Noted NHL expert Cookie Monster chimes in:

Heading into last nights game between the Philadelphia Flyers and the San Jose Sharks the two teams stood at #1 and #2 in goals for to Goals Against. The Flyers held the down the #1 spot with an impressive +20 with the Sharks right behind them at +19.

The two teams are both improved from a season ago with C. Pronger joining the club in Philly and the accusation of Dany Heatley to the Sharks both players have made an impact from the start in their new threads.

The Sharks always have a strong regular season team that can’t seem to get the job done in playoff hockey. Last season was no exception as they were the number one seed that got knocked out of the second season in six games to the eight seeded Mighty Ducks in the first round of the playoffs. The Ducks had Pronger on defense last season but now would see him in a Philly uniform. In this early season the Sharks are currently the number one seed again. Can this be the season they finally represent the West? I think yes.

With their new sniper (D. Heatley 17 Goals) and the leagues best set up man (J. Thornton 24 Assists)add in the mix the always reliable goal keep Evgeni Nabokov (2.20 G.A.A). This could be the year the finally make something happen in.

+20. The Leagues best heading into last night’s play Goals For to Goals Against. Why? He goes by the name of Chris Pronger. Not only does Chris keep the puck out of his teams defensive zone he attacks the opposing teams. With 4 goals and 14 assists Pronger is a +14. Chirs is the main reason Philly has only given up 45 goals in 18 games played this season before last nights battle.

Last nights bill between the leagues two elite teams stood up to it’s expectations till 11:19 of the final session in a one goal game when the set up man (J. Thornton) hit the sniper (D. Heatley) for the second time of the evening on a similar type play as their first hook up. All though it wasn’t much of a snip as Thornton hooked up two beautiful passes for the goals that lead to the win. This hook up between the two was when the Sharks were down a man and it made for a 4-2 game. Later on the Sharks would get a power play chance and Heatley would finish off his trick while the Sharks would add another goal take the two points in a 6-3 win.

Check out the video clips of this game at www.puckvideo.com and more Video Blogs.

It has been a slow few days in the hockey world, though I swear if the fan-updated Capitals twitter posts ONE MORE TWEET about how apparently, the Capitals have something in common with the Cavaliers or that they drafted six skaters, I’m going to kill someone. Seriously! Stop blocking up my twitter!

Anyway, I was perusing random hockey message boards, looking for nothing in particular, and found this gem of a video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsxyODIdXJM

While the Penguins’ win of the Cup is STILL a sore subject for me (I try to ignore all things Stanley-related), this video made me laugh ridiculously hard. I mean, it’s obvious it was done by a guy, and I’m wondering why he spent so much time on the rap and video. Meghan and I are wondering who he has a bigger mancrush on, Crosby or Malkin. If someone asked, they’d TOTALLY make my day XD

In other news, free agency begins soon, and while management has been unclear, GMGM did mention he would be watching the market. I hope if the Caps do accquire someone, it’s not someone gross. Haha. Also, it is a question who is going to be staying in Washington. The UFAs are Brashear, Giroux, Johnson, Kozlov, Fedorov, and Kronwall. We all know Kozzie and Feds won’t be back, and it is in question whether Brash will be back. I adore Brashear, honestly. He’s just amusing to me, and I’m afraid if he leaves the Caps, no one else will put up with his crap. I know I wouldn’t put up with it if I was in management’s position. When it comes to Johnson, Meghan has touched on the subject. She has more of an attachment to him, though I don’t have a problem with him. I just wonder if he sticks around, will he be even played? At this point, Varlamov and Neuvirth have proven themselves as being future star goalies, even at the age of 21. We all watched Varly dominate during the playoffs, and Neuvirth helped lead the Bears to a Calder Cup.  Both are amazing players, and if Johnson sticks around, he may not even be played. Remember, we still have Theodore… unfortunately.

We’ll just have to see what happens.

In news of renewed contracts: Bourque, Fehr, Gordon, Jurcina, Morrisonn, Pinizzotto, Schultz, and Wilson are returning to the club for the 2009-2010 season. Honesty, the only ones I care about are Bourque, Fehrsie, Gordon, Juicy, and Mo. I absolutely adore Mo, Juicy, and Gordon, and I am glad to see they’re going to be back :]

- Anna

Red Wings captain Nick Lidstrom addresses the media

Red Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom is known as something of an ironman around the NHL but his recent performance during the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs may elevate his name to legendary status.

In game three of the Western Conference Finals, the thirty-nine-year-old defenseman was speared by Blackhawk Patrick Sharp in the groin. After practice the following day, Nick thought he’d be able to play in game four. But when he woke up on Sunday morning, he found himself in indescribable pain. “I thought it was OK that Saturday when I practiced,” Lidstrom said, “but Sunday, Sunday I was just in too much pain.”

Doctors told him he required immediate surgery and was at risk of losing a testicle.  “He said he didn’t know until he actually went in there and looked,” Lidstrom said.

So, on Sunday, May 24 while Detroit and Chicago played game four, Lidstrom underwent testicular surgery. The operation turned out to be a success and Nick emerged with both of the family jewels in tow. But the injury had forced him to miss the first playoff game in his 17-year NHL career. He had played 228 in a row since 1992 and holds the Red Wing’s record for most playoff appearances.

Miraculously, Lidstrom returned to the ice only six days after his surgery for the Stanley Cup Finals and played in all seven games of that series.

Known to his teammates as “the perfect human” Lidstrom said it was the most painful injury he’s ever had.

Few players in the history of the game have been as sturdy as Lidstrom who has missed only 32 of a possible 1,362 regular season games.

We can’t blame Sharpe for hitting Lidstrom where he did – apparently Nick’s balls are huge.

The long, arduous playoff journey has come to an end, and when the final buzzer sounded it was Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins who emerged victorious as the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions.

Make no mistake, congratulations are certainly are in order. After all, the Pens did defeat a very solid Detroit Red Wings team, and did so after falling behind in the series 2-0 after a couple of bad bounces in Joe Louis Arena. They displayed their testicular fortitude (although admittedly not as much as Nicklas Lidstrom) by not backing down and ultimately persevering when they could have simply rolled over and quit against nearly impossible odds.

Yeah, that's nice. Now get back to work, slacker!

But you know what? All of that is completely and utterly irrelevant. The 2009 NHL season is but a distant memory now, a faint speck of recollection drifting toward the horizon of foggy reminiscence. Indeed, Pens fans, it’s time to stop living in the past — because the 2010 season starts in just over one week’s time!

Football teams get an entire week off between games. Hockey teams get two weeks off between entire seasons.

That’s right. Party’s over. Get the Cup out of Mario’s pool, because with the Draft coming up next weekend and the insanity of Free Agency only two weeks away, there’s a hell of a lot of work to be done.

So many questions to be answered, all with a massive impact on next year …

• In which city will Dany Heatley continue be a one-dimensional, whiny little bitch? Will Jason Spezza cry himself to sleep once Heatley is finally traded?

• Who will the Islanders select first overall? John Tavares or Victor Hedman? Or will Garth Snow continue the fine Long Island tradition of trading away can’t-miss prospects for a dozen pucks and a sack of magic beans?

• Which GM will foolishly overpay for the likes of Mike Cammalleri and the Sedin twins?

• Will Vincent Lecavalier get traded at the Draft? Even if he doesn’t, he should show up in Montreal wearing a Habs hat, you know, just to mess with the Montreal media. That would be fun.

• Will Ty Conklin sign with the Boston Bruins, since they are hosting the 2010 Winter Classic? I mean, you can’t have an outdoor game without Conklin, right? It’s in the rulebook, I’m pretty sure.

Ty Conklin loves playing in outdoor games almost as much as he loves losing in the Stanley Cup Finals.

• Just what exactly will Brian Burke do during his first summer with the Maple Leafs? Will he move up in the Draft? Will he sign a big name free agent? Will he make Justin Pogge cry?

• Will any free agents actually want to come to Montreal, knowing full well they’ll have to play for Jacques Martin? Oh, wait … no free agents wanted to play for the Habs before Martin took over, either. My mistake.

• Will Marian Hossa sign a deal with Pittsburgh, believing that they now offer him the best chance to win the Stanley Cup?

• Will Marian Gaborik tear his groin simply by answering the phone on July 1?

• What type of Reebok-sponsored abominations will various teams unveil for this year’s crop of alternate jerseys?

Somebody actually thought this was a good idea. And they got paid for it.

And those are only a handful of the pressing issues that teams across the league have to contend with over the next couple of weeks. Indeed, it seems as though the NHL season truly never ends (well, I suppose there is that dry patch in August when all of the big name free agents have already been scooped up and the only players left are guys like Anson Carter). But really, as a hockey fan, you gotta love it. It sure beats watching MLB highlights on SportsCentre, that’s for damn sure.

So The Loge has been quiet as of late, but its just that time of year, so you’re going to have to deal with it.  The Penguins won the Stanley Cup, returning the favor to Detroit by celebrating their triumph at the Joe (Detroit beat Pitt in Game six at the igloo last year).  Malkin won the Conn Smyth, YEA, RAH RAH RAH (insert sarcasm), and I believe the weight of the Cup rested on the dirty french canadian (not dirty in a good way…dirty as in, well dirty), Marc-Andre Fleury’s shoulders; and he delivered.  With 1 second to go, Fleury made an unbelievable diving stop on Lidstrom which would have been a soldering-iron to the Penguins face (Not to mention he got a little help from his friend (crossbar) in the final minutes).  The talk of the Cup Finale however, was Mr. Sydney Crosby skipping out on a bit of the NHL-Traditional, series ending handshake.  One of our regulars here at Loge19 (ChickenParm), pointed it out after the game on the previous post’s comments section.  Personally, I can’t stand Crosby, and this is just another reason why.  I know it’s his first Stanley Cup, and its a dream come true to the young wizkid, but C’MON NOW!  This is one of the classiest traditions in sports, and SHOULD be the SECOND thing on EVERY players mind after celebrating with your teammates first.  You should know that the losing players do not want to stay on the ice and be a part of YOUR celebration.  It’s selfish, classless, and should be fineable by the good ‘ole Commissioner Bettman.  There is no place for that in the game, and I had the same reaction last year when Brodeur snubbed Avery during the ritual.   Those are suppossed to be the stars/faces of the league, and they go around pulling beer league stunts like that.  There should be no excuse for that, and you should read this ESPN article about it; has Draper’s reaction (he’s the man), more detail about what happened, as well as the Pittsburgh vice president Tom McMillan’s explanation…absolutely pathetic.  I hope Crosby drops the cup on his day with it, and camera are there to wacth it happen.

Moving on, there are a few things I wanted to post on here before they become old news.  Sean Avery is officially back in his element in the big city.  After partnering up to open his own bar, Warren 77, Avery was a field reporter at the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival for FUSE TV (his pictures follow flava flavs on the last page of the album). Like he wasn’t partying as hard as the bare foot hippies dancing around throwing flowers everywhere…yeah right!  And if you want a little more Sean Avery in your life, here is a clip from Monday night’s Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, featuring Mr. Avery.  It’s good to have Sean Avery back in NY! 

- Coach

Booing the team that was better than yours? Making a big deal out of a percieved slight at the handshake line? Choking away the most important game of the entire NHL season on your home ice?

Then again…. go Pens!

Crosby.  Lidstrom.  You know the story… unfortunately.

It’s funny – you and I don’t really care that Sidney Crosby didn’t shake Nick Lidstrom’s hand at the conclusion of the 2009 Stanley Cup finals.  It would of been nice to see, but ultimately, viewers understood Sid the kid was celebrating his first Stanley Cup win as the youngest captain to ever, while the Pittsburgh Penguins finally won at Joe Louis Arena, as the clear underdog.  Yeah, kind of a cool moment.

The result?  In seconds there’s more media on the ice than Hossa-tears.  Or regrets, despite Marian Hossa saying otherwise.  And being the media magnet that he is, Sidney Crosby is mauled with reporters, cameras and microphones.  

Nick Lidstrom grows tired of waiting (a whole 3 minutes, but whatever…), shakes other Penguins wings, errr, hands, and eventually leaves the ice for the night without shaking Crosby’s hand.  Come on, that wing joke was pretty good, wasn’t it?

But seriously, I doubt Crosby would go out of his way to snub Lidstrom.  We all know that.  The media’s presence on the ice was a big time distraction for the young captain.   Even if Crosby could see Lidstrom through the swarm of media, I doubt he could make his way through to the Wing’s captain.  There’s just no way.

So the media gets in the way of handshakes, then make a big fuss about it the following day.  Nice one. 

It’s almost ironic, isn’t it?  Shaking hands is definitely overrated, that is, unless you are going for ratings.  What a crock.  In a year that featured some of the best playoff hockey ever, this is the story the media turns to?

*           *           *

And then I’m watching the NBA finals on Sunday night – same thing.  The media jumped onto the court: lights, camera, interview!  Yes, we get the instant interview, but honestly, the players are out of breathe and are barely comprehendible.

Something about cameras jammed into team celebrations feels insincere.  I’d like to see shots of players celebrating the moment, without having to worry about the interview.  Have cameras from the roof and on the sidelines, but let players enjoy the moment.

I’d like to see media for all major championships restrained, just a little.  It’d make for better TV, a more honest sense of what the big win means to the players and would help avoid any handshake scandals in the future.

 
Stay classy, handshake frenzy media machine.

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You can’t dream this stuff up.

In July 2008, twenty-nine year old Marian Hossa signs a one-year $7.4M contract with the Detroit Red Wings, turning down a seven-year $49M offer from the Pittsburgh Penguins.  Pittsburgh promptly wastes no time to sign Brooks Orpik (six year contract) and Miroslav Satan (one year contract).

This is all about ME.  There is no “I” in TEAM but there is “ME” (if you kinda rearrange the letters).   Desert your team, win the Stanley Cup.

Flash forward to January 2009.  All Star Break.  Lemme see.  Pittsburgh is 10th in the Eastern Conference at 23-21-4 and 50 points.  Detroit is 2nd in the Western Conference at 31-9-6 and 68 points.  Hossa is starting to look like Einstein.

Pittsburgh starts its run.  Chris Kunitz acquired from the Anaheim Ducks.  Michel Therrien is fired.  Dan Bylsma with 0 games of NHL coaching experience takes over.  Bill Guerin acquired from the New York Islanders.  Penguins go 18-3-4 in Bylsma’s first 25 games, the second best record through the first 25 games of any NHL coach.

This is pretty witty, Pittsburgh

April 2009: Hossa’s agent talks about a 10 year contract.  Hossa is settling in.  Getting comfy.

Stanley Cup Playoffs 2009: Hossa is held to 6 goals in the Western Conference playoffs, none in the finals.

Gotta wonder what’s going through his head.  As he watches the seconds wind down in Game 7.  As he waits for the handshake line at the end of the game. As he sits in his wet equipment in the locker room. As he watches the highlights on TV.  And next month as he enters contract talks with Detroit.

And what do the Detroit fans think?  Well, we know what the Pittsburgh fans think … see the witty Pittsburgh sign above.
  

The bloggers have taken over.  Most, if not all, are merciless.  Fair?  All is fair in the free agent market.  That’s the whole point.  The players make their own decisions.  Go with your gut.  Go with what’s right.  Win the Cup at all costs.

At this moment in time, it really sucks to be Marian Hossa.

Watch out Heatley… this could be you.

Wait a minute.  Maybe Bryan Murray could do a Heatley-Hossa swap.  Again.  One thing’s for sure: Heatley’s trade, wherever he goes, will have a big impact on where Hossa could sign as a UFA and how much the contract is worth.

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OK, so what went wrong?

Why couldn’t the Detroit Red Wings seal the deal? How did this team, so used to applying the choke hold, so adept at squeezing the playoff life out of you–let the Stanley Cup itself slip through their gloves?

It’s easy to sound like you’re excuse-making when you analyze reasons why a team lost a playoff series.

But there needs to be closure, and to get that, there needs to be answers to those one-word questions.

Why? How?

The Schedule
 
NBC won’t ever admit it, but here’s an educated theory as to why the Finals began so soon after the Red Wings dispatched the Chicago Blackhawks in the conference final.

In a case of bad timing, the new, Conan O’Brien-hosted “Tonight” show was set to debut the same week that the Cup Finals would be going on.

The Red Wings finished off the ‘Hawks on Wednesday, May 27. NBC, which had the rights to Games One and Two (Versus had Three and Four), had themselves a quandary.

Knowing all too well how playoff hockey games can lapse into seemingly endless overtime (read: Game Five of last year’s Finals, which went into triple OT), the network no doubt got nauseous at the thought of the little NHL bleeding into Conan’s time slot during his opening week.

So what to do?

Under normal conditions, NBC probably would have allowed the NHL to set Game One for Monday or Tuesday night. As Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said on Media Day (the day before Game One), the Finals matchup was a compelling one; it could have used a few days of hype.

And, as Babcock noted, when you win a series in five games (as Detroit did over Chicago), you normally get a few days off before you have to prepare for the next round.

But with the Conan thing looming, the league had a proposal for NBC: how about if we get Games One and Two out of the way, over the weekend?

Since Versus was slated to carry Games Three and Four, there would be no Conan conflict, so those could happen during the week.

Game Five, carried by NBC, was on Saturday, June 6. Again, no conflict. The network successfully navigated through Conan’s opening week without any possibility of being screwed by the NHL.

The schedule called for three games in the first four days, and five in the first eight.

Bottom line: as the series wore on, the cumulative effects of the Anaheim seven-game series, starting the Finals so soon after Chicago, and the Finals schedule itself, wore the injury-torn Red Wings down.

The “big boys”

Tigers manager Jim Leyland recently expressed concern about his team’s struggling offense. He called out who he referred to as the “big boys” — guys like Magglio Ordonez, Placido Polanco, and Curtis Granderson. Maybe even Miguel Cabrera, to an extent.

The message? Unless they really get it going, then the Tigers will continue to struggle to maintain their fragile lead in the division, if they maintain it at all.

Here’s what happened as the Finals unfolded.

After the first two games in Detroit, both Red Wings victories, the analysis was, “The Red Wings haven’t even played their best yet. The big guns haven’t shown up yet. Just wait till they do!”

The Red Wings lost Game Three in Pittsburgh, on a third period power play goal by Sergei Gonchar.

Everyone said, “The Red Wings haven’t even played their best yet. The big guns haven’t shown up yet. Just wait till they do!”

Game Four turned around in the second period, the Red Wings leading, 2-1. After a 5:37 flurry, the Penguins led, 4-2. They ended up winning by that score. The series was tied, 2-2.

Everyone said, “The Red Wings haven’t even played their best yet. The big guns haven’t shown up yet. Just wait till they do!”

The Red Wings were getting goals from guys like Justin Abdelkader, Darren Helm, Brad Stuart, and Kris Draper. Which was fine, except that the front-line players weren’t contributing.

The Red Wings exploded in Game Five, but it was mainly their defensemen who scored.

“The Red Wings haven’t even played their best yet. The big guns haven’t shown up yet. Just wait till they do!”

Game Six would be with two days of rest after Game Five, which was supposed to help the battered, tired Red Wings.

But they came out flat as a pancake, fell behind 2-0, and lost 2-1.

“The Red Wings haven’t even played their best yet. The big guns haven’t shown up yet. Just wait till they do!”

Game Seven would provide that final vindication; one last chance for the Hossas and Samuelssons and Franzens and Holmstroms and Hudlers to show up. One last chance to wash away, for good, the stench of the first six games of non-productivity from the “big boys.”

You know the rest.

Bottom line: The Red Wings never did “play their best.” The big guns never did show up. Their only goal in Game Seven came from another defenseman — Jonathan Ericsson.

Jordan Staal’s shorthanded goal

You want a turning point? I’ve got one that beats all: the shorthanded goal by Jordan Staal in the second period of Game Four.

The situation: Red Wings leading, 2-1, on a fluky point shot from Stuart early in the period. Red Wings on a power play. The Mellon Arena crowd uneasy. A chance for Detroit to seize a very valuable two-goal lead, which they could very well have turned into a 3-1 series lead.

But Staal changed all that.

He poked the puck away from Nick Lidstrom at the Pittsburgh blue line, outraced Brian Rafalski, and deftly slipped the puck past Chris Osgood, who was awfully deep in his crease.

THAT’S your turning point.

Bottom line: I’m telling you, the series could very well have turned out differently — could have ended a week ago Saturday in Detroit — if Staal doesn’t make that play.

Puck not possessed

As the series wore on, the Red Wings’ famous, vaunted puck possession game deteriorated.

By the end, in fact, it just about had vanished.

Whether due to the Penguins’ adjusting during the series, or the Red Wings fatiguing, the result was that Detroit’s attack turned into shot after shot from the point — very little danger emerged from near Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.

Gone was the tic-tac-toe passing, the rink-wide stuff, the cycling deep in the Pittsburgh zone.

The power play, even, was dimly lit by the end.

Babcock admitted, in the series’ aftermath, that his team was “gassed” and “running on fumes” in Game Seven.

He also acknowledged that his team never really got going and that caught up to them.

Bottom line: The Red Wings simply were not the same team that dispatched Columbus, Anaheim, and Chicago.

All that, and the Red Wings still came within inches (a Niklas Kronwall crossbar late in Game Seven) of tying the final game and sending it into overtime.

Anytime you lose by one goal in Game Seven of the Finals, you’ve had a pretty good season.

Not that it won’t hurt this summer, because it will.

After the game, before I headed for the ice to interview happy Penguins, I passed the Red Wings’ coaches room.

Inside, Babcock and his staff and GM Ken Holland, and assistant GM Jim Nill, plus other members of the team’s brass, stood quietly, talking softly. Their faces were drawn. It appeared to me that they looked stunned.

Outside the room, chief pro scout Mark Howe spoke quietly with another front office type. Howe looked numb.

No more game plans to formulate. No more practice. No more videotape to hash over.

No more hockey.

Which would be all fine and dandy, if the Stanley Cup was sitting in that dressing room.

Instead, the Penguins frolicked with it on the Joe Louis Arena ice surface.

But the better team won. Let’s not forget that.

Dear Mr. Hossa,

I guess I should preface all this by telling you that I am not rubbing it in.  That would not be sportsmanlike.  Instead, I want to help your decision-making process over the summer.

First, you are probably worried about what people are going to think if you sign somewhere in an effort to win the Stanley Cup.  To be honest, whatever you do is not going to look great.  If you change teams again, you’re just doing what you did last season.  But if you stay in Detroit, you’re not doing yourself any favours either.

Dear Marian Hossa: please listen to Stayclassy.net this time

The Detroit Red Wings, for all intents and purposes, have missed their chance at another championship in the near future.  I don’t want to suggest it’s your fault, but you can pretty much blame yourself on this one.

Your best option is to sign somewhere, long-term, and at a reduced rate.  It shows loyalty, it is a sacrifice to the hockey gods, and it just might bring you that elusive Stanley Cup.

In fact, the hockey gods have already put things in motion for you.  I am not sure if you know who Dany Heatley is, but he wants out ot Ottawa.  He could probably fetch a pretty good trade partner, but you could really appease the hockey gods if you told Bryan Murray you want to sign in Ottawa.  He could trade for picks and prospects, and you could go to the city that gave you your start.  It is win-win.

I know you have a lot of thinking to do.  I understand.  I just hope you read this before it is to late.  Unlike my last letter.

Stay classy, Marian Hossa.

Sincerley,

Tambland.

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The Stanley Cup Playoffs came to a thrilling finish on Friday night and everyone not named Kris Draper were happy to see Sidney Crosby (a.k.a Sid the Squid) and the Pittsburgh Penguins lift their 3rd Stanley Cup in franchise history.   

Pittsburgh’s win also means that the Stay Classy team won’t need to start blogging about fishing or water polo.  What a relief! 

Fridays’s game also brought Stay Classy’s playoff pool to end.  This blog was initially going to be about how great I am, but then I realized that Burgundy got lucky and tied me.  Damn you, Ron Burgundy!  Baxter and Mantooth gave a solid fight as well, so nice work boys.  Tambland… you lost pretty badly, so don’t flip out and kill anybody or anything like that… Anyway here are the final results:

Stay classy were also completely wrong on a few series.  We all got shocked by the invisible San Jose Sharks in the first round, and nobody saw Carolina’s 2nd round upset over Boston coming. 

It’s been a fun season and with all games over and done with until October, we’ll our turn our attention to the NHL Entry Draft, the UFA frenzy in July and more crazy trade rumours like the Pronger for Johnson one that popped up this week. 

On a related note, I’m looking for a new summer hobby… an afternoon delight, if you will.  So far, lawn bowling is in the lead, with T-ball in close pursuit.  Let me know if you have any better ideas. 

Your Reporter in the Field, 

Fantana

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“’It was a great feeling as a player, and to watch these guys, the way they hung in there….I’m very proud of them. It’s an incredible feeling.’”

Back in February, the Pittsburgh Penguins were just trying to salvage their season. As 2008 turned into 2009, the team that only the previous spring had vied for the Stanley Cup was in trouble. Facing adversity.

The words are Mario Lemieux’s.

The Penguins owner was on the Joe Louis Arena ice Friday night, taking in all the Stanley Cup-winning revelry surrounding him, when I sidled up.

I wondered how difficult it was for Lemieux to render the ziggy to coach Michel Therien, who was presiding over mediocrity when summoned to his boss’ office.

“Whenever the team is struggling, changes have to be made and it’s easier to change the coach than all the players,” Lemieux said, grinning a little sheepishly—as if he had stumbled onto a winning formula, which he had.

It wasn’t a grinning situation when the Pens were still struggling to keep ahead of the traditional mediocrity standard of .500, even after over 50 games had been played.

“I think Michel is a very good coach,” Lemieux said. “But when you’re struggling, changes have to be made.”

So Mario made one—a big one.

Enter Dan Bylsma.

Therien was cashiered in mid-February, the trade deadline approaching and the final turn of the season looming ahead.

If Lemieux was going to pull the trigger, it was then.

“I think it was a turning point,” acknowledged Super Mario of his swapping Therien for Bylsma as Pens’ head coach.

Lemieux used the word “adversity” when discussing his team’s rocky season, and few know its meaning better than he—what with his battle with Hodgkin’s Disease and the Penguins franchise being threatened to be moved out of Pittsburgh—only a few years ago.

But then Bylsma was promoted from the minor leagues and things changed.

“We got more aggressive,” Lemieux told me. “We changed up the power play…the penalty kill. Dan’s very positive. He’s been great for the guys on the ice and off the ice. Then the players started buying in.”

That’s an understatement—maybe of the year.

Soon after Bylsma took over, the Penguins ripped off a 16-game streak in which they won 13 times and lost only thrice—twice in shootouts.

They were the hottest team in the league heading into the playoffs.

Lemieux, as a player, is part of one of only two teams to win back-to-back Stanley Cups since 1988—the 1991-92 Penguins. So when he says he felt good about the team’s chances as the post-season dawned, he’s not some guy off the street.

“I think the Stanley Cup is the hardest trophy in sports to win,” he said with unabashed bias. “And to come in here (in Detroit), win a Game Seven, after all the adversity…it’s very gratifying,” he added.

But what’s it like as an owner?

I put it to him.

“Well, it’s great,” he said as he surveyed the scene from our location on the ice near the benches: champagne being shot from bottles into the air, players still skating the Cup around, their families very much a part of the whole thing—wives and girlfriends, and children with miniature versions of their father’s jerseys on their small torsos.

“It was a great feeling as a player, and to watch these guys, the way they hung in there….I’m very proud of them. It’s an incredible feeling.”

The coaching change in mid-season isn’t usually something that has a happy ending. The NHL was a treasure trove of fired coaches this season, but nowhere did things end up working out like they did in Pittsburgh.

Not very far from where Lemieux held court, I found Bylsma—just before he headed into the dressing room to enjoy the Cup with his players.

Was this moment ever, I asked, on his radar when he took over from Therien in February?

To my surprise, it kinda was.

“Actually,” Bylsma said, giving it some thought. “You know, there was a moment where I thought that this team could have a mural on Mellon Arena—a picture with them raising the Cup. But that was fleeting. We were more worried about just getting some wins.”

The coach agreed with the owner: the players “bought in” to the new system, the new way of doing things.

“This isn’t my victory,” Bylsma said. “It’s theirs,” he added, nodding toward the few players still on the ice.

The Penguins’ captain, Sidney Crosby, skated off in terrible pain after a hit early in the second period. It looked to be a knee injury—or something to do with the leg.

The score was 1-0, Pittsburgh. And there went arguably the team’s best overall player, doubled over in pain.

What was going through the coach’s mind at that point?

The deliciousness of the moment wasn’t lost on Bylsma.

“I just thought,” he said, truly giving his answer some time to formulate, “that it just made for a better story. That we didn’t have to rely on just one or two guys to win it.”

Bylsma adjusted his new Stanley Cup Champs hat.

“This is good stuff,” he said. “Good stuff.”

I’m not sure if it’s because our son plays hockey and we know that feeling oh so well – final game of a tournament or championship, and then the team doesn’t show up. I mean, they are there physically, but mentally…no way. We weren’t upset last night when the Wings lost. Okay, that’s not entirely true; we were upset, but we let it go. Today, however, non-hockey families have emailed or called, wanting to commiserate with us and we’re like, whatever.

Each game is different, no matter what the team is playing for. Yes, of course, our son has never played in the Stanley Cup playoffs, but ask if him two years ago, playing down at Joe Louis for the division championship game, how he felt after he lost that game? He was so close to getting the “big” trophy and his team didn’t show up. Again, I’m not discounting the Wings, the Stanley Cup, or the Holy Grail. What I’m saying is that there is a lesson to learn, and it’s very simple: the Penguins wanted this more than the Wings. It totally showed in their play, and in our lack of play.

Sure, we’re disappointed. That’s a given. After the clock wound down and it was evident that the Wings were not going to be able to pull this off, we all sighed. As soon as the clock was 0, we turned the tv off – unable to see the Penguins raise Lord Stanley – and we all stood up, said good-bye to our guests, and went to bed.

Oh well. There’s always next year.

We are not going to talk about Sidney Crosby and how he was not on the ice for the final 30 minutes of this game.  Instead, we’d rather focus on the guys that were out there and the guys that won the Stanley Cup for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

First of all, what a game.  The first 20 minutes were a little slow with nothing crossing the line.  But, that doesn’t mean there weren’t shots and entertaining plays.  The goaltenders were both on their top game to start this game seven as they both fought of points in the first period where attackers were in the zone for a solid two minute period.  The final two periods of this game were more entertaining than any NBA Finals game that has been played so far.

The NHL needs to start getting a larger audience.  But, we’ve got a whole offseason to write about that.

Max Talbot is the hero in this one.  We think he should have won the Conn Smythe as well.  Either Talbot or Fleury.  Malkin had a solid series and is the bigger name so we do understand the selection.  However, Fleury’s rebound after game 5 and Talbot being seemingly everywhere on the ice brought Lord Stanley’s Cup to the Steel City.

It’s amazing that the Pens held on even after Sidney Crosby left the game after being hurt in the 2nd period.  The third period saw a lot of tired legs on both sides as each team only had their top two lines playing.  However, the final six minutes of this game were some of the best hockey we’ve seen in a long time.

After the Red Wings pulled within one at 2-1, the pace was frenetic and the puck never seemed to leave the Pittsburgh zone.  Fleury made several incredible saves to negate goals but none was more dramatic than the final two made with six seconds left.

After a face-off with 6.2 seconds remaining, Detroit was able to fire a shot from the point, gather the rebound and make one last attempt at the twine when Fleury dove across the net and took the puck in the chest as time expired.  Not sure you can have a better ending than that.

We’re really happy the NHL had such an exciting playoff run.  Between Ovie vs. Crosby, the rising, talented and young Blackhawks, as well as the upset of San Jose in the first round, there was a lot to like about these playoffs.

The one where we “Raviele” in our greatness….

The NHL crowned its champion last night, with the Pittsburgh Penguins winning their 3rd Stanley Cup. The Penguins knocked off the Red Wings 2-1 last night in game 7. It went down to the wire, with Penguins goalie Fleury making a monster save with his chest in the dying seconds to preserve the win.

Detroit can’t catch break right now. GM hemorrhages money, rapes and pillages the American taxpayer, and then files for bankruptcy, in the biggest, “I Guess We Really DO Suck After All!” in history. The Lions just implode all over themselves, and then they’re on the hook for $41 million to Stafford (hope they saved some of the bailout money for a rainy day). Now, their one legimitate team, who even won the Championship, lose it at home in Game 7 when they were largely favored. Sucks to be you Detroit.

Septy Rexy made an interesting point as we watched the game. There is no other sporting maneuver like pulling the goalie. It has pretty much instant impact, with the extra man only having about 20 yards to cover before he’s able to get into the action. Soccer goalie’s often come up for a corner kick if a desparate goal is needed:

But, that’s on a set play, not a holy shit we’ve got a minute left let’s take out the goalie in the middle of free-play. So hockey’s got that going for it, which is nice. I can’t even think of an NFL or NBA equivalent. I guess in baseball you could have an outfielder come up and pitch at the same time as the normal pitcher. That would make things interesting. Or, you could add a second hitter about 10 feet in front of the first, to have two cracks at the pitch.

On to the updates…

Houston Texans: The Texans turned down the jersey ad offer from Zero Tolerance, with a brief and succinct statement. Notice, that they are still open to offers though, and they didn’t say no more porn companies. Your move, BangBros…

Houston Astros: Took on the Diamondbacks last night, and took a good old fashioned beating, losing 8-1.  It ended a 2 game win streak. Way to start the weekend off right, Astros!

NBA: not Rockets related, but its a Texas team, so I’ll take it. Tony Parker had a signed Michael Jordan jersey stolen from his San Antonio home. And by the security guard, no less. I guess that’s what you get when you’re French.

UH: Richard Justice had a great article about the future of UH sports being now with the new Athletic Director, and a call to arms aimed at all the Alumni who make excuses for not supporting the University. I know I’m preaching to the choir here, but get those checkbooks out Coogs! Money buys better players! You can find out another excellent way to contribute to the future of UH later today…

Intrigue! Mystery! Enigmas! Only on FAF!

- Wanks MacGruber

Image from Deadpsin

If you’ve been following our Stanley Cup predictions, you may be aware all five of the Stayclassy.net writers picked the Pittsburgh Penguins to win the Stanley Cup.  We were so confident with our selection.  We even vowed to change the blog’s content from hockey to fishing if the Penguins didn’t win.  I was close to purchasing StayBassy.com (I believe it’s still available), but we believed in the Penguins, despite losing the first two games of the Stanley Cup finals.  And on a personal note, I called Pittsburgh to win in 7 games.  For a second or two, I might actually look like I know what I’m talking about.  But in all seriousness, congrats to Sid-the-kid (when will he be too old to be called a kid?) and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

And still on the serious side, none of us know a thing about fishing.  This could of been very ugly.  Thanks to the Penguins for coming through…
 

Sidney Crosby holding the Stanley Cup, courtesy of EverythingPittsburgh.net

With the Stanley Cup playoffs over, here are the final tally of predictions for all four rounds from our crew:

Burgundy:  10/15
Fantana:  10/15 
Mantooth:  9/15
Baxter:   9/15
Tambland:  7/15 

Ouch Tambland, ouch.  Now, a few things to point out, in no specific order.

- Regardless of who won game 7, you have to think Marian Hossa’s UFA value dropped after this year’s finals.  When performance and results mattered most, Hossa didn’t deliver.  Couple that with the fact the NHL salary cap is set to drop and the economy still broken and you have a recipe for lower UFA offers to Hossa later this summer.

- Just like the Pittsburgh Penguins rose to the occasion numerous times in the 2009 playoffs,  so did the Stayclassy.net writers.  When it counted most, SC delivered strong, with all five writers successfully predicting the Penguins upset.  Very clutch, guys.  Special thanks to Tambland for writing a ton of great content over the last few weeks.

- I wrote a blog last week citing Maxime Talbot as an unsung hero for Pittsburgh, pointing at his timely goal scoring abilities.  Talk about perfect timing, Max!  Game of your life: 2009 Stanley Cup finals, game 7.

- Give Marian Hossa credit for speaking with the media after game 7.  His thoughts were honest and bang on – I also don’t think the Penguins would of won the Stanley Cup had he resigned last summer.  Doing that interview probably wasn’t easy, but this serves as another reason why the NHL is the world’s best sport and why the players are world-class people.

- No truth to the Anaheim Ducks trading defenseman Chris Pronger to the LA Kings for Jack Johnson and the 5th overall pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft yesterday… but I will say this: where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire.

- For debate: Does Marc-Andre Fleury now get additional consideration as Canada’s third Olympic goalie behind Martin Brodeur and Roberto Luongo?  Also, should Sidney Crosby get consideration as an assistant captain of the Canadian Olympic team?  I believe he deserve’s an “A” for what he’s accomplished in his young career.

- Jordan Staal still isn’t old enough to legally drink alcohol in the United States… I guess he’s drinking grape juice out of Lord Stanley.  And while talking about the Staals – two of the brothers now own Stanley Cup rings.  When’s Mark Staal’s turn?

- Finally, SC.net would like to thank everyone who has helped and supported us since launching in January.  The list is long and distinguished (Top Gun reference… Iceman…), so we certainly can’t name everyone.  That said, a few stand out… 

NHLDigest.com
EverythingPittsburgh.net
OnTheForecheck.com
PredsontheGlass.com
BanginPanger.com  
and the NHL community on Twitter – you all know who you are.

Stay classy, Pittsburgh Penguins – 2009 Stanley Cup Champions

Add SC.net on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

Penguins – Stanley Cup Champions

Originally uploaded by LollyKnit

aura writes; The Detroit Red Wings lost the last game of the Stanley Cup finals in a cliffhanger close playoff game that went down the wire. The Pittsburgh Penguins defeated Detroit, whose epic failure happened on their home ice at the Joe Louis Arean Some Detroit fans claimed that no hockey team ever came back to win the Stanley Cup after losing the first two games, and that the Penguins choke during away games. But that proved to be wishful thinking. Hopes of Red Wing fans everywhere were dashed as they sat glue at home to their TV sets, and in sports bars, certain of victories only to have their hopes dashed by the Penguins who fought fought back against the odds to win the coveted the Stanley Cup. I used to love hockey until the players began beating the hell out of each other. I’m glad the finals are over and done with, since extending the professional hockey season into June is a step too far. The season should really end sometime in March. The Red Wings will have to regroup in the off season to see if they can get their mojo back. Better luck next year boys. And congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins for their impressive Stanley Cup Victory and their loyal fans. Link to story

The Pittsburgh Penguins went into Detroit and beat the defending champion Red Wings on their home ice to win the Stanley Cup, 2-1. Pittsburgh, who had been down 0-2 and 3-2 in the best of seven series, jumped out to a 2-0 lead after two 2nd period goals by Maxime Talbot. They then fought off a furious comeback effort by the Red Wings in 3rd period, while playing without their young star captain, Sidney Crosby, who had been injured earlier in the game. The Penguins’ victory was preserved with a clutch save by goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury, with less than 4 seconds left in the game.

Don’t read this by the way if for some reason you don’t know or don’t want to know who won the Stanely and/or Calder Cup last night.

So somehow I’m just super pissed at the Caps. How could they do this to me? What kind of people hurt their fans like this? You’re not the Browns guys. I’m so mad at you all. If you had beat them in the first place I would not be in this situation.

Dear Detriot,
GOD DAMN YOU! YOU ALL SUCK AND I HATE YOU AND I HOPE YOUR DYNASTY FALL TO DUST! Go curl up and franchisely DIE.

Dear Lemieux,
Though I did not see it I heard you had a moment where you ranted on how awesome it is that Crosby lives with you. Though I did not see it I understand it was either A. Egotisitical (like oh my epicness is rubbing off on him) or B. Majorly creepy. You’re a hockey legend I don’t want to hear about you being creepy and/or egotisitical. It’s not attractive.

I must say that was cathartic.

Oh well that just made me happier. Tricked my Crosby loving friend who I’m arguing with to open an email (I sent it earlier this week) full of Ovie pictures by putting the subject as Taylor Lautner. She was maaad.

This isn’t the Red Wings’ night.

Stanley is slipping away, possibly to reside in the Steel City for the next 12 months.

The Red Wings’ will is there, but I don’t know that their bodies are.

It’s appearing that as this series goes on, the Red Wings are wearing down.

The Pittsburgh Penguins lead, 2-0, and are 20 minutes from their first Stanley Cup since 1992.

Max Talbot has both Penguins goals.

The first came early, at 1:13, when Talbot stole the puck from Brad Stuart behind the Detroit net, moved in front of the goal and slid a nifty shot thru Chris Osgood.

The second was the result of a bad luck deflection (for Detroit) near the Pittsburgh blue line that Talbot scooped up. He found himself on a 2-on-1, but used the other Penguin as a decoy and wristed a pretty shot over Osgood’s left shoulder, top shelf.

The Red Wings aren’t getting the loose pucks, they aren’t getting the bounces, and they aren’t getting anything really seriously dangerous around Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.

But my observation is that the Red Wings are gassed. They’re trying, but the Penguins–again–look like the fresher, hungrier team.

The culprit? Perhaps the Anaheim seven-game series in the conference semi-finals. Maybe the whirlwind schedule in the Finals, even though Detroit raced to a 2-0 series lead.

Bottom line? It has the feel that it’s the Pens’ night for glory. Even with Sidney Crosby injured (he skated off the ice early in the period in obvious pain), the Penguins have enough, so far, to handle the grizzled Red Wings.

If they pull this off, you have to hand it to the Penguins. To win four of the last five games of this series, including a Game Seven in Detroit after being humiliated at Joe Louis Arena in Game Five, is quite an accomplishment.

They will have earned this Stanley Cup, without question.