Summer High-(and Low)-lights

It's been 22 days since the last time I made a post here - so long that blogger has messed with settings and managed to confuse me - which I think is a testament to the long summer. Fortunately for me, some of the other Wings bloggers out there have kept up a little better with what few and far between notes of import there have been. To highlight:

• The Wings, while maintaining their roster from the past season, have lost a whole lot of personnel. The team is now down two members of the coaching staff, a scout, and the assistant equipment manager. And of course, Scotty Bowman is a pretty big name to lose. I have to admit I share Christy of Behind the Jersey's fears (to exaggerate a little) that this could impact the team, but also her belief in Ken Holland and Mike Babcock. Still, it's a big question heading into the season.

• Speaking of the roster, the Wings' is still too large - the team has yet to resign defensemen Chris Chelios and Kyle Quincey and forward Darren McCarty and with the recent resigning of grinder Aaron Downey to a one year, two-way contract that pays him $575,000 in the NHL, $100,000 if he's relegated to the minors, has only around $400,000 left in cap space. While it's impossible to argue that this logjam should have been a deterrence to the Wings when it came to signing Hossa, this September may get a little bit interesting. McCarty in particular has been looking into other teams who may be willing to make an offer, as he would prefer a one-way contract that the Wings are not in position to offer him. The news on Chelios and Quincey has been rather quiet lately.

• The Ace of Sports is hosting a "Detroit Athlete of the Decade" competition, now down to the final four: The Lions' Jason Hanson, the Pistons' Chauncey Billups, the Tigers' Magglio Ordonez, and the Wings' own Nicklas Lidstrom. The contest involved bloggers from across the Detroit Sports blogosphere writing in their arguments as to why their athlete is the all-around MVP, and Lidstrom's well-penned plea was written by the Wing's blogosphere's own Dave of Gorilla Crouch. While all four athletes are a kind apart - clearly, given the honors they're up for - the stats that Dave gives for Nick's career are stunning. So go vote for the Captain!

• Wings' preseason tickets go on sale tomorrow at 10:00 am, starting at just $9 - it will be interesting to see how quickly they go, even as preseason games. I personally intended to go to the Wings/Leafs game, but as it turns out I'll be in Toronto that day, which will make it difficult. Preseason lacks the glitz and glamour of the regular season but it is a great chance to see the potential future of the team, depending on which night you go and what roster you see. Having moved back to the east side of the state, my chances to see the Grand Rapids Griffins this season are going to be slim, and thus a preseason game that many of them will play in will be a great way to see the developmental strides the boys have made over the summer.

The season looms ever closer - thankfully. While the Wings have had nearly the shortest summer in the entire NHL, it's still seemed like an eternity.

Happy Schedule Day!

Today is a beacon of light in the seemingly long, hot, endless summer that is the offseason. My car thermometer informed me we were seeing weather in the mid-90s as I left work this afternoon - muggy enough to literally fog up my glasses. Hockey, despite the fact that I spent several hours this week in an ice rink, seems years and years away on days like this. But with the release of the schedule, basically arbitrary and somewhat useless as it is, comes a breath of cool air and hope. Here are some notables regarding the 2008/2009 Wings schedule:

• The Wings will ring in opening day at home in the Joe, raising their 11th Stanley Cup banner on October 9th. The game will be against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who the Wings play twice (a home and home) in preseason and afterward will not see again until next season. Nice touch setting up an Original Six rivalry game for opening day, NHL.

• The three Eastern conference teams that the Wings will play both home and away this season, as per the new schedule structure, are Pittsburgh (woo!), Buffalo (kay), and Atlanta (...woo). It's a great idea to pit the two past-season Stanley Cup hopefuls at each other twice on the season and give the fans in both cities the opportunity for a rematch, but forgive my lack of enthusiasm about the Atlanta Thrashers. (And at the exact moment I type this I discover that former Oiler and NPI favorite Marty Reasoner has signed with the Thrashers and am suddenly more interested.)
  

• By now it's common knowledge that the Wings will be playing the Chicago Blackhawks at Wrigley Field in this year's Winter Classic. The game will be held in Chicago at 1 pm on January 1st, forcing the Wings to forgo their usual New Year's Eve game, but they will host the Hawks at the Joe on December 30th. I for one am excited about the game and do intend to go - while I, like others, was hoping for a Detroit/Toronto outdoor game somewhere closer to home, the fact that it's an Original Six matchup, and that the Hawks are poised to be a much bigger threat this coming season than in the past, should make it a fun game to see, as will the locale. It will be interesting to see how the NHL adapts a ballpark into a venue for hockey, and hopefully the event can lure in more fans in Chicago. It was a huge shame to see the hockey market there fall into such shambles, but an outdoor game against the Red Wings can only serve to help. I do, however, hope they rename the event - whether it becomes standard operations to have one outdoor game per year, a game hardly seems 'classic' if it's effectively being referred to as the 'Winter Classic II'.

For those interested, although ticket information has not be released yet, Wings GM and mad genius Ken Holland has put in a request to have "a fairly substantial number" of tickets available for Red Wings fans to purchase, and the NHL has assured their compliance. More information as it becomes available!

Another notable mention related to the schedule is that the Wings have adjusted some of their ticket prices for the upcoming season. Of note for poor recent graduates like myself, 1,869 upper bowl tickets have dropped to $33 from last season's $44 after studies indicated that many people, rather than forking out the $44, simply moved back a few rows and purchased $22 tickets, thus contributing to the plague of empty seats. Also affected were the first three rows off the glass, the prices of which have jumped from $85 to $125 per ticket.

Blogroll Updates!

With all these rumbling about the outdoor Wings/Hawks game, it occured to be the other day that we at NPI had absolutely no Blackhawks blogs on our blogroll. Coincidentally, I happened to check our linkbacks that very afternoon to see that we had in fact been linked to by both my fellow HLOGger Amy's My Tribe, and Clare's All Hawks Hockey. Make sure to check them out for some excellent divisional rivalry coverage!

And with a new season comes...

Now accepting applications for Stephanie's New Favorite Red Wing.

Because guys, this shit don't fly:

(One of these days I'll stop spending more than a couple hours at a time stumbling through Czech image sites. Why would you betray me like this, Jiri?)

Only a little longer!

I was sitting around this evening chatting with Elly about the dismal sans-everyone Oilers season ahead of us and watching bad reruns on tv when all of a sudden, mid Sox/Indians game, this caught my attention:

Yep. It's that horribly obnoxious Absolute Pear commercial that ran a minimum of three times every commercial break near the end of last season. I literally would get this thirty second clip of a song (should you be interested, you can apparently listen to the full song, "Charmer" at Rhapsody, here) stuck in my head, it was on tv so many times per night.

So why am I posting the stupid thing? Because you guys, I haven't seen it since hockey's been gone. All summer. And now it's back. It's back! Hockey is coming back! Happy September everyone - the boys will be back soon!

Creative and witty title goes here

School starting and the busy details of trying to sleep and work two jobs have kept me from commenting on this, but I can't ignore it any longer.

Sidney has a clothing line.
The Star has a great take on it, too.

Yes, that's right (for the three people out there who haven't heard it), you can now wear something by Sidney Crosby in your own home. Is it a little ego-centric? Yes. Is it a little humorous? Yes. Cheesy as hell? You betcha. Would I buy a SC87 original? In a New York minute (provided it wasn't pink, glittery in anyway shape, or form, and did not have the 'I hear Sidney' on it, because really, gag me). A lot of people are mocking this, but really, have we not seen hockey players do this before? (ask me who makes that line and I'll hit you with a shovel)

However, some people have a good point: did he do his research? What is his market, is he trying to go for casual female fans (or puckbunnies) with his women's line, or is he going for the actual female hockey fan? If he's trying to market to the real lady fans, Sidney, I should slap your hand. There are fans that appreciate the pink, but by and far, most do not. I suppose I should just be happy that I didn't see too much done in glitter, but I would have expected a bit more from Mr. Crosby on this. Maybe I'm missing the point and this isn't for hockey fans at all, just for women who think, 'Hey, I've heard of this Sheldon Crosby guy, and he's hot! Maybe I will buy a shirt....', either way, tasteful clothing isn't too much to ask for, and I'm hoping for the best when you can browse catalogs online.

In other news, the there will be a Merry Christmas after all: The Pens and Buffaslugs will evidently play in the Ice Bowl on January 1st. Good news! Bad news? I can neither make reservations, check prices of hotels online, or even buy tickets. What the hell, NHL? Also, anyone know why I can't buy Leafs tickets online until December games?

Now for some completely random pictures:
-The Frozen Moment from a few days ago. I had it open on my browser, and really, any time you can see a Flyer go head over tea kettle into the opposing players' bench is a good one.
-Screaming Eagles era Flower. I miss the mullet.

Oh, and as an aside, someone over at (I think, forgive me if I'm wrong) HLOG said something about Alyssa Milano creating her own sports clothing line...without the Pink. I checked it out, and really, not bad at all, if a bit on the sexier side of sports (which isn't a bad thing, just not what a game is about, of any sport. I sort of hate her for being able to be hot enough to be her own model on everything. Sigh). The bad news is, she looks like an Yankees fan. Oh, much better.

24 days till preseason!

40 Days and 40 Nights or How I Dealt With Hockey Withdrawal

One last lonely month looms between all of us and sweet hockey relief. We only have to hold out something like 40 more days. But this stretch is by far the hardest. The playoff buzz has worn off, the excitement of the draft is over, and it's hard to even summon back up the emotion to cry over the Jason Smiths, the slag-faced whores (I'm look at you Drury), the Mathieu Schneiders, the Jussi Markkanens, and, if you're Elly, the Ty Conklins, of free agency. News is trickling so slowly lately that the headlines are less "X PLAYER SIGNS WITH X TEAM FOR X EXORBITANT AMOUNT OF CASH!" and more "Top Ten Sports Songs!" So here we all are with forty more days ahead of us feeling like we're never going to see hockey again.

So what is there to do? Go watch baseball! The Tigers need all the support they can get - and apparently the collective I've massed around me (comprised of such illustrious bloggers as BoC's Earl Sleek, blogger at, oh, just the best Sabres blog on the internet, Heather, who's at least cheering for Andy Van Slyke, IPB (Ir)regulars Patty, who even supplied me with little bobblehead Pudge, and Mags - the mention of whom, as she shares my over-exuberant love of the awkward kid, brings me to my real selling point:

Christened PitchyCrunchy over at IPB the Tigers baby pitcher Andrew Miller, whether or not he's been spectacular lately (he has not), and whether or not he will be able to wrestle the title of "my Tiger" away from Magglio Ordonez (he has not, thus far, but I know Christy will pick up the slack on loving Mags if I do indeed switch over) is adorable. Come on. Look at that face.

So go watch the Tigers. Maybe we'll start winning again.

And uh, if baseball isn't your thing, go take HLOG's advice and rasterbate yourself some hockey players to stare at through the long month of August. Don't worry, it'll be over soon. IPB (Ir)regular Katebits, whose newly started hockey blog I of course have to pimp, has the proof!

Only a month left!

Until the preseason, at least. August certainly is the loneliest month for the hockey faithful.

Not much going on in the Land of Penguin, but they have set up a web cam at the site of the new arena for those of us outside the area that have nothing better to do than watch a fuzzy webcam of construction workers on break. Still, all snark aside, it's a nice touch for the fans that have been waiting a life time to see this bad boy come to completion.

In television news, OLNUSUS has announced their schedule and the Pens mark 8 times on it, 3 of which are against the Rangers. Can fans really not get enough of booing Jagr or do the execs just really like New York? NBC has put out a 'flexible' schedule for it's Sunday games, and from the article, it sounds like they'll pick from 4 games to show (how they choose, it doesn't say. Names in a hat? Shortest straw? Team closest to the salary cap?) and then broadcast that one as the so-called 'Game of the Week', while the rest will just be bumped back to their regional carriers. Super, so games of the Rangers, the Devils, and some random Western team will crush out Boston and Pittsburgh (although I have hopes for the Pens, thankyouverymuch Sidney Crosby for being cute, marketable, and a genius at hockey, not to mention the baby-faced squad around you). Thank god for NESN (although I could do without Hazel Mae).

It isn't often that I talk about the Rangers in any sort of light other than 'scathing', but this video struck me as sort of cute and rather interesting, mostly due to the second eldest Staal making an appearance. Also, poor Cherepanov, 'The Siberian Express'? He's fast and....cold?

EDIT: I found this little tidbit on TSN, Gretzky on K.Lowe: ``He's not doing anything against the system or behind the backs of anyone, and good for him.'' Interesting. Also, Gretzky spoke up in defense of Edmonton itself, since it's apparently now thought of as the retirement home for hockey players, or 'the Siberia of hockey for pro players'. Ouch. Does anyone remember the 2005-2006 season?

Also, Mike Ricci retired (yes, there's a picture). Not much to say on that except that any excuse for knob hockey is a good excuse in my book.

Rollin' Rollin' Rollin

It's coming, slowly but surely. Hockey is just around the corner! I encourage everyone to check out The Pensblog's countdown, which started at the number of 66. They've got some solid support for the Pens' fans in the summer (and are one of the only things keeping me from gnawing on my computer in frustration).

So what else are people doing to while away the long days of summer? Some of us are doing some reading (and making terrible comparisons while we're at it), but many of us are finding some fairly creative and entertaining ways to pass the hockey drought. NHL.com is going back over the 'memorable moments of 2006-2007' Recchi's 500th is on there, but I noticed that Mario's speech to announce the Penguins staying in Pittsburgh isn't on there (I'm not being biased, but that was a historic moment at the end of a historic struggle), or Jordan Staal's hat trick in Toronto to mark him as the youngest player to do so. Not memorable enough, NHL.com?

Blogs are also getting in on the action. IPB has a uplifting series they're calling 'Reasons We Love Hockey' (and a new theme. Looks good, ladies!). Hot Oil is putting on a 'Historical Hot Off', which even if you aren't an Oilers' fan, you should check it out. SportsSquee is trying to convert us all to football, and certain Capitals' blogs are recapping games (with a little help from google videos). HLOG has also gotten in on the fun with movie nights, which, while a little confusing at times, are a welcome break in all the trade talk and moving rumors.

The teams are also trying to make us happier in the off season by supplying us with news. The Pens won't have to take down their pinup calenders until 2010 when the new arena is ready. It's going to take 3-4 years, really? Well, hopefully there won't be any other helicopters falling through the roof in the meantime (yeah, it's old, yeah, it's over used, yeah, I don't care. Still a classic). It's a long time to wait, but as the article says, they want to do a good job, and do it the right way. I'm sure it will be appreciated in the long run. Another interesting facet of the arena deal is the effect it's having on the community and residents. It sounds like the Pens and Co. are truly trying to work with people and make everyone happy and behind the project (as any sane company would, even though you can't make everyone happy) so as not to repeat the dissatisfaction that came from the original Civic Arena deal 40 years ago. New jobs and a grocery store are small things to ask in the grand scheme of things...right?

In other news, the Nashville Predators are staying in Nashville...for the time being, anyhow. Congrats, Nashville! Now stop throwing catfish, you weridos. I'd like to try to see them haul these babies over the side of the glass. What would they have thrown in Hamilton...blackberries?

Is it me, or does this man look to be in serious pain? Maybe indigestion? Surprise? The 'you've gotta be kidding me' look when he realized who he got drafted by?

Yeah, that's about all I've got. Oh, except plans to go and see the Pens up at the Bell Centre for their second preseason game. Maybe I'll get lucky enough to sit next to another Penguins' fan in a Fleury jersey like last time...even if they didn't speak a word of English.

EDIT: For some random baseball news (to celebrate a wonderful 13th inning comeback by the A's over the Rangers last night, thank you, Piazza. Seriously, how do you blow a lead like that, coming off a grand slam and a home run?), I feel the need to share a bit of girliness and show the world that Philadelphia does indeed have something going for it: a one Mr. Cole Hamels. Good job on snapping that up, Philly. A talented rookie with a great arm...and a great everything else, too. Maybe it's the hockey hair, but it's nice to know that the home of the Flyers can produce something that pretty.

Just for shits and giggles, have some old-time LeClair. I still hear people claiming to have played in juniors and high school with him. Where are you now, John?

Go Pens.

And the offseason gets darker still.

Once upon a time, the Edmonton Oilers had a puck-moving defenseman, a gritty workhorse captain, a heart and soul guy, and a blonde-haired, blue-eyed sweetheart of a goalie with his leetle goalie mask who bent over backward to give them a chance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs 06.

It took less than two years to tear that team apart.

Chris Pronger is a Duck.
Ryan Smyth a Colorado Avalanche.
Jason Smith is in Philadelphia.
And this afternoon, Jussi Markkanen signs with Finnish team Jokerit. (Look at him still wearing his Oilers helmet - you can tell me it's only because he obviously hasn't gotten time to get a new one made, but you can't say it's anything but depressing.)

Makes you wonder what would have happened if they'd won.

Well scratch my back with a hacksaw!

That's right, folks, Mr. Mike Lange is back for another year covering the Penguins on the radio. Who says video killed the radio star?

Not much else going on in the Penguins world (aside from the now infamous Staalgate, which really, they should just be ashamed of. I mean, none of us ever did anything like that when we were young, and I know that we just all waited until we were 21 to drink, and then we always kept within the limits. Right. Really, they should be hanging their heads that they were caught. Didn't they have any practice with backwoods parties in Ontario?), and the newest scandal is Kevin Lowe's 'desperate and tasteless' push to snag Anaheim Duck Dustin Penner. That K.Lowe is being a douche is nothing new, just ask an Edmonton fan, but really, does it warrent all this attention and negativity? Sure, it wasn't exactly the most classy thing to do, but it wasn't technically illegal, either. Sort of like letting a big heavy door slam in the face of a pregnant woman in a wheelchair with a broken leg.

So who thinks that the Staal brothers will have a bet going on during the first game of the season? Any guesses on what they'll bet? (If you say gatorade, you have no imagination)

I've got it!

While doing the morning blogroll, I came across a lovely picture on Capschick's blog (which was from a link to On Frozen Blog), of Ovechkin sporting the new Capitals logo on a spiffy red shirt in the picture on the left. He looked so stern, so manly, so taciturn and just so....Russian that in my coffee deprived state it made me think, my goodness, he looks just like someone else....but who?

Well, it dawned on me finally that he looks just like another foreign prodigy in sports (if he frowned a bit more), if not exactly in hockey. I'm sure that Capschick will be thrilled that her post sparked that particular epiphany.

Where does that leave poor Malkin? Out at the library, I think. (Sorry Geno!)



EDIT: While searching for Krum pictures, I found this. Hmm.

Signs it's Been the Offseason for Too Long: #1

The Detroit News, lacking any actual Red Wings news, as management is content with the current roster, has so little to report that they instead treat their readers to an article, photo gallery, and even audio that is essentially what Chris Chelios does on his summer vacation.

Paddle surfing: It isn't better, just different, Cheli says.

I encourage anyone interested in Cheli's surfing, biking, and uh, sitting at a friends' place on the ocean to check it all twenty three, yes, you heard me right twenty three, images. When does hockey come back, again? Those who like to rag on his age will find great material - personally I love the 74 year old workout partner.

I just wonder if the News realizes we have a perfectly lovely pair of pair of soccer playing Eurotwins who photograph a little better that they could be capturing the summer activities of. If only.

Meanwhile I just bumped down a great post of Elly's that has been killing me all afternoon, so make sure you check that out as well.

Was that a tumbleweed?

Quite times in the dead of the hockey drought that is summer. Not much going on (unless you count the Nashville drama with a certain Canadian billionare that Pens fans are familiar with. Don't let him get you down, Nashville!), and the Pens are all out on the beach or on the indoor rinks. Personally, I hope they're on the beach with a friend and a good book. Summertime is for relaxing, and as long as you do some practice, you might as well play. Besides, training camp is coming up soon, and rumor has it that the boys are going back to West Point. Think they'll have this much fun again?

Speaking of breaks, NPI is rather quiet right now, and I'm sure you can all guess why.

That's right, Mr.Potter has taken us hostage, and although my adventures with him lasted 23 hours, Steph has to go at a slower pace due to the fact her roommate wants his copy back at the end of the day.

After finishing the book, I think I can sum it up nicely by saying that it's like the last 10 years of the Penguins history, topping off with a Cup win. It is not like the Oilers' last season, which Steph said she was glad of, since it would mean that the book ended with the death and destruction of everyone and everything.

So, how do I compare the two? Well, let's go at this systematically:

-Sidney Crosby, dark haired, marked for greatness at the tender age of 13 (right around when Harry went to school at 11), works great magic with a stick. Now if we can just get him to get a scar on his forehead, it would work.

-If Colby Armstrong had bright red hair...

-Instead of foisting poor Geno into the role of a bushy-haired girl, I'm going to say that he instead resembles a certain Bulgarian seeker. Quiet, kind, speaks with heavily accented English (rather sexy in the movie)?

-Malfoy = The New York Rangers.

-Actually, no no, Malfoy = the Philadelphia Flyers. Snarky and inept, but with some good looks (Lupul, I'm talking about your baby blues, here....and your lack of stickhandling, come to think of it), but that you hate on principle because they're just so good to hate.

-The Death Eaters = The New York Rangers.

I can see it now...Sidney Potter, alone, finding himself at the School of National Hockey, famous before he steps foot on the State-side ice for powers he doesn't know the extent of. Sorted by the Magical Drafting Hat into the Penguins House (located in the tower of Pittsburgh), and taken under the kindly wing of Lemieuxdore as he steers his path from afar with kindly words and well-timed advice. Along with his two best friends, Colby Weasley and Malkin Krum, the prodigy from Eastern Europe, they are lead through the trials and tribulations of learning the skills of hockey from their head, McTherrien (sounds like a terrier breed). Hijinks abound as Sidney faces alienation from other Houses, jealous of his skill, and his acceptance into a new world with the help of other friends, such as Maxime Flannigan and Jordan Thomas. (I was really seeing Eric and Jordan Patil, but I didn't want to contemplate who would wear ornamental butterflies in their hair) Many adventures follow the trio as they work through their years, competing with the other groups, facing friends, family, and culminating to a faceoff with an old nemesis, one that trained with Lemieuxdore in his younger days, learning from his skate-lacings...He-Who-Must-Be-Booed.

As with most of their meetings, Sidney comes off victorious, leaving his opponent to scratch his mark, #68, into the locker room door as he leaves. Lemieuxdore has left the terrible task of defeating He-Who-Must-Be-Booed once and for all (before he retires, anyhow) to young Sidney Potter and the Dark Captain's minion, Sean Lestrange? Can he do it? Will he live up to the task set before him? Will the Penguin House win the Cup this year? Only time will surely tell.


And now, back to your scheduled waiting for the preseason.

(for the record, I do like Jagr, the parallel just fit too well to pass up. Sorry, Jaromir!)

Someone tell me...

Well, we're about a third of the way through the misery that is the offseason, and we're all still alive so far (I think). Posting has been lax thanks to, well, not a lot happening. In fact, such little has happened that we've banded together for mass viewing sessions of The Cutting Edge in hopes that maybe we can the crazy that's setting in with as quiet as the hockey world has been these past few days. Which brings to mind a few questions:

• Will Boogaard Fighting Camp shirts ever show up on eBay?
  

• Who will sign Jussi Markkanen? And why haven't they yet? Are the hockey gods still mad at me? And for that matter, what of Ty Conklin?

• Is the new guy in Edmonton brave enough to wear #44?

• Will Darcy Tucker quit hockey for the more(?) lucrative acting profession? (And at the very least, will his appearance in Little Mosque on the Prairie make me as happy as I'm expecting it to?)

• Is CapsChick going to supply me with the amazing work of genius that is the Cutting Edge soundtrack or am I going to have to go hunt it down myself?

• Do Avs fans do these things just for us Wings fans' benefits?

• Will my favorite little Tiger pitcher Andrew Miller learn to throw something other than a fastball? And will my inane love of him continue? On the topic of baseball, how awesome is Magglio Ordonez?

• Do any of these questions really have anything to do with hockey?

And most importantly, is it October yet? Or at least September?

Say what?

The Penguins have added a few more people to their ranks...their office staff ranks, that is. Tom Fitzgerald and Jason Botterill have been hired to work with prospects and manage the salary cap space, respectively. Yes, that Tom Fitzgerald. I hope someone stuffs a squeaky rat in his inbox.

Jordan Staal answers some Q and A questions from fans. The part about he and his brother betting on a face off was cute, and something I've always wondered if they do. I can't imagine that there isn't a certain amount of smack talk between the four of them, especially Eric and Jordan.

The shop at nhl.com is selling 2 foot tall Stanley Cup replicas, complete with gloves, crate, and little doily (all for a cool 250 smackers). Too expensive? How about the inflatable version (complete with repair kit)? Great for pool parties!

Lastly, this gem was lifted from Empty Netters (which I still need to put in the sidebar), and shows us again just why we love Maxime Talbot. For an extra bit of Penguiny goodness from youtube, check this out as well. The part with Fleury was cute, but hearing Armstrong say 'a little smoochie' just about killed me.

Is it October yet?

Midsummer blues

I found myself with, gasp!, free time this morning since my work called to switch me to a long closing shift in surgery and I thought, hey, why not update the blog! It's been a while since I've been able to give it some Penguins-oriented love.

-Therrien signed a contract extension yesterday to keep him around for another year. I was worried that the Pens might go the way of Boston. (how many coaches is that now? 3 in the last two years?)
-Old news, but Sidney is around for 5 (six if you count this upcoming season) more seasons. I think, 'thank you, merciful god' sums that up. Either that or 'yippie!'. I'm okay with either.
-Talbot and Armstrong are back for two more years and Wilkes-Barre has been bulking up a bit as well. I don't know much about them, but it's always interesting to watch people develop.
-Another signing of note is Petr Sykora, formerly of Edmonton (we'll forget that little patch in New Jersey...and Anaheim...and with the Rangers...hell, let's just forget everything up until the Oil, shall we?), who had some good production in the first half of the season, falling slightly off in the end. I'd point that out as something of note, but really, check out Edmonton's last twenty games or so. Recchi-Crosby-Sykora?
-Not a lot of discussion on signing Fleury early or not. He's improved dramatically last season, but can still be shaky. Are they waiting to see how he comes out this season?

Well, work calls, but there isn't much more on the Pens front (backup goalie switching, but I can't remember the stats on Sabourin at the moment). The season is coming closer and closer every minute! Preseason starts on the 17th of September with a double visit to the Bell Centre in Montreal. So close...maybe they'll have cheap tickets?

Go Pens!

I live!

Just like Sidney, I'm back (maybe even for 5 years)! So much Penguin news to catch up on! Blogs to visit! Stories to write! Flyers to despair over (how COULD you, Gator!). Devils fans to laugh at!

Let the good times roll, baby.

The Season's Getting Closer!

I just realized just how long I've been absent (has it really been since free agency started?). Anyway, a lot has happened - a lot I'm sure you all read about on blogs that are keeping themselves up to date much more than I am. Which I will now resume doing without week-long disappearances that provoke other bloggers to inquire as to if I've been able to leave my house without a bottle of vodka in one hand and a picture of Smytty in the other (short answer: yes, long answer: does beer count?). To start it off, the Wings have released their preseason schedule:

Detroit Red Wings 2007-2008 Preseason Schedule

Sept. 18 -- @ Minnesota
Sept. 21 -- vs. Minnesota
Sept. 22 -- vs. Pittsburgh
Sept. 24 -- @ Pittsburgh
Sept. 25 -- vs. NY Rangers
Sept. 27 -- vs Tampa Bay
Sept. 28 -- @ Toronto
Sept. 29 -- vs. Toronto

I'll probably make the Toronto game (which I'm very happy about seeing as the schedule meanswe won't be hosting Toronto during the regular season), but it's unlikely I'll get home from school to catch anything else. I'd like to see the Rangers (almost as much to see the Joe's reaction to Shanahan as much as for a certain Czech winger), but as it's a Tuesday it probably won't work out. I was sad about missing the Penguins as well but then some more interesting news cropped up:

The Hockey News is reporting a second outdoor game (the first being 2003's Heritage Classic between Edmonton and Montreal) in the works, at which the Penguins have already agreed to be the visiting team. The possible destinations for this game? Buffalo or Detroit.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review suggests the Penguins have agreed to be the visitors in the outdoor game, which will be broadcast on NBC (possibly marketed as “The Ice Bowl") and be held in either Buffalo or Detroit.

...

Should the game be held in Detroit, a likely location would be Spartan Stadium, where the "Cold War" game between U.S. colleges Michigan State and Michigan was played in 2001. That game drew a world-record hockey fan crowd of 74,554.

Should the game happen in Buffalo, it would be at the Ralph Wilson Stadium and, rumor has it, on New Year's Day. Let's all keep our fingers crossed for Detroit! (Can't you just see Hasek with a little toque a la Jose Theodore? Would it even fit on his mask?)

In case you thought it was safe to believe...

A year ago Thursday Jussi Markkanen landed back in Finland after having helped push the Oilers within one game of being Stanley Cup Champions and being touted as "a real Jussi success story" for having stepped up in place of the injured Dwayne Roloson. He was confident he'd get more playing time this season after proving himself - and so were we. In fact, during some of the more depressing bits of the Oilers season (see: most of it), the one thing that kept Elly and I going.

The Oilers, however, had other ideas in mind. They kept him over game one disaster Ty Conklin, but he only got sixteen starts this season, a fourth of which happened within the last few games of the season, when a loss was almost guaranteed. Then during draft weekend, Kevin Lowe admitted they'll be looking for a backup during the offseason.

Anyone who saw his end-season interview (I'd link, but I think the Oilers site has eaten all of these) and heard him state that he thought he could be a starter, but that he didn't think he'd be given a chance already had their hearts broken once. But we bounced back by hoping at least the Oilers would keep him. Instead, he'll join the ranks of UFA goaltenders and even says he might find himself back in Europe: "There's only 60 jobs so it's a little easier to count what teams might have openings," he said of the free-agent frenzy that gets underway on Sunday. "At the same time, there's going to be more goalies than jobs so some of us are going to end up out of the league."

Doesn't bode well for Jordi's jersey promise.

Think that's enough? Nope, optimistic but sad-sounding little Jussi has to make it worse.

"When I left Edmonton (after the 2006-07 season), I felt like I would have an opportunity to come back. But I didn't even know at the time what I was going to do," said Markkanen, who earned $850,000 US last season.

"I really did enjoy my time there -- hockey-wise and lifestyle-wise -- and my family really liked it. Of course last year wasn't the best hockey-wise, but we had a lot of good years in Edmonton.

"It's always tough to leave thinking you're going to find something better when you know everything is already pretty good where you're at."

I guess it just wouldn't be summer (or any trade season, for that matter) without the Oilers making me cry. Mark my words Edmonton, you resign Sykora or it's all over.