Flower and Guerin are back, so let's review who remains missing from the regular lineup: Godzilla is out 4-6 weeks with a groin injury, TK is out and listed as day-to-day, Gogo is out with an undisclosed injury, and even though Kuni, who is still on the Injured Reserve list, skated for the first time since his abdominal surgery, he'll probably be out at least another week.
The Pens are coming off a frustrating loss to one of their two main rivals to immediately face the other. After leading and/or matching the Caps for 42 minutes, the back-to-back goals just under a minute apart in the beginning of the third period put momentum squarely on the bad guys' side. The Pens of two months ago could have come back and beat them handily, but the rollercoaster "slump" we're going through right now seems to be something the Boys are still trying to shake.
Perhaps a need for vindication plus the fact that all the Penguin fathers will be present in-house will be the boost the Boys' need to get back on the winning track. The Pens' 4th annual Dad's Trip will see the Boys' fathers accompanying their sons to today's Flyers match and tomorrow's Rangers match.
Today's 12:30pm match is NBC's Game of The Week, so EVERYONE should get to enjoy it! :) I haven't yet decided if I'm going to watch it live or if I'm going to wait for woodstock to come home from work and watch it with him.
I'll refrain from the smack talk today because (1.) I'm TERRIBLE at it and (2.) it seems like when I use smack talk we lose, but when I just put out positive vibes for the Boys we win. So I think from now on I'm going with the "positive vibes" thing.
BRENT JOHNSON IN GOAL. (Although it must be said that Alexander Pechurskiy did do a bang-up job in his remarkable first NHL appearance by only allowing one goal!)
Brooks Orpik back on D.
I once again have a working well pump and hot water heater. (They crapped out on us over the weekend, which is why I missed the Vancouver game. We got the pump replaced yesterday and the heater was repaired today. WOOOO!)
So despite the fact that the Isles are red hot right now, I think the Boys are gonna bring home the W.
Yesterday I said that the gal in the wedding dress offered Siddo the funniest marriage proposal I had ever seen. That was true - until yesterday's Oilers game gave us this gem:
Yep, that's a dude.
Thanks, John Ulan (the photographer for The Associated Press/The Canadian Press). Now I have to go wash my eyes.
We've seen dozens... Scratch that, HUNDREDS of marriage proposals aimed at our title man, but none as hi-lar-i-ous as this one:
I am giving her extra creativity points for actually having the stones to wear a complete bridal ensemble to a professional sporting event that did NOT following an actual wedding. But I just have one question: Did she buy the dress especially for this stunt or did already have the dress - and if she did, does that mean she's already married?? Hmmmmm... Makes you wonder if perhaps there is a Mr. Crazy Bride at home steaming over this pic! :P
Friend of The Show Need Ice In Phoenix shared this video of Siddo hopping like a bunny right over Niklas Hagman during this past Pens v Leafs game in Toronto. The slo-mo replay sound effects cracked me up:
GM Ray Shero are going head to head Geno against one another (and Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, Pitt Tailback Dion Lewis, and Pitt football Coach Dave Wannstedt) for the Dapper Dan Sportsman of the Year award. Siddo is a two-time winner of the award, and while I love Geno, I think Shero - the genius behind the construction of our team - has MORE than earned my vote. The Pens have two plays nominated in the Best Play category: a pretty backhander from Geno during the Eastern Conference Finals against Carolina, and that beautiful last minute save from Flower on Lidstrom that led to the Stanley Cup Final Game 7 victory. The absolutely remarkable moment when Mario handed the Stanley Cup back to Sid is one of the nominees for and SHOULD be the hands down winner of the Best Sports Moment of 2009; although it's undoubtedly going to face a tough battle with the Steelers' record breaking sixth Super Bowl win. Cast your votes here.
Thank you is due to Need Ice In Phoenix for finding the video clip. We're facing the Oilers in Edmonton tonight. The projected lines as of right now are identical to last night's lines. Flower is the projected netminder; however, since the games are back-to-back, I wonder if maybe we'll see Johnson in goal. Either way, we're gonna get 'em.
Brew a pot o' coffee - it's a late one tonight! The Boys continue their 2010 West Coast tour in Calgary to face Jarome Iginla and the Flames. Courtesy of good Friends of The Show Susan and Joeceff, I've got some reading material to keep you busy until the puck drops:
At a time when Tiger Woods, Mark McGwire, and Gilbert Arenas dominate the sports headlines for all the wrong reasons, in flies Sidney Crosby to remind us all it’s still safe to have heroes.
Longtime Friend Cathy F. sent a link to a new Tim Horton's commercial featuring our title man. It's another good one! Look for two blasts from Siddo's past...
Check out these shots from Monday's Wild game that West Coast Friend Lauren C. (who had a pretty AMAZING seat!) sent in for us:
And finally tonight, for my Friends who aren't my friends on Facebook, here is a new shot of the Red Baron wearing his shiny new shamrock name tag:
So many thanks go out to Susan, Joeceff, Cathy, and Lauren for their respective contributions to tonight's post. :) Now it's time to ICE the Flames! (Um, did I mention I'm terrible at smack talk?)
Well, woodstock and I have to watch this one online tonight. (Damn DirecTV and Versus feud!) Since our work schedules allowed us to actually be here at home together for a game for once, of frickin' COURSE it would be on a channel we don't currently get. >:(
DO IT, Boys. I like putting another notch in the W column on my white board at work. :)
Okay, I feel the same way about this recent Penguins slump as I do about this stretch of arctic weather - ENOUGH, ALREADY!
The Pens start a five game road trip tonight against the Maple Leafs. It's a new day. A clean slate. Who knows? Perhaps we'll have the complete opposite of the last road trip and come home on a winning streak. :) Unfortunately, the Boys will have to do it without Assistant Coach Mike Yeo. Whatever illness he is battling will keep him in Pittsburgh. With the hospitalization and now all the time off, it's safe to say it must be something fairly serious. Hopefully a full recovery for him is imminent. As for our players, Tank and Gonch are both, at the time of publishing this post, game time decisions.
“Siddo is the Harry Potter to Ovechkin's Draco Malfoy.” ~ Friend of The Show 66Pens87's analogy of the Penguins Captain to the new Capitals captain
I don't know about you, but I simply couldn't believe that just WEEKS after a pair of hits and a suspension that led his own coach to publicly question whether or not he was a dirty player A-hOle™ was named captain of the Washington Capitals. It's a complete disgrace. Some people may call him "vanilla" but at least our Captain is someone we can be proud of.
(Late Edit:Many thanks to good Friend of The Show Joeceff for pointing out my unfortunate typo below!) The victory over the FlowerTHRASHERS was even sweeter because three of the role players who have been contributing SO MUCH without any results (disregarding that disastrous road trip) finally got some results, and the WBS call-up made a big contribution as well. Another highlight from that game: Steigy was telling a story about something (the subject matter escapes me at the moment) when he gave us a stat just as FSN was going to commercial. When they came back, Steigy informed us that he was incorrect about the player's name (BIG surprise there - he's wrong about who's on the ice 70% of the time) and that none other than Troy Crosby had texted him the correct information during the break. :)
Tonight we're facing our vintage archenemies. Gonch isn't quite ready to return, and now Tank is out with a messed up knee. Expect a nasty match. The ones versus the Broad Street D-Bags Bullies always are...
Kuni's out for at least a month with an abdominal tear (OUCH!). Something must really be wrong with Assistant Coach Mike Yeo - he's still in a Florida hospital. Get well soon wishes go out to both men. Luca Caputi was recalled to fill in for Kuni. The WBS players who get recalled always seem to bring a measure of energy with them as they work hard to prove they deserve a place in the NHL... Perhaps Caputi's presence will reinvigorate the team?
Come on, Boys. Let's DO IT. Focus, focus, FOCUS.
The home crowd should provide a boost. Time to get back on track.
Right now, Ottawa is opening a can of whoop-arse on Philadelphia. There's less than 3 minutes left in the game with a score of Sens 7, Flyers 4. I mention this because Alexei Kovalev currently has 4 - count 'em FOUR - of the 7 goals in the match so far! What a player! At 36, he's definitely still got it.
The Pens are currently on a losing streak. :( They've lost the last four in a row. That ties their season longest losing streak. Now, an open letter to the Boys:
Dear Penguins,
How about we not try to break that streak? Shooting the puck a little more often should help. One freaking shot on goal during a power play in which the goalie lost his stick and had to use a defender's stick, leaving said defender without a stick?! ONLY ONE SHOT?!?! Unbelievable - and not in a good way. Stop trying to set up the perfect goal and start getting the dirty ones. Thanks!
What a game yesterday, eh? I was torn about which team I wanted to win the 2010 Winter Classic, but in the end, my hatred of the Flyers outweighed all other circumstances, so I was quite pleased with the Recchin Ball's late game tying goal and ultimately the Bruins' OT victory. I also enjoyed watching the little peewee players help Team USA announce the 2010 Olympic roster following the game. Congratulations to our own Brooks Orpik for making Team USA!!! Congrats also due to Pittsburgh native and former Penguin Ryan Malone, who also made the cut. It's great to see some Pittsburgh pride represented on Team USA. :) The finale with Tim Thomas emerging in his Team USA jersey was spectacular, too.
The Pens have back to back afternoon/early evening games this weekend. Today we get started in Tampa Bay to face Malone and his Lightning teammates.
GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PS: I'm in contact with someone regarding the Olympic 'A' patch for my Team Canada Crosby jersey. Once I know all the details, I'll let you know how you can get one, too, if you need it. :)
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