While I am convinced that NO ONE is reading my blog... I will attempt to make this more mainstream... by including links to my site via Facebook, Xanga and Myspace. Advertisement is necessary.
Also, I would like to give a "shout-out" to the guys over at Pensblog. (A part of blogger). If you are a Penguins fan or a hockey fan in general it would be a great site to check out.(Link to their page on the right side of my page). They update at least once everyday. I hope somewhere down the road this blog turns into something 1% as good as what they have created. Kudos gentlemen. Now go give some Free Candy.
I also would like to tell people of a certain favorite Pens-related youtuber. Search "Yinz luv da 'guins" and you will be amazed. Jim Shearer and the gang did a great job throughout the playoffs with their videos. Also kudos.
And finally, I will be moving into a new apartment in Oakland (not California) in a matter of weeks with a friend of mine. With the Steelers season quickly approaching and the possibility of my friend having a video camera... I am considering using the inspiration I received from Mr. Shearer and Co and make a weekly video of the Steelers. It will be called "How Bout Dem Stillers n'at." Or something. This is a tentative idea. I have a Macbook so I could do the videos on iMovie and film through my built in camera... but you see too many turds doing that nowadays. So hopefully we can pull off something similar to YLDG.
Some recent news:
Don Imus is back at it. He was having an on-air discussion about Adam "Criminal" Jones of the Dallas Cowgirls. He basically ended up asking what "color" Jones is, and when told "African-American," he replied "Well there ya go!" Bad move Don. Especially after the whole Rutgers Fiasco that lost you multiple jobs. Just don't say things like that.
Apparently..... Imus says that he meant that the police are picking on Jones because he is black and that is what he meant by "Well there ya go!" Raise your hand if you buy that. My hand is down.
Olympics start soon. They have never really excited me. But I will spend my summer watching them anyways, no doubt.
On a side note:
One perk of a great job... I met Willie Parker briefly the other day. Really cool guy.
With all this said... it is time to get back to Pittsburgh sports.
Friday night I attended the Pirates/Blue Jays game. I almost fell asleep sitting in $9 nosebleed seats watching a 0-0 game go into the 12th inning. But it was okay because I was with some friends and it was fireworks night... plus dem Bucco's won in the 12th.
Tomorrow I will be attending the Pirates/Yankees game. I am very excited for this, as I have never seen the Yankees play in person. Hopefully the Pirates pull this one out too... (Pictures to come)
In closing... I will be giving a little preview for the Steelers upcoming season in the next couple weeks. It's promised to be my best work here yet.
Well well well.... Celtics in 6 over the Lakers. Where have I seen that before... Oh wait. I predicted that. I also correctly predicted the matchups in the Conference Finals.
Ok, enough tooting my own horn here. Lets get serious. I hate the NBA. Correction: I hate what it has become that is. Here is why:
AKA
Both of these men are an embarrassment to the game of basketball. Why? 1) Tim Donaghy bet on basketball games which he officiated. Last I heard he could get up to 25 years of jail time. (Probably will be 100 hours of community service) 2) While I think Tim Donaghy is the meaning of the phrase "douche-bag," I also feel as if his claim that the NBA rigs games is 100% accurate. Which means that ole Davie and Timmy should be Cellmates.
Except not nearly as cool.
Thats my beef on the NBA. Watch highlights from Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals and tell me that something isn't wrong.
Maybe I went a little overboard... but I don't care. When you mess up the purity of sports like that you deserve to be called out.
The Penguins season ended Wednesday night in the 'burgh when the Detroit Red Wings hung on to win 3-2 in a dramatic game 6. Originally I was planning on writing a blog about the finals, critiquing the Pens and what not... but I have had a change of heart. I have come to realize that in order to win a great team may have to lose first. The Wings were the better team, and they justly deserve to win, no matter how much that hurts to say. We didn't have the better team, but we had one hell of a good one. Who knows what players will be back next year, if we may never see WWGRD? again, or if this was Marian Hossa's last hoorah in his short stint this season with the Pens.
All I know is that no matter how many Stanley Cups the Pens may win over the next few years, I will never forget this run. This run has brought back hockey to Pittsburgh and has united thousands of people. As much as I love the Steelers, I have to say I was more concerned with winning this Cup than I was 3 seasons ago in our Super Bowl run. It's safe to say that WE are the best fans in hockey. At least in this country. This is now a football and hockey city. ========================================================
So, I wanted to create some list.. of the best moments from this season... I wanted it to be a 5 point list... but I can't narrow it down. There were too many memories, too many hardships overcome, too many victories to number down to 5, or even 10. Instead I will give you 14 moments from this season which I feel were phenomenal.
14. The trade for Hossa, Dupuis and Gill- Even though there was controversy in this... it was hard to hear anyone saying the name Colby Armstrong in the playoffs. I love Colby and his game... but Hossa is a superstar... and Dupuis is just as good as Colby. But this moves to #14 because losing a guy like Colby was a sad day... but an exciting one nonetheless. And Hal Gill has been great!
13. November 22 vs. Senators- Fleury goes down with a high ankle sprain. Danny Sabourin comes in the game. Jarkko Ruutu wins it in a shootout 6-5.
12. March 16 vs Flyers- The Pens blast the Flyers 7-1 without Crosby in the lineup and score 7 goals for the second game in a row.
11. December 8 vs. Canucks- The Pens go 3-0 against Western Canada, winning 2-1 in a shootout, Newcomer Kris Letang wins the game in the shootout, his second in a row. Letang would come to be known as Mr. Shootout. (see video below)
10. January 19 vs Canadiens- The Penguins hit the road after losing their captain Sidney Crosby to a serious leg injury (another high ankle sprain). They end up shutting out Montreal 2-0, showing that there is life without Sid.
9. April 16 vs. Senators- The Penguins get revenge on the team that eliminated them one year ago by sweeping the Senators.
8. June 4 vs. Red Wings- We watched the season end. We agonized, some may have cried... but we knew one thing. We knew that this would not be the end. We watched our boys almost come back to tie the game. They never quit. A team overmatched, being outplayed, being dominated almost forced a game 7 in the Stanley Cup Finals. As the Conn Smythe MVP trophy was presented, the fans chanted "Fleury" and "Crosby." People knew that this team is going to go all the way eventually, just not this season.
7. May 13 vs. Flyers- The Penguins, with a 2-0 lead already in the series, all but wrap it up by dominating the Flyers in front of a hostel crowd in a 4-1 win to give the Pens a 3-0 lead in the State Championship Series.
6. April 25 vs Rangers- The first "whiteout of the Penguins season." The Rangers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the game. But, the Pens would battle back, scoring 2 pairs of goals less than 20 seconds apart from each other. The Rangers would tie it up but Evgeni would redirect a Crosby slapshot into the net late in the game to give the Pens a 5-4 win and a 1-0 series lead.
5. May 4 vs. Rangers- A tough battle all game leads both teams into overtime, the first time the Pens would see overtime in the playoffs. Malkin would score a fantastic goal during regulation on the backhand. In the overtime, Marian Hossa would score his second goal of the game to win the game 3-2 and the series 4-1.
4. May 18 vs. Flyers- Game 5 of the Eastern Finals would not be much of a contest. The Pens would rip the rival Flyers to pieces in a 6-0 win, propelling them to their first Cup Finals in 16 years.
3. May 28 vs. Red Wings- Game 3 was back in Pittsburgh. The Penguins were down 2-0 and had not scored a goal all series. The Penguins, led by Sidney Crosby's 2 goals and a jam in by an unlikely hero Adam Hall to win the game 3-2, to cut the series to 2-1.
2. January 1 vs. Sabres- New Years Day. The Winter Classic. And a classic it was. One of the most dramatic games in regular season NHL history. It was outside, in Buffalo and snowing. 70,000+ filled the Ralph Wilson Stadium, making it the largest hockey game in history. The Penguins would jump out to an early lead with a goal by Colby Armstrong. But the Sabres would tie it up, sending it to overtime. The overtime produced no winner, so a shootout was called upon. With "the game on his stick" and a 1-1 tie in the shootout, the last shooter Sidney Crosby stood at center ice. The snow was falling, the players were freezing. And the Kid took off. He moved slower than usual towards the net. He deeked, and shot the puck. Time stood still. No call. Then, as if it was sent down by the hockey gods, the referee pointed. Crosby wins it. Fantastic game... unique and traditional. Unforgettable.
1. June 2 vs. Red Wings- The Pens would face elimination for the first time, and would overcome. It will be forever known as the game that Petr Sykora called his shot. With 34 seconds left in the game, the champagne on ice, the Champion T-Shirts in the locker room, the crowd smelling victory an the Cup itself getting a last second shine, Max Talbot would end all of that. Talbot jammed the puck into the net, to tie the game and send it to overtime. The overtime will always be remembered by the performance by Marc Andre Fleury. It was Fleury's coming out party. He would stop 55 shots, including an incredible toe save to keep the Pens alive. Half way through the second OT, Petr Sykora looked at NBC announcer Pierre McGuire and said that he would score the winner. Mid way through the third OT, Sykora did just that, giving the Pens a 4-3 win and sending the series back to Pittsburgh stunning the Detroit crowd.
Never forget what this season meant to the city and to it's people. Hockey is back in the 'burgh... and it's going to be here for a long time.
I do not care too much for the NBA, but nonetheless here are my predictions:
WEST
Round 1 1. Lakers over 8. Nuggets in 6 7. Mavericks over 2. Hornets in 7 3. Spurs over 6. Suns in 7 4. Jazz over 5. Rockets in 6
Quarterfinals 1. Lakers over 7. Mavericks in 6 3. Spurs over 4. Jazz in 4
Semi-finals 1. Lakers over 3. Spurs in 7
EAST
Round 1 1. Celtics over 8. Hawks in 4 2. Pistons over 7. 76ers in 6 3. Magic over 6. Raptors in 5 4. Cavaliers over 5. Wizards in 4
Quarterfinals 1. Celtics over 4. Cavaliers in 6 2. Pistons over 3. Magic in 7
Semi-finals 1. Celtics over 2. Pistons in 7
NBA FINALS 1. Celtics over 1. Lakers in 6
(Yes, I have picked the most obvious finals matchup ever.. simply because I think the NBA wants this to happen so bad for ratings that it will happen.)
Last year the Pittsburgh Penguins stood at center ice, in single file, shaking the hands of the victorious Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place in Kanata, Ontario. That was a year ago. That was then. That was "those Penguins." "These Penguins" are different. This year produced a similar scene. The Penguins stood in that all too familiar single file line shaking hand with the Senators. But, this year the Senators shook the hands of the victors, the Pittsburgh Penguins. If there was any doubt who the better team was going into this series it was all but removed by a convincing 4-0 sweep by the Pens.
The Penguins went storming out of the gate in game one with a 4-0 victory in a game where the Senators really were blindsided by a much better team on the ice. Game 2 had a similar start, with the Penguins jumping out to a 3-0 lead. But the Sens showed resolve for really the only time in the series, rallying to tie the Pens at 3 in the 3rd period. But, a rap-around goal by Ryan Malone with 1:02 left in the game, as well as an empty-netter by the Pittsburgh native #12 sealed the deal to give the Pens a 2-0 lead in the series. Game 3 moved the series to Ottawa, and brought the return of Sens Captain Daniel Alfredsson. His obviously still injured body only hindered the Senators attempts to get back into the series, as they fell behind 3 games via a 4-1 Penguins victory. Game 4 was the chance for the Penguins to sweep a series since they won the Cup in 1992. They did just that. Evgeni Malkin handled a phenomenal pass from Sidney Crosby and stuck it in the net to go up 1-0. The Sens would tie it up shortly after. A breakaway spin-a-rama goal by Jarko Ruutu and an empty-netter gave the Penguins a 3-1 lead and the sweep of the series.
It's the Sweet 16... and my bracket is destroyed. Here's a look at the matchups and my predicted winners to move onto the Elite 8, Final 4, and National Championship.
EAST- Easily the toughest bracket still remaining. All four teams could make the Final 4.
4. Washington St. Cougars @ 1. North Carolina Tar Heels. This matchups features 2 teams that in 4 total games have outscored their oponents by 121 points, an average of over 30 points/game. The Cougars have been very impressive in their wins, but Carolina has been pure dominant. Winner: North Carolina
3. Louisville Cardinals @ 2. Tennessee Volunteers. Tennessee is coming off an overtime victory, while Louisville is coming off an old school whoopin' of Oklahama. Louisville has looked very good as of late, but Tennessee's speed and shooting ability is what can move them onto the Round of 8. Winner: Tennessee
2. Tennessee Volunteers @ 1. North Carolina Tar Heels Winner: North Carolina
MIDWEST- A region of high seed surprises, and a guy named Stephen Curry.
12. Villanova Wildcats @ 1. Kansas Jayhawks The 'Cats have been a suprise from the start, but have yet to beat a considerably good team. Clemson seemed flat and over-rated, and Siena was just not at Big East compition standards. The Jayhawks have a ton of talent and will be too much for Nova. Winner: Kansas
10. Davidson Wildcats @ 3. Wisconsin Badgers Two words... Stephen Curry. He is averaging 35 ppg for the Wildcats, who have been a giant surprise in this years Tourney. The Badgers though sport one of the premier defenses in the Nation. In the end, Curry hits the game winner to move on. Winner Davidson
SOUTH- All of the top teams still remain... except Pitt.
5. Michigan St. Spartans @ 1. Memphis Tigers This may be the most physical matchup of the tourney. Memphis has a great physical presence. State looks like they are on a mission after knocking off the hottest team in the nation, Pitt. It will be a close one... but... Winner: Memphis
3. Stanford Cardinal @ 2. Texas Longhorns Both teams squeaked out wins in the last round. Both teams are phsical and quick. Texas seems like a more rounded team and a little more ready for the run they are on. Plus, I have them in my Final 4. So... Winner: Texas
WEST- Some surprises in this one. But a guy named Love holds it together.
12. Western Kentucky Hilltoppers @ 1. UCLA Bruins The Toppers have had an amazing run to the Sweet 16, but they haven't faced anyone like the Bruins. With wins over the 5 Seed (undeserved) Drake, and the surprising San Diego, WKU isn't in the same league as UCLA, and K-Love. Winner: UCLA
7. West Virginia Mountaineers @ 3. Xavier Musketeers WVU pulled off some solid victories against Arizona, who didn't deserve to be in the tourney, and Duke, who doesn't deserve to be Duke anymore. Xavier beat the SEC Champs and a good Purdue team. Yet, i think that Joe Alwxander will be the difference. Winner: West Virginia
7. West Virginia Mountaineers @ 1. UCLA Bruins Winner: UCLA
FINAL 4
1. Kansas Jayhawks @ 1. North Carolina Tar Heels Winner: North Carolina
2. Texas Longhorns @ 1. UCLA Bruins Winner: UCLA
CHAMPIONSHIP
1. UCLA Bruins @ 1. North Carolina Tar Heels Winner: North Carolina
They deadline was coming up, and it seemed that the Penguins were going to stay put. When, suddenly, they shocked the hockey world, by acquiring all-star Marian Hossa in a trade with Atlanta. The Penguins sent forwards Colby Armstrong and Erik Christensen, as well as first round draft pick Angelo Esposito and a first round draft pick next season. The Penguins got back wingers Marian Hossa and Pascal Dupuis. Also, the Penguins traded 2nd and 5th Round draft picks to Toronto for veteran defenseman Hal Gill.
First, I will start with the negatives of this trade. The Penguins gave up an emotional locker-room leader and Sidney Crosby's best friend Colby Armstrong, who had recorded 24 points this season. Then, they gave up Christensen, who is tied for shootout goals this season and is a promising young player. Then there is Angelo Esposito, who was considered by some to be the best player in last years NHL Draft. Then, the Penguins gave up a first round draft pick, to go along with the 2nd and 5th round picks for Gill. So, a lot was given up by the Penguins to acquire Hossa. Also, ther eis some doubt of the Penguins ability to resign Hossa for a long-term deal this summer.
Now for the positives. This, in my opinion, is a fantastic move by the Penguins. First, Colby Armstrong is a great leader and has a great personality. He is funny and is close to our star player. I love what Colby brought to the team. But, this is hockey, not a social club. While I will miss Colby greatly, I am excited to see what Hossa brings to the table. We are talking about a 30+ consistent goal scorer. He already has 56 points this season. Armstrong and Christensen have combined for 44 points this season, 12 less than Hossa. Christensen has not really produced, except for in shootouts. Well guess what? There are no shootouts in the playoffs. Plus, Dupuis is a promising player, who skates fast and bring a great presence to the wings. Then there is Gill, who was traded for draft picks. Gill brings a big body (6'7"- 255 lbs) to the defense. He is a tough player who will be a perfect match for Gonchar or Whitney. Then, there is Angelo Esposito. Last year, we drafted Jordan Staal first. He produced. Esposito is a lazy player who might never amount to anything. His potential went from great to questionable. Finally, there is the first round draft pick. If the Penguins go deep into the playoffs, which they should, that draft pick wil be so late that it doesn't really matter.
So, all in all I give this trade an A-. If not for the fact that the Penguins lost a great leader this would be an A for sure. Hopefully the Penguins can mesh this late into the season and make a run towards the Cup. With top players like Crosby, Malkin, Hossa, Gonchar, Fleury, Staal, Conklin, Whitney and Sykora (gasp) this team has to be considered the best team in the East now.
I am a Junior Broadcast Journalism major at Point Park University, in Pittsburgh, PA. I love all sports... especially those played by Pittsburgh teams.
