Palpable Excitement

I can’t deny that I’m really excited about the upcoming Penguins season. Although I’m not in Pittsburgh, my mother’s first scouting report on Malkin got me extremely excited. Mom’s 1-sentence report "He’s like a baby Jagr!" was an exclamation, and then she proceeded to describe Malkin’s strength on the puck, and how he, like Jagr, could just throw opposing players off him while holding onto the puck.

Well, hip hip hurray. I can’t deny being excited about the possibility of seeing two players of the caliber of Crosby and Malkin center the Penguins first two lines this winter. Likewise, I can’t deny the fact that I still don’t believe my Penguins are anywhere near ready to contend for the Cup—the goalie is still young and unproven, and our defense, well—the less said about our depth at defense and on the wings, the better.

But I grew up watching Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr star for the Penguins. I grew up watching the best hockey player in the world, followed by the best hockey player in the world. I grew up watching teams that had winning records every year because two of the best players in the world played for my team.

And the idea that I, as an adult this time around, get to watch young kids like Crosby and Malkin potentially develop into players who are recognized as the best in the game, well, it’s just plainly exciting. It’s plainly something I’m eagerly looking forward to watching. Because, what with all the memories I have of the highlight reel goals of Lemieux and Jagr, I know watching Crosby and Malkin play and create new highlight reels is just going to be tons of fun and sheer pleasure.