"I'm Not Wearing Hockey Pads."

I went to see The Dark Knight on Saturday afternoon. One word: UNREAL. It was one of those rare films that actually exceeds all expectations - it was THAT good. Confidential to the Friends who have seen it: I will be having nightmares about magic tricks and pencils for the next month, at least! :P My husband worked all weekend, so his best friend and I went to a matinée show. When the film was over, we came out and saw this parked right next to my car:



Now I promise that's the last I'll mention The Dark Knight or anything Batman here on The Show, no matter how many times I go see it. Today I'm going to hit you with some links and then dig into some of the stuff I've been holding onto for a while. First the links:

Head Coach Michel Therrien is staying in town for a little while longer. Therrien, who has a year left on his current contract, signed a new three-year contract on Friday. Congrats to him! He's done a spectacular job so far, taking the team from the bottom to the top in his short time with the Penguins.


In other contract news, it looks like we're going to have to endure a few more seasons of player misidentification on FSN. Paul Steigerwald has been given a new multi-year contract to remain Robin to Bob Errey's Batman (okay THAT is truly the last mention, haha). There had been some conjecture that Mike Lange would have been given his TV job back since Pens fans from all over have been clamoring for it AND the general manager of FSN (who fired Lange in the first place) got a job somewhere else, but for reasons known only to the brass at FSN, Lange was not given back the position that should never have been taken from him in the first place. Tony F. of The Confluence of The Three Rivers has more of the details here. I guess the silver lining is that since Jarkko Ruutu is now a Senator and Georges Laraque is now a Canadien, the only player Steigy can confuse with Sidney is Petr Sykora. [*Sighs*]

Look out, Loretta - Lange's not coming back to TV. :(

Pittsburgh sports fan hating Bob Smizik of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette thinks anyone who boos any former Pittsburgh sports star is a "knucklehead." Specifically, Marian Hossa's move to Detroit prompted Smizik to write the article that repeatedly insults to most of the people that buy the newspaper that pays his salary. Here's a little nugget from the gem he titled "'Knuckleheads' can't wait to boo 'traitor' Hossa:"

In Philadelphia, it has been written and said, the fans are so nasty they boo Santa Claus.

Philadelphia has nothing on Pittsburgh.

In Pittsburgh, they regularly and vociferously boo the second-greatest hockey player to perform for the beloved home team.

Boo to YOU, Smizik.

In Pittsburgh, they boo the kid third baseman who had put up Roberto Clemente-type numbers until he was mysteriously traded.

When it comes to knuckleheads, Pittsburgh has it all over Philadelphia.

(Seriously, how does this guy still have a job?) Evidently Smizik doesn't understand the passion that some people feel for their sports teams. Quite honestly, I don't think anyone who booed when Jaromir Jagr came to town ever forgot that without him, the Pens wouldn't have their back-to-back Stanley Cup wins. But he was a pain in the arse while in the latter years of his tenure in PGH, so give fans a break if all they can think about when they see him right in front of their faces is "I feel like I'm dying alive." Now with Hossa, all fans will think about when they see him is the fact that he jumped ship to join the team that just weeks earlier handed us our first Stanley Cup loss. And yes, he will be booed. There's no doubt about that. NEWSFLASH: From now on, when he is in the Mellon Arena, he's on the other team - what, do you want us to cheer for him? If you think Smizik is a tool, head on over to Steel City Sports Fan and support their Knucklehead Badge of Honor movement.

Finally today, good Friend of The Show Maria T. sent me this email on July 11^th:

Ok so if you had the chance to go and see THE STANLEY CUP..even if the Red Wings had just won it...wouldn't you??

Well assistant captain Kris Draper attended my elementary school, and I was taught by his younger sister in the 3rd grade, 2000. She brought him in that year, and I got a picture with him. Sadly he had broken his wrist or something and could not sign autographs.


Well today was Kris' day with the Stanley Cup, and I got the chance to get a picture with it and Kris, and touch the Cup. I know that I didn't win it, but I could not resist...it was THE ACTUAL CUP!!

Anywho, though I would have preferred our Pens to win the Cup, I got to meet it, and I shook a hand that shook the hands of the whole Pens team.

Don't get me wrong.. I LOVE THE PENS - but come on - hockey fan first and foremost...who doesn't want to meet the REAL Stanley Cup?

Very cool, Maria. :) Not to beat it into the ground or anything, but I think the superstition that warns against touching the Cup applies only to those who hope to win it someday in the future, haha! ;)