalized for hooking, but the Pens killed the penalty.

As Bourque came out of the box, he joined Kuni and Siddo for an odd-man rush. It went from Kuni to Bourque to Sid for a shot that bounced off Mason's enormous shoulder pads.
Guerin was called for hooking. The puck bounced out of the Pens' zone, and Kuni went on a foot race with Tyutin for the puck. Kuni beat Tyutin, but Tyutin tossed his stick at the puck and swiped Kuni's feet with his arms and tripped him. Inexplicably, no call was made, but that actually ended up being a good thing: The puck went to the corner. Sid took it behind the net and fed it to Kuni with a backhanded pass. Kuni fired the puck into the twine for a shorthanded goal. [Pens 1, Blue Jackets 2] The Blue Jackets didn't score on their advantage. With that shorty, the game became interesting because the Pens finally woke up.

Johnson had two consecutive remarkable saves. It bears mentioning that he looked really confident and solid in goal.
Pahlsson was called for holding. The Pens got the puck deep, but it rolled along the wrong side of the goal line. The Pens didn't use the advantage to tie the game.
To make matters worse, as Pahlsson emerged, he joined his teammates for a rush and helped Dorsett score. [Pens 1, Blue Jackets 3]
With 13 seconds left in the period, Rupp was called for interference. The penalty carried over to the third period.

THIRD PERIOD

On the remainder of Rupp's penalty, Gronk went for a short handed try and drew a hooking penalty on Stralman. Neither team scored on the 4-on-4 or their respective advantages.
Vermette hit a post after Gronk punished the "Monster" Nash, who was slow to get up. To me, it's kind of funny that Steigy and Errey kept mentioning how H-U-G-E Nash is. He's 6'4" 220lbs - that's what size woodstock is! :)

Gogo sent a lead pass to Kuni. Mason came out to block the initial shot and then blocked the rebound as well.
Sid was called for slashing. The Blue Jackets didn't add to their lead while our Captain sat in the box.
Time seemed to be against us, but once again, they became our Comeback Kids. With 2:56 to go in the game and down by 2, an offensive onslaught led to a fortuitous bounce right to Tank, who put the puck in the wide open net. [Pens 2, Blue Jackets 3]
A mere 39 seconds later, the Saint made a beautiful centering pass to Gogo, who fired a rocket from the blue line that went top shelf to tie the game. (I have no idea why, but Blue Jackets head coach Hitchcock would later refer to this tying goal as "fluky." ??? I think he needs to have his eyes checked.) So we went to...

OVERTIME

Both teams fought hard during OT, but it didn't decide the outcome of the game. It didn't even help when, in the last 25 seconds of OT, Voracek was given a penalty for hooking. So the game was decided with a...

SHOOTOUT
The Blue Jackets decided to shoot first.

CBJ - Vermette: Shot was blocked
PENS - Letang: Shot hit the post
CBJ - Nash: Shot went waaaaaay wide
* PENS - CAPTAIN SIDDO: Mason initially blocked the shot but didn't realize it as he AND THE PUCK slowly trickled backward and over the goal line. :)

CBJ - Huselius: Shot was glove saved

THE PENS GOT THE COMEBACK WIN!!

POSTGAME THOUGHTS

Sid is a machine. I don't care if you hate the guy's personality - there's no denying he is absolutely the best in the league and deserves respect. Anyone who says otherwise can't possibly understand the game.
Shero is a master at picking players. We're missing four key pieces of the puzzle (Superstar, Gonch, TK, and Geno - five if you count Flower's day off), but right now we've got the best record in the league. It's a gross understatement to say it's great to have a team that functions this well.
It's nice to see Guerin and Orpik sporting the A on their uniforms while Gonch and Geno are out. They both deserve it.
We've got to stay out of the box. So far it hasn't hurt us much, but sooner rather than later taking so many penalties (8 tonight!) is going to come back to bite us in the arse.

Tomorrow we're taking on our old friend Petr Sykora and his new team the Minnesota Wild.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Canadiens

2009-10-28T11:09:00.000-04:00

The Pens finally play again tonight. I don't know how closely I will be able to watch the game - have been busy, busy, BUSY with Killian. He is adorable, yes, but he's a little spitfire. The Greyhounds and I are exhausted. I have to go feed him again right now. I will resume recaps as soon as I can...

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!

[ Posted from my iPod using the BlogPress App ]

Pens v Devils

2009-10-24T19:33:00.002-04:00

There's a new addition in my house!!! :) Meet Killian, my Irish Setter puppy:

It's a little soon, but the opportunity to get him just kind of came up, so we decided to go for it. :) The Pens just got another furry fan!

Speaking of the Pens, how about that comeback last night? Our title man pwned the Panthers. There's not enough time to explain how awesome that was. I can't forget to mention Geno's diving poke to keep the puck for that first goal. It was, while extremely risky, a thing of beauty. What a game.

Sid = THE FREAKING MAN. Hey, Captain: Do it again. :)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Panthers

2009-10-23T17:44:00.003-04:00

I'll be watching Martin Skoula make his Penguin debut with a friend instead of here at home. I don't know if I'll be able to recap the game or not. (Watching games with friends can make it difficult to take notes!)

Just an FYI: I'm working on a few things for The Show. I've got about a million fan photos (some from last season and some from this season) that I want to share, a couple more Musings from Mad Max, and a few other goodies. I realize I haven't been doing a good job keep things current on TSCS, but there's a reason my focus has been less than 100%... I'll reveal it tomorrow evening. :)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Blues (W 5-1)

2009-10-20T19:48:00.001-04:00

I'm watching my first game online. It's not as bad as I thought it would be... Click here to watch it online yourself.

FIRST PERIOD

Winchester hit the pipe early.
Siddo made an attempt to score from his stomach again, but Mason said "NO!"
Gronk stole the puck and had a great chance, but Mason made the save.

Guerin set Siddo up for a nice quick backhand shot, but Mason again made the save.
A looooong lead pass from Cooker prompted Gronk to try a one-handed poke at the puck (it almost looked like he was playing pool), but Mason easily shut the door on him.

Godard delivered a crushing hit to Winchester.
The Pens got the first power play of the night when Perron was called for delay of game. The ATDHE feed started buffering like crazy, so I missed most of this PP. (Still, it's better than missing the entire game!) The Pens didn't score on their advantage.
Later, McKee jumped ahead to join the play in the offensive zone. He sent a pass to TK, who scored with a slap shot. [Pens 1, Blues 0]
McDonald high-sticked Brooksie. The Pens made them pay in less than 30 seconds. Geno stayed with the puck and scored on his fourth try. He fired the initial slapshot. The rebound went right to Gonch, who sent it back to Geno for a wrister that was blocked. Geno recovered the puck himself for his third attempt, which was a snap shot that was kick saved by Mason. Siddo pushed the rebound over to Guerin, who got the puck to Gonch, who centered the shot for Geno. This time, Geno fired it up and over Mason's blocker. [Pens 2, Blues 0]

The Versus announcers stated the obvious: "They're playing link champions!"
In the last seconds of the period, Backes hit Siddo. Siddo pushed him. Seeing an opportunity to possibly energize his team, Backes went after our Captain. Rupp was there in a heartbeat to get in between the two of them. A melee between the teams broke out. Sid and Backes were given coincidental minors for slashing and roughing, respectively. Neither team scored on the abbreviated 4-on-4.

SECOND PERIOD

On the remaining 4-on-4, Kariya took Tanger out by tripping him, but no call was made. Neither team scored while their men were in the penalty boxes.
The Saint knocked a puck out of midair for a chance, but Mason wouldn't budge.
Flower made an unreal save on Winchester, despite the fact that everyone and his brother was camped out in front of him and he lost his goal stick.

Tkachuk served a too-many-men bench minor for his team. On the ensuing power play, Tank fired a rocket that went top shelf (where Grandma keeps the peanut butter!) for the goal. [Pens 3, Blues 0]
Only 36 seconds later, Tanger fired a shot from the point that Cooker deflected into the twine. [Pens 4, Blues 0]
The Blues started to get a little frustrated. It culminated in a crosschecking penalty to Perron. The Pens didn't score.

Something changed in the Blues after the halfway mark. They came on a little stronger and created a few opportunities for themselves. Finally, Johnson fired a shot through traffic that Kariya deflected into the net behind Flower. [Pens 4, Blues 1]

The Blues got an chance to cut the lead in half when the Pens got a bench minor of their own. Geno served the too-many-men penalty, and despite a few close calls, the Blues didn't score on their advantage. As Geno emerged from the box, he and Tank got a 2-on-1 chance, but Mason made a great save on Tank's shot.
Le Magnifique was shown in his luxury suite with his wife. He lifted his hand to reveal that he was wearing his newest Stanley Cup ring. :)

THIRD PERIOD

There was an injury report, but ATDHE went out on me for a second, so I'm not sure who it was. I think it may have been Mason, because Conklin was in goal for the Blues in the third.

Tkachuk hit the post.
Sid was called for holding. On the penalty kill, Flower made an incredible toe save. The Pens successfully killed it.
One of the Versus announcers has twice mentioned that he believes the Blues "respected the Penguins too much" tonight and that's why the Pens were destroying them. I don't think so. How can you respect the reigning Stanley Cup champs - the team with the best record in the NHL right now - TOO much??? I think it's much simpler than that: the Blues just played a terrible game against an amazing team. End of story.
Kuni raced to cancel an icing call. He sent the puck to Siddo, who centered a beautiful pass for Gogo for a snap shot goal. [Pens 5, Blues 1]

The announcers pointed out that Geno's English is better than he lets on - he was shown mouthing off to the Blues' bench. I recognized at least one of those words, and yes, it was in English... ;)

POSTGAME THOUGHTS

The Pens have been at the top of their game both offensively and defensively. And when a puck makes it through our D, Flower has been in the freaking zone.
The Versus commercial where the guy says he sticks needles in his Sidney Crosby bobblehead doll and immediately cuts to Geno shaking his head no is money in the bank. LOVE Geno! :)
ATDHE made this Versus v DirecTV fiasco much more bearable; however, I will likely terminate my service with DirecTV at the end of my contract. Watching games on a 24" iMac screen < watching them on a 46" LCD TV. By FAR.

Thanks a million to all who suggested I use ATDHE - thanks to you guys, I didn't miss the game! :D :D :D :D :D Friday's game against Florida will be broadcast on FSN PGH.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!

Pens v Lightning (W 4-1)

2009-10-17T19:03:00.006-04:00

The Boys are back in town! :) The Pens will host the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at the Mellon. I'm feeling better (thanks for all the well wishes!), so the recap will be up shortly after the end of the game.

FIRST PERIOD

Today is the 25^th anniversary of Mario Lemieux's Civic Arena debut. In honor of the occasion, we were shown footage from that night of Lemieux's fight with Lupul.

Orpik crushed Downey, who had his head down, with a hit so big it took both men down. Afterward, Brooksie was shown reinserting his contact lens.
Miller took the night's first penalty. He was sent to the box for high-sticking. On the ensuing power play, Geno fired a shot from which the rebound went straight to a waiting Guerin, who promptly put the puck in the wide open net. [Pens 1, Lightning 0]

Shortly after that, Gogo was called for tripping. The Pens successfully killed it.
A bit later, an icing call against the Lightning lead to a faceoff win that enabled the Pens to get the puck to Gonch at the blue line. Only ex-Pen Malone stood between him and the long distance to Nittymaki. Malone inadvertently screened his goaltender, allowing Gonch's shot to cross the goal line. [Pens 2, Lightning 0]

In the last 2 minutes of the period, Gronk failed to capitalize on a near perfect setup, and the Pens brought an offensive onslaught that lasted until the clock hit 0:00.

FIRST INTERMISSION

FSN PGH has been giving us the opportunity to see what the players did with the Cup when they had it for a day. Today, we saw how Geno celebrated in Magnitogorsk. He went to a steel mill, had a parade, and played a preseason game with his old team.

SECOND PERIOD

Siddo was penalized for holding the stick. While talking about the powder blue third jerseys, FSN showed highlights from the 01-01-08 Winter Classic. I never, ever get sick of reliving that moment. :) The Pens killed the penalty.
Steigy and Errey mention Gogo's mustache. They were reluctant to give specifics, but evidently Gogo lost a bet and must wear it for 15 days. (Maybe it was a drinking bet?)

Super Duper was called for slashing. A shot on goal took a fortuitous bounce towards Stamkos, who then knocked it out of the air and into the net. [Pens 2, Lightning 1]
Just under 2 minutes later, Gonch, again from the blueline, fired a shot into the back of the net as Geno drifted through the blue paint in front of Nittymaki. Nitty cried foul to the refs (for, like, the next 10 minutes!), but to no avail. [Pens 3, Lightning 1] Later, it would be revealed that Duper just got his stick on the puck and deserved credit for deflecting in this goal.
Geno was hit hard by Downey. Frustrated, he took a hooking penalty seconds later. The Pens killed it.
Halpern was called for holding the stick, but the Pens failed to score on their advantage.

Konopka was called for slashing. After Nitty made a great toe save on Gogo, Walker was called for slashing Geno. The Pens had 1:47 with a two man advantage. They got even more time on the 5-on-3 when Ranger was called for delay of game for using his fist to punch the puck up into the protective mesh and out of play. The Lightning held the Pens off through the 5-on-3, and on the power play until the end of the period. Geno ran into the men coming out of the box as the period ended; luckily, no one was hurt.

THIRD PERIOD

Just prior to the start of the third, FSN showed footage of Sid giving Phil Pritchard the Penguins' Stanley Cup ring for the Hockey Hall of Fame prior to the start of the game.
The Pens began the period with just over 1:30 left on their power play, but they were unable to add to their lead.

In quick succession, Adams drilled Downey followed by another big hit on Downey from Brooksie. (You know what they say about paybacks...)
Wright was called for hooking. On the power play, Hedman was called for interference. The Pens again failed to capitalize on their two man advantage.

Cooker hit the post.
The Lightning gave the puck away to Siddo, who was standing right in front of Nitty. Sid released a quick shot, but the goaltender made the save.
Later, Siddo stole the puck behind Nitty. He centered one for Rupp, who banged it home. [Pens 4, Lightning 1]
Tank was called for slashing, and the Pens killed it.

Guerin served a too-many-men penalty, and the Pens killed it.
Eaton was called for tripping, and even though the Lightning pulled their goalie in favor of the extra attacker, the Pens killed it.
Despite the succession of Penguin penalties at the end of the game, the Lightning were unable to get another one past Flower. Our netminder's record is now 7-0! :)

POSTGAME THOUGHTS

Maybe it's just me, but it seemed like both Geno and Siddo were a little off tonight. Perhaps they are sick too?
The Pens as a whole are looking less like a team and more like a well oiled machine. I might even go as far as to say they look better now than they did in the playoffs last season!
Lecavalier looks like a very frustrated man.
McKee is a warrior.

FYI: Tuesday's game is on Versus. As a DirecTV customer, I will have to find a way to watch it online. God, I HATE corporate greed.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Canes

2009-10-14T16:59:00.002-04:00

I'm sorry I bailed on the last recap, and I wouldn't count on me for tonight's either. I'm still really sick (and let me tell you HOW OLD all the "I bet you have swine flu!!" jokes are getting), so I'll probably go to sleep right after the game. I assume that I'll be feeling better by Saturday's game against the Lightning.

GO PENS!!!!!!

Pens v Sens (W 4-1)

2009-10-12T18:36:00.006-04:00

Ever try to watch a Pens game in complete silence? Well, since I've come down with a monster chest cold, I'm going to try to accomplish that feat. It hurts to speak, so hopefully I'll remember not to yell during tonight's match-up with the Senators. It is the first time we'll meet them since they lost sniper Dany Heatley. (← I'm not even going to touch that one...)

Until then, longtime good Friend of The Show and frequent video contributer DayWalk3r has uploaded this sweet clip from Hockey Night In Canada. It aired prior to the Toronto game, and if you are a comic book nerd like me, this is right up your alley.

Side note: I was at the game from which the clip of Siddo sliding and scoring on his side was taken. It's at the 16 second mark and happened at the 01-07-07 game versus the Tampa Bay Lightning. (The Boys ended up losing in a shootout, but MAN WHAT A GOAL!!)

May I present to you Attack of The Penguins, Issue #66. ;) Enjoy!

Many, MANY thanks go out to DayWalk3r for sharing the video with us.

GO PENS!!!!!!

Postgame Goodies From Last Night

2009-10-11T13:42:00.002-04:00

In yesterday's recap, I mentioned two postgame interviews - one with Geno and one with Flower & Superstar. I found the Geno interview, while Friend of The Show Gwendolynn located the brilliant Flower/Max video. Enjoy! :)

Thanks so much to Gwendolynn for finding this gem. :) Tomorrow we take on Ottawa.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!

Pens v Leafs (W 5-2)

2009-10-10T18:58:00.004-04:00

I literally walked in the door just in time for this game. I spent all day at the Penn State ~~annihilation~~ game against Eastern Illinois. (PSU defeated them 52-3!) It may have been a football afternoon, but now it's a hockey night in Pittsburgh!!

I'm going to do this recap a little differently. Tell me if it's better or if you prefer the old paragraph style. :)

FIRST PERIOD

Things started with an early fight between Godard and Orr. Godard gets slight edge for taking Orr down.

Gronk carried the puck in and made a backhanded pass that was intercepted by a Leaf. TK took it right back. Cooker ended up with the puck and fired a top shelf beauty to earn his 100^th career goal. [Pens 1, Leafs 0]

Orpik lined up Hagman, who saw it coming and ducked out of the way. Gronk ended up on the wrong end of Brooksie's momentum. He left the ice in a bit of pain. On his next shift, Gronk blocked a shot and again had to leave the ice. (He wasn't seriously hurt either time.)

After a collision, Orr elbowed Cooker in the face. Cooker didn't like it, and they exchanged a few punches. Orr went to the box for roughing. On the ensuing power play, Sid's passes are insane. Gonch fired a shot through traffic for the PPG. [Pens 2, Leafs 0]
The second fight of the night was a matchup between Mayers and Adams. Mayers took Adams down and sent him to the locker room with a bloody cut above his eye.
While an official was between them, Rosehill used his stick to spear then wipe up and over the face of Tanger. Guerin took exception to this and jumped in to defend Tanger. Guerin and Rosehill were given coincidental minors. Errey (and I) wondered why Rosehill wasn't ejected for his jackassery. He was merely assessed a highsticking penalty, while Guerin was called for roughing. Neither team scored on the 4-on-4.
At the end of the period, the fans booed their own team.

FIRST INTERMISSION

FSN PGH showed a solid piece on equipment manager Dana Heinze's experience as a Johnstown Chief's goalie for a night.
Superstar stopped by the booth!! When asked if he was enjoying the game, he responded, "It's not that exciting. ... I can say that Toronto's not like playing that great, but we're making them look bad." God, I love him. :)

SECOND PERIOD

The Leafs cut the Pens' lead in half when Rosehill got his first NHL goal. [Pens 2, Leafs 1]
On the very next shift, Stajan took an offensive holding penalty. Toskala misread the call and started to go to the bench. It took only a few seconds for Sid to capitalize on a rebound from a shot by Geno. [Pens 3, Leafs 1] Just over 30 seconds lapsed between the Leafs' goal and this one.

Geno was called for highsticking. The Pens killed the penalty.
Hagman got away with playing the puck with a broken stick.
Rosehill hit Gonch from behind in yet another asinine attempt to make a name for himself. He was nailed with a boarding penalty. Gonch got revenge by sending the puck to Geno for a shot that Siddo deflected into the net for the PPG. [Pens 4, Leafs 1]

SECOND INTERMISSION

FSN PGH showed a little animation for the kids starring Peter (Petr?) Puck. He demonstrated how Siddo used his mom's dryer to practice shooting. He did make sure to warn kids to ask for permission to do so first. :)

THIRD PERIOD

Hagman got a bouncing puck, settled it, and scored. [Pens 4, Leafs 2]
Just over a minute later, Geno forced a turnover behind Toskala. He centered one for Gronk, who quickly banged it home. [Pens 5, Leafs 2]

There was a pause in the game while the ice crew tended to a section where the FACEOFF logo was protruding through the ice.
As soon as play resumed, Rosehill and Rupp went at it.
Gogo served a penalty for delay of game, and the Pens killed it.
The Pens had dinner last night at the Hockey Hall of Fame.
The fans again booed their own team.
Mayers was called for slashing, but the Pens didn't score on their advantage.
The fans again booed their own team.
With just 1:49 left in the game, Ponikarovsky took a penalty. As Siddo left the ice after his shift, Blake ran his mouth at our Captain. The Pens didn't add to their lead.
Siddo was named the McDonald's Player of the Game.

POSTGAME THOUGHTS

I don't know about you, but I just think that booing your own team is beyond wrong. I simply cannot think of a time where that is the appropriate response from a true fan. Even in the leanest times, I honestly don't remember any time when Pens fans booed our Boys.
Sid absolutely pwns the faceoff circle. In the past two games alone, he has won between 75% and 85% of them.
His puck possession is blue ribbon, as well. The kid is just amazing on the ice. It's so much fun to watch him.
Geno's postgame interviews are money in the bank. :)
Flower did his postgame interview in French, with Superstar Mad Max beside him - listed as "Fleury's Translator." That is, until one of Max's translations prompted Flower to exclaim, "That's not what I said!!" Again, I LOVE that guy!!!

GO PENS!!!!!!!

Pens v Flyers (W 5-4)

2009-10-08T17:55:00.005-04:00

Get ready for a BATTLE! >:) Hopefully last night's lackluster, undisciplined performance is fuel for the fire in the Boys' bellies to win tonight. But before the game starts, check out the screenshot that Friend of The Show Pippi Longstocking sent:

ESPN doesn't know what Sidney Crosby looks like ... I saw this on ESPN [after the Pens/Rangers game] and took snapshots directly from TV. Isn't it funny?

Click to enlarge

WTF?! I love TK, don't get me wrong, but he's no Sidney Crosby. Way to go, ESPN!

FIRST PERIOD

As expected, tempers flared right from the get go. Nine penalties were assessed in the first. Less than 10 second into the game, Briere took a penalty for hooking. On the ensuing power play, the crowd began an unprompted "CROSBY SUCKS!!" chant. Geno, while getting booed, fired a rifle shot from the blue line that may or may not have been deflected by Siddo for the goal. [Pens 1, Flyers 0]

Then Flower had to flop down on the puck to make a save. Just after that, Adams and LaPerriere dropped their gloves. I'm giving the slight edge to Adams because 1.) he basically body slammed LaPerriere to the ice, and 2.) well, I just plain hate the Flyers. ;) The music guy played that song that prompts the crowd to shout "CROSBY SUCKS!!" That happened about 1,000 times tonight. Geno took a highly questionable offensive hooking penalty. Siddo was out on the PK looking his usual beastly self. Flower shrugged a shot away. [More Crosby sucks music] Chaos in front of Flower didn't stop him from stealing one away from Carter. The Pens killed the penalty.

A slap shot from Sarge leveled Timmonen. Flower made another lying-down-on-the-puck save. Pronger made it his life's work to get as physical as possible with both Geno and Sid. [More Crosby sucks music - which I'm sure he didn't hear because he was distracted by the weight of his SHINY NEW RING] Geno's passes around guys to himself are nothing short of brilliant. Flower was in near-playoff form - except for when Briere was left unchallenged and able to get to the net to poke one home. [Pens 1, Flyers 1]

A mere 28 seconds later, Geno stole the puck, passed it to Gronk, who powered to the net for a beautiful top shelf goal. [Pens 2, Flyers 1]

The Saint and TK had a succession of good chances. Carle mistook his hockey gear for wrestling gear - he literally pinned Geno against the boards. Tanger, Tank, and Asham went over to get involved. After all the penalties were handed out, the Flyers had a power play that the Pens were able to kill. [Even more Crosby sucks music - don't you think that's getting old, Flyers fans? Really, you need something new.] Emery got a lucky break when, as he flopped about, he thrust his stick back to make a save on Siddo. A melee erupted at the end of the period.

SECOND PERIOD

Kuni took a penalty for tripping. Pronger fired a shot that broke Cooker's stick. In a defensive move, Cooker made a sliding block, but the puck slid right to Briere for the goal. [Pens 2, Flyers 2] Less than 10 seconds later, Siddo hit the post. A while later, the Flyers' 4^th line began a change when they anticipated the puck was going deep... except the puck was turned over to Kuni at neutral ice. He sent a nice long pass to Guerin, who was wide open all alone behind the D, for the 5-hole goal. [Pens 3, Flyers 2]

Carle was called for hooking. With 32 seconds left on the PP, Geno was called for interference. With just a second left on the 4-on-4, Coburn put the puck in between Emery's legs - he put it in his own goal! Gogo got the unassisted credit. [Pens 4, Flyers 2] Siddo was called for tripping. The crowd obviously loved it. Errey remarked that the crowd's animosity only fires Siddo up. He stated, "Haha, haven't they figured it out yet? They'd be better off keeping it quiet." [More Crosby sucks music] On the penalty kill, Staal was called for slashing, giving the Flyers 1:29 with a two-man advantage. Richards to Carter = goal. [Pens 4, Flyers 3] The remainder was killed.

THIRD PERIOD

TK had an unreal shift that culminated in a beautiful goal. [Pens 5, Flyers 3] Carle went to the box, then Coburn tripped Geno which gave the Pens a 52 second 5-on-3. The Pens didn't score on their advantage. There was a row of spectators behind the Pens' bench wearing our Stanley Cup Champs gear with an added touch: a red circle with a slash through it. I hate the Flyers, but I'd never be stupid enough to spend my hard earned cash on a Flyers shirt for a joke. Briere is still the king of the Flyer fakers - he bought a penalty on Orpik that the Pens killed. It occurred to me at this point that it was more than halfway through the period and there was no instance of [Crosby sucks music].

With 1:46 left in the game, Emery was pulled in favor of the extra attacker. Flower's stick broke, so he was left using a player's stick, which gave Carter a chance to score. [Pens 5, Flyers 4] There were still 41 looooong seconds left to go. Less than 5 seconds left, D-bag Richards full-on plowed into Flower. All hell broke loose. Something strange happened to Tanger. He ran down the runway like he'd been lit on fire. Bylsma nearly stroked out as he summoned his captain to fetch the officials. As they replayed the fight between Tanger and professional jackass Hartnell, I said, "Did Hartnell maybe bite him?!" Seconds later, Steigy asked Errey that same question. (It is, as of publishing time, still unanswered because in the postgame interview, Tanger said that if the reporters wanted to know what happened, they'd "have to go ask him." Stay tuned...) More penalties were dolled out. There were just 1.2 seconds left - enough time to drop the puck and get in a little more fighting.

What's that, crowd? Who sucks? Your team does. PENS WIN!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOO!!

Many thanks go out to Pippi for sending the screenshot. And one last thing - get well wishes go out to Stan Savran, who had successful quadruple bypass surgery yesterday.

GO PENS!!!!!!!

Pens v Coyotes (L 0-3)

2009-10-07T19:16:00.004-04:00

OY! What a week so far. I missed Mario's birthday, the wind took out part of my roof's gutter, AND today I had jury duty. (I'm about a month away from turning 32, and this is the 4^th fricking time I've been called. Grrrr!!) And since I was again chosen, this will be the second time I've served on a jury. Last time it was a criminal trial; this time it's civil. It's supposed to be a one-day case (on the day before my birthday), so I guess it could be worse. Still... >:(

Superstar and Flower handed out pizzas to students waiting on line for tickets before today's game. :)

The good news: The Sporting News Magazine (rightfully) announced that Pittsburgh is the Best Sports City! :) The bad news: The Pens were a collective shell of their Stanley Cup winning selves tonight. Ten minor penalties and a failure to get into a rhythm led to the loss tonight.

FIRST PERIOD

Choppy. That's the best way I can describe the first - a period we were lucky to end down only by one goal. The Boys took too many penalties against the Gretzky-less Coyotes, which forced Dan Bylsma to jumble the lines, which prevented the Pens from being able to get into the groove.

Guess who was watching the game with Le Magnifique at the Mellon tonight? GARY ROBERTS!! :) I miss that guy. Less than a minute into the game, Cooker took an interference penalty. Siddo was out killing the penalty (likely because he's been a beast winning 65% of his faceoffs). He looked really good on the PK, but you all know he's good at pretty much anything he does. The Coyotes didn't score, but having Sid out on the PK that early forced the aforementioned line jumbling.

Later, Geno would take the dreaded 4 minute minor for high sticking causing bleeding. Just over 3:30 into it, Jovanovski fired a beautiful shot from the far side through traffic for the goal. [Pens 0, Coyotes 1] I thought the momentum would shift following a stunning glove save from Johnson in his first game as a Pen on Doan. Seeing Johnson in goal is a little strange. In appearance, he's like the anti-Fleury: his pads are black. ;) Sarge was called for hooking, but the Pens kept the Coyotes from scoring. In a matter of seconds, Geno took a questionable high hit in the neutral zone from Jovanovski, and McKee was elbowed in the face by Hanzal - neither of which got the Pens a power play. They did get one a bit later when Fiddler was called for hooking, and despite a valiant effort from our title man (and his teammates!), they didn't score with the advantage.

SECOND PERIOD

Siddo drew his first penalty this season. It was an interference call on Aucoin. Things got a little out of control from there. On the ensuing power play, Sid was called for a one handed slash. Neither team scored. Boedker grabbed and held Orpik's stick, which resulted in a terrible hooking penalty. It didn't even take a minute for Prucha, after falling and while on his backside, to score by poking the puck up and over Johnson. [Pens 0, Coyotes 2]

The post kept Doan from adding to the tally later. A patient Gogo waited for the perfect shot - and got it - but it was immediately clear the goal wasn't going to count because the whistle had blown just as he was taking the shot. The whistle was for an interference call on Cooker. Then it got even crazier. Seconds later, Vrbata got the even up call. Just after that, Sid and Aucoin took coincidental minors for infractions on each other. Only a bit later, Cooker and Hanzal took coincidental minors for roughing.

After all the penalties, the closest the Pens got to scoring legitimately was when TK hit the post after a Pens 3-on-1 fail. With less than 20 seconds left in the period, Jovanovski targeted Geno for the third or fourth time, this time attracting attention from the officials after hitting Geno in the back of the head. The Pens didn't score on their abbreviated power play.

THIRD PERIOD

Just after the Pens failed to score on the remainder of their power play, woodstock (whom I haven't seen all week) came home from work. And to be perfectly honest, considering the way the Pens had been playing, I kind of checked out at that point. I stopped taking notes, but here's what happened in a nutshell: Kunitz, McKee, and Aucoin were all given minors (neither team scored), Johnson (who looked good despite what the score reflects) was pulled in favor of the extra attacker with more than 2 minutes left in the game, and the Coyotes got the empty netter with just under a minute to go.

Tomorrow it's our first meeting of the 2009-10 season with the Flyers. Given the history of these cross state rivals and with the sting of this loss, expect it to get nasty. >:D

GO PENS!!!!!!!

Pens v Isles (W 4-3 SO)

2009-10-03T20:04:00.004-04:00

It was the Islanders' season opener. For the occasion, they had a rink sized flag held by a bunch of peewee players while the anthem was sung. (They even waved the flag at the appropriate time - it was too cute.) The Isles are a team in turmoil. They are facing the same situation we were facing just a few short years ago: the owner has threatened to move the team if they don't get a new arena. Isles fans, we feel your pain. Here's hoping your outcome is a duplicate of ours.

FIRST PERIOD
Siddo and Witt took the ceremonial opening faceoff. The fans booed our title man when he was announced. Tavares is clearly already a fan favorite - he was getting thunderous cheers whenever he touched the puck. We need a nickname for the Kennedy-Staal-Cooke line because they are unreal together. Moulson hit Flower and went to the box for interference for the night's first penalty. The Pens were unable to capitalize on their advantage. A bit later McKee was busted for holding. On the ensuing penalty kill, some jackarses in attendance were bouncing an orange balloon right in the camera view. The Isles were held scoreless.

Letang ran interference (so to speak, haha) on a ref in the Pens' own zone; meanwhile Siddo was cheating up ice. The puck made its way to Tank, who sent it to the Saint. He easily got behind the Isles' defense and sent the puck through the 5-hole into the back of the net. [Pens 1, Isles 0]

Jackman and Rupp dropped their gloves. It was a solid effort from both men ending in a draw. Sim hit Staal with his stick right in front of the refs after Staal pushed him off Flower at the end of a play. No call was made, but it was a sign of things to come. Witt stood up on Tank, just crushing him and sending him to the locker room. Geno and Super Duper didn't appreciate that, so Geno deliberately ran into Witt while Duper nearly bit off more than he could chew by starting a fight with the MUCH bigger, much nastier Witt. Seeing this, McKee raced in to take over for Duper.

The fight was another draw, but the Isles ended up with a 2 minute 5-on-3 during which Streit scored a goal. Tavares had an assist, making it his first NHL point. [Pens 1, Rangers 1] In the last 40 seconds of the game, the Isles rained down on MAF, but the Pens managed to make it to the end of the period with the tie in tact.

SECOND PERIOD
Tank returned to the ice for the start of the period. We were told that Siddo says he is getting comfortable with his new stick. (It's one piece versus his old 2-piece style that was discontinued.) Evidently he is: he made a nice shot for a good chance, but Roloson made a big save on our captain. Then we were told that Sid practiced his shot over the summer by filling the shaft of his stick with sand and firing shot after shot with the weighted stick to develop strength.

Flower made a great diving poke check to prevent Tambellini from getting a shot. Before they even had a chance to tell us who went to the box (it was Eaton for hooking), Tavares scored his first NHL goal. Later, a mistake would see Tavares in a 2-on-NONE. But Flower shut the door on him with a pretty save. Roloson had a big save of his own on Guerin a bit later. Is it me or does it seem like more and more sticks break every season? The ice was littered with Penguins sticks tonight. The end of the period approached, but this time it was the Penguins with the last second onslaught. The Isles thanked their lucky stars (and their goalie) that they were able to take their lead into the third.

THIRD PERIOD
Kuni was tripped by Park, and despite a great power play effort, the Isles blocked everything. Roloson stopped Brooksie on the doorstep. Siddo won a faceoff to Letang, who sent the puck to Eaton at the point. With one big swing of the stick, Eaton sent the puck through traffic into the net. With that assist, Sidney became the 6^th fastest player in the NHL to reach 400 career points. WOOOO!!! :) [Pens 2, Isles 2]

We only got to celebrate for 17 seconds when Hunter got the puck past MAF to regain the lead. [Pens 2, Isles 3] From here, the already exciting game opened up. Rupp took an offensive penalty for holding a stick. The Pens killed it. Letang made a diving play to attempt to keep the puck in the Isles' zone, but he missed. This allowed a 3-on-1, but the Isles shot high and wide.

Geno got the puck to a wide open Gonch, who put the puck on net. Roloson was down, Witt was down behind him, and Gervais was on his way to help defend the net as Tank was getting ready to clean up the garbage. Gervais was foiled by his own momentum as the puck went off his skate and into the goal. [Pens 3, Isles 3] With just under 2:30 to go in the game, Guerin was called for slashing. The penalty was killed and so was the period. We headed to...

OVERTIME
Geno and Gonch looked outstanding but couldn't past Roloson. A huge glove save on Moulson by MAF and a perfectly timed diving block by Letang sent this game to a...

SHOOTOUT
The Isles chose to shoot first.

NYI-1. Tambellini's shot hit the corner of the post. Flower properly thanked the metal for the help. ;)
* PIT-1. Letang is money. The puck went on edge and rolled right over the line.
NYI-2. Tavares appeared in his first NHL shootout. His shot went about 2 miles wide.
* PIT-2. Siddo, with the game on his stick once more, showed everyone why he is the best in the NHL. He cooly approached Roloson and sent the puck through the 5-hole for the win. The puck hit the net so hard that Roloson's water bottle popped up.

We don't play again until Wednesday, when we face the Phoenix Coyotes. Incidentally, I have jury duty that day... Weak. :(

GO PENS!!!!!!!

Banner Ceremony Fan Photos

2009-10-03T12:25:00.007-04:00

You probably guessed that I haven't been keeping up with other Penguins blogs during my hiatus, either. Last night, I went back through two of my favorites and borrowed a few things for The Show.

From Empty Netters:

Seth posted a broken link to the Pens' media guide, which the Pens' website made available for download in PDF form. Here is the correct link if you're interested (it's pretty sweet):
[ Pens 2009-10 Media Guide ]

From ThePensblog.com:

The guys found good photos of the Boys' new bling, in particular a great shot of Siddo flaunting his (a shot that is soon to be a part of the TSCS banner). They also featured a crystal clear shot of the Boys' names on the Cup. Enjoy!

Longtime good Friends of The Show 1WingAngel, Nicole G., and MamaG were lucky enough to be in attendance for last night's game. 1Wing sent me some photos of her photos from the banner ceremony:

Check out the pic of Geno greeting his teammates as he approaches his designated spot. He was the only player to do so; everyone else skated directly to their place. Just proves how team-oriented and wonderful Geno is!

Pens are 1-0-0. Our main man was the #1 star. Mario and Lord Stanley were in the Igloo. Do things get any better?

(Well, yes, if we win another Cup!)

Agreed. :) Click the images to enlarge them.

Many thanks to 1Wing for sharing her pictures with us! Tonight we'll be taking on the Islanders.

GO PENS!!!!!!!

Pens v Rangers (W 3-2) - Season Opener

2009-10-02T16:38:00.009-04:00

The banner ceremony was EPIC. Mario is so much man, I could feel the testosterone through my TV. A surprise: Mad Max Talbot was dressed and skated out for the ceremony — to louder cheers than Mario, (S)Hero, or Danny B. got! Flower, Geno, and Sid also got thunderous ovations. The banner ascended while our Boys saluted it by tapping their sticks and some odd orchestral march (that sounded more suited for the end of a Mel Gibson movie) played in the background. Watch it now:

A good Friend of The Show sent me these next two AMAZING pictures of the banner being raised. Click them for HUGE versions. Thank you SO MUCH, my Friend. ;)

And with that, we realized that, in a matter of minutes, we'd once again be back at square one in the journey to the Cup.

FIRST PERIOD
As we waited for the hardware to be safely transported off the ice, we were treated to a snippet of HCDB's locker room speech. My favorite part came when he addressed the newest members of the team:

You're not here to replace anybody; you're here to add. You're here because you're damn good players and you have every right to be here and add to our team and make our team better.

Welcome.

Do something now.

Beautiful.

The first 5½ minutes were solid end-to-end hockey. The officials missed it when the Rangers had too many men on the ice. The Saint just missed on a long slap shot. The first penalty of the night was issued to Drury. On the ensuing power play, Gogo dropped the puck in front of Flower (likely expecting Gonch to pick it up). Our champion netminder had to make a diving poke check to prevent Higgins from capitalizing on the error. Gogo made up for it at the other end of the ice with a nice pass to Gonch, who shot the puck on goal. The puck was deflected by Geno's stick for the goal. [Pens 1, Rangers 0]

The Pens immediately followed the goal with two near misses. TK + Staal + Cooker still = pure gold. Together they make an incredible line. Dupuis collided with Girardi. Adding to the list of many reasons why he's awesome, Super Duper was shown quickly making sure Girardi was okay before getting up and rejoining the play. Brashear and Godzilla faced off: Brashear started the fight with a quick left jab stunner, but Godard didn't bow out. Far from it. He came back with a few nice hits of his own. The fight ended with both big men bloody and exhausted. It should technically be a draw, but I'm giving Godard the advantage because that initial hit didn't take him down.

In the last quarter of the period, Gonch attempted to clear the puck out of the zone. It hit an official and took a fortuitous bounce in the opposite direction, so the Rangers (specifically Drury) scored and tied it up. [Pens 1, Rangers 1]

Siddo was subjected to an high hit from Marc Staal. In retaliation, our title man slashed him on the leg. Seconds later, he was in the box. On the penalty kill, Cooker to Gronk nearly ended with a shorty, but Lundqvist shut the door. The penalty was successfully killed, and the period ended.

SECOND PERIOD
Two minutes into the second, we were told that Sidney was 8-0 on his faceoffs for the night. :) Then it was time to CALL THE COPS because Flower just robbed Prospal with his glove. What a save! Super Duper got penalized for hooking. On the penalty kill, Kotalik played old school (sans a helmet) for a spell, and Flower made another amazing save on Gaborik, who made his way to the net unchallenged after getting around Letang. The penalty was killed.

Godard had two near misses. After the second one, the net was dislodged behind Lundqvist and a brawl erupted behind him. Later, Dubinsky lost his stick after it became wedged in between the boards. The Pens were then able to develop a 3-on-1, with Guerin firing the initial shot. It was blocked, but the rebound took a strange bounce right to Letang. He sent the puck to Siddo, who was all alone in front of the net. (You know what happened next, right?) He promptly banged the go-ahead-goal home. [Pens 2, Rangers 1]

Once again, the Pens immediately followed up with an attack. A mere 68 seconds later, they capped off the onslaught with a long shot from the point by Gogo. ~~Gogo~~ TK got the insurance marker. (Gogo was initially credited with the goal, but later we were told that, upon review, it was in the net because of a slight deflection from TK's stick.) [Pens 3, Rangers 1]

At center ice, while Siddo was making a beeline for the Rangers' zone and Dubinsky was hot on his heels, Letang was felled by an unpenalized high stick from the Ranger. Orpik was later called for delay of game after sending the puck up and over the glass. The resulting penalty kill saw a bit of inconsistency from the officials: Earlier, play was stopped immediately after the puck landed on the top of Lundqvist's cage. But this time, a Ranger popped the puck off the back of Flower's cage as play continued. No matter. The penalty was killed.

THIRD PERIOD
Lundqvist made a big save on Gronk. Later, Gaborik had a few seconds in front of Flower to eye up his target and send the puck to the back of the twine. [Pens 3, Rangers 2]

Anisimov was called for hooking (no score), and Orpik was called for interference (killed). Superstar, Gronk, Gogo, and TK gave musician Taylor Swift a Pens jersey (with her name on it) which she wore while performing her concert last night. Siddo, perhaps showing off for his two grandmothers who were in attendance, busted out the trademark spinnerama move and, while it didn't result in a goal, it did wow the subdued crowed back into a "LET'S GO PENS!!!" chant. Geno sent a pretty pass between his own legs to Adams, who then fired the initial shot and another off his own rebound, but Lundqvist made two big saves to keep Adams off the board. With 1:17 left in the game, the Rangers pulled their goalie in favor of the extra attacker. No matter. Time ticked away to a Pens victory! (Incidentally, Lundqvist is now 0-6 at the Mellon.)

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Tomorrow, we take on another NY team - the Islanders. Bring it.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Sidney Crosby Show

Pens v Thrashers

A Personal Update

Pens v Sens

Sidney Crosby Carries The Olympic Torch

What a Month

Pens v Bruins

Pens v Kings

Pens v Ducks

Pens v Wild (L 1-2)

Pens v Blue Jackets (W 4-3 SO)

Pens v Canadiens

Pens v Devils

Pens v Panthers

Pens v Blues (W 5-1)

Recommended Reads: The Sporting News and Reflections on a Hockey Season

Pens v Lightning (W 4-1)

Pens v Canes

Pens v Sens (W 4-1)

Postgame Goodies From Last Night

Pens v Leafs (W 5-2)

Pens v Flyers (W 5-4)

Pens v Coyotes (L 0-3)

Pens v Isles (W 4-3 SO)

Banner Ceremony Fan Photos

Pens v Rangers (W 3-2) - Season Opener