Are You Serious???

You have got to be kidding me!! Maybe something got lost in translation in the press conference but based on the video above....I am wondering what planet Michel Therrien is on. For the coach to come out here and say we're not getting the calls and they obstruct all the time is completely ridiculous. Pittsburgh has "trapped" in stretches in the playoffs. So for Therrien to come out and say that was outlandish.

I would like to be a fly in the closed door meeting that is going to take place sometime today or early tomorrow in Pittsburgh. It is clear that this team has no answers or very few for Detroit. How do you beat a team that is supposedly "obstructing" you? Simple....speed and longer breakout passes. Stretch the ice out! Actually develop a game plan. For a coach to say we do not have a game plan for a team...I just can't fathom that. It is why you have scouts and assistants right?

Then it got better....now it is true that Chris Osgood does embellish but apparently forgetting to look your own team in the mirror and ask how the hell can you generate 0 shots on goal in the first 12:00 and change would be more pertinent to me. Next it was asked if Kronwall had left his feet....well the hit looked pretty clean. I was surprised no one had the guts to ask him why go after a guy like Franzen....what did he do actually to almost get freight trained? Over and over again Therrien looked like a deer in headlights on the big stage. He has been clearly outcoached by Mike Babcock in every facet of the game...no question about it.

Maybe when they get to Pittsburgh...things will indeed change. Hey maybe they will even get some "home" calls. One thing is for sure...the Penguins look tired...their Power Play looks exhausted and lethargic and their play 5 on 5 is not much better except for short bursts here and there. Whenever they do sustain some pressure...the Wings D and Osgood comes up big. I am sure Pittsburgh will score some goals as the series shifts to the Melon Arena but will it be too little...too late? I am really starting to think the communication problem is from within and maybe it is too late but we shall see.

When Do The Finals Start?

Yes I know the answer but really only one team has showed up so far and that certainly isn't the Pittsburgh Penguins. Two games.....seven goals for Detroit and none for Pittsburgh. More disciplined, more puck control....textbook defense...all staples of the Red Wings in this postseason. Youth, speed, and heart were characteristic of the Pens.

Defense wins championships....especially now that the defense can create some offense on their own accord. That is the absolute difference in this series. Look at the defensive corps in Detroit....Lidstrom, Rafalski, Stuart and then a wall in Kronwall. Is that really fair? Probably not. It was said how Pittsburgh's defense went under the radar. Well Detroit is having one hell of a party right now at their expense.

One player on Pittsburgh who realized the Finals has started is Marc-Andre Fleury...he has played hard and tried to keep his team in it. But when even your own D can't properly communicate to you and turns over the puck more often than most call girls...it just has got to be a bad time. When players like Marian Hossa and Evgeni Malkin disappear like the playoffs are over already...your team is going to be in for a long, hard road.

So when will the finals actually start? Maybe Wednesday in Pittsburgh...otherwise this may become what some are calling a foregone conclusion.

Looking back and Looking Forward at the Stanley Cup Finals

This year has been different for this Sens fan.  While others sat back last year and contemplated what their team could do in the off-season to get to where my team was, I sat and watched (mostly embarrassed, partially angry) as my team quickly conceded the Stanley Cup to Anaheim in 5 games.  This year, I find myself not even remotely attached to the idea of watching the top two teams battle for hockey supremacy.  I sit and consider what it would be like if Philadelphia and Colorado had of stayed healthy throughout the post-season, and how much would be different if John Paddock had not lost the team in Ottawa.

For the League itself, it has been another year of profits, and another post-season of record breaking viewers nationwide, yet has anyone noticed the lack of intensity on the ice, coupled with the number of series that really were not all that close?  I can't help but suggest that while the parity has grown closer, the league has really turned itself away from the type of series that defines a playoff run.  While that doesn't seem to make sense, I believe that this logic in routed in the number of goals scored, and the ability to score them in each game.

Consider this.  How many close games have you seen in your life?  If you are a hockey fan, I am sure you'll go on and on about the overtime thriller in 96, or the series clinching nail biter goal scored by your teams biggest star in 89, but can you honestly tell me, in the last couple years, when you felt that way about a game?  Gary Bettman believes scoring goals will bring fans into the seats, and he is absolutely right.  Those who don't get the tradition, and rivalries, will never understand the importance of a 1-0 or 2-1 victory in the post-season, and how deflating that can be for the loser.  They won't be able to acknowledge the importance of a great goaltender sporting a stingy 1.25 goals per game average, because to them, it is not exciting.

I have watched quite a few different tournaments and finals throughout the last month or so, including the World Championships, the Kelly cup finals, and the Memorial Cup, and I have to say, they have all far exceeded what the NHL Playoffs provided.  Not only has the competition proved to be better, but so has the heart and dedication displayed on the ice.  So what do I think the NHL should do?  Find a way to instill a new sense of urgency in the players minds.  Bring back the competition of the pre-lockout era, where teams were not getting blown out every 5th game, and finally, start focusing on fan retention as well.

What do you think as a fan?  Do you think the new progression of the league is great, or do you think they are taking two steps back, every step forward?

Cider's Up Part Deux

In just minutes, game two will commence...but first up for the cider buffs of the world or just people in general who love the clear, crisp taste of some good old fermented apple or hard cider...here you go.....the picture of the night.....

YAY CIDER!!!!! Game on in just minutes!!! Thank you Bevmo for the great pic.

Pittsburgh's Hill Just Got Bigger...

Hey Penguins...guess who is back? That is right...The Mule who has been absent since Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals will be back in the lineup. I have talked to quite a few bloggers and even the guys from Puck Podcast...and they have to say the Wings are the ones who will need all the help they can get tonight.

Pittsburgh will not go down meekly like Game 1. There is no way with Gary Roberts in the lineup...that they will get shutout again. So strap on in....drink some beer...make some good BBQ and sit back and enjoy the game. I expect some goals in the first period from both teams in the first period. Both teams have seen what the other's got....time to kick this up some more!

Here is my prediction.....

Detroit 3 Pittsburgh 2

Check out the folks at The NHL Arena...as news breaks they dissect it. Game on soon!