Thursday, November 05, 2009

Pens v Kings

Tonight our Boys will be facing the Kings, which means we'll be seeing Rob Scuderi skating with the bad guys. No word on whether or not Sid will be in goal. ;) (How amazing was that save? All those summers spent in between the pipes while playing street hockey really paid off! What a player.)

The Pens are still taking names and kickin' arse. L.A. isn't going to know what hit them.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


[ Posted from my iPod Touch using the BlogPress App ]

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Pens v Ducks

Okay, I'm trying this iPod app again. The Boys begin a weeklong tour out West. Siddo has been a man on fire lately and shows no signs of slowing down. There won't be a recap tonight - these late games don't even start until my bedtime, haha!!! ;)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!


[ Posted from my iPod using the BlogPress App ]

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Pens v Wild (L 1-2)

Flower will be in net. Syko will be in the bad guys' uni. We will again be missing some key players... But we will still manage to get the job done. Bring it, Minnesota!



Oh, boy. Be careful what you wish for, eh? Minnesota (read: Backstrom) certainly brought it tonight.

FIRST PERIOD
  • "Count Steigula" welcomed us to the Mellon Arena. O_o
  • Gronk beautifully set Bourque up twice. On the second chance, Bourque was hooked by Belanger. The Pens didn't score on their advantage.
  • Following a shot from the point by Kobasew, the rebound went out in front for Brodziak. He promptly banged it into the net. [Pens 0, Wild 1]


  • Steelers star safety Troy Polamalu was shown wearing a Crosby jersey in Mario's box.
  • FSN PGH cut away to show the starting lineup introduce themselves when the Pens won a faceoff to the point to Super Duper for a 1-timer that tied the game. [Pens 1, Wild 1] Backstrom was completely frozen, so Duper basically had an empty net. He's worked so hard this season without reward, so it was nice to see him get one. :)


  • The Wild went at the Pens all the way to the end of the period. It paid off - with just 0.6 seconds left in the period, Belanger scored. [Pens 1, Wild 2]


SECOND PERIOD
  • A short clip from the warmup was shown: Syko gave a tap to Godard's shin guard to say hi as Siddo was gliding in and tapping Syko's guard for the same reason.
  • woodstock was irate as he noticed a woman seated in the row behind the glass behind assistant coach Mike Yeo was knitting.


  • Lots of offensive work by the Pens failed to pay off because Backstrom was stopping everything.
  • During one shift, Cooker lost his edge on a bad blade and fell then broke his stick.
  • Sid was called for slashing. On the ensuing penalty kill, Cooker got away with a trip. The Wild didn't add to their lead.
  • Gronk shot wide on a wide open net.
  • Then the highlight of the game (at least it was for me) happened. Zidlicky and Siddo got their skates tangled. Zidlicky ended up kicking Sid's left leg out from under him, which sent him hard into the boards. Predictably, Sid wasn't happy about that, so he responded by pushing him. They ended up whacking each other a few times before ultimately deciding to do the man dance. Advantage: Sid. Why? See for yourself.


  • Both players were assessed a slashing minor and a fighting major. Sid on the fight: "It's not something I want to make a habit of, but I was a little ticked off." Neither team scored as a result of these penalties.
  • With about 1:30 left in the period, Schultz slashed and broke Guerin's stick. The Pens didn't score on the abbreviated power play.





THIRD PERIOD
  • The Pens didn't score on the remainder of the power play, either.
  • Rupp destroyed Zanon with a big hit. He was slow to get up and even slower to get off the ice. So slow in fact that the Wild ended up taking a too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty because of it. Syko served the penalty. On the ensuing power play, Siddo's stick was slashed and broken but the infraction was not called. To make matters worse, while Sid was talking to the ref about it, the puck was dropped for the next faceoff without him. The Pens failed to tie the game with a man advantage.


  • Syko and Letang had an incident. They deliberately hit each other. In doing so, Syko brought his stick up and over Letang's face. Shockingly, BOTH men were called for coincidental high sticks. I'm not trying to be biased - I really didn't see why Letang was called. Either way, no one scored on the 4 on 4.
  • The Pens threw everything but the kitchen sink at Backstrom, but he just wouldn't budge.


  • Rupp and Scott were shown having words with each other. No punches were thrown, but both men were thrown into their respective boxes for unsportsmanlike conduct. (I wonder what they were saying that was that bad???) Again, no one scored on the 4 on 4.
  • With less than 2 minutes to go in the game, Adams had an amazing chance. It didn't end with a goal. It created a series of great chances for the Pens that culminated in chaos in front of Backstrom. Unfortunately the puck never crossed the goal line. In the frenzy, Belanger took a stick to the face that left him pouring blood out on to the ice. He left immediately for treatment.


  • The Pens pulled Flower in favor of the extra attacker, and even though they put forth a valiant effort, the tying goal remained elusive. The Wild walked away with the win, despite having 20 less shots on goal.
POSTGAME THOUGHTS
  • The Pens fought hard and played well, but Backstrom was a brick wall.
  • How about the Captain throwing down to try to get his team back into it?! There is one thing that irked me though. Both the Wild announcers (in the video above) and Steigy and Errey said that Sid picked a non-fighter. But think about it - this is only Siddo's 3rd fight in 5 seasons in the NHL. He's not exactly a professional scrapper either, now is he?!
Next week the Pens go on tour out west. I'll be missing the Tuesday and Thursday game because I have to wake up early for a day job. But I'll make sure I have a post for you to comment on for those games.

Oh, and Happy Halloween!! :)





GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Friday, October 30, 2009

Pens v Blue Jackets (W 4-3 SO)

The BlogPressLite app for iPhone/iPod Touch = EPIC fail.

I'm a little upset! I thought I published a post for the Canadiens game on Wednesday using the app. Evidently it did not work. :( I guess I'll just have to fire up the iMac when I want to post. So much for "There's an app for that!" It's just as well - I didn't recap the game because woodstock wasn't here to help me with Killian. He is, as his name means, small and fierce. He's just a big ball of energy, and right now our senior Greyhounds don't exactly know what to make of him.

LATE EDIT: It turns out that I am the epic fail. The post worked - but the date was October 3rd so I didn't see it. I corrected the date and will be checking the settings on my iPod. Many thanks to good Friend of The Show Jaime for finding the missing post for me!

The calm before the storm... ;)

Anyhoo, speaking of the Canadiens game, how about our Captain?! What a player. Un-freaking-real. The hat trick was incredible, the win was amazing, but losing Geno for a few weeks due to a shoulder strain just plain stinks. But, just as they have done when our other superstars have been out, I have no doubt that the other Boys will pick up the slack.

FIRST PERIOD
  • This is the second away game that the Pens have worn their 3rd jerseys - I was lucky enough to be on hand for the first one. :)
  • In Geno's absence, Gronk moved up to the second line.
  • Blunden was called for high sticking. With just 5 seconds left in Blunden's penalty, Umberger went for a shorthanded chance. He was hooked by Bourque. Neither team scored on their respective power plays.
  • The Pens went on an offensive attack, but Mason responded with a series of nice saves.
  • Cooker was called for high sticking, but the Pens successfully killed the penalty.


  • After going hard to the net, Siddo pushed a Blue Jackets defender into Mason. In response, Mason (while cowering behind the aforementioned defender) elbowed then popped Sid in the face. A scrum ensued.
  • The X-Files theme played. I wouldn't mention it, except that it was strangely out of place. Maybe if they had played other Halloween tunes it wouldn't have stuck out in my mind, but they didn't. Maybe I missed something...
  • Orpik got tripped at the blue line. Nash went for a shot on net. Johnson busted out two of the nicest saves I've seen all season. (That second toe save was un-REAL.) But the trip on Orpik wasn't called. Instead, he was called for slashing. ??? Nash scored on the ensuing penalty kill. [Pens 0, Blue Jackets 1]


  • With less than 2 minutes left in the period, Dorsett crosschecked Brooksie into Johnson, who seemed a bit shaken up afterward. A scrum ensued. Brooksie and Dorsett were assessed roughing minors, but Dorsett's was a double. Voracek served the second penalty for his teammate. The Pens didn't score on their abbreviated power play.
SECOND PERIOD
  • The Pens didn't score on the remaining 22 seconds on the power play.
  • A scary moment came when Vermette took Sid's left leg out in a big collision. Sid left the ice slowly. He was shown on the bench stretching his leg and wincing slightly, but he returned for his next shift. On the replay, it didn't look like it was done on purpose.
  • A little later, Vermette centered one from behind the net to Nash in the far corner for the goal. [Pens 0, Blue Jackets 2]
  • Bourque was again penalized for hooking, but the Pens killed the penalty.


  • As Bourque came out of the box, he joined Kuni and Siddo for an odd-man rush. It went from Kuni to Bourque to Sid for a shot that bounced off Mason's enormous shoulder pads.
  • Guerin was called for hooking. The puck bounced out of the Pens' zone, and Kuni went on a foot race with Tyutin for the puck. Kuni beat Tyutin, but Tyutin tossed his stick at the puck and swiped Kuni's feet with his arms and tripped him. Inexplicably, no call was made, but that actually ended up being a good thing: The puck went to the corner. Sid took it behind the net and fed it to Kuni with a backhanded pass. Kuni fired the puck into the twine for a shorthanded goal. [Pens 1, Blue Jackets 2] The Blue Jackets didn't score on their advantage. With that shorty, the game became interesting because the Pens finally woke up.


  • Johnson had two consecutive remarkable saves. It bears mentioning that he looked really confident and solid in goal.
  • Pahlsson was called for holding. The Pens got the puck deep, but it rolled along the wrong side of the goal line. The Pens didn't use the advantage to tie the game.
  • To make matters worse, as Pahlsson emerged, he joined his teammates for a rush and helped Dorsett score. [Pens 1, Blue Jackets 3]
  • With 13 seconds left in the period, Rupp was called for interference. The penalty carried over to the third period.
THIRD PERIOD
  • On the remainder of Rupp's penalty, Gronk went for a short handed try and drew a hooking penalty on Stralman. Neither team scored on the 4-on-4 or their respective advantages.
  • Vermette hit a post after Gronk punished the "Monster" Nash, who was slow to get up. To me, it's kind of funny that Steigy and Errey kept mentioning how H-U-G-E Nash is. He's 6'4" 220lbs - that's what size woodstock is! :)


  • Gogo sent a lead pass to Kuni. Mason came out to block the initial shot and then blocked the rebound as well.
  • Sid was called for slashing. The Blue Jackets didn't add to their lead while our Captain sat in the box.
  • Time seemed to be against us, but once again, they became our Comeback Kids. With 2:56 to go in the game and down by 2, an offensive onslaught led to a fortuitous bounce right to Tank, who put the puck in the wide open net. [Pens 2, Blue Jackets 3]
  • A mere 39 seconds later, the Saint made a beautiful centering pass to Gogo, who fired a rocket from the blue line that went top shelf to tie the game. (I have no idea why, but Blue Jackets head coach Hitchcock would later refer to this tying goal as "fluky." ??? I think he needs to have his eyes checked.) So we went to...


OVERTIME
  • Both teams fought hard during OT, but it didn't decide the outcome of the game. It didn't even help when, in the last 25 seconds of OT, Voracek was given a penalty for hooking. So the game was decided with a...
SHOOTOUT
The Blue Jackets decided to shoot first.
  • CBJ - Vermette: Shot was blocked
  • PENS - Letang: Shot hit the post
  • CBJ - Nash: Shot went waaaaaay wide
  • * PENS - CAPTAIN SIDDO: Mason initially blocked the shot but didn't realize it as he AND THE PUCK slowly trickled backward and over the goal line. :)


  • CBJ - Huselius: Shot was glove saved


THE PENS GOT THE COMEBACK WIN!!

POSTGAME THOUGHTS
  • Sid is a machine. I don't care if you hate the guy's personality - there's no denying he is absolutely the best in the league and deserves respect. Anyone who says otherwise can't possibly understand the game.
  • Shero is a master at picking players. We're missing four key pieces of the puzzle (Superstar, Gonch, TK, and Geno - five if you count Flower's day off), but right now we've got the best record in the league. It's a gross understatement to say it's great to have a team that functions this well.
  • It's nice to see Guerin and Orpik sporting the A on their uniforms while Gonch and Geno are out. They both deserve it.
  • We've got to stay out of the box. So far it hasn't hurt us much, but sooner rather than later taking so many penalties (8 tonight!) is going to come back to bite us in the arse.
Tomorrow we're taking on our old friend Petr Sykora and his new team the Minnesota Wild.

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Pens v Canadiens

The Pens finally play again tonight. I don't know how closely I will be able to watch the game - have been busy, busy, BUSY with Killian. He is adorable, yes, but he's a little spitfire. The Greyhounds and I are exhausted. I have to go feed him again right now. I will resume recaps as soon as I can...

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!


[ Posted from my iPod using the BlogPress App ]

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Pens v Devils

There's a new addition in my house!!! :) Meet Killian, my Irish Setter puppy:



It's a little soon, but the opportunity to get him just kind of came up, so we decided to go for it. :) The Pens just got another furry fan!

Speaking of the Pens, how about that comeback last night? Our title man pwned the Panthers. There's not enough time to explain how awesome that was. I can't forget to mention Geno's diving poke to keep the puck for that first goal. It was, while extremely risky, a thing of beauty. What a game.

Sid = THE FREAKING MAN. Hey, Captain: Do it again. :)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!

Friday, October 23, 2009

Pens v Panthers

I'll be watching Martin Skoula make his Penguin debut with a friend instead of here at home. I don't know if I'll be able to recap the game or not. (Watching games with friends can make it difficult to take notes!)

Just an FYI: I'm working on a few things for The Show. I've got about a million fan photos (some from last season and some from this season) that I want to share, a couple more Musings from Mad Max, and a few other goodies. I realize I haven't been doing a good job keep things current on TSCS, but there's a reason my focus has been less than 100%... I'll reveal it tomorrow evening. :)

GO PENS!!!!!!!!!!!

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