Press? What press?

Guess what? The Penguins have made the front page of NHL.com for about the third time this year...for good reasons. Amazing. This piece is a little ditty about just how far the Pens have come from last year, almost doubling their points from last year.

Therrien takes out the blender and bumps Army and Christensen up with Sid, moving Malone and Recchi back with our Staal to the third line...resulting in Roberts, Malkin, Oulette. I'm sorry...I know that Oulette has been making some good plays lately, and cleaning up the rebounds and sweet passes from Malkin for some goals, but I doubt that he rates over Jordan Staal. If this line produces like Christensen and Roberts did for a few games, I won't complain, but I am just flabbergastered that Therrien would move Staal back instead of Oulette. Am I missing something? The last line is going to be Laraque, Talbot, Ruutu, a combo I can't wait to see come out and play.

An interesting article about fighting in the NHL, and I like the perspectives of the players and GMs in it. I think Ethan Moreau has a good point, '"It's like boxing. How many guys really get hurt? Or martial arts. How many guys really get hurt in that? Not many, but when they do, it really looks horrible,"' So does Burke, GM of the Anaheim Ducks, '"I don't want to expand the role of fighting, I don't want to glorify it, I want the players to be able to do their jobs"'. Fighting is an intricate part of the hockey game, and the hockey atmosphere...taking it out would create a set of new problems. As it stands now, fighting serves to energize a team, add a bit of jump to their game, and to protect some of the smaller players. It works as a self-policing system, and to remove it without seriously revamping the entire game (and getting rid of the all the older players who were used to having fighting in it), would make it doubly as difficult to integrate into a new system of play.

Okay, off my little soapbox. I got home rather late last night and saw a message from Steph that said: Omfg, MARTY FUCKING REASONER just won the game for the Oilers. I had to have her repeat it a few times before I believed it. So does that mean that they aren't trying for a draft pick, or just trying to make it look like they aren't...or maybe they're just sick of losing? I don't blame them, either way, goilers?


Next Pens game is in...well, about a half an hour at 1 pm. They play against the Thrashers in their pretty blue uniforms. On a side note, while I will be watching (most of) the Bruins game on Sunday (I have a baby shower I can't skip, sigh), I will be taking a brief hiatus until Tuesday of this week, when the Pens go against the Capitals and hopefully give them an ass kicking that will leave their grandkids black and blue (or just a win, I'll settle for a win).

See you all with hopefully 4 more points for Pittsburgh! Go Pens!