Greetings from Hockeytown!

I told you yesterday that I issued a call for a bet with any Red Wings blogger who was willing. Someone using the screen name Red_Wings_49 responded but ultimately declined because he blogs on a different platform than Blogger. He suggested that he might show up to defend the Wings in the comments. I welcomed that idea because he was a really cool Wings fan. Then he appeared here on The Show as Kcjacoby to say "Go Red Wings!!!" After a weekend of dealing with a handful of people that WEREN'T cool Wings fans, I completely overreacted. (Can I blame it on my Irish temper, LOL?) He commented again to inform me that Kcjacoby and Red_Wings_49 were one in the same, and immediately I knew I had to apologize to him. I contacted him via email, and he was EXTREMELY classy about my gaffe:

I understand the defense you put up... trust me. I also understand that my usernames are different on both sites... so it's okay.

But I think as a punishment... I should get to write a blog entry... :)

To which I responded:

OKAY, Ken....... how about this??? If the Wings win, I'll let you write a recap from a Wings fan's perspective. (It can replace the bet I was talking about earlier.)

And yeah, I said it - IF, IF, IF they win! (LOL)

Well, we all know what happened after that. And now, without further ado...

Greetings from Hockeytown!

My name is Ken, or as most of you might have seen me on here as Kcjacoby

Jodie thinks that I'm going to be using this space as a place to talk some trash about the Penguins, and rant and rave about the Red Wings... when in fact, I'm going to do the complete opposite.

I'm a hockey fan. Mainly a Detroit Red Wings fan, but there is one thing that I am not… I am not biased to not give credit where credit is due. Hockey is the best sport in the world in my opinion. It is one of the only games where on any given night, the worst team in the league can beat the best team in the league. There are lucky bounces, momentum shifts, and other determining factors that can play so much in such a fast paced, highly skilled game. I believe that sets me aside from your typical fan for another team. I believe that's being a little too close minded, and can only set you up for failure.

The Red Wings and the Penguins provided me some of the best hockey I've seen in quite some time. I was sorry to see the series get blown wide open after the first two games, because right there I had the feeling that it was going to be pretty one sided.

And that was when... the true self of the Penguins showed up.

Game 3 showed me the true heart of the Penguin fans. Yes, the white out was originally done by Winnipeg, but you guys showed it up with flare. To be honest with you all... I was quite jealous. The dedication of the fans like that showed how much you guys wanted the cup. You guys got your game 3 victory, and I will admit I had a little bit of a nervous growl in my stomach.

I was in Erie, Pennsylvania for game 4. My girlfriend goes to college there, when we were out, I was showing off my Red Wings hat. Much to my surprise (sarcasm) I was enticed a few times by some penguin fans that told me 'How it was going to be'. Now, I'm not a fan of trash talknig... I'll simply state the facts, and I'm even superstitious to the point where you will never EVER hear me say, "The Red Wings are going to win tonight" Call that crazy, call it whatever you will... but there are the hockey gods that don't like being displeased with our behavior. Well, I even told Jodie that some prick jinxed it for you guys... I thought game 4 showed some very good hockey, and I was even pissed that such a squib shot made it past Fluery for the goal. Nonetheless... there isn't much that we can do about that now. We had taken the wind out of your sails. You guys hadn't lost there since Feb? That's an amazing record.

Game 5, I was all set on the Wings winning it at home, but I knew that the Penguins were not going to go that easily. We came ravishing back during that 3rd period... I just had this feeling that the cup was ours. (Honestly, who didn't?) But then again, the player that I despise the most on the Wings, made one of his prime errors.. not keeping his leg pads on the left goal post, allowing Talbot to stuff it in the side. We deserved to lose because our defense was horrendous. The Penguins finally put the game away in the 3rd OT. Thankfully... I had to be to work at 5:30 that next morning, and I knew it was already going to be a bad day.

Game 6 came around... and I had this feeling that there would have been no way we would be able to beat the Penguins back home again.

Well, I'm sure we all know the result of that... and I'm not here to rub it in. But I will tell you what I am here to do. I want to congratulate the Penguins on one hell of a year. Its hard for me to even believe that Crosby did all of that with him only being 20 years old. Hell, I don't even think I had a clue about what to do in my life when I was 20... look at him, leading a team that close to the Cup. Amazing. The Penguins overcame a lot of issues this year... and I can only see them getting stronger again next year (salary cap space providing).

And heres a tasty tidbit for everyone to enjoy. Rumors are really flying about the fact that the Red Wings will be getting moved into the Eastern Conference within the next 2 years. Apparently Las Vegas is really wanting to get a hold of a NHL team. That way you guys can learn to love the Red Wings even more!

I really believe all of you Penguin fans should hold your heads up high. That was some great hockey that was played... and even look how far you guys came from being eliminated vs. Ottawa the year before. You guys have come a long way, and I'm sure next year will be even better.

But for now... it is time for us to celebrate the greatest sport in the world... and know that your time is coming.

Go Wings!!! and... (since I need an Eastern Conference team to cheer for...) Go Pens!!!

Thank you, Ken! :)

The Day After

Some of you may still be reeling from last night's loss. Mark Messier thinks the loss was the beginning of something much bigger. He's right - the Pens took their experience from being eliminated in Round 1 in five games by the Ottawa Senators in 2007 and used it to get to the Stanley Cup finals only one season later. The future is definitely WOW for our Pens. :)


While on MSNBC, I found this solid timeline that puts last night into perspective for us. It details the Penguins' rise out of the ashes of bankruptcy. If for whatever reason you're not interested in checking out the entire article, you MUST at least check out 2001 - whether you love him or hate him, the photo NBC sports picked to accompany the item about Jaromir Jagr's trade is priceless. (It's especially funny because the article makes no mention of how loudly Jagr expressed his unhappiness in Pittsburgh. They let the photo do all the talking.)

Friends of The Show Cassie C. and Mer R. each sent me similar ideas. They thought it would be cool if we could see where we're all located. I found a map that we can all add our markers to at ZeeMaps.com. Don't worry about it tracking you by your IP address - I picked this one because it only adds the information that YOU choose to include. Check out my entry (it's the little sunflower on Pennsylvania) and make sure to add yours - even if you want to do it anonymously! Just click the Add button in the upper right corner to get started.



NHL.com has the transcript to Sid's (and Mario's) post-game presser. Here are some highlights:

Q. Sid, reaction to the fans?

SIDNEY CROSBY: They've been great all year. We appreciate their support. And it doesn't make it any easier for sure. But they stuck through with us all season, and a long time before that, and so we appreciate it.

Q. In the heat of the loss can you put in perspective what has been accomplished this year?

SIDNEY CROSBY: Not right now. I mean it's pretty tough. It's not a fun time. But we will remember this feeling, that's for sure.

Q. You go down fighting, taking it literally to the last second of the game.

SIDNEY CROSBY: That's the way we played all season. And the guys have been through a lot and battled through it and it doesn't surprise me that the guys never gave up.

This is an old picture. Sid probably wasn't smiling when he gave this interview...

Q. Can you put it in perspective how far this team has come in such a short time?

SIDNEY CROSBY: Yeah, we've come a long way, that's for sure. But it doesn't make it any easier, that's for sure.

Q. Marc-Andre was not happy with the second and third goals. What did you say to him when you came in?

SIDNEY CROSBY: I don't think really anything needs to be said. Without him we wouldn't be in this position. So it's without him we wouldn't be here.

Q. Can you talk about the future of the core of this team and some guys have to be signed?

SIDNEY CROSBY: Like you said, we've got a great group. And hopefully we can keep it together. But it's a tough thing.

Q. They say it only takes an inch.

SIDNEY CROSBY: The last play is an example.

Regular readers will remember that before this series got underway, I issued a call looking for a Red Wings blogger with whom I could make a friendly bet. KCJacoby contacted me and accepted. I agreed to let him author a post if the Red Wings won the Cup, so that post will be up sometime tomorrow. Don't worry - I've been talking with him and getting to know him - he'll no doubt be bragging a little bit, but he's really cool. I think you all know me well enough to realize that I wouldn't let just anyone guest post on The Show!!!


So, is it too early to start a countdown until October???

GO PENS!!!!!!!!