Holy Crap They Won Again...

Well boys and girls, today marked the end of the Pens' recent 5 game road trip. Going into it, I would have ventured that a 3-1-1 record or even 3-2 record would be nice, but as most of you already know, they went 5-0, finishing up with a 4-3 shootout winner against the Caps this afternoon.

The usual suspects have been playing pretty well on this trip, with Crosby and Malkin both playing their usual games and Marc Andre is on top of his game, but I think the real difference has been the players we acquired at the deadline.

Chris Kunitz has been a burst of energy on Crosby and Staal's wings. He hits hard, has proven to be a force battling for pucks, and has shown the soft hands needed to help push the loose garbage around the crease into the net. He also seems to be meshing really well with Crosby, which is big because its exactly what Hossa did last year and look where it took us...

Another trade dealine deal gained us Bill Guerin, the former captain of the Islanders. He's played in 2 games and has 4 points - nuff said. But what seems to be his greatest asset is his ability to keep the goalie occupied in front of the net. A perfect example was the goal Sarge Gonchar scored today - the goalie from the Caps didn't even know the puck was shot until it hit the net behind him. That's what good screening can do for a team.

And finally, new coach Dan Bylsma has taken the leash of the dogs as they say, letting the offensive skills of the Pens take over as opposed to Therrien's more defensive approach. The players have been revitalized and seem to enjoy playing again, as they did last year during their run to the Finals.

All in all, I wouldn't pop the champagne just yet, but this fat kid l ike where the Pens are heading...

Until lata...

Jagr is a Tool

Since the Washington Capitals decided to crap themselves and lose game 7 of their series with the Flyers last night, the Pens now play the New York hockey Rangers in Round 2 of the Eastern Conference playoffs starting Friday night at 7PM at the Igloo.

I am personally kinda glad we get to play these jagoffs - hopefully Sid the Kid and Geno will show the Jagr-bomb who the real deal is in these playoffs, and send these whiny women (I'm talkin' bout you Avery - email me at Pierogiesnat@gmail.com and I'll call you a woman to your face) back to NY with their tails' between their legs. And don't even get me started on the rest of the clowns on that squad. As far as I'm concerned, they can all climb the Empire State Building and take a flying leap off...

Marc Fluery needs to continue his lights out play and Hal "I have a big stick" Gill needs to keep pummeling people or we could be in some serious trouble. I mean honestly, NY is prolly the hardest team left for us in the East - Philly would be a toss up due to our rivalry (but obviously we'd beat them silly) and I think we can beat Montreal somewhat handily. They're a good squad but I don't think they match up well with the Pens in a playoff series; we're more talented, bigger and tougher then they are, which is not a good way to start the series.

Although, I think we're more talented, bigger and tougher then everyone left in the East, so I guess everyone we play is behind the 8-ball from the get go...

As far as all the other Pittsburgh sports, the Buccos won yesterday (they still stink) and the Steelers draft 23rd on Sunday. The draft starts at 3 PM, so my guess is we'll pick around 6ish.

And make sure you check in with PNA during the draft - as of now (subject to change because we suck), we plan on live blogging the first two rounds of the draft. I know, it's a crazy idea, but with enough beer, anything's possible...

Until lata...

Pens lose, Pitt wins...

Doesn't quite sound right does it? It's not very often PNA gets to sing the praises of the Panthers and bash the Pens on the same day, but I'll give it a shot...

The Pens squandered yet another two goal lead in a 3-2 loss to the hated Islanders last night...

Sid has been one of the few bright spots this season...

They looked OK, seeing as they had some chances (including Sid ringing one of the crossbar) but just couldn't capitalize...and what really pisses me off is old man Al Arbour got a win in his swan song, coaching his 1500th game...Fluery was alright, making a ton of saves, but the goals he did allow were partly his fault, partly just shitty luck (pucks bouncing off boards, etc...). I am sticking with my comment about needing a new, veteran goalie to be competitive..Marty Turco anyone?

As for our Panthers, they actually won, beating Syracuse 20-17 at Heinz Field yesterday..Shady McCoy was a beast again and the special teams contributed two big returns that lead to points...I didn't like the fact that we couldn't punch it in in the first when we had the ball on the 1, but, considering all we've seen this year, I'll take a win any way it comes...

Thank God Shady is a freshman...

Until tomorrow, when our Steelers will be eating Raven for dinner...

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Pens lose...

So the Pens lost in OT to the Canadians, and Snack and Diego were in the house...not a good omen to start the blog off with a loss, but hey, at least we got a point...

Some observations...

1. It was good seeing Sid the Kid getting physical...especially since he was scrapping with Alex Kovalev. It really got the crowd going and was the impetus of that two goal outpour in the second. I only wish he woulda dropped the gloves for the first time in his NHL career. Talk about bringing down the house, that woulda been front page news in every newspaper in Canada. I can see the picture now, Sid bleeding from the face like that poor bastard from Chicago who got his nose busted two games in a row.

2. Marc Fluery is as inconsistent as advertised. I watched those two games in a row where he looked like Patrick Roy reincarnated, and I had hoped all this was behind him...God, was I wrong. Those goals he allowed tonight looked soft and his confidence gotta be shattered.

On the same note, Dan the Man Sabourin looked outstanding in that shootout. I swear he has the quickest glove I've ever seen. I can't believe he stopped 5 shots in the shootout and still came away with the loss. Where did the vaunted Pens attack go? You'd think as talented as they are, they'd be better at shootouts, but I guess 1-on-1 isn't their strongpoint.

3. I was not a big fan of how many Canadian fans were in attendance. For a team that prides itself on selling out all its games, it seems a lil odd for so many fans of a different color to be there. But I guess that's what happens when you play an Original 6 team (except the aforementioned Blackhawks...no one gives a damn about them...). Thank God those Pens girls were running around the crowd to liven up the "atmosphere". And whoever Vinny from the X is, you better watch yourself...you might be the next victim of a Snack Attack!

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