I wanted to make a couple quickie comments on things going on with the Penguins.

First off on Malone testing the free agent waters - Hey, if Ryan wants to take the cash and run let him. Only one thing to say about that though which is remember Michelle Ouellet. He made a name for himself playing along side Evgeni Malkin and had 19 goals and 29 points in 73 games in 2006-07. He went to play for the Tampa Bay Lightning and was even more mediocre (17 G 19 A) this past season. Malkinmakes everyone around him better. Lots of people said that Ouellet would not be as good without Malkin (if you count 19/29 as “good”) andMalone won’t be as good either if he plays elsewehere. If money means more to him than winning, let him walk and wallow in obscurity for the remainder of his career.  Make the choice now Ryan.  Do you want a shot at the Cup or an extra million in the bank never to see your name etched on it?

Hossa as a “priority” - Ok, if Malone wants to go elsewhere that make signing Hossa more likely. Not likely, but more likely.  By how much is anyone’s guess. The Penguins truly cannot afford to pay him much more than $6 (maybe $6.5) million a year andhe was making $7 million this year. I like Hossa but to be honest the Penguins could find someone in the $3 - $4 million dollar range to play along side of Crosby. Maybe the plan is to sign him to a deal and then trade him, but I doubt Hossa would like that too much.

Malkin to LA - I hear this rumor today that the Penguins are talking about trading Malkin to LA for their 2nd overall pick and a couple players. What?!? You’re joking right? Ok, so the Penguins have no picks until (I think) the 6th round because they mortgaged the farm to fall short of the cup, but they have talent in the minors and can probably find some undrafted free agents with talent if they really try to. Trading Malkin is down right stupid. Without him the Pens were a .500 club this season and might not have made the playoffs much less the finals. Signing Malkin must be a priority for the Penguins unless someone offers them the moon, the sun and the (super)stars in their farm system to get him away from us. Then maybe I would consider it.

The Flyers made minor news this year outside of Philadelphia with their motto “Vengeance Now.” So, in honor of the Flyers, who failed to exact complete “vengeance” on a league that beat the tar out of them last season (although they did a fairly good job by making it to the Conference finals), I have come up with some options for their 2008-09 team motto.

1) Kill All Humans!
2) Golf Now – Vengeance Later!
3) Screw You Jobu! We Do It Ourselves!
4) Ooooohhhhhhmmm … ooooohhhhhhhhmmmm
5) F^@K YOU! YOU G#D D@%M MOTHERF*&KERS!
6) We Got Hosed By That Flopper Crosby!
7) Vengeance Now Part Duex!
8 ) They May End Our Season! But They Will Never Take Our Cheese Steaks!
9) It’s Ok … We’re Medicated Now!
10) Remember, remember the eighteenth of … uh … May-ember?
11) Thundercats Hooooooooooooo!
12) Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu! (“Axes of the Dwarves! The Dwarves are upon you!” - LotR)
13) LEEROY JENKINS! (Google it – watch the video)
14) Spoooooooon!
15) Come on you apes, you wanna live forever?
16) COBRAAAAAAAAAA!
17) The pucks … they’re … they’re everywhere! (Heard being said by Martin Biron while muttering in his sleep)
18) Win If You Can. Lose If You Must. But Always Cheat!
19) Woooooooooooooo!
20) Does This Jersey Make My Ass Look Big?

The Penguins lost the Stanley Cup last night by waiting until the final four minutes to start playing in game 6. After falling behind 2-0, the Penguins got a powerplay goal to make it 2-1, then after the Red Wings scored again, the Penguins got another power play goal with 1:27 left to trim the score to 3-2.

With fractions of a second left and the goal tender pulled the puck trickled past Osgood and just wide of the cage to give the Detroit Red Wings their 4th Stanley Cup in 11 years.

Now the Penguins have some other problems to focus on, like how to sign as many of their free agents as possible and fill the holes left by those that will leave. Getting to the Stanley Cup Finals is not easy and they will have a lot of work to do to return there any time in the near future.

The Penguins are not dead yet. With the cup being readied, polished and the champagne chilling, The Detroit Red Wings thought that they had another cup for their storied franchise. But the fans at Joe Louis Arena angered the hockey gods by continually chanting, “We want the cup” after their team dominated the Penguins in the third period to take a 3-2 lead in the game.

Thus the hockey gods smote them – with half a minute left in the game, Maxime Talbot banged home a lose puck as Pittsburgh played with an empty net and the extra attacker. As time wound down and the scored tied 3-3 the game headed to overtime.

The Penguins stormed out to a 2-0 lead with first period goals by Hossa (11) and Hall (3) but saw that lead cut in half in the second and then watched in awe as the Red Wings stormed up and down the ice in the third.

Fluery, despite allowing three goals, played lights out in regulation as did Osgood. This series has hinged on goal tending and the better net minder’s team has won every game. The Red Wings were lucky. This game could have been 4-0 at the end of one had it not been for Osgood.

Then came overtime. The Penguins were forced to play down a defenseman as Sergei Gonchar nursed and injury.

In the first extra frame the Red Wings dominated but Fleury was a brick wall.

In the second extra frame the Penguins played even with the Wings.

Then came the prediction by Petr Sykora – he was going to score the winning goal. And then we were in the third overtime.

It came down to a Penguins power play that had been stoned all night taking to the ice on a double minor for high sticking – and the return of Sergei Gonchar. It did not take long after that. The Penguins forced the puck deep, moved it out to Sykora and he fired it into the net to make the series 3-2 with the 4-3 win.

That means game six on Wednesday night at the Igloo. That means another do or die game for the Penguins. Forget winning two. The Penguins need to concentrate on just winning one.

Side note:
For the superstitious the daily big four here in Pennsylvania had a winning number of 7171. Malkin (71) set up Sykora’s (17) winning goal. Not that I necessarily believe in all that stuff … now if you don’t mind I have to take off my lucky jersey, socks, hat and pants and tend to my playoff beard.

Game four could have been the game the Penguins pulled even in the series. Osgood prevented that. Say whatever you want but the fact remains – Osgood has been the reason this series is now 3-1 in the Red Wings favor.

I don’t know how many more games like this he has in him where he only gives up 1 goal when by all rights six should have been behind him. Yes, he had some help and some timely defense. But Osgood has been the Red Wings team this series.