No, I got over it. The Pens are still four and one against you guys in the playoffs all time and don't need 54 years to win a championship, but man the you guys are doing is absolutely priceless! Keep it up.
- stevens87

Im sure you and all pen fans love it. After all youre all fans of crosby so why wouldnt you embrace crying?

The Rangers had a powerplay in overtime (4 on 3) with 2 minutes left...
Malkin got 2 minutes from a scrum, when not one, but two jumped him after his clean hit? Not only should there have been a powerplay, it should've been a 5 on 3 for the Penguins, at least if the rules from the previous night were followed.
There were 2 times when the Rangers had at least 6 skaters on the ice that went uncalled in the third...

but please tell me again how the Refs were biased against the Pens..

You guys beat up on us last week 5-0, then lost a close one. At least we didn't blame the refs in the 5-0 game for our poor play and missed opportunities.

Jan, watching with rose coIored gIasses I guess, I cant bIame you. But, to criticize the captain of the team for Ietting the ref know what he thinks is pIain stupid. AII captains are aIIowed to do this. Sid pIays harder and smarter than any pIayer in the Ieague, being the best PIayer in the worId and AII , he goes into every corner for the puck and Iives in front of the net and takes tons of abuse. He doesnt start fights or take cheap shots against other pIayers. He works for everything he gets and can make his opinion known to the ref anytime he gets abused, which is aIot. So Iook at it from his point, he may get pissed every now and then , but at Ieast he doesnt take stupid penaIties and cheap shots because of it. He reaIIy is a good kid.
- iluvmineos

Must he do it so incessantly and not stop? Its not some conspiracy against crosby. When you act like a little whiny b!tch people are going to have something to say. From the owner to the players I've never seen an entire organization whine and complain more than the Pens it takes away from how good they are. If you think im the only one who feels this way or im just saying this due to me being "jealous" youre completely fooling yourself. Also, if you think crosby doesnt take cheap shots you arent paying attention or once again fooling yourself. Talk about rose colored glasses.

The Rangers had a powerplay in overtime (4 on 3) with 2 minutes left...
Malkin got 2 minutes from a scrum, when not one, but two jumped him after his clean hit? Not only should there have been a powerplay, it should've been a 5 on 3 for the Penguins, at least if the rules from the previous night were followed.
There were 2 times when the Rangers had at least 6 skaters on the ice that went uncalled in the third...

but please tell me again how the Refs were biased against the Pens..

You guys beat up on us last week 5-0, then lost a close one. At least we didn't blame the refs in the 5-0 game for our poor play and missed opportunities.
- npv708

Just try and convince us that if it we're say the Rangers captain and star getting away with abusing the officials, complaining and slamming his stick then Hagelin spearing Malkin that there wouldn't be a diatribe written today encompassing all of Western Pennsylvania

Yes the Rangers blew their chances to earn a second point but it still doesn't excuse the garbage that went on during the game, no other player in the league would be able to act the way he did and he's the face of the NHL? Ovi doesn't even act that petulant and we've kept him quiet for years now

Quick thoughts on Hayes: Not real worried on his faceoff struggles. Crosby was not very good in that area early in his career but worked hard to improve. Hayes can do the same. I see a kid who works in all three zones and shows plenty of hockey sense. I believe in his potential. You can't teach 6'5" 225 and with that size he can match up physically with the bigger pivots in the league like Malkin, Anze Kopitar, Ryan Getzlaf, etc. We needed just that kind of player and Hayes is proving he will be that kind of player.

The only worrisome note is that he struggles to convert on his scoring chances. He has had some tremendous opportunities that he has either flat missed or hesitated or whatever. If he can start burying more of the chances he helps create, look out, he'll be a pretty good center to go with Brassard (who has been damn good most nights this season) and Stepan.
- gkmkiller

Glen, while he hasn't scored much I think he'll cash in those chances as he gets more comfortable in the N

No, I got over it. The Pens are still four and one against you guys in the playoffs all time and don't need 54 years to win a championship, but man the you guys are doing is absolutely priceless! Keep it up.
- stevens87

clearly by your avatar you get over things quickly.

I thought Lundqvist was nothing short of incredible. He is Mr. Consistency right now. Seriously.

The ref stuff is like, meh. It's the NHL. What can you say? It's not worth getting excited about. I think Malkin in the box after the hit was dumb but whatever.

Crosby is a passionate guy who hates to lose. He doesn't call the refs names or anything like that. I can see how that might piss the opposing fans off though. Doesn't mean much to me. At least he cares.

This was a great game and I look forward to many more. As long as you have Lundqvist there is always a chance. We will all be talking about this for a long time and that is good for hockey.

Jan, watching with rose coIored gIasses I guess, I cant bIame you. But, to criticize the captain of the team for Ietting the ref know what he thinks is pIain stupid. AII captains are aIIowed to do this. Sid pIays harder and smarter than any pIayer in the Ieague, being the best PIayer in the worId and AII , he goes into every corner for the puck and Iives in front of the net and takes tons of abuse. He doesnt start fights or take cheap shots against other pIayers. He works for everything he gets and can make his opinion known to the ref anytime he gets abused, which is aIot. So Iook at it from his point, he may get pissed every now and then , but at Ieast he doesnt take stupid penaIties and cheap shots because of it. He reaIIy is a good kid.
- iluvmineos

He takes his share of cheap shots for sure. Puh-leeze.

I wish refs would be more consistent with scrums. Like, for example, Malkin lays a clean hit, he gets jumped by at least three blue jerseys, and somehow it's even when it's all said and done. Then I remember a game earlier in the season where a player for another team stepped in on Downie after a clean hit, and the guy that stepped in got an extra two. Just be more consistent would be great.

Great blog Jan. I'm 48 years old and have pulled for this team since I was 7. You and Carp are the best at breaking it down and making sense of this teamn when some of us want to clean house after every single losing streak. I don't always agree with everything you write,(I was ready to part ways with Torts sooner than it happened), but I look forward to your insight. Couldn't agree more about Crosby. I'd rather he was the face of the league than Ovechkin, but (as Paul Stewart, Carp and you said), he needs to be put in his place. Tomorrow night's Tampa game should be another intense game. Tampa's been hot and Cally, B.Boyle and Stralman will be pumped, but the Rangers need this Rangers need a win more than the Lightning. All eyes will be on those three and MSL.

There were missed calls on both sides. This game wasn't close to as bad as others have been.

Great blog Jan. I'm 48 years old and have pulled for this team since I was 7. You and Carp are the best at breaking it down and making sense of this teamn when some of us want to clean house after every single losing streak. I don't always agree with everything you write,(I was ready to part ways with Torts sooner than it happened), but I look forward to your insight. Couldn't agree more about Crosby. I'd rather he was the face of the league than Ovechkin, but (as Paul Stewart, Carp and you said), he needs to be put in his place. Tomorrow night's Tampa game should be another intense game. Tampa's been hot and Cally, B.Boyle and Stralman will be pumped, but the Rangers need this Rangers need a win more than the Lightning. All eyes will be on those three and MSL.
- 15Hedberg

He's the "poster boy" because he's the best in the league. Just like Lebron is in the NBA and manning/Brady are in the nfl, these players get put underneath a microscope and every little move is seen by everyone. If some 3rd liner on the coyotes whacked his stick I can guarantee no one would be talking about it, even fans of the team

He's the "poster boy" because he's the best in the league. Just like Lebron is in the NBA and manning/Brady are in the nfl, these players get put underneath a microscope and every little move is seen by everyone. If some 3rd liner on the coyotes whacked his stick I can guarantee no one would be talking about it, even fans of the team
- drummer829

Could also be he's been doing this this he came into the league

That was a tough one only because Kreider is so damn fast. It doesn't take much for him to turn nothing into a break. But I didn't have a real gripe there. I just marvel at how often Kreider comes down the wing with a D appearing to be in perfect position only to see Kreider get around the edge. Kid can fly.
- gkmkiller

Kreider is fast, he went around Martin earlier in the game and I want to believe Martin had good position on him when Kreider got the puck. As far as the trip by Scuderi, before this year it wasn't even called a penalty if the dman hit the puck before he tripped the player. I am glad they reinterpreted that rule.

He's the "poster boy" because he's the best in the league. Just like Lebron is in the NBA and manning/Brady are in the nfl, these players get put underneath a microscope and every little move is seen by everyone. If some 3rd liner on the coyotes whacked his stick I can guarantee no one would be talking about it, even fans of the team
- drummer829

Lebron, Brady, and Crosby are whiny female doges that get soft calls in their favor consistently in their respective leagues.

The replay is what it is, the thing I hate is when players take exception to CLEAN hits !! Whether it is Malkin jumping someone for a hit or being jumped for delivering one, it drives me insane !!! Get the F up and keep playing.

The replay is what it is, the thing I hate is when players take exception to CLEAN hits !! Whether it is Malkin jumping someone for a hit or being jumped for delivering one, it drives me insane !!! Get the F up and keep playing.
- Bradlee3

I just don't buy that. So you are saying if that is Crosby or Malkin that just got hit hard and are lying on the ice motionless for several minutes you are cool with that? That you wouldn't want anyone on the Pens to respond? I find it hard to believe.

I just don't buy that. So you are saying if that is Crosby or Malkin that just got hit hard and are lying on the ice motionless for several minutes you are cool with that? That you wouldn't want anyone on the Pens to respond? I find it hard to believe.
- TPC

Isn't that what they signed Steve Downie for?

It never ceases to amaze me how you media types continually complain about the shoot out. Could it be that your Rangers are just no good in the shoot out? Its clearly because they cant score, Henrik is all world it certainly is not because of bad goal tending. When teams lose, they complain about the shoot out. The fans--not just in Pittsburgh but elsewhere as well--stand and remain standing for the duration of the shoot out. Give the fans what they want.

The NHL refuses to officiate games in such a way to allow the stars to showcase their skills. They would rather allow thugs to create "parody" instead of letting the stars shine. The shoot out is one of the few places stars can display their amazing skills. Why take that away? If you don't want to go to a shoot out, dont play a boring, conservative style in the third period of a tie game.

As for the penalties, the Penalty on Scuderi was dead wrong. He caught the Rangers player and dove, leading with his stick and contacting the puck and stick. The Rangers player's momentum took him over top of Scuderi--NOT A PENALTY. I was in that end zone section, had a great view.

Did you ever think that if the referees did their job and enforced the hooking, holding and obstruction Crosby is faced with on a nightly basis, he wouldn't need to whine and cry? I HATE watching Crosby complain to the officials, but I understand completely why he does. We see on a nightly basis players who hook and hold him on a nightly basis because they can't keep up. Officials are afraid to call the penalty because the Pens power play has been so good this year.

Malkin's hit was clean, but when the scrum followed, the officials got it wrong by awarding a penalty to Malkin to even it out. A night earlier, the roles were reversed, and Phaneuf crushed Hornqvuist. Malkin came to Hornqvuist's defense, and was given an EXTRA 2 minute minor. Now Saturday, its Malkin hitting Girardi, and Staal understandably comes to the aid of his mates. But when he attacks Malkin, he is NOT given an extra 2:00. Where is the consistency?

I hope St. Louis has a hat trick tonight but with our track record, Callahan will have it and all 3 will be assisted by Boyle and Stralman

I hope St. Louis has a hat trick tonight but with our track record, Callahan will have it and all 3 will be assisted by Boyle and Stralman
- HankdaTank

Can't wait for the blog about how Stralman is so much better then Staal

It never ceases to amaze me how you media types continually complain about the shoot out. Could it be that your Rangers are just no good in the shoot out? Its clearly because they cant score, Henrik is all world it certainly is not because of bad goal tending. When teams lose, they complain about the shoot out. The fans--not just in Pittsburgh but elsewhere as well--stand and remain standing for the duration of the shoot out. Give the fans what they want.

The NHL refuses to officiate games in such a way to allow the stars to showcase their skills. They would rather allow thugs to create "parody" instead of letting the stars shine. The shoot out is one of the few places stars can display their amazing skills. Why take that away? If you don't want to go to a shoot out, dont play a boring, conservative style in the third period of a tie game.

As for the penalties, the Penalty on Scuderi was dead wrong. He caught the Rangers player and dove, leading with his stick and contacting the puck and stick. The Rangers player's momentum took him over top of Scuderi--NOT A PENALTY. I was in that end zone section, had a great view.

Did you ever think that if the referees did their job and enforced the hooking, holding and obstruction Crosby is faced with on a nightly basis, he wouldn't need to whine and cry? I HATE watching Crosby complain to the officials, but I understand completely why he does. We see on a nightly basis players who hook and hold him on a nightly basis because they can't keep up. Officials are afraid to call the penalty because the Pens power play has been so good this year.

Malkin's hit was clean, but when the scrum followed, the officials got it wrong by awarding a penalty to Malkin to even it out. A night earlier, the roles were reversed, and Phaneuf crushed Hornqvuist. Malkin came to Hornqvuist's defense, and was given an EXTRA 2 minute minor. Now Saturday, its Malkin hitting Girardi, and Staal understandably comes to the aid of his mates. But when he attacks Malkin, he is NOT given an extra 2:00. Where is the consistency?
- Amanion

No mention of the Malkin spear or Crosby bowling over Hank, must have not been in that good a spot to see those with your gold colored glasses on, this game will go down in Penguin lore as "The shootout that redeemed a city"

Can't wait for the blog about how Stralman is so much better then Staal
- TPC

I really wish the internet would just break

It never ceases to amaze me how you media types continually complain about the shoot out. Could it be that your Rangers are just no good in the shoot out? Its clearly because they cant score, Henrik is all world it certainly is not because of bad goal tending. When teams lose, they complain about the shoot out. The fans--not just in Pittsburgh but elsewhere as well--stand and remain standing for the duration of the shoot out. Give the fans what they want.

The NHL refuses to officiate games in such a way to allow the stars to showcase their skills. They would rather allow thugs to create "parody" instead of letting the stars shine. The shoot out is one of the few places stars can display their amazing skills. Why take that away? If you don't want to go to a shoot out, dont play a boring, conservative style in the third period of a tie game.

As for the penalties, the Penalty on Scuderi was dead wrong. He caught the Rangers player and dove, leading with his stick and contacting the puck and stick. The Rangers player's momentum took him over top of Scuderi--NOT A PENALTY. I was in that end zone section, had a great view.

Did you ever think that if the referees did their job and enforced the hooking, holding and obstruction Crosby is faced with on a nightly basis, he wouldn't need to whine and cry? I HATE watching Crosby complain to the officials, but I understand completely why he does. We see on a nightly basis players who hook and hold him on a nightly basis because they can't keep up. Officials are afraid to call the penalty because the Pens power play has been so good this year.

Malkin's hit was clean, but when the scrum followed, the officials got it wrong by awarding a penalty to Malkin to even it out. A night earlier, the roles were reversed, and Phaneuf crushed Hornqvuist. Malkin came to Hornqvuist's defense, and was given an EXTRA 2 minute minor. Now Saturday, its Malkin hitting Girardi, and Staal understandably comes to the aid of his mates. But when he attacks Malkin, he is NOT given an extra 2:00. Where is the consistency?
- Amanion

Is that a serious statement?

Is it safe to come back yet?