The Daily Bongo -- Pittsburgh Penguins for the 2006-2007 Season

The Daily Bongo -- Pittsburgh Penguins 2006-2007 Season

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Game	Date	Matchup/Result	Winner	Score
2006-2007 First Round Playoff Matchup
1	Wednesday, April 11, 7pm et	Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators	OTT	3-6
2	Saturday, April 14, 3pm et	Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators	PIT	4-3
3	Sunday, April 15, 6pm et	Ottawa Senators @ Pittsburgh Penguins	OTT	4-2
4	Tuesday, April 17, 7pm et	Ottawa Senators @ Pittsburgh Penguins	OTT	2-1
5	Thursday, April 19, 7pm et	Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators	OTT	0-3

Team	GP	W	L	OT	PTS	Home	Away	Div
2006-2007 Atlantic division final results
New Jersey	82	49	24	9	107	25-10-6	24-14-3	23-6-3
PITTSBURGH	82	47	24	11	105	26-10-5	21-14-6	20-9-3
NY Rangers	82	42	30	10	94	21-15-5	21-15-5	15-12-5
NY Islanders	82	40	30	12	92	22-13-6	18-17-6	17-11-4
Philadelphia	82	22	48	12	56	10-24-7	12-24-5	5-20-7

Monday, August 20, 2007 -- Evening
Sidney Crosby was in town today to instruct some kids attending the Pens Summer Hockey School. Crosby spent the time showing the kids various moves and signing autographs. I really admire Crosby because he genuinely seems to be a nice person. As Crosby said, he knew what it was like when he was a kid and got an autograph from a player. Crosby is just returning the favor. As I was watching the bit on the local sports station, I was struck by one comment that Crosby made. Crosby was asked how it felt to coach Mario Lemieux's son, Austin, at the camp. Crosby replied that he talks to him all the time at "home" so Crosby isn't intimidated. It's very obvious that Crosby does see Lemieux's home as his own, and the Lemieux family as an extension of Crosby's own.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007 -- Evening
Jordan Staal and Eric Staal are being given a plea deal. The charge is petty misdemeanor and will result in no jail charge.

Thursday, August 2, 2007 -- Early Afternoon
The Pens have announced their plan to provide tickets to those on the waiting lists. Starting next Monday, people on the waiting list can start to buy six and 12 game plans. If you aren't on the waiting list, you have to wait until Wednesday. Individual tickets are going on sale September 15. I'm not looking forward to a packed arena. Why you ask? Because that means that a tall person with a big head will more than likely be sitting in front of me. That always ruins my view of our goal--especially with the prarie dogs--the people who leap up out of the seats whenever someone gets close to the goal. When I take pictures during the game, I have to throw out quite a few because it's the back of a head or someone's huge broad back.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007 -- Evening
So there is alot of something being made out of the fact that Jordan Staal was arrested late Saturday/early Sunday morning for disorderly conduct. Staal was at a resort in Minnesota for a bachelor party for his brother, Eric. Well, the group was fairly noisy, and the police decided to take action around 3 a.m. Jordan was booked and released, but Eric was held overnight. The Staals' agent said that the brothers were there, but they had gone to bed. Jordan was charged with disorderly conduct and underage drinking. The Pens did not have an official comment. As Ray Shero said, they know that something transpired and are waiting for the legal system to take its due course. The agent, Rick Curran, said that he thinks the charges will be dropped or reduced.

Thursday, July 19, 2007 -- Afternoon
The Pens signed an extra, veteran goalie to the team with the signing of Ty Conklin to the lineup. He is expected to play with the Baby Pens. However, if needed, he can join move up to the majors. The Pens also announced their promotions. There are four bobbleheads on the scheduled, honoring Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, and Mark Recchi's 500th career goal last year.

Monday, July 16, 2007 -- Late Morning
Michel Therrien signed a one year contract extension with the Pens today. I thought that it would have been more than a year. It makes me wonder about the comments that some were making in the middle of the season that Ray Shero wasn't happy with Therrien and might want to replace him. Of course, Therrien will have two more seasons with the Pens.

Thursday, July 12, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens signed Colby Armstrong to a two year deal. Armstrong will make $1.2 million each season. Armstrong initially was going to go to arbitration, but accepted this deal to avoid the arbitration process.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007 -- Afternoon
The NHL has released the upcoming season's schedule. The Pens have a few good games coming up. The home opener on October 6 is with the Anaheim Ducks. I'm really looking forward to the December 3 game at home against the Phoenix Coyotes. It will be my chance to get some pictures of the Great One, Wayne Gretzky.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007 -- Morning
Sidney Crosby signed a five year extension to his contract either late last night or early this morning. The deal is rumored to be at $9 million a year, but the official announcement doesn't mention any financial aspects.

Friday, July 6, 2007 -- Afternoon
Jocelyn Thibault has signed a one year deal with the Buffalo Sabres. I suppose that he was getting tired of playing second fiddle with the Pens and wanted to make something of his career.

Thursday, July 5, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens have re-signed Maxime Talbot and Erik Christensen today. Both of them got two year contracts. Christensen gets $750,000 for each year of the contract, and Talbot gets $650,000 the first year and $700,000 the second. Not a bad chunk of change. Meanwhile, Colby Armstrong has gone to arbitration. It doesn't mean that he won't sign with the Pens, but that he hasn't been happy with the offer so far. Usually players go to arbitration when they feel they aren't being offered what they are worth. I'm not a huge Armstrong fan, and personally, I wouldn't pay him much. In my opinion, Armstrong underperformed most of the time.

Monday, July 2, 2007 -- Morning
Some surprising news from the Pens front this morning. There were rumors from the local television stations (KDKA) that the Pens were going to sign Paul Kariya. I wondered about that because I think they get their rumors from a loser who is always wrong. Well, I was right. Kariya was signed by the St. Louis Blues. However, the Pens did make a signing. They signed Petr Sykora and Darryl Sydor.

Sunday, July 1, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
The Pens resigned Ryan Whitney to a six year contract. Whitney should make $24 million over the deal.

Thursday, June 28, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens are no longer accepting offers for full season ticket orders. 13,500 packages were sold so far. Part of the reason is that half-season ticket holders were being told they would have to upgrade to full season to retain their seating locations. The Pens wanted to keep some seats open for individual tickets and smaller plans like the six and 12 game plans. Also, the Pens said they want to keep some seats open for student rush. That's admirable, and shows that the Pens are thinking of the young fans who cant afford the expensive tickets.

Wednesday, June 27, 2007 -- Evening
Georges Laraque is actually okay, and will be ready for training camp. The MRI done today didn't show any damage. I think that Laraque was just being a big sissy.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007 -- Evening
In Pens news, the rookies got together for a training at Southpointe today. They will be returning for the rookie camp in September. Also, Georges Laraque injured his shoulder while doing some off season training. The rumor is that the injury occurred while Laraque was doing some weight training. Laraque is headed to Pittsburgh for evaluation by the team doctors. I was underimpressed with Laraque's performance with the Pens last season. After all, he was brought in to be an enforcer, and he didn't seem to enforce anything.

Monday, June 25, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens have made qualifying offers to the following players: Colby Armstrong, Ryan Whitney, Erik Christensen, and Maxime Talbot. No offers were made to Michel Ouellet, and he will become a free agent on July 1. I am so glad that Maxime Talbot is staying with my team because he is one of my favorites.

Saturday, June 23, 2007 -- Evening
I've been intensifying my study for the GRE because the test is only three days away, so I haven't been quick on commenting on the Pens draft yesterday. The Pens got another center Angelo Esposito as the 20th overall pick. Even though we really don't need another center, Esposito may have been a really good pick. Originally, he was slated to be one of the top picks in the draft, but Esposito didn't have a good rookie season in the Juniors. That brought him down abit, and put him within reach of the Pens. I believe that Ray Shero's philosophy is to take the best available, and then see how things develop, and that's what he did with Esposito. The kid does seem like a really good pick, so I'm not complaining. Also, Chris Thorburn was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers for a third round draft pick. Heres the complete list of list of Pens' picks. There were four centers and three defensemen in the mix with only one left winger.

Friday, June 22, 2007 -- Evening
Mark Recchi and Gary Roberts have signed on year deals with the Pens. Their deals are rumored to be $2 million and $2.5 million respectively. Both would have been free agents if they didn't sign by July 1.

Thursday, June 14, 2007 -- Evening
I hate Versus, and the NHL should be hanging its head in shame. Why? Because here in the US, Versus was supposed to carry the NHL Awards show starting at 7 p.m. Well, it wasn't on. A fighting show was on instead. Finally at 8 p.m., a scroll eent across the bottom of the screen saying that the show was being rescheduled for 11 p.m. What the heck! This is why folks here in the US are losing interest in hockey. Hockey is only available here on crappy Versus--and they can't even show the Awards show live. How absolutely ridiculous! For shame NHL and Versus.

So to find out who won what, I have to resort to refreshing the TSN Hockey page. The Pens had some bad news when Michel Therrien lost the Jack Adams Award for Outstanding Coach. However things picked up when Evgeni Malkin won the Calder Memorial Trophy for Outstanding Rookie. Sidney Crosby won the Lester B. Pearson Award AND the Hart Trophy. I was whooping it up for Crosby when I read it on TSN. It seems that the vote wasn't even close. Crosby had 91 first place votes and 1,225 points. Roberto Luongo was second with 25 first place votes and 801 points. Martin Brodeur was third with 21 first place votes and 763 points. What a great night for Crosby and the Pens!

Here are the list of winners:

CALDER MEMORIAL TROPHY
Award for outstanding rookie
Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins

FRANK J. SELKE TROPHY
Award for outstanding defensive forward
Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina Hurricanes

HART MEMORIAL TROPHY
Awarded to most valuable player to his team
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

JACK ADAMS AWARD
Award for outstanding coach
Alain Vigneault, Vancouver Canucks

JAMES NORRIS MEMORIAL TROPHY
Award for outstanding defenseman
Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings

LADY BYNG MEMORIAL TROPHY
Awarded to player that displays sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct
Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings

LESTER B. PEARSON AWARD
Awarded to the most outstanding player as voted by fellow NHLPA members)
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

VEZINA TROPHY
Award for outstanding goaltender
(For the first time since the inception of the NHL awards in 1983, there are more than three finalists in a category; There was a third-place tie in balloting for the Vezina, resulting in four finalists.)
Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils

MASTERTON TROPHY
(For the player who exhibits perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey)
Phil Kessel, Boston Bruins

Sunday, June 3, 2007 -- Evening
Some news on the Pens front. Stephane Dube was fired yesterday. Ray Shero said that Dube didn't do anything "wrong", but that Michel Therrien was supportive of the move. I wonder if the firing was because Dube either wanted more money or that the Pens weren't as happy with the conditioning of the team. I have to admit that I thought the team was stronger than the previous season. This past year, the Pens had strong third periods and overtimes. That wasn't the case just a year earlier, and I think that had alot to do with conditioning. The Pens are searching for a replacement.

Saturday, June 2, 2007 -- Evening
Sidney Crosby was at the Ottawa Senators and Anaheim Ducks game. Crosby is really a mature kid. He said that he was getting over not being in the Stanley Cup finals until he was there to see the game this evening. I think that Crosby will make a great captain. He is mature beyond his years, and he's a great ambassador for the NHL.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007 -- Evening
News from the Pens today. It seems that there will be a press conference sometime tomorrow at Mellon Arena to announce that Sidney Crosby is the new team captain. Since the retirement of Mario Lemieux over a year ago, the team has not had a captain. Crosby was named the alternate captain, but it was felt that he was too young to take the team on his shoulders. At the age of 19 (20 in August), Crosby will be the youngest captain in NHL history.

Friday, May 25, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens are trying to address their weakness in the defense area by picking up a minor league defenseman, Jonathan D'Aversa. D'Aversa was playing in the Ontario Hockey League, and has the stats of a scoring defenseman. Also, the Pens have tendered offers to both Mark Recchi and Gary Roberts. There wasn't any information on the type of offer, and how receptive the two players were.

Monday, May 21, 2007 -- Evening The Pens office has been going out of their way to alienate the fans. The latest story that has been making the rounds is that season ticket holders with a half season plan (21 of the 42 games) are being asked to ante up for a full season to keep their seats. It seems that there has been a high demand for full season tickets. Part of the reason may be that the team did well this past season, and some fans are participating in the fair weather act. The other part is that those who have season tickets will get the in with the new arena. Now some of the half season ticket holders are saying that they feel cut out of the process. Their option is to turn in their seats and get tickets in a section that is not as good. I wonder though, what are the Pens to do? They are looking for the guaranteed seat by having someone purchase a full season. Even though the half season tickets cost more than a full season, over the span of a year, the Pens make more from the full-season. I know that it would suck if I were a 20 game ticket holder. Right now, I would like to move my seats to another area of the arena, and it doesn't look like it will happen. My hope was to move to an area where I wouldn't have a head in front of me. That's probably not going to happen because of the current ticket fiasco.

Tuesday, May 8, 2007 -- Afternoon
Both Craig Patrick and Mike Lange might be heading to Phoenix for openings pertaining to the Phoenix Coyotes. Patrick is one of nine people being considered for the GM position with the Coyotes. All I have to say is that Patrick in the last few years here wasn't doing a great job with managing the team. He brought Eddie O in as the coach, and made some suspect trade deals. So if I were Wayne Gretzky, I would pass him up. Mike Lange, on the other hand, wants to return to television because that's where the money is. He took a huge cut when he moved from the tv announcer position to radio game announcer. Since there is no television opportunity for Lange here, one of the local sports reporters, Bob Smizik thinks that Lange might go for an opening in Phoenix. It seems that Lange started his career in Phoenix.

Tuesday, May 1, 2007 -- Evening
The NHL announced the finalists for the various awards that are not based on statistics today. The Pens feature heavily in the awards this year. Sidney Crosby was nominated for the Hart Memorial and Lester B. Pearson awards. Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal are nominated for the Calder Trophy for Rookies. The one that I am most excited about is Michel Therrien's nomination for the Jack Adams Award for the best coach. I hope that he wins it. Here is the complete list of finalists:

CALDER MEMORIAL TROPHY
Award for outstanding rookie
Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
Jordan Staal, Pittsburgh Penguins
Paul Stastny, Colorado Avalanche

FRANK J. SELKE TROPHY
Award for outstanding defensive forward
Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina Hurricanes
Samuel Pahlsson, Anaheim Ducks
Jay Pandolfo, New Jersey Devils

HART MEMORIAL TROPHY
Awarded to most valuable player to his team
Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks

JACK ADAMS AWARD
Award for outstanding coach
Lindy Ruff, Buffalo Sabres
Michel Therrien, Pittsburgh Penguins
Alain Vigneault, Vancouver Canucks

JAMES NORRIS MEMORIAL TROPHY
Award for outstanding defenseman
Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings
Scott Niedermayer, Anaheim Ducks
Chris Pronger, Anaheim Ducks

LADY BYNG MEMORIAL TROPHY
Awarded to player that displays sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct
Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings
Joe Sakic, Colorado Avalanche
Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay Lightning

LESTER B. PEARSON AWARD
Awarded to the most outstanding player as voted by fellow NHLPA members)
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning
Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks

VEZINA TROPHY
Award for outstanding goaltender
(For the first time since the inception of the NHL awards in 1983, there are more than three finalists in a category; There was a third-place tie in balloting for the Vezina, resulting in four finalists.)
Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils
Miikka Kiprusoff, Calgary Flames
Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers
Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks

Monday, April 30, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens are being recognized for their great season. The Hockey News, in this week's issue, Sidney Crosby was the named the NHL's Best Player, MVP, and first team All-Star center. Evgeni Malkin was named the Best First Year Player and was placed on the all-rookie team. Jordan Staal was in the top five for first year players and penalty killing. The one that I love the most is that Michel Therrien was named the best coach of the year. As for the NHL awards, the Hart finalists are to be named tomorrow, and Crosby is expected to be a finalist. We'll also find out if Therrien is a finalist for best coach of the year. The awards ceremony will be on June 14 in Toronto.

Friday, April 27, 2007 -- Early Evening
Ryan Whitney had wrist surgery yesterday. His rehab is supposed to take six to eight weeks. I haven't found anything that explains what the injury was or what surgery was performed.

Thursday, April 26, 2007 -- Afternoon
Sidney Crosby is in the running for the Top 100 Most Influential People of the Year on a Time magazine poll. Right now, Crosby is in the number four spot. Vote for Sidney, and vote often!

Wednesday, April 25, 2007 -- Evening
Evgeni Malkin has gone to Russia to visit with family and friends and to play for the Russian national team in the upcoming World Championships. Malkin hasn't been in Russia since his dramatic escape from Metallurg Magnitogorsk last August. Also playing in the World Championship is Colby Armstrong for Team Canada.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007 -- Evening
Ray Shero was talking yesterday about changes that the Pens might make for the next season. Michel Therrien should be back next season. Some of the local sportscasters are saying that Therrien should be coach of the year for the work that he has done in improving the performance of the Pens over the past season. So what changes will be made? Well, as Shero said, he would love it if everyone came back because the team did have chemistry. However, that said, he would still like to beef up the defense and get a solid scoring winger to play with Sidney Crosby. I hope that they can find someone that fits the role and the budget.

Saturday, April 21, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
Sidney Crosby announced today that he will not be playing for Team Canada in the upcoming World Championship because he has a broken foot. It seems that Crosby broke the foot on March 16 when the Pens were playing the Montreal Canadiens. Crosby blocked a shot with the foot, and everyone at the time marvelled at the fact that he didn't get hurt. Well, he did. Since then, Crosby has been playing through the pain. Now he just wants to take some time off and let the bone heal. Crosby also plans to work with the Pens this off season to come up with a long term deal so he won't become a restricted free agent in 2008. That good for the Pens fans.

Monday, April 16, 2007 -- Afternoon
I forgot to mention the ugly moment from yesterday's Pens game. As is usual when a Canadian team plays, the Canadian National Anthem was played, and some people actually started to boo the anthem. I thought that was a very crass thing to do. After all, we have Canadians are our team too. We can boo the Ottawa team or individual players, but it's a low point to boo the anthem of a close ally. When the Canadian teams come to Pittsburgh, I always sing along with the anthem to show respect, and it really disturbed me that some of my fellow fans would want to stoop so low.

Sunday, April 15, 2007 -- Late Evening
The third game of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators quarterfinal series did not go well for the Pens. There were definite problems for the team in the second and third period, with the key problem being lack of shots on goal. Sometimes the players need to realize that it's not necessary to wait for the pretty goal or the sure shot. The only good things about the game were the first period--when the Pens were playing like they wanted to win, and Sidney Crosby who got his third goal of the series (a goal a game). The Pens go down in the series 2-1 with a final score of 4-2. After the game, Michel Therrien was very critical of some of the players. As he said, some people aren't showing up in the highlght reels and are taking stupid penalties. It seems that the defense men and Evgeni Malkin might have been some of the targets there. We can never hear the questions in the news conferences. Malkin had three of the eight penalties in the game today. It will be interesting to see what changes are made in Tuesday's game. I did get alot of pictures of the game.

Thursday, April 12, 2007 -- Evening
The local sports folks have been analyzing the Pens loss yesterday. Some were blaming Marc-Andre Fleury, but I thought he did a great job considering that he was in the midst of a firing range. The biggest problem was that the Ottawa Senators came out to play playoff hockey. They upped their level of aggresssive play, and the Pens didn't have an answering return of aggression. The Pens' players were getting knocked on their asses left and right, and basically being pushed around. The Pens answer in the most part was to act like little girls being bulled in the playground by the boys. They didn't do much of anything. The sad part was that our "enforcer", who is supposed to intimidate others so they won't take unfair advantage pretty much was on the roster for the game, but didn't show up. Yep, Georges Laraque was on the ice, but his game was somewhere else. Michel Therrien was asked in a news conference if he expected the Pens to play more aggressively. He said yes. He was then asked why Laraque wasn't more aggressive in yesterday's game, and Therrien said that the reporters would have to ask Laraque. Laraque had no answer, but he better pick up the level of his game. I mean we have Laraque so our players aren't being used for punching bags, and so far, the opinion that I have developed of Laraque is that he is a huge wuss! As Michel Therrien said, "The positive thing is that the first game is under their belts. I didn't think our team was tight, but I guess they were. We can't do worse than that. That's probably one of the worst performances we had this year." Here's hoping for a better game on Saturday.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007 -- Afternoon
I thought this would happen. The Dapper Dan dinner is being postponed. It was originally scheduled for this coming Sunday evening. However, the man of the year, Sidney Crosby is going to be playing in the third game of the Ottawa series. The dinner is now scheduled for the next Sunday, April 22. It will be held at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center with the doors opening at 5:30 p.m., and the festivities starting at 6 p.m. If the Pens need a game 6, it will be held that same day at 1 p.m. here in Pittsburgh, so there will be no conflict--unless the game goes into multiple overtimes.

Monday, April 9, 2007 -- Early Evening
There is going to be a rally for the Pens on Wednesday at noon. Dan Onarto, the Allegheny County Chief Executive, and Mayor Luke Ravinstahl will be the hosts of the event. The rally will be held at the Allegheny County Courthouse Courtyard, 436 Grant Street. There is going to be free food and music at the event, and I'm sure alot of fun.

Monday, April 9, 2007 -- Late Morning
The NHL has released the schedule for the Pens playoff games against the Ottawa Senators. Here's the schedule:

Game	Date	Matchup/Result
Best of Seven Series
1	Wednesday, April 11, 7pm et	Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators
2	Saturday, April 14, 3pm et	Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators
3	Sunday, April 15, 6pm et	Ottawa Senators @ Pittsburgh Penguins
4	Tuesday, April 17, 7pm et	Ottawa Senators @ Pittsburgh Penguins
5	Thursday, April 19, 7pm et	Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators
6	Sunday, April 22, 1pm et	Ottawa Senators @ Pittsburgh Penguins
7	Tuesday, April 24, 7pm et	Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators

This back-to-back games on Saturday and Sunday are going to suck because of the travel time. Also, Sidney Crosby was supposed to attend the Dapper Dan dinner on Sunday evening where Crosby was going to be honored as Pittsburgh sportsman of the year. I guess that they will have to have someone stand in for him for that.

Sunday, April 8, 2007 -- Early Afternoon
My pictures are finally ready. It took awhile because I wound up with five pages instead of the usual two. My seats were very nice, but didn't give me a good view of the other end of the ice--at least for photographic opportunities. The glass distorted the camera view more than normal eyesight. I had alot of fun at the game, and enjoyed all the ceremonies--awards and "Shirts Off Their Backs." Sidney Crosby locked up the scoring championship for the season. He's the youngest player to achieve the honor.

Saturday, April 7, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played their final regular season game against the New York Rangers. During the game, we all found out that Ottawa Senators beat the Boston Bruins so this final Pens' game didn't mean much. Ottawa gets the home ice advantage when the playoff series starts next week--probably on Wednesday. The Pens played to win though, and they did in the end. The final score was 2-1, and there was alot of tension between the teams, culminating in Jarkko Ruutu throwing down the gloves against Sean Avery who didn't thrown down the gloves. George Laraque talked to the refs, and Ruutu just got a two minute unsportsmanlike penalty. Before the game, various player awards were distributed. After the game, it was "shirt off our backs" with the players taking the shirts off their backs for the fans. After the players took off their shirts, they threw t-shirts into the stands. I was standing in a section by myself--taking photos--when Michel Ouellet threw a t-shirt right at me. It was one seat off, and someone tried to run down to get it, but I was right there and grabbed it up. I have more than double my usual number of pictures. It may take me until later Sunday morning to get them all processed so keep your eyes on the multimedia page.
For the awards:
The Good Guy Award: the entire Pens team
Masterton Award: Alain Nasreddine
Booster Club Award: Sidney Crosby
Edward J. Debartolo Award: Mark Recchi
Rookie of the Year: Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal
Player's Player Award: Mark Recchi
Most Valuable Player Award: Sidney Crosby

Saturday, April 7, 2007 -- Morning
I am very excited about the final regular season Pens game tonight. I have tickets in the Igloo section. That's the section in the middle of the rink that should give me a good view of both goals. I believe that I am closer to the south end goal (where the Pens shoot twice), but I'm still excited. The last time I was there in December, I chowed down on a Reuben sandwich and had an excellent view of all the players. I'm hoping to get some good pictures this evening, and should have them posted sometime in the early morning hours. News on the Pens front includes information that the season ticket prices are rising for the first time since 2001. My seats will be raising from $30 for a full season to $45. That's a 50% increase. I suppose they want to get people used to the fact that the tickets are going to be a heck of a lot more expensive in the new arena.

Some folks in the Hill District area of the city, the location of the current and new arena, are pulling what is in my opinion an extortion bid at getting money. The group who is proposing the plan has nine points, such as wanting $10 million up front and a yearly stipend, and reguirements on minority hiring for all positions at the arena. Why do I call it extortion? Because the group went public, and they have made threatening comments about future action if their demands aren't met. What I don't understand is what makes them think they have a right to anything? Jobs will be created in the area with concessions in the arena, and the promise of additional eating facilities. Remember, these are the same people who tried their darndest earlier to prevent the Pens' and Isle of Capri's casino bid. The Hill District group campaigned heavily to prevent development in the area. Now when it is going to happen, they want a piece of the pie. I think that they should stick with representation from their elected official, Tonya Payne, who seems like a level headed person wanting the best for her district. It seems that she realizes that going into bargaining with threats isn't the way to get what you want.

Friday, April 6, 2007 -- Afternoon
I just finished reading a very timely book. It is The Code: the Unwritten Rules of Fighting and Retaliation in the NHL by Ross Bernstein. As the title states, the book looks at fighting in the NHL, and the rules that players follow before, during, and after the fight. Some would have you believe that fighting means that the NHL is out of control, but the players themselves view fighting as the way to police the game. The enforcer's role on the team is to give the skill players room to play the game. Read my review of the book, and then go out and read the book yourself.

Wednesday, April 4, 2007 -- Evening
David Morehouse has been named President of the Pens today. His role will be to oversee the redevelopment of the existing Mellon Arena area and government and corporate relations. Morehouse has experience with government by being a senior consultant with John Kerry during his presidential run in 2004. After the election loss, Morehouse, a native Pittsburgher, came to the Pens in December of 2004. His acquaintance with Ron Burkle (friend of Bill Clinton) is what got him the job. Before today, Ken Sawyer played a dual role as CEO and President. Sawyer will now concentrate on the building of the new arena.

The Pens have been big news in town lately because of their playoff entry. Since the players are so young, a local TV station, KDKA's Bob Pompeani and his crew did some photoshopping to put beards on the younger guys. After looking at the pictures, I think the only one that looks good and realistic is the beard on Jordan Staal. The beards on Marc-Andre Fleury, Sidney Crosby, and Evgeni Malkin looked identical. In fact, Crosby called them on it when he saw the beards. The problem is that they make the beards too full. Guys who are growing a beard for the first time have bald spots and usually don't have alot of hair under the lower lip. The hair follows more along the jawline then filling up the area up to the lip.

For all local Pittsburghers planning on attending the Pens game on Saturday, several fan sites are encouraging everyone to dress in black and to bring their white rally towels. I'll be there with my black Pens t-shirt and rally towel. I think it might be a great site, sure to inspire the Pens. I hope to have pictures for my multimedia page.

Wednesday, April 4, 2007 -- Late Morning
I forgot to mention last night that Ryan Whitney was a scratch yesterday because of a sore groin. It was the first game of the season that Whitney missed. As Therrien said, if this were a playoff game, Whitney would have played, but at this point, it is important to rest him so Whitney is in primo shape for the playoffs next week.

Tuesday, April 3, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the Buffalo Sabres this evening at Mellon Arena in front of yet another standing room only crowd of 17,132. Surprisingly, there were empty seats all around though, so I guess that people had the tickets and just didn't come. The Pens were disappointing this evening, and really didn't play well at all. It was disappointing because they needed the win to take first place in the Atlantic Division. The New Jersey Devils didn't disappoint in their game, and won the game to seal up the Atlantic Division. Everyone in the crowd seemed to think that the Pens should win every game. However, that's not how life is. The team wasn't jelling tonight, but hopefully things will be better when the playoffs start next week. The Sabres were just great at clearing the puck when they were short handed, and in attacking the net. I just heard some of the local sports guys saying that the circus which is being held in Mellon Arena and the warm temperatures here in Pittsburgh may have made the ice less that desireable, but it didn't affect the Sabres. The final score was Sabres 4, Pens 1. Check out my pictures of the game.
As an aside, one thing that I noticed is that more people are coming to the games who have obviously never been to a hockey game. In a way, it is good, but in another it is bad because they are not aware of good etiquette. They don't seem to know that while play is going on, you don't just randomly stand up and remain standing. The people directly in front of me were making quite a few people yell at them to sit down. I can understand excitement, but the rest of us want to see and enjoy the game too. The woman was a really weirdo, and kept on waving at the players on the jumbotron and waving an invisible rally towel. I don't think it will be any better at the playoffs.

Sunday, April 1, 2007 -- Late Morning
There's an interesting article in the local newspaper, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. It seems that the Pens are committed to providing a better viewing experience for their fans. The seats are going to have more leg room which will be sweet. I'm only 5 feet 4 inches, and my knees are right up against the seat in front of me. Usually taller people have their knees overlapping into the row ahead. Also, those obstructed viewing seats will be things of the past. Everyone will be able to see the jumbotron, and there will be no more swiveling around a pole to see one goal and then the other. I remember going to a game years ago where the person next to me had such a seat and it really sucked. Of course with all these improvements, there will be a price, and that means higher ticket prices. I know that I'm anticipating higher prices and a PSL (personal seat license). I cna only hope that I'll be able to afford to go to the games. The Pens are planning other activities for the arena, like NCAA tournament matches, US figure skating championships, NHL All-Star games, NHL draft, Presidential conventions, concerts, and other events or conferences. What has always annoyed me was the idea that the arena would only be used by the Pens. There are so many other opportunities for a venue that will seat 18,500. The problem is that tax dollars went into PNC Park and Heinz Field against the wishes of the taxpayer, and those locations are not utilized to their full benefit. PNC Park can only be used by the Pirates, and Pitt football and the Steerers are pretty much the only users of Heinz Field. There are some other events at Heinz Field, but not that many.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
I forgot to comment on this earlier, but Martin Brodeur said in a article that he wrote for a French language Canadian paper that he would pick Sidney Crosby for league MVP. Of course as Brodeur explained later, that would be if he could not vote for himself. As Brodeur said, "You should never vote against yourself - that's not a good sign." I know that I would have to vote for Crosby. He is the reason this team is staying in Pittsburgh. Tickets sale went out of the roof when he was picked in the draft. Also Crosby's play has been superb, and is one of the elements that has gotten the Pens to the place they are now. However, I am a huge fan of the goalie (as anyone can notice who looks at my pictures from the home games. Without a good goalie, your team is screwed! According to the TSN article, Brodeur doesn't think that just because there is an award for best goalie that the goalie shouldn't be considered for MVP. After all, the top scorer is still considered for MVP. Whoever is most important for your team's success should be considered, and that means goalie in some cases. Now Brodeur said that he thought that he and Roberto Luongo should be considered for the goalie award, the Vezina Trophy. Luongo and Brodeur both have 43 wins so far this season.

In other Crosby news, Upper Deck is releasing a Sidney Crosby action figure. The doll is 11 inches, and looks like your basic GI Joe doll. The doll is being released today and have 1500 in a black (home) uniform and 500 in a white (away) uniform. Cost for the doll is $49.95. Allstarvinyl.com is sold out, and the response by folks trying to get the doll crashed the server! Allstarvinyl is hoping to offer more on April 9th on a better server.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007 -- Afternoon
Really bad news for the New York Islanders. Rick DiPietro is out indefinitely with post-concussion syndrome. That's the thing that is so bad with head injuries. You think that everything is fine, but it's not. The Pens have had the same issue with Eric Cairns. He has been out since Nov. 22 because of post-concussion syndrome. For the Islanders this is not good news because they are in a battle to get into the playoffs.

Monday, March 26, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
The Pens had 2000 individual seats that they put on sale this morning for the first two playoff games. The seats were sold out in 13 minutes! There is definitely a playoff frenzy in the city. Everyone is talking about the Pens, even people who don't normally watch hockey. You can even tell that the atmosphere is charged at the games. Of course, there have been alot of emotions this year because the team has been playing well and there was a threat of them leaving the city. I heard on the radio yesterday that people are trying to encourage everyone to show up to the playoffs dressed in a white shirt. That would be interesting, but I know that I have to wear my black Staal t-shirt because the Pens have won every time I had the shirt on. I think everyone would agree with me on that one.

Sunday, March 25, 2007 -- Early Evening
The Pens played the Boston Bruins early this afternoon at Mellon Arena. Marc-Andre Fleury was in goal for the Pens. In the past nine games, the Bruins beat the Pens. However, today was a new day. The Pens came out flying and make three goals in the first period. Maxime Talbot was the starting center even thoguh he broke the tip of his nose in the first period of yesterday's game. Tim Thomas, the Bruins' starting goalie, was pulled when the second period started because of the number of goals that he let in. Goal scorers for the Pens were Evgeni Malkin, Gary Roberts, Ryan Malone, and Sidney Crosby with two goals (and an assist on the Roberts' goal). Folks were chanting "hat trick" and "MVP" through most of the third period. Fleury had his fifth shut out of the season and got the third star in the game. Today was not as good a day for picture taking because the crowd was very excitable, and were doing the prarie dog act of jumping up in their seats at the slightest sign of the Pens going near the opposing net. Some folks in back of me were getting vocal about how people should be sitting because the prarie dogs would just stand and not sit down. What could you do though? Everyone just seemed to be really excited. There were also some guys in B17 who painted themselves up and wrote the letters P, E, N, and S on their chests. I have pictures of them and other action from today's game.

Saturday, March 24, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens played the Atlanta Thrashers this afternoon at Mellon Arena. As is usual, the game was a standing room only sell out. Jocelyn Thibault was in goal for the Pens, and he did a great job, and got the number one star in the game. Actualy, both Thibault and Kari Lehtonen did great jobs. Michel Ouellet and Jordan Staal scored to give the Pens a 2-1 win. I was just happy that it was a regulation win and the Pens got two points. If the New Jersey Devils lose tonight, the Pens will be in a two way tie for first place in the Atlantic division. I was on a streak with my picture taking today, and actually caught both Pens' goals. Check out the pictures and see what you think.

Monday, March 19, 2007 -- Evening
Interesting news from Gary Bettman, the commissioner of the NHL, has said that the NHL All-Star game may come to PIttsburgh to be played in the new arena. The earliest date that the game could be here is in 2011 or 2012.

One of the funniest, but true, stories that I read was the article calling for John LeClair to get the Pens' MVP award this year. As Guy Junker, the author, said, LeClair should get the award for his accidental hit on Evgeni Malkin. The accident took Malkin out of action which allowed Jordan Staal to get his opportunity to shine--and shine he did. Staal is the youngest player to get a hat trick, to score two short-handed goals in the same game, and the youngest to score on a penalty shot.

Sunday, March 18, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the Ottawa Senators this evening at Mellon Arena. The game was a real nailbiter. For some reason, the Pens are just unable to pull off a win in regulation. This game was no exception. Everytime the Pens would make a goal, the Senators would come back immediately with an answering goal. Part of the problem is that defensively, we let the opposing team crowd the net. That's never very good, and leads to some of these goals. The shots on goal also tell a story with the Senators putting up 35 to the Pens 19. Maxime Talbot, Sidney Crosby, and Ryan Whitney scored for the Pens in regulation. Surprises of surprises was that Jarkko Ruutu was the only person who scored in the shoot out. Marc-Andre Fleury did a good job, and I think he gets a bad rep because of the defense not clearing rebounds and allowing the other team to take up residence in the crease. We give up a point to Ottawa which was not good, but at least we get the win with a final score of 4-3. Check out my pictures of the game. Check out the multimedia page for shoot out video.

Friday, March 16, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the Montreal Canadiens this evening at Mellon Arena. As is usual with the games, it was standing room only. There were quite a few Canadien fans in the arena, and there were several rows of them in front of me. Usually when I take my pictures, I have a clear view when the Pens defend in my end, but not today. The Pens came out wanting a win, and although the second period was iffy, they didn't disappoint. The first goal was made by Sidney Crosby, and it was spectacular. Crosby beat out four, yes I did say four, Canadiens to score the goal. Erik Christensen scored two goals, and Gary Roberts and Michel Ouellet scored a goal. Crosby put the finisher on with an empty net goal in the final minute of regulation. Marc-Andre Fleury did a great job making some really nice saves even though he let in three goals. The problem is that the Canadiens were at times running all over him and planting themselves in the crease which is the common problem that our defense has. We have to learn how to get people out of the front of our net. Final score was 6-3, and the Pens got two points on the Canadiens! Check out my pictures of the game.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the Buffalo Sabres this evening at Mellon Arena in front of another standing room only crowd. There were tons of Sabres fans at the Arena, walking around chanting before the game, and continuing the chants during the game. Before the game, Mario Lemieux gave a little speech about the Pens staying in Pittsburgh. At the news conference, he was saying that he wasn't going to sell the team or give up his interest to Ron Burkle. The atmosphere at the game was electric and at times, the Pens responded with some great plays, especially by Sidney Crosby and Maxime Talbot. Talbot especially was energized. However, there were also times when it seemeed that the Pens wanted to lose the game by letting Sabres get into the crease and have free access to the goal. That's why the Sabres were able to get four goals on only 19 shots. It wasn't that Marc-Andre Fleury was giving up weak shots as much as players like Chris Drury stand in front of Fleury without challenge. Also, at the end of regulation, the Pens had a 4-3 lead, when Mark Recchi missed an open net goal in the last minute of the game. Then Drury planted himself in front of Fleury, and the Sabres scored with only six seconds left before the end of regulation. The game went into overtime and then a shoot out. Fleury was stellar again in the shoot out, and Crosby scored the winning shoot out goal. The Pens win with a final score of 5-4. Check out my pictures of the game. Also, check out the multimedia page for video clips of the Lemieux speech and the shoot out. Unfortunately, I don't have a good angle for the shoot out goals on our end, but I do have a good angle for the Fleury saves.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007 -- Early Evening
I just finished watching the Pens press conference. The term papers have been signed and the lease for the new arena is expected sometime within the next 30 days. It was exciting news, and I have to admit that tears came to my eyes at points. I have to take back some of my disappointment in Mario Lemieux. i think that he was using the Kansas City deal to keep the Pens in the city. I am so glad that the Pens will stay here. Mario thanked the fans because it was fan turnout to the games--having so many sellouts that convinced everyone in the government to keep the Pens here in Pittsburgh. I am off to the game now. Go Pens!!

Tuesday, March 13, 1007 -- Late Morning
The official annoucement will be made at a 5 pm news conference this evening, but Ed Rendell has confirmed that a deal has been made between the Pens and officials. I just did a happy dance because now I really do believe that the Pens will stay here. What wonderful news on an early spring day!

Tuesday, March 13, 2007 -- Early Morning
Was I shocked this morning when I picked up the morning paper to see a headline story about the Pens arena deal being completed. According to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette the deal was finalized over the weekend. The Pens will pay $3.8 million a year for the $290 million arena. They will also pay an additional $400,000 per year for capital improvements. The arena should be ready for use by the 2009/2010 season. Until then, the Pens will remain at Mellon Arena. Supposedly, the official announcement will be made later today. Governor Ed Rendell is supposed to be in town for the announcement. The story is that they will all still meet tomorrow to discuss minor details. I'm really not going to believe it until I hear the offical word from Mario Lemieux's mouth. I've been on enough of a roller coast ride to not leap on for another round. It is very promising, and I will be keeping my eyes and ears open for the official word.

Saturday, March 10, 2007 -- Early Evening
The Pens played the New York Rangers earlier this afternoon in front of a standing room only crowd at the Mellon Arena. From what I understand, the rest of the home games this season are standing room only. Michel Therrien wasn't there today as coach because he was attending his father's funeral. The first two periods were not very good, and the Pens were playing as if they wanted to lose. It was pitiful because they weren't taking advantage of power play opportunities and during one had no shots on goal. The Rangers took advantage and took the early lead. The Pens were down 2-0 going into the third when the team finally showed up to play. First up was Evgeni Malkin who scored his 31st goal of the season. Then Sidney Crosby ended his drought by scoring his 28th goal of the season and 100th point. That was a thrilling moment. Malkin realized the importance of the moment and grabbed the puck to give to Crosby and leaped on the celebrating group of Pens on the ice. Regulation ended in overtime, and I was thinking yet another shoot out, but Colby Armstrong scored his third overtime point to give the Pens the win. The arena was still packed with most of the 17,132 still there. The game also had a highlight of a fight between Georges Laraque and Colton Orr. Everyone in my seating area had been waiting for a Laraque fight, and were entertained by this one, even though it was short. Check out my pictures of the game. Also, check out the multimedia page for pictures and video clips from all of this season's home games.

Thursday, March 8, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the New Jersey Devils this evening at Mellon Arena. The Pens play was spotty throughout the game. There were moments of them being really bad, and then brilliance. Evgeni Malkin was the first to score, but the Devils came back. Again as in many games, it looked like the Pens were going to lose, but MIchel Ouellet tied things up with an assist by Malkin. the game went to overtime, and then a shoot out. Unfortunately, Erik Christensen, Malkin, and Sidney Crosby didn't score. Patrik Elias won the game for the Devils. Final score was 4-3. As usual, Martin Brodeur was stellar as usual, and Marc-Andre Fleury was also very good. The problem that the Pens have is that the defense really is on the crappy side when it comes to guarding the net or keeping the puck in play on power plays. I don't know how many times the Pens didn't clear the rebound, or let the opposing players get between the net and the goalie, or how many times the puck has gone past a defenseman into our end during the power play. Final score today was 4-3. Check out my pictures of the game.

Possibly good news for Pens' fans. it seems that the Pens and the officials made some progress. Further talks are scheduled for next Wednesday. It seems that the talks took around five hours this evening--starting around 6 pm, and ending after 11 pm. All I know is that I am not going to get my hopes up until I hear that the Pens are definitely here to stay. I'm tired of these ploys of delay.

Wednesday, March 7, 2007 -- Evening
Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle went to Las Vegas today to shop the Pens around that city. Las Vegas has been looking for a sports team, either basketball or hockey. Supposedly, things are totally done with the Pens in Pittsburgh, and they will be meeting with officials later this week. Word has it that it will be tomorrow in Philadelphia. I can't understand why the Pens would go with Las Vegas because there isn't an arena there that is suitable, and the Pens would have to go through another process of finding funding to build a new arena. Wouldn't it be funny if they moved there, and had the same travails that they have here? I have given up on the Pens being in Pittsburgh next season. If it happens good, but I have resolved that I need to give up on the wishful thinking.

Tuesday, March 6, 2007 -- Early Afternoon
Things are still being discussed between the Pens and the local officials. Officially, folks like the mayor, Luke Ravenstahl, are saying that they are reaching out to the Pens and that a deal is still close to being done. I don't know about that, and I am tired of the rollercoster ride that both sides have put the fans through. I don't think that the elected officials or Pens management (Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle) really care about whether the team stays in Pittsburgh or not. I think that both sides are just playing a game of face-saving, and hoping to blame the other for the deal falling through. Yeah, Lemieux is piqued about the treatment he has received and the broken promises. I think at this point, he is just interested in pulling the spoiled child temper tantrum and taking his toys (the team) elsewhere just to show them that he can. All I know is that I am sick of getting e-mails from the Pens asking me to put my money in now for season tickets for the upcoming season, when it seems that the team management wants to move to Kansas City. Just do it guys, and stop playing mind games with the fans. I know that I, for one, am sick of it!

Monday, March 5, 2007 -- Afternoon
Really bad news for Pens fans in the city of Pittsburgh. The team has sent a letter to Ed Rendell (governor of Pennsylvania), Luke Ravenstahl (mayor of Pittsburgh), and Dan Onorato (Allegheny County Executive) stating that the team has reached an impasse in the negiotiations and is going to begin actively searching for alternative locations. That means that the Pens are going to be leaving the city of Pittsburgh. As I have said all along, I don't think that anyone involved in the whole deal really care about the fans. It doesn't matter to anyone that the team sells out games here. The government officials don't care, and the Pens management doesn't care. Everyone is in it for themselves and saving face. The Pens management just want to seem like the golden boys who have tried so hard to keep the team here and have failed. I think that there is pettiness on both sides, and unfortunately, the ones who lose out are the ordinary fans. The Pens management has even gone so far as to say that they are concerned about the appeal that Isle of Capri made against Don Barden getting the slots license. As the Pens said, Barden is to give them $7.5 million in revenues from the slots. But Isle of Capri said they would finance the arena? I think that it is all smoke and mirrors and that everyone knew a long time ago what the outcome would be. I wish that they would all just stop trying to save face and tell us the truth. So get used to the Kansas City Penguins--if they keep the Penguins logo.

Sunday, March 4, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens played the Philadelphia Flyers this afternoon. The first period was not a very good one, and the Flyers took an early two goal lead. I wasn't feeling alot of hope for a win, but the Pens came on in the second period to get two goals, one by Gary Roberts and another by Erik Christensen. Roberts was doing a good job in the game causing some disruption on the ice, and putting pressure on the Flyers. In the third period, the Flyers pulled ahead by a goal, but the combination of Christensen and Roberts went into action to tie things up. The game went into overtime and there was still no score. It was time for a shootout, and Christensen went first, and of course, scored. Evgeni Malkin, however, didn't. Marc-Andre Fleury did a great job of stopping both Flyers. It came down to Sidney Crosby who came through with a goal. The Pens win with a final score of 4-3. Check out my pictures of the game.

Friday, March 2, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens did not have the assistance of Mark Eaton in their game this evening because he is going to be out for two to four weeks for a sprained knee. It's not good, but then it is not as bad as it could have been. He should be back in time to give the Pens a boost to get into the playoffs. In other Pens news, Ed Rendell, PA Governor, is saying that the deal for the arena is very close. Of course, until something is actually signed, there is still a possibility that the team will wind up in Kansas City. However, I am feeling a tad hopeful. There is also a story that the Isle of Capri has appealed the slots license going to Don Barden. The appeal is going to delay the opening of Barden's casino.

Friday, March 2, 2007 -- Morning
Some scary news for the Pens as a result of yesterday's game. Mark Eaton suffered a lower body injury while trying to put a check on one of the New York Rangers' players yesterday. He is going to be evaluated today, and hopefully, it isn't that serious.

Wednesday, February 28, 2007 -- Evening
It seems that I have been concentrating on the Pens alot lately. That's because I love hockey, and the Pens have been making big news in the city. There was some talk about why the Pens didn't renew their lease with Mellon Arena for an additional year. It appears that the story is that by not renewing the lease, the Pens are putting pressure on the local government officials to come up with a plan to keep the Pens in the city. If the Pens had extended their lease, there might be a feeling of laxity amongst those in power in coming up with a plan to keep the Pens in the city. Supposedly, the government officials believe that a deal will be struck between the interested parties. We'll see.

As for the Pens themselves, they did some practising, and it seems that the the following lines are going to be in place:

Line	LW	Center	RW
First	Roberts	Crosby	Recchi
Second	Malone	Malkin	Ouellet
Third	Staal	Talbot	Armstrong
Fourth	Laraque	Christensen	Ruutu

Tuesday, February 27, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the New Jersey Devils this evening. The Pens put up a valient fight, but the Devils scored in the first seconds of the second period, and Martin Brodeur made sure that was enough. Brodeur got his 12th shut out of the season, and got the first star of the game. Marc-Andre Fleury did a great job with some very nice saves. He got the third star of the game. The Pens really came out fighting in the third, but it just wasn't enough. Check out my pictures of the game.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
The Pens made a couple of minor deals before the end of the trade deadline today. They gave up a seventh round pick to the San Jose Sharks for minor league goalie, Nolan Schaefer. He is going to head straight to the Baby Pens. Then they gave up a fourth round pick to the Florida Panthers for Joel Kwiatkowski, a defenseman with some a fairly poor record. Kwiatkowski is a -5 so far this year, and on a -7 pace for the season. I wouldn't have thought he would be a good pick, especially since he seems to be prone to critical errors in TSN's assessment of his skill. He's just seems to be a poor defenseman. I know we needed someone on defense, but you would have hoped we would do better than this!

Tuesday, February 27, 2007 -- Early Afternoon
The Pens traded Dominic Moore to the Minnesota Wild for a third round draft pick. The thought is that the Laraque deal was for a third round pick, and not eighth round. So basically it was Moore and Carcillo for Laraque. I still don't think that is a bad deal although some of my buddies disagree. Some are on the "trading our future for the present" bandwagon, but I don't see that happening.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007 -- Late Morning
The Pens made a trade with the Phoenix Coyotes and got Georges Laraque. The Pens give up Daniel Carcillo (a draft pick from 2003) and an eighth round pick. Now this move I am happier with because Laraque has a reputation as an enforcer. The Roberts deal from this morning still sucks, and seem incredibly stupid.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007 -- Morning
The news is final, and a pall settles over Pens fans everywhere. Ray Shero has decided to trade Noah Welch for Gary Roberts. Roberts had a no trade clause in his contract, but waived it to come to the Pens. He is going to be arriving in town sometime today, but will not be in the lineup tonight against the New Jersey Devils. I really don't understand this move at all. The Pens get a geriatric of 40 who doesn't have very good stats. This guy is identical to John LeClair--who the Pens dumped earlier in the season--only OLDER! What do they think they are going to get from him? Veteran leadership in the locker room? I thought that Mark Recchi was already providing that? We'll have to see what transpires in the next few games.

On a brighter note, Marc-Andre Fleury is in goal for the Pens tonight.

Monday, February 26, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
Rumors are burning up the Internet wires that the Pens are making a deal with the Florida Panthers for Gary Roberts. It seems that Roberts has a no-trade clause in his contract with the Panthers, but he is interested in being traded to either Toronto or Ottawa because his daughter goes to school in that area. Roberts is a geriatric, left-winger, who doesn't have that great a set of stats that I would consider getting him. I wonder if this is another one of those rumors, although TSN seems to believe that a deal has been worked out between the Panthers and the Pens. The big question right now is if Roberts will waive his no-trade clause.

Saturday, February 24, 2007 -- Afternoon
There has been alot of speculation among fans and sports analysts about if, when, or how the Pens will take advantage of a trade before the deadline on Feb. 27. There was some talk of them getting a goon yesterday, and Georges Laraque's name came up. However, it seems that the price that the Phoenix Coyotes wants is probably too high for the Pens. Rumor has it that the Coyotes wanted a first round draft pick, and the Pens aren't willing to give that up. Do we need a goon? I think that we need some way to protect our young talent that is being abused by the goons on other teams. Our former goon, Andre Roy was suspended for three games for abuse of refs. It seems that Roy had a roughing call that he disagreed with, and he must have taken up the matter with the refs in an inappropriate manner. That means that Roy won't be playing tomorrow when the Tampa Bay Lightning met the Pens.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
Michel Therrien has announced that Jocelyn Thibault will be starting in goal tomorrow night. Poor Marc-Andre Fleury. I'm not sure if this will be a boost for Fleury's confidence.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007 -- Late Morning
The rumors about Michel Therrien yelling at Marc-Andre Fleury after the game on Monday aren't true. That doesn't mean that Therrien is happy with Fleury's performance over the past few games. He isn't, but he is hoping to express his displeasure and encourage Fleury to do better. The question is whether Fleury will be in goal for tomorrow evening's game against the Florida Panthers.

Tuesday, February 20, 2007 -- Afternoon
I am really feeling for Marc-Andre Fleury. After yesterday's game, he was called out by Michel Therrien as just givng an okay performance over the last four games. Yesterday's game was the worst of the bunch, and even Fleury was upset with his performance. After the game, Therrien supposedly gave Fleury some flack over the game, saying that Fleury has let in way too many goals over the past four games that he played. After the talk, Fleury was seen removing his uniform in anger and punching a door in the locker room. Let's hope that things pick up for Fleury--he is my favorite on the team--and that the team still manages to make the playoffs. You can never tell if a loss like yesterday's may lead to more losses.

Sunday, February 18, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens played the Washington Capitals this afternoon. The Capitals haven't been doing so well this season, and the Pens have just been electric. Well, the good luck continued for the Pens in this game. Jocelyn Thibault was in goal, and he did a fine job making a few very nice saves. Olaf Kolzig was injured so Brent Johnson was in goal for the Caps. Mark Recchi, Evgeni Malkin, and Maxiime Talbot all scored goals. Talbot has been hot of late getting points in his last few games. The game was fast paced, had a penalty shot (unsuccessful thankfully), and ended in another win for the Pens. The final score was 3-2. Unfortunately, I was behind an extremely tall man, but I did manage to get a few shots (although I missed the penalty shot as I was trying to look around the behemoth). Check out my pictures of the game.

Thursday, February 15, 2007 -- Evening
My pictures are finally ready, and I hope that everyone enjoys them. You should also check out the coach's post game interview on the Pens' Multimedia Page. Bits of the interview have been making the television newscasts. The best bits were when Therrien said that the refs never make a mistake. The coaches do, the players do, but never the refs. That was in reference to the six (seven counting the goalie) on the ice during the Tuomo Ruutu goal. I have a picture where you can clearly see five Blackhawks grouped together while the sixth joins them. Sucks that the refs can't count, but at least the Pens won in the end. There was also a funny comment where Therrien said that he was doing the a poker move by putting Mark Recchi, Sidney Crosby, and Evgeni Malkin on the ice at the same time. it worked when Crosby assisted on the Malkin goal that tied the game in the final minutes.

Wednesday, Februrary 14, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the Chicago Blackhawks this evening at Mellon Arena. Believe it or not, there was still a sellout crowd of over 17,000 at the game even though the streets were still snow and ice covered, and the temperatures were dropping. The game was a thrilling one that went into overtime and a shoot out. It shouldn't have because the fourth goal by the Blackhawks was scored when six men were on the ice. The Blackhawks were not called for the penalty, even though there were very obviously six of them celebrating the score. I wanted to see how the NHL scored it because did all seven Blackhawks on the ice get a plus? Nope. I wonder how they determined who to leave off? The shoot out was won by two stops by Marc-Andre Fleury and two goals by Erik Christensen and Evgeni Malkin. The Pens get two points out of it and remain in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 69 points. You just don't expect them to keep on piling up the points, but they do. Sidney Crosby again missed out in the shoot out, and again went another game without a goal (eight so far). Crosby did get a point though on Malkin's tieing goal at the end of the third period. Fleury did another great job in goal. I have to admit that some bozos in the stands were getting on my nerves with their stupid comments and lack of knowledge of hockey statistics. A guy two rows back in the C17 section loudly proclaimed when Fleury let the first short handed goal in that Fleury always lets in one soft goal every game. Hmm...wonder how Bozo number one accounts for those shut outs that Fleury has had this season. The guy has been playing superbly. Even so, everyone lets in a goal now and again. No goalie go through the season without letting in a single goal. Then someone onw row behind hind me commented that surprisingly Fleury was able to stop a goal when he gloved one. Dah! He does that alot. When Fleury made a great save in the overtime that they kept on showing on the jumbotron, I looked back to see what Bozo number one in section C17 was saying. His mouth was shut, but he was also not acknowledging that hes an idiot. Some of the fans really get on my nerves with stupid comments and totally not knowing anything about the game while loudly proclaiming their ignorance by their remarks. Enough said. Since I had to take the bus into town because my car is covered in ice, and will have to get up early in the morning to get to work, I will post my pictures of the game Thursday evening. Keep your eyes on this spot for the pictures! In the meantime, check out my video of the shoot out.

Saturday, February 10, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens played the Toronto Maples Leafs in Toronto this evening. The Pens pulled out a win in overtime with a Jordan Staal hat trick. Check out the game recap page.

Friday, February 9, 2007 -- Evening
I was listening to the Mark Madden show on the local ESPN radio station on my way home from work this evening. He had Damien Cox, from the Toronto Star. Cox was talking about how good a job Michel Therrien is doing, considering that the Pens are basically a young team. As Cox was saying, Madden had given him something to think about, and Cox thinks that it wouldn't be a far fetched idea for Therrien to be considered for coach of the year honors. Of course, it is still to early to think of things like that. I know that I am feeling hopeful about the team's prospects, and I am putting in my bid for playoff tickets. The Pens ticket office sent out a form to all season ticket holders, and I don't think that I can pass it up. To get my current seat in the playoffs will cost $60. (Right now, it's $30 a seat.) In Cox's article for today, he says that Sidney Crosby and Martin Brodeur are the two to watch as front runners for the Hart Trophy. The Hart Trophy is given to the player who is judged to be most valuable to his team.

Tuesday, February 6, 2007 -- Late Evening
The Pens played the Nashville Predators this evening. The Predators have the best record in the NHL, and I have to admit that I was concerned that the Pens would lose. However, the team surprised me by winning in a thrilling game. Marc-Andre Fleury turned in another superb performance, blocking 25 of 26 shots. He was really on fire and earned the number one star of the game. Jordan Staal and Evgeni Malkin both got goals, and Sidney Crosby got two assists. Mark Recchi had a good showing with three assists. I have to admit that he is not playing like a geriatric! The Pens won with a final score of 4-1, and look like serious playoff contenders. Check out my pictures of the game.

Goals

Predators

Pens

1st

2nd

3rd

Final

Shots on goal

Predators

Pens

1st

2nd

3rd

Final

SCORING SUMMARY
G	Per	Time	Team	Goal Scorer	Assist	Assist	STR
1	1	17:53	NSH	S. NICHOL (7)	S. BROOKBANK (1)	S. HARTNELL (14)	EV
2	2	5:46	PIT	J. STAAL (19)	S. CROSBY (60)	M. RECCHI (32)	EV
3	2	8:05	PIT	E. MALKIN (26)	M. RECCHI (33)	S. CROSBY (61)	PP
4	3	3:10	PIT	M. RECCHI (18)	E. MALKIN (33)		EV
5	3	18:36	PIT	J. RUUTU (4)	C. ARMSTRONG (14)	S. GONCHAR (34)	EV-EN

Monday, February 5, 2007 -- Evening
Sidney Crosby is getting upset about some of the things that are done to him during a game. Crosby is getting speared and high sticked left and right. In yesterday's game, he got a high stick to the face and the refs didn't call the penalty. My opinion is that we need an enforcer who will make the others think twice before they do something. As some of the local sportscasters were saying, and they were echoing comments made by the players, there's no need for an enforcer because the others on the team stick up for Sid. The only thing that I have to say is that I know that Ryan Malone strikes about as much fear in my heart as a grandma would. So you can imagine how scared an intimidator is. Yep, not at all. Which is why Crosby is getting knocked around like a rag doll. We need some sort of enforcer type before Crosby has a serious injury from these shenanigans.

Saturday, February 3, 2007 -- Evening
I forgot to mention earlier that Colby Armstrong was a scratch in today's Pens game. Everyone in the stands wondered what had happened. Well, I found out when I got home. It seems that Armstrong injured his knee during the Montreal Canadiens game. Some say that it might have been either the hit on Saku Koivu or attack by Sheldon Souray. Aramstrong didn't go with the team on the flight to Montreal. Tomorrow's game is at 2 pm. The question is how physical will the game be tomorrow. The tone was set in Thursday's game when Sidney Crosby was speared on the face-off. I think that the NHL really needs to investigate the cheap shots that players have been taking on Crosby. The one on Thursda is really bad because it was probably condoned and encouraged by Montreal coach, Guy Carbonneau. It seems that Carbonneau thought he should start the game with his fourth liner, and the Pens should do the same. The thing is that the Crosby usually starts the games at home. When he doesn't, Evgeni Malkin does.

Friday, February, 2, 2007 -- Late Afternoon
There are still alot of rumors about where the Pens will be next season. They are still talking to Kansas City, and there a new offer from local officials. I am getting really tired of all the indecision and game playing. I just wish that the whole matter would be over so we would all know where we stand.

Thursday, February 1, 2007 -- Morning
Mark Recchi turns 39 years old today. He's getting up there--for a hockey player. I have to admit that I am not a huge fan of Recchi's, but he really has been a workhorse for the team. When you see him on the ice, he's chugging around, making plays. That's why he was chosen as the NHL First Star and Player of the Week. There is supposed to be another ceremony for him at the beginning of tonight's Pens game against the Montreal Canadiens. No word yet on any deals between local officials and the Pens about an arena. Everyone is anticipating that there will be word sometime soon. The local news stations have said they will cut into regular programming if there is an announcement.

Sunday, January 28, 2007 -- Early Evening
There have been rumors on the local news shows that there is going to be a framework of a plan between the government officials and the Pens announced in the next two days. As the Mayor, Luke Ravenstahl, was saying, he understood that the Pens needed soemthing by the end of January, and the officials are trying to do their best to get something done. We'll have to see if there is any truth to the rumor. I don't want to get my hopes up to only have them dashed in the end.

Thursday, January 25, 2007 -- Morning
The NHL All-Stars was last night, and I have to admit that I usually find All-Star games a tad on the boring side. This game was no different. As usual,it was a scoring fest, but surprisingly, Sidney Crosby didn't get a single point. Crosby shouldn't feel bad though because Wayne Gretzky also didn't score a point in his first All-Star game. Both were 19. The Western Conference won the game with a a final score of 12-9.

Wednesday, January 24, 2007 -- Afternoon
Ed Rendell talked to Ron Burkle yesterday, and says that he is optimistic that a deal can be done between the officials and the Pens. It's interesting that Burkle and Rendell have a relationship from Burkle contributing to Rendell's campaigns and to see Burkle getting more involved recently with the negotiations. The thing that I wonder sometimes is if Mario Lemieux is really concerned about doing what is right and good for the team, or if he is concerned about injustices made toward him? Sometimes, I think that he has taken the whole process more personally than someone who is an experienced businessman or politician. He feels too much about what is right, and is willing to spite them all for petty injustices that he perceives. The positive thing that I heard today was Rendell saying there is still room to tweak things. That means that Burkle is providing the voice of reason---I hope!

Wednesday, January 24, 2007 -- Morning
I watched the NHL All-Stars programming last night. They has the Young Stars game in which Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, and Ryan Whitney competed. Malkin didn't score, but Whitney did. I think that the guys were just having fun and enjoying the experience as much as possible. I haven't seen Malkin with such a huge smile on his face that just stayed there. After the Young Stars, they had the skills competition. Surprisingly, Sidney Crosby was picked for only one skill. What was that you might ask? Accuracy? Nope, shoot out! My jaw dropped because we know that the one thing that Crosby has a problem with in the regular season is the shoot out. Well, he gets two out of three to help the Eastern Conference win the skills section! They asked him about it afterwards, and he said that there wasn't the pressure that you have in a game where the score could mean a win or loss. This is just for fun. So that does indeed mean that nerves gets to him. I don't know what the solution is to that because I know that I have trouble controlling my nerves.

In other news that will be of interest to Pens fans is the arena process. Mario Lemieux has expressed his displeasure with the last meeting, basically because Don Barden was invited and now seems to be expecting to be involved in the development of the Hill District area, and to make money from the deal. The Pens have taken offense at this, and now are shopping around again. They contacted Houston as a possible location for the team, and are going to get a tour sometime later this week--maybe Friday. When Ed Rendell, PA governor, heard that he said again that the deal the Pens got was a sweet one, where they pay less than 18% of the costs for building (which is less than other sports teams in PA), pay $2 million in rent, and get a cut of the revenues. Rendell says that if Lemieux makes a move to take the team out of Pittsburgh, Rendell will petition the NHL for a decision. Gary Bettman was asked about this at the All-Star game, and his comment was: "We love Mario, but we're going to have to evaluate any potential transaction on the merits. That's what the board does." It seems that before the NHL Board of Governors would allow the team to relocate, they would take into consideration the "tremendous" fan base in Pittsburgh and the "measurably sweetened Plan B" for the arena. (Quotes are from Bettman.) I can understand Lemieux's pique at the whole thing when Barden was pulled into the talks, but hopefully, he will get over it and get back to the tables to discuss the matter. The decision has to be made soon because the schedule has to be made for next season.

Tuesday, January 23, 2007 -- Early Afternoon
Mario Lemieux said yesterday that he was very disappointed in the offer that the government officials made to the Pens for the arena deal. He said again that he is going to look for the best offer, even if that is outside of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh mayor, Luke Ravenstahl, and Allegheny County Chief Executive, Dan Onorato, said that they understand Lemieux's feelings of frustration, but that they believe that it is still possible to work out a deal with the Pens. I have to admit that after the first meeting, I was starting to feel some optimism. However, something went horribly wrong in the second meeting between the city, county, and state officials. I tend to believe that it was the inclusion of Don Barden in the meeting. It seems that Barden wants to get something back for the money that he is going to put in. In order to now give him that money, the officials will have to lessen the deal for the Pens. Of course that isn't going to be acceptable. I don't know why they are even going down that path with Barden because his agreement to put $7.5 million in per year had no string attached. At least that appeared to be the government's deal with the winner of the slots license. Things are definitely not looking positive.

Friday, January 19, 2007 -- Evening
There is still not a deal between the Pens and the local and state government officials. Last night's meeting started around 9:20 p.m. and lasted for 90 minutes. It was attended by local officials, Ed Rendell, and Don Barden who won the casino license. Ed Rendell claims that it is the best deal offered to a sports team. The deal is supposed to cost the Pens less than deals made with other sports teams in the state. There are no real details on the deal, and neither side is really talking. The only thing that can be noted is that the atmosphere doesn't seem as optimistic as it was after the earlier meeting.

Thursday, January 18, 2007 -- Evening
News with the Pens this evening. The meeting was still in progress at the start of the Pens and Boston Bruins game. Let's hope that there is good news soon. As for the spear in that Jason Blake put on Sidney Crosby in the New York Islanders game on Tuesday, Blake is being fined $1000 for the act. Ray Shero was really upset about the intentional act to hurt a key player in the last few seconds of the game. The league must have seen his point, but the controversy is that some people are saying that Crosby over embellished. I don't know--I'm not sure what I would do if I was speared in the midsection by someone behind me. Crosby isn't make a big deal of it though. I think that Crosby is a class act.

Wednesday, January 17, 2007 -- Evening
The Pens are going to met with Ed Rendell sometime tomorrow evening. The goal is to come up with a plan for funding. There wasn't any word on whether Mario Lemieux would be there, but there would be representatives from the Pens at the meeting. One of the nicest stories that I have seen in awhile was about a few of the Pens players handing out free pizzas to the students who were waiting for hours in the student rush lines. The line usually snakes around the building, and has contributed to the game sell-outs. The vice-president of communications, Tom McMillan had the idea to have the players (