I had a long day today and will surely have another long day tomorrow so I'm just throwing a couple of quick thoughts up. Sorry to rob you of my sparkling wit and amazing insight. (That's code for "lame jokes" and "long-windedness.")
- Not the prettiest game but one that was hard fought. And you know what? I'll take hard fought over pretty any day of the week since that'll get you more than your share of wins.
- How happy am I that after all the endless "Evgeni Malkin is soooooooo good but Thomas Vanek is trying waaaaaaay too hard" it was Vanek that scored the game-winner? Very.
- Seriously, usually I can just roll my eyes at Versus and move on but they were bad tonight even for them. Sidney Crosby brings the puck down the ice, shoots and misses because of a great stop by Ryan Miller and the announcer is flipping out about THE CROSBY SHOW!!!! even though hello, he didn't score. He didn't because the goalie - you know, that guy on the other team, made a really nice play. It was stupid for Vanek to take a penalty that put his team down two men but when Malkin did it it was a sign of leadership? Versus, I'm not impressed that Malkin skated by Paul Gaustad and went after Clarke MacArthur. Roy is a better player when he just focuses on playing hockey (true) but it's okay for Crosby to flop like a fish when 5'6" Roy-Z bumps his leg with one skate? Just. awful. Does Versus think we're incapable of watching the game and recognizing for ourselves that yes, Malkin is crazy talented?
- I like how Nathan Gerbe, two games into his NHL career, has already grown an inch from where he was listed last season. I knew that would happen.
- Our PK is unreal. The penalty killers kept us in the game tonight and they all deserve a very generous round of applause.
- All hail Thomas Vanek, first 20 goal scorer in the NHL. Last season he didn't get his 1oth goal until December 15th and he didn't get his 20th goal until February 12th. I like this season better. (Stat courtesy of John Vogl.)
- Toni Lydman on Malkin and Crosby: "As long as we win, they can have all the highlights they want. We'll take the two points." Word. Like I said, hard-working over pretty any day of the week. (Also courtesy of John Vogl at the above link.)
P.S. Even if Tom Golisano does sell the team, the NHL is not going to move the Sabres from Buffalo. We're one of the few genuine hockey markets in the States. Relocating Nashville or Atlanta is one thing, relocating Buffalo is another. If nothing else, the league would miss our crazy TV ratings. But I do love how most of Buffalo is all, "WE HATE GOLISANO! HE'S A CHEAP, STUPID JACKASS! GET US A REAL OWNER WHO WANTS TO WIN NOW!" until there are rumors that he's looking to sell the team and then Buffalo is suddenly all, "I HATE GOLISANO! I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT JACKASS WOULD EVEN THINK ABOUT SELLING OUR TEAM!" Buffalo, you crazy.
Showing posts with label pittsburgh penguins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pittsburgh penguins. Show all posts
Monday, December 8, 2008
Monday, June 2, 2008
This Game's Going to Ooooooovertiiiiiiiiiiime!
11:03 - I'm staying up to watch this game but if the Pens win I am not going to be happy. I'm staying up for the Stanley Cup and the Stanley Cup alone.
11:07 - Some people over at IPB where I'm currently hanging out aren't happy about the Detroit crowd chanting "We want the Cup!" I admit, I would totally be chanting “We want the Cup!” if I were in their shoes. Every God in the universe hates Buffalo so we’d get smitten anyway, I’m sure. May as well enjoy the game before it happens.
11:15 - I'm thinking it would be helpful if Detroit moved the puck to the other end of the ice. Might be easier to score.
11:22 - I either need the Penguins to win soon or the Red Wings to win eventually. If I’m going to stay up for another OT I need a guarantee the Wings are going to win. Someone guarantee!
11:24 - Bullhonky goalie interference call on Henrik Zetterberg. One of my least favorite things about officiating in the NHL is how often coaches complaining about it has an effect.
11:43 - CBC is doing a highlight package to These Eyes by the Guess Who. Maybe it's just the late hour but I'm totally cracking up.
11:47 - Second OT. You can tell I've spent too much time this season reading game diaries at Sabres Edge because I actually just thought, "Bummer, John Vogl is probably going to miss deadline. Poor guy."
11:50 - Okay, that was a bullhonky goalie interference call. Maybe the last one was debatable but this was total crap. Seriously, after that I don't want to hear another Penguins fan complain about Osgood diving because Fleury went down awfully hard and far for a guy who barely got bumped. Terrible. I thought we were trying to get rid of diving?
11:52 - That said, Fleury is the only reason the Penguins haven't lost this game already. He's been lights out.
11:55 - Tim Kennedy looks a little bit like Brian Campbell 2.0 - slightly awkward-looking, stringy red hair. I'm sure he'll get along fine with the girls anyway though.
12:05 - Shower, brush teeth, wash face, race back to the TV.
12:30 - The one good thing about all this extra hockey - besides extra hockey! - is extra Kelly Hrudey. Kelly Hrudey!
12:31 - Third OT. The Red Wings are going to win, right? Right? Please say I'm right.
12:34 - Franzen just misses a nice opportunity in front of the net. I've been wondering, just how does a mule skate anyway? I would think very awkwardly. It must take extra skill to coordinate four legs.
12:40 - This game is beginning to take on that "someone is going to make a bone-headed mistake that leads to a goal" feel about it. As much as I want to see the Cup, I do hate those endings.
12:41 - NEXT GOAL WINS!
12:47 - Aww, hell. This whole season blows. The Hockey Gods hate me even when the Sabres aren't playing. Still, I did originally say Wings in six. Please say I'm going to be right about that.
11:07 - Some people over at IPB where I'm currently hanging out aren't happy about the Detroit crowd chanting "We want the Cup!" I admit, I would totally be chanting “We want the Cup!” if I were in their shoes. Every God in the universe hates Buffalo so we’d get smitten anyway, I’m sure. May as well enjoy the game before it happens.
11:15 - I'm thinking it would be helpful if Detroit moved the puck to the other end of the ice. Might be easier to score.
11:22 - I either need the Penguins to win soon or the Red Wings to win eventually. If I’m going to stay up for another OT I need a guarantee the Wings are going to win. Someone guarantee!
11:24 - Bullhonky goalie interference call on Henrik Zetterberg. One of my least favorite things about officiating in the NHL is how often coaches complaining about it has an effect.
11:43 - CBC is doing a highlight package to These Eyes by the Guess Who. Maybe it's just the late hour but I'm totally cracking up.
11:47 - Second OT. You can tell I've spent too much time this season reading game diaries at Sabres Edge because I actually just thought, "Bummer, John Vogl is probably going to miss deadline. Poor guy."
11:50 - Okay, that was a bullhonky goalie interference call. Maybe the last one was debatable but this was total crap. Seriously, after that I don't want to hear another Penguins fan complain about Osgood diving because Fleury went down awfully hard and far for a guy who barely got bumped. Terrible. I thought we were trying to get rid of diving?
11:52 - That said, Fleury is the only reason the Penguins haven't lost this game already. He's been lights out.
11:55 - Tim Kennedy looks a little bit like Brian Campbell 2.0 - slightly awkward-looking, stringy red hair. I'm sure he'll get along fine with the girls anyway though.
12:05 - Shower, brush teeth, wash face, race back to the TV.
12:30 - The one good thing about all this extra hockey - besides extra hockey! - is extra Kelly Hrudey. Kelly Hrudey!
12:31 - Third OT. The Red Wings are going to win, right? Right? Please say I'm right.
12:34 - Franzen just misses a nice opportunity in front of the net. I've been wondering, just how does a mule skate anyway? I would think very awkwardly. It must take extra skill to coordinate four legs.
12:40 - This game is beginning to take on that "someone is going to make a bone-headed mistake that leads to a goal" feel about it. As much as I want to see the Cup, I do hate those endings.
12:41 - NEXT GOAL WINS!
12:47 - Aww, hell. This whole season blows. The Hockey Gods hate me even when the Sabres aren't playing. Still, I did originally say Wings in six. Please say I'm going to be right about that.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
One Game Down...
So it appears that I'm cheering for the Red Wings. I've found that when I'm undecided the best thing is to wait for the first goal and see if I'm excited or disappointed. I was stoked when Nicklas Lidstrom scored and irate when they called it back which is saying something because I'm not a huge fan of Tomas Holmstrom's style of play and would usually be fine with him getting called for goalie interference. I'm all for screening the goalie but when you're so tight on him that he couldn't lift his glove if he needed to, you're interfering. But calling that little stick poke interference was lame and CBC attempting to argue that it was a good call was even lamer.
Photo By Silvia Pecota/Getty Images. Except for the hearts. I added those because I love Nick Lidstrom.
Random thoughts:
- In Detroit we have a market that's had a tough time filling the building despite having a great team, two of the best all-around forwards in the league, and one of the best defensemen of all-time. So what does the NHL do? It schedules the Cup Finals so that three of the games take place at almost exactly the same time as the Pistons series with the Wings and the Pistons both at home for two of those games. Well played, NHL. There are days when I'm genuinely surprised the league is still in business. I understand they wanted to start on Saturday for television reasons but would it have really killed them to go on Saturday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday instead?
- I was watching the Detroit players charging out of the tunnel for the pregame skate and I wondered if anyone ever trips. And then Marc-Andre Fleury answered that question by taking a huge face plant.
- I'm not a huge fan of the patches that all the pro sports leagues slap on jerseys for special events - I know I'm watching the Stanley Cup Finals, thanks - but those things really should be on the other shoulder so they don't interfere with the letters. The patch right on top of the C's and A's looks atrocious.
- Someone please give Detroit's P.A. guy a shot of adrenaline. He sounded like he was working a funeral. A Penguins fan could not have sounded less excited about the Wings scoring.
- I like to think I'm all smart about hockey now but tonight I went through the whole game thinking Mikael Samuelsson was Ulf Samuelsson. To the point where I said, "Did they just call Ulf 'Mikael'?" Which is when Mark gently pointed out that Ulf retired. I wasn't sure he was right so I did an internet search and sure enough, Ulf did retire. In 2000. I even have Mikael in my fantasy line-up this week so I really should know his name.
- I think one of the small pleasures of living in Buffalo is getting CBC but I'd much rather have Jim Hughson calling the games than Bob Cole and I'd much rather hear Kelly Hrudey than Don Cherry. I don't get Don Cherry's appeal. His appearances on Sportscenter were just one more reason for me to not watch Sportscenter.
On a totally unrelated note, I've been trying to be better about including credits with any photos I use, but I realized after Patty complimented the photo in the last post that I forgot to include that information there. I went back and added it but since most of you had probably already read the post by then, I'd like to state for the record that the photo was by Mike Lynaugh. Mike has a Sabres gallery at this link and it's full of beautiful action shots like the one I used of Dmitri Kalinin. Any time I'm looking for a photo of a player who doesn't come up a lot in a Google image search, I hit up his page and I almost always find something.
Random thoughts:
- In Detroit we have a market that's had a tough time filling the building despite having a great team, two of the best all-around forwards in the league, and one of the best defensemen of all-time. So what does the NHL do? It schedules the Cup Finals so that three of the games take place at almost exactly the same time as the Pistons series with the Wings and the Pistons both at home for two of those games. Well played, NHL. There are days when I'm genuinely surprised the league is still in business. I understand they wanted to start on Saturday for television reasons but would it have really killed them to go on Saturday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday instead?
- I was watching the Detroit players charging out of the tunnel for the pregame skate and I wondered if anyone ever trips. And then Marc-Andre Fleury answered that question by taking a huge face plant.
- I'm not a huge fan of the patches that all the pro sports leagues slap on jerseys for special events - I know I'm watching the Stanley Cup Finals, thanks - but those things really should be on the other shoulder so they don't interfere with the letters. The patch right on top of the C's and A's looks atrocious.
- Someone please give Detroit's P.A. guy a shot of adrenaline. He sounded like he was working a funeral. A Penguins fan could not have sounded less excited about the Wings scoring.
- I like to think I'm all smart about hockey now but tonight I went through the whole game thinking Mikael Samuelsson was Ulf Samuelsson. To the point where I said, "Did they just call Ulf 'Mikael'?" Which is when Mark gently pointed out that Ulf retired. I wasn't sure he was right so I did an internet search and sure enough, Ulf did retire. In 2000. I even have Mikael in my fantasy line-up this week so I really should know his name.
- I think one of the small pleasures of living in Buffalo is getting CBC but I'd much rather have Jim Hughson calling the games than Bob Cole and I'd much rather hear Kelly Hrudey than Don Cherry. I don't get Don Cherry's appeal. His appearances on Sportscenter were just one more reason for me to not watch Sportscenter.
On a totally unrelated note, I've been trying to be better about including credits with any photos I use, but I realized after Patty complimented the photo in the last post that I forgot to include that information there. I went back and added it but since most of you had probably already read the post by then, I'd like to state for the record that the photo was by Mike Lynaugh. Mike has a Sabres gallery at this link and it's full of beautiful action shots like the one I used of Dmitri Kalinin. Any time I'm looking for a photo of a player who doesn't come up a lot in a Google image search, I hit up his page and I almost always find something.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Still No Sabres, Eh?
(NOTE TO THOSE WHO READ THIS POST ALREADY: I added a video and a couple of notes at the end. I didn't feel like making another entry just for them so check it out if they weren't there when you were here.)
So the final match-up is set. The Pittsburgh Penguins vs. the Detroit Red Wings. I can't believe it but after a postseason that seemed to be brimming with teams I wanted to lose miserably, we've ended up with two teams I'm actually okay with. I like the spunky, youthful Penguins and if my life had gone as I'd planned it at age twelve, I'd be living in Pittsburgh and probably rooting for them. (Of course, I'd also be catching for the Pirates and raising five kids. Clearly fate had its own ideas.) But I like the experienced, professional Red Wings too although I didn't really watch much of them until this past round against Dallas and I turned a couple of those games off early. Patty, my token Western Conference friend, claims I would hate the Wings if I had to play/watch them all the time and that might be true. But for now, the Wings are really Nicklas Lidstrom in my mind. And I love him. I want him to teach me to play hockey.
Oddly enough however now that we're down to two teams I like, I'm just not feeling much interest in who comes out on top. I don't know if I've watched all the non-Sabres hockey I can in one year - after all, they were only out of the last round in the last two seasons and I've now watched three rounds - or if I really need to have a team to cheer against but I'm feeling very blah. But come Saturday I'll sit down in front of the TV and see where my heart takes me. Maybe that Red Wings hate will finally kick in and maybe I'll decide they've had their chance already. Maybe I'll decide I'm sick of seeing shots of Mario Lemieux in the owner's box and maybe I'll decide I don't want the Penguins to succeed so soon or with a big rental player. Who knows? We'll see.
(And by the way, Saturday? These guys need four days off? I thought they were hockey players!)
As far as predictions go, I'm taking the Red Wings. The Penguins have been very impressive but none of the teams they've played played particularly well. Some of that can be attributed to them but I think some of it was just teams playing crap hockey. I don't think they've faced anything like the challenge Detroit is going to give them. Detroit played an overmatched Nashville team and a beat up Colorado team but they also played a very good Dallas team. Dallas was probably the best non-finalist team over the course of the playoffs. Pittsburgh may take a couple of games but I think that's all they'll get this season. DETROIT IN SIX.
ETA: I just saw this commercial on Yahoo's Hockey Blog (I can't quite say "Puck Daddy" yet because it's totally ridiculous). It's so beautiful. The images, the music, the tag line at the end... all perfect. It makes me want the Finals to start immediately.
I also remembered that one reason I wouldn't mind the Red Wings winning is because it would make Nicklas Lidstrom the first European captain of a Cup winning team. I'd love for that to happen and I'd love for it to be him.
(Despite the fact that "Puck Daddy" is a goofy name, you should check it out if you haven't already. Greg W. is doing really good work over there and the title actually does fit the smart but fun, occasionally silly, tone. When I get around to updating my blogroll, it's going up there.)
So the final match-up is set. The Pittsburgh Penguins vs. the Detroit Red Wings. I can't believe it but after a postseason that seemed to be brimming with teams I wanted to lose miserably, we've ended up with two teams I'm actually okay with. I like the spunky, youthful Penguins and if my life had gone as I'd planned it at age twelve, I'd be living in Pittsburgh and probably rooting for them. (Of course, I'd also be catching for the Pirates and raising five kids. Clearly fate had its own ideas.) But I like the experienced, professional Red Wings too although I didn't really watch much of them until this past round against Dallas and I turned a couple of those games off early. Patty, my token Western Conference friend, claims I would hate the Wings if I had to play/watch them all the time and that might be true. But for now, the Wings are really Nicklas Lidstrom in my mind. And I love him. I want him to teach me to play hockey.
Oddly enough however now that we're down to two teams I like, I'm just not feeling much interest in who comes out on top. I don't know if I've watched all the non-Sabres hockey I can in one year - after all, they were only out of the last round in the last two seasons and I've now watched three rounds - or if I really need to have a team to cheer against but I'm feeling very blah. But come Saturday I'll sit down in front of the TV and see where my heart takes me. Maybe that Red Wings hate will finally kick in and maybe I'll decide they've had their chance already. Maybe I'll decide I'm sick of seeing shots of Mario Lemieux in the owner's box and maybe I'll decide I don't want the Penguins to succeed so soon or with a big rental player. Who knows? We'll see.
(And by the way, Saturday? These guys need four days off? I thought they were hockey players!)
As far as predictions go, I'm taking the Red Wings. The Penguins have been very impressive but none of the teams they've played played particularly well. Some of that can be attributed to them but I think some of it was just teams playing crap hockey. I don't think they've faced anything like the challenge Detroit is going to give them. Detroit played an overmatched Nashville team and a beat up Colorado team but they also played a very good Dallas team. Dallas was probably the best non-finalist team over the course of the playoffs. Pittsburgh may take a couple of games but I think that's all they'll get this season. DETROIT IN SIX.
ETA: I just saw this commercial on Yahoo's Hockey Blog (I can't quite say "Puck Daddy" yet because it's totally ridiculous). It's so beautiful. The images, the music, the tag line at the end... all perfect. It makes me want the Finals to start immediately.
I also remembered that one reason I wouldn't mind the Red Wings winning is because it would make Nicklas Lidstrom the first European captain of a Cup winning team. I'd love for that to happen and I'd love for it to be him.
(Despite the fact that "Puck Daddy" is a goofy name, you should check it out if you haven't already. Greg W. is doing really good work over there and the title actually does fit the smart but fun, occasionally silly, tone. When I get around to updating my blogroll, it's going up there.)
Monday, April 7, 2008
Eastern Conference Picks
(Quick note to those of you in the playoff pool. Line-ups for the first week are due by noon on Wednesday.)
This could be a long one because I'm going to do the whole Eastern Conference at once just so it all gets done before the playoffs start. (Do I really need to say, "This could be a long one?" Is it at all shocking when I talk for a really long time?)
1. MONTREAL CANADIENS
I dig the Canadiens. There's no one on their team who I hate and there are even a few people who I really like (Saku Koivu and Mike Komisarek being the big two). Classic jerseys. A real hockey tradition. And I love their crowds. It can be annoying when you're on the other side but I love how quick Montreal crowds are to express themselves and I'm not going to lie, I love the "Ole Ole" song. I find myself singing along even when they're playing against the Sabres. The Canadiens are also really, really fun to watch. I love their fast back-and-forth style and I'm in awe of their powerplay. Going into the playoffs, the Habs are my favorite on the Eastern Conference side. We'll see if it sticks.
2. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS
I was born in Pittsburgh and raised by Pittsburghers. Every childhood vacation involved Pittsburgh and I still have family there. The Mario Lemieux-led Penguins were the first hockey team I was really aware of. Heck, my first jersey was a Penguins jersey (Ron Francis #10). When all is said and done, I probably should be a Penguins fan right now. Even though fate stepped in and steered me toward the team and city that has no pro sports championships instead of plenty of them (thanks, fate!), I do still have a soft spot for Pittsburgh and I do mostly like the Penguins. Now that I've managed to dig through the media hype I think Sidney Crosby really is the cat's pajamas. And I'm totally in love with Evgeni Malkin. I'm amazed at how he just took over while Crosby was out and I love his silent, slightly embarrassed smile. Part of me hopes he never learns to speak English. (Part of me believes he speaks perfect English and just chooses not to) Really, do we need to hear "We're just going to take it one game at a time" from yet another player? I think Crosby has that covered. I am decidedly pro-Penguins.
3. WASHINGTON CAPITALS
Remember how Kevin Sylvester kept saying, "All hockey fans would be happy to see the Caps in the playoffs" and other similar things? Kevin forgot to poll me. I fully acknowledge that Alexander Ovechkin is an amazingly gifted player and barring a career-ending injury or a total collapse will be one of the best players of my lifetime. But I'm just not sure how I feel about him. There are times when I get a kick out of him and there are times when I feel like he's veering awfully close to showboating. And again, while I fully acknowledge that the NHL could use a good kick of personality, that's never been my thing. I hate running backs who start dancing before they're in the end zone and defensive players who celebrate a tackle like they just won the lottery. I hate baseball players who stand at home plate and watch the ball soar over the fence. I also hit Ovechkin Overload weeks ago. And now he's dragged his team into the playoffs? The hype is about to go off the charts insane. I don't know if I can handle it.
The good news for the Caps is that I don't find the team itself particularly offensive and I don't outright hate anyone on the team. And the good news for Ovechkin (because you know he's weeping at the thought that I don't like him) is that once upon a time I refused to like Sidney Crosby because of the endless hype and adoration and what finally changed my mind was watching Sid in the playoffs last year. So I'm not completely closing the door on the Caps but right now it doesn't look good. This one could definitely go either way.
4. NEW JERSEY DEVILS
This is another team where blogging rears its head and influences my opinion. I've spent many an hour lounging around Interchangeable Parts and emailing Pookie and Schnookie, the ladies who run the joint, so I know a lot about the players on the Devils and have even come to like a few of them. If I didn't talk to Pookie and Schnookie so much I would probably never have given the Devils a second thought and might outright hate them after all the stupid shootout losses this season. But I like them okay and I love Marty Brodeur so I'll cheer for the Devils in the right situation. They're not the most exciting team to watch but I fear the Eastern Conference is going to end up being a battle of the lesser evil.
5. NEW YORK RANGERS
If this season ends with Chris Drury hoisting a Stanley Cup - and Kate and I have had endless discussions about how that might be the only way this season can end - I'm building a bunker under our apartment building. Then I'm digging underground tunnels that connect the bunker to the parking lot at work. And then I'm constructing a bubble to live in during those times I have to interact with the outside world. I'm cutting myself off from media of all kind - newspapers, magazines, sports radio, message boards, and 99.7% of the blogs I read. I will do all that and somehow, some way I'll still end up hearing about Chris Drury and how his Little League triumph prepared him for this day when he would lead the New York Rangers to the Stanley Cup and I'll still end up hearing about how the Buffalo Sabres have doomed themselves to a history of defeat and despair and Bucky Gleason will call it the Curse of Captain Clutch and in thirty years I'll be the haggard od woman with no teeth and a swarm of cats who stands at the corner outside the arena all day yelling, "CAPTAIN CLUTCH NEVER WON US NOTHING AND WASN'T VERY CLUTCH IN THE FACE-OFF CIRCLE AGAINST JASON SPEZZA!" and "THE SABRES WANTED TO MATCH BUT CAPTAIN CLUTCH WANTED TO BE A DIRTY RANGER!" and people will point and laugh and throw things. I would hope that this is a future we all want to avoid.
(Also, Jaromir Jagr? Sean Avery? Scott Gomez? It's like someone decided to dump the very douchiest of douchebags on one team. No one with a soul could possibly cheer for the Rangers.)
6. PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
In the battle of Former Sabres Lost in the Last Calendar Year, Daniel Briere is the one I'd be the most okay with winning it all if you put a gun to Mark's head and made me pick one. (I asked Mark what he would say if someone put a guy to my head and told him to choose Drury, Briere, or Brian Campbell and he said, "I'd tell them to shoot you," and then attempted to justify it with, "You wouldn't want to live in a world where any of those guys won a Cup!" I can't decide if that's really sweet or really disturbing.) I think Bucky and Co. would still go crazy but maybe not quite as crazy and I like Danny enough that it wouldn't make me throw up.
That said, it's the Flyers. I wasn't in Buffalo for most of the Buffalo-Philly history but even I hate the Flyers. And even if we just go by this year, how can you cheer for the the Flyers? The gooning it up? The stupid suspensions? The horrific mishandling of concussions? How many years has this franchise taken off Simon Gagne's career already? No, I'm afraid the Flyers are unacceptable.
7. OTTAWA SENATORS
I don't hate Ottawa the way some Buffalo fans do but I don't love them enough that I don't think this whole season has been pretty hilarious. With apologies to the Senators fans who I do know, like, and respect, this season has been a delight to watch. From the day the puck dropped against the Islanders I think Sabres fans knew we were going to be in for an up and down season. The Senators went something like 15-2 to start the season. Everyone was ready to hand them the Conference title if not the Stanley Cup. Even the most pessimistic and cautious fan had to be feeling pretty good about that kind of record. And then the team just fell apart. Gloriously and spectacularly. And now they get Pittsburgh in the first round? Without Daniel Alfredsson and Mike Fisher? Oh, Ottawa. You're toast. You're toast and yes, I think it's pretty entertaining. There is some small part of me that wouldn't be opposed to the Sens winning (with Mike Fisher) some year but if they pull it off this year it'll be way too much of a feel-good story. ("The struggling Sens pull off a first round upset in the name of their fallen captain!") This year I'm pulling for the collapse to be complete. The Ottawa Senators are a living example of why maybe it was better to just miss the playoffs instead of squeaking in.
8. BOSTON BRUINS
I can't think of any players on the Bruins who really disgust me (I kind of like Zdeno Chara) but I've had my fill of them for one year. The only thing the division heavy schedule really accomplished for me was making me hate them. And not in a "I love to hate them" kind of way. More like in a "I hate them and would rather pull my toenails out with tweezers than watch them for another second" kind of way. I do not want to see this team, playing this kind of hockey win anything. Ugh.
Official picks:
MONTREAL vs. BOSTON - Montreal in 4
PITTSBURGH vs. OTTAWA - Pittsburgh in 5
WASHINGTON vs. PHILADELPHIA - Washington in 6
NEW JERSEY vs. NEW YORK - New York in 6
This could be a long one because I'm going to do the whole Eastern Conference at once just so it all gets done before the playoffs start. (Do I really need to say, "This could be a long one?" Is it at all shocking when I talk for a really long time?)
1. MONTREAL CANADIENS
I dig the Canadiens. There's no one on their team who I hate and there are even a few people who I really like (Saku Koivu and Mike Komisarek being the big two). Classic jerseys. A real hockey tradition. And I love their crowds. It can be annoying when you're on the other side but I love how quick Montreal crowds are to express themselves and I'm not going to lie, I love the "Ole Ole" song. I find myself singing along even when they're playing against the Sabres. The Canadiens are also really, really fun to watch. I love their fast back-and-forth style and I'm in awe of their powerplay. Going into the playoffs, the Habs are my favorite on the Eastern Conference side. We'll see if it sticks.
2. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS
I was born in Pittsburgh and raised by Pittsburghers. Every childhood vacation involved Pittsburgh and I still have family there. The Mario Lemieux-led Penguins were the first hockey team I was really aware of. Heck, my first jersey was a Penguins jersey (Ron Francis #10). When all is said and done, I probably should be a Penguins fan right now. Even though fate stepped in and steered me toward the team and city that has no pro sports championships instead of plenty of them (thanks, fate!), I do still have a soft spot for Pittsburgh and I do mostly like the Penguins. Now that I've managed to dig through the media hype I think Sidney Crosby really is the cat's pajamas. And I'm totally in love with Evgeni Malkin. I'm amazed at how he just took over while Crosby was out and I love his silent, slightly embarrassed smile. Part of me hopes he never learns to speak English. (Part of me believes he speaks perfect English and just chooses not to) Really, do we need to hear "We're just going to take it one game at a time" from yet another player? I think Crosby has that covered. I am decidedly pro-Penguins.
3. WASHINGTON CAPITALS
Remember how Kevin Sylvester kept saying, "All hockey fans would be happy to see the Caps in the playoffs" and other similar things? Kevin forgot to poll me. I fully acknowledge that Alexander Ovechkin is an amazingly gifted player and barring a career-ending injury or a total collapse will be one of the best players of my lifetime. But I'm just not sure how I feel about him. There are times when I get a kick out of him and there are times when I feel like he's veering awfully close to showboating. And again, while I fully acknowledge that the NHL could use a good kick of personality, that's never been my thing. I hate running backs who start dancing before they're in the end zone and defensive players who celebrate a tackle like they just won the lottery. I hate baseball players who stand at home plate and watch the ball soar over the fence. I also hit Ovechkin Overload weeks ago. And now he's dragged his team into the playoffs? The hype is about to go off the charts insane. I don't know if I can handle it.
The good news for the Caps is that I don't find the team itself particularly offensive and I don't outright hate anyone on the team. And the good news for Ovechkin (because you know he's weeping at the thought that I don't like him) is that once upon a time I refused to like Sidney Crosby because of the endless hype and adoration and what finally changed my mind was watching Sid in the playoffs last year. So I'm not completely closing the door on the Caps but right now it doesn't look good. This one could definitely go either way.
4. NEW JERSEY DEVILS
This is another team where blogging rears its head and influences my opinion. I've spent many an hour lounging around Interchangeable Parts and emailing Pookie and Schnookie, the ladies who run the joint, so I know a lot about the players on the Devils and have even come to like a few of them. If I didn't talk to Pookie and Schnookie so much I would probably never have given the Devils a second thought and might outright hate them after all the stupid shootout losses this season. But I like them okay and I love Marty Brodeur so I'll cheer for the Devils in the right situation. They're not the most exciting team to watch but I fear the Eastern Conference is going to end up being a battle of the lesser evil.
5. NEW YORK RANGERS
If this season ends with Chris Drury hoisting a Stanley Cup - and Kate and I have had endless discussions about how that might be the only way this season can end - I'm building a bunker under our apartment building. Then I'm digging underground tunnels that connect the bunker to the parking lot at work. And then I'm constructing a bubble to live in during those times I have to interact with the outside world. I'm cutting myself off from media of all kind - newspapers, magazines, sports radio, message boards, and 99.7% of the blogs I read. I will do all that and somehow, some way I'll still end up hearing about Chris Drury and how his Little League triumph prepared him for this day when he would lead the New York Rangers to the Stanley Cup and I'll still end up hearing about how the Buffalo Sabres have doomed themselves to a history of defeat and despair and Bucky Gleason will call it the Curse of Captain Clutch and in thirty years I'll be the haggard od woman with no teeth and a swarm of cats who stands at the corner outside the arena all day yelling, "CAPTAIN CLUTCH NEVER WON US NOTHING AND WASN'T VERY CLUTCH IN THE FACE-OFF CIRCLE AGAINST JASON SPEZZA!" and "THE SABRES WANTED TO MATCH BUT CAPTAIN CLUTCH WANTED TO BE A DIRTY RANGER!" and people will point and laugh and throw things. I would hope that this is a future we all want to avoid.
(Also, Jaromir Jagr? Sean Avery? Scott Gomez? It's like someone decided to dump the very douchiest of douchebags on one team. No one with a soul could possibly cheer for the Rangers.)
6. PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
In the battle of Former Sabres Lost in the Last Calendar Year, Daniel Briere is the one I'd be the most okay with winning it all if you put a gun to Mark's head and made me pick one. (I asked Mark what he would say if someone put a guy to my head and told him to choose Drury, Briere, or Brian Campbell and he said, "I'd tell them to shoot you," and then attempted to justify it with, "You wouldn't want to live in a world where any of those guys won a Cup!" I can't decide if that's really sweet or really disturbing.) I think Bucky and Co. would still go crazy but maybe not quite as crazy and I like Danny enough that it wouldn't make me throw up.
That said, it's the Flyers. I wasn't in Buffalo for most of the Buffalo-Philly history but even I hate the Flyers. And even if we just go by this year, how can you cheer for the the Flyers? The gooning it up? The stupid suspensions? The horrific mishandling of concussions? How many years has this franchise taken off Simon Gagne's career already? No, I'm afraid the Flyers are unacceptable.
7. OTTAWA SENATORS
I don't hate Ottawa the way some Buffalo fans do but I don't love them enough that I don't think this whole season has been pretty hilarious. With apologies to the Senators fans who I do know, like, and respect, this season has been a delight to watch. From the day the puck dropped against the Islanders I think Sabres fans knew we were going to be in for an up and down season. The Senators went something like 15-2 to start the season. Everyone was ready to hand them the Conference title if not the Stanley Cup. Even the most pessimistic and cautious fan had to be feeling pretty good about that kind of record. And then the team just fell apart. Gloriously and spectacularly. And now they get Pittsburgh in the first round? Without Daniel Alfredsson and Mike Fisher? Oh, Ottawa. You're toast. You're toast and yes, I think it's pretty entertaining. There is some small part of me that wouldn't be opposed to the Sens winning (with Mike Fisher) some year but if they pull it off this year it'll be way too much of a feel-good story. ("The struggling Sens pull off a first round upset in the name of their fallen captain!") This year I'm pulling for the collapse to be complete. The Ottawa Senators are a living example of why maybe it was better to just miss the playoffs instead of squeaking in.
8. BOSTON BRUINS
I can't think of any players on the Bruins who really disgust me (I kind of like Zdeno Chara) but I've had my fill of them for one year. The only thing the division heavy schedule really accomplished for me was making me hate them. And not in a "I love to hate them" kind of way. More like in a "I hate them and would rather pull my toenails out with tweezers than watch them for another second" kind of way. I do not want to see this team, playing this kind of hockey win anything. Ugh.
Official picks:
MONTREAL vs. BOSTON - Montreal in 4
PITTSBURGH vs. OTTAWA - Pittsburgh in 5
WASHINGTON vs. PHILADELPHIA - Washington in 6
NEW JERSEY vs. NEW YORK - New York in 6
Friday, June 29, 2007
My First Hockey Love (Kinda Sorta)
I mentioned a few posts ago that I grew up a fan of the Pittsburgh Pirates because of a family connection to the city. (I was born there and even though I was an infant when we moved to Birmingham, my parents both had family there so it was THE vacation destination of my childhood.) There was a point when I realized that I was cheering for the Pirates, who were very, very bad at the time - this was before the 4 year period between the 80s and the current 15 season losing streak when they were actually competitive - and ignoring the Penguins who were, at the time, developing into a very good team. So I started claiming to be a Penguins fan.
Now I wasn't REALLY a Penguins fan since we came back to the same old problem of not having much hockey coverage in Birmingham, Alabama, but I did watch a few games and my grandmother - God bless her - started throwing Penguins articles and tapes in with all the Pirates clippings she sent. From the beginning, I was drawn to Ron Francis. I don't know why it was him and not Mario or Jagr who were clearly The Stars of The Team although I've never been drawn to the marquee players so maybe that's part of the reason. And yes, the fact that I thought he was extremely handsome with his salt and pepper hair and his slightly askew nose probably also contributed. But I just liked him. He very quietly worked hard, accomplished a lot, and was cleary liked and respected by those around him. He was well-known for doing all kinds of charity work in the Pittsburgh area. He just seemed like a remarkably good guy which always wins points with me. In fact, the first hockey jersey I ever owned was a Ron Francis #10 that I bought with my very own money.
When I finally got to the point where I could honestly call myself a hockey fan, Ron was in Carolina and that early love for him had clearly stuck with me because I cheered really hard for him to win one final Stanley Cup. So congratulations to Ronnie for being elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame today. (Technically it's Friday but in my head it's still Thursday, okay?) I've been fretting for weeks that he was going to be the odd man out since it was a year loaded with worthy nominees so I'm more than relieved about this. Since everyone else's coverage involves a picture of Mark Messier - even now you're being underappreciated, man! - I'll illustrate this post with an image of the dashing Ron.
(Do you know it was impossible to find a picture of Ron Francis with the Stanley Cup? You have failed me for the last time, interwebs!)
Now I wasn't REALLY a Penguins fan since we came back to the same old problem of not having much hockey coverage in Birmingham, Alabama, but I did watch a few games and my grandmother - God bless her - started throwing Penguins articles and tapes in with all the Pirates clippings she sent. From the beginning, I was drawn to Ron Francis. I don't know why it was him and not Mario or Jagr who were clearly The Stars of The Team although I've never been drawn to the marquee players so maybe that's part of the reason. And yes, the fact that I thought he was extremely handsome with his salt and pepper hair and his slightly askew nose probably also contributed. But I just liked him. He very quietly worked hard, accomplished a lot, and was cleary liked and respected by those around him. He was well-known for doing all kinds of charity work in the Pittsburgh area. He just seemed like a remarkably good guy which always wins points with me. In fact, the first hockey jersey I ever owned was a Ron Francis #10 that I bought with my very own money.
When I finally got to the point where I could honestly call myself a hockey fan, Ron was in Carolina and that early love for him had clearly stuck with me because I cheered really hard for him to win one final Stanley Cup. So congratulations to Ronnie for being elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame today. (Technically it's Friday but in my head it's still Thursday, okay?) I've been fretting for weeks that he was going to be the odd man out since it was a year loaded with worthy nominees so I'm more than relieved about this. Since everyone else's coverage involves a picture of Mark Messier - even now you're being underappreciated, man! - I'll illustrate this post with an image of the dashing Ron.
(Do you know it was impossible to find a picture of Ron Francis with the Stanley Cup? You have failed me for the last time, interwebs!)
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