The Belated Thanksgiving Day Post

Thanks to, thanks for....just remember to appreciate what you have, right?

John Curry: Thanks for winning your first NHL game the other night. It's always exciting when goalies get their first wins, and really, we don't get to see enough shaving cream pies in the face. Always fun.

Hal Gill: Did you know you have a long stick? Did you know you have a really, really, really, incredibly, awesomely long stick that Bob Errey loves to talk about? In any case, I appreciate those times when your long stick is used to prevent the opposition from scoring when you're killing penalties, so thanks for putting that long stick to use.

Rob Scuderi: Thanks for blocking so many shots and for just, in general, being a solid defenseman. Thank you also for having improved so much from those horror years (for Pittsburgh fans) earlier this decade. Thanks for the reminder that it takes awhile for defensemen to reach their prime and for the fact that hopefully watching your solid play can remind Pittsburgh fans to have a little patience with our current young defensemen.

Mark Eaton: Thanks for being everyone's whipping boy this season. No, on a serious note, thanks for the reminder that the Penguins' defense is deep enough that a legitimate NHL defenseman has to fight for a spot in the line-up. Thanks for fighting for the spot in the line-up. The fact that we're calling you a "depth" defenseman says a lot about our defense in general.

Pascal Dupuis: Thanks for being a speed demon and for killing penalties and for playing wherever it is you play that day--first line to the fourth line, you're still fast and you still kill penalties, plus you always seem so cheerful. Thanks for being grateful and excited every day to play for the Penguins; we like this attitude.

Jordan Staal: Thanks for the hat-trick against the Red Wings. Thanks for reminding everyone you're 20 years old, still figuring things out, and thanks for playing feisty on the "Sesame Street" line. Really, really, that Detroit game was awesome...a few more games like that this season would make us even more grateful.

Alex Goligoski: Thank you for causing debates among Penguins' fans about the team's defensive depth and for creating lots of discussion about which defensemen could "go" if the team "needs" or "wants" a top-flight winger. Okay, all jokes aside, thanks for stepping up, shooting the puck, and scoring goals while manning the point on the number one power play unit. Thanks for learning on the job, and while the power play goals are nice, we're just as excited by a couple of those highlight reel defensive plays we've seen this season. Thanks, too, for the awesome reminder that at age 23, and as a rookie, you're still going to improve by leaps-and-bounds; it's exciting to look forward to watching you after you've gained some more experience.

Michael Zigomanis: Thank you for winning faceoffs at the rate you win faceoffs. Thank you that your work in the faceoff circle has helped the Penguins climb closer to the top, rather than remain mired at the very bottom, in the statistical category of "faceoff wins." Thank you, too, for playing fourth line minutes, killing penalties, and doing your job well.

Petr Sykora: Okay, it happened last season, but seriously, thank you for that game 5 overtime winner. Thanks for calling your shot and scoring the game-winning goal and silencing Pierre McGuire for an evening. As for this season, thanks for being there for the shootout, thanks for being there, as we know you are, to score goals when it matters the most (as you did last season).

Tangential Aside Prompted by Thankfulness for Petr Sykora: Another load of thanks to Jordan Staal for shutting up Pierre McGuire on the night of that 7-6 defeat of the Wings. At the point in the game when the Penguins were down, McGuire said, "It's like the Finals all over again; men against boys." Jordan, thanks for showing McGuire he needs to stop referring to your team as boys. Oh, and speaking of that game, special thanks to the 2 young defensemen who played, er, not exactly well early in the game, only to be playing well, and playing a lot, as their team came back from a 5-2 deficit. Thanks for growing up before Pierre's eyes--and for shutting him up for an evening.

Ryan Whitney: You haven't played a game yet this season, but we thank you for taking the time to have surgery, to get yourself healthy, and for wanting to work hard to come back and win games. We thank you for your sense of humor and wit, which are always appreciated in interviews and which we have missed this season. We thank you, too, not for being hurt, but for trusting the two young guys to fill in for you and Gonchar and not trying to do something stupid and play through a serious injury...oh, and we thank you for the fact that your injury, as much as it sucks, has the chance to ensure the Pens' defense will be better in this season's playoffs due to the experience Letang and Goligoski have gotten thus far this season. But, really, we're thankful you'll likely be back soon!

Matt Cooke: Thank you for making us forget the dearly departed and beloved Jarko Ruutu. Thanks for gelling so well on your "Sesame Street" line. Thanks for chipping in with a timely goal, being our very own agitator/professional pest, and thanks for (most of the time) ensuring the opposition is in box while you skate off scot-free. Thanks for being our Cookie Monster.

Max Talbot: What can you not be thanked for? Seriously? Thank you for blocking shots. Thank you for playing your best every night, whether you're playing with Sidney Crosby or on the third or fourth line. Thank you for being there at the right time. Thank you for being a Penguin. Thank you, too, for those ridiculous, but wonderful, commercials that make us smile.

Ruslan Fedotenko: You're new, and we don't know you very well yet, but man, you scored the game winning goal against the Red Wings. Thanks for that goal.

Eric Godard: Thank you for doing your job. You're always there to stand up for the kids, and no matter what the refs think, we appreciate that you know your role and that you stand up for our superstars and stars and young players...and, of course, if you'd like to give more shaving-cream-pie-in-the-faces, well, those are always something to be thankful for.

Marc-Andre Fleury: Thank you for being sensational in the early going this season. Thank you for keeping the Penguins in games they had no business winning back when they were having a difficult time manufacturing goals at the start of this season. Thank you for doing that and for reminding us that while you're young, we can trust you to be an elite goaltender.

Dany Sabourin: Sabu, thanks for playing well enough to post really, really good--actually gaudy--statistics. Thank you for doing what we ask and want our number two goalie to do when the number one goalie goes down: give your team a chance to win each and every night. Thanks, too, for the reminder that while it can take awhile to get where you want to go (many years ago you played in the ECHL) that it is possible to get where you want to go (counted upon in the NHL).

Philippe Boucher: Thanks for being a right-handed shot and beloved by Michel Therrien. On a serious note, we are grateful for your experience, for your potential to provide two-way play, and for your excitement at becoming a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Hearing something like, "I haven't laughed so hard in a long time," as you said after an evening or dinner or something thereof with the kids, makes us feel good and hopeful and happy about our team, on and off the ice.

Brooks Orpik: Wow, Free Candy. Thanks for leading the NHL in hits for much of this season. Thanks for being a steady defensive partner for a 21-year-old sophomore defenseman. But, just like Scuderi, you must be thanked for what you've shown us about defensemen "arriving" and "establishing" themselves. Brooks Orpik circa 2008 is a different defenseman than Brooks Orpik circa 2003-5, and 2008 Brooks Orpik is counted upon--as he should be--to play lots of shutdown minutes and kill penalties. Thanks for doing all that well and for maintaining a no-nonsense attitude about making sure the job gets done.

Tyler Kennedy: Well, you could be thanked for all the lovely nicknames Steiggy tries to bestow upon you, but really, thanks for being the "plug of energy" or the jolt that gets the team moving. Thanks for scoring early in the season when others weren't scoring, thanks for providing solid play night in and night out, and thanks for constantly working to improve. In addition, thanks for the kid-like joy, still evident, when you play. You're always working hard and having fun; we should all be so fortunate to have your attitude in life and work.

Sergei Gonchar: Just like Ryan Whitney, you haven't played a game this season, so you're wondering why you are being thanked? Well, seriously, thank you for reminding us all that elite power play quarterbacks do not grow on trees and that we were very fortunate to have you running our power play the past few seasons. Thank you for reminding us how elite you are. Oh, and while we winced when you were injured and still want you back, as soon as possible, at 100% health, we're actually grateful, at least a little, for this "adversity" that's forced big-time minutes upon Kris Letang and Alex Goligoski. Goligoski is learning the ins and outs of what it takes to man the point on the first unit of an NHL power play in his rookie season, and the 21-year-old Letang is playing many of the minutes you played and maturing into a complete, 2-way defenseman faster than anyone dared to expect or anticipate. We're eagerly awaiting the day when you will return to quarterback the power play, when Ryan Whitney will also be healthy, and when you and Whitney will be supplemented by young defensemen who learned a lot while you and Whitney were injured. Once again, thanks for reminding us what elite truly means.

Kris Letang: Thanks for asking all kinds of questions (it makes most of us fans smile) while leading all Pittsburgh defensemen in average time on ice for most of the season. We all smile when you play solid hockey, night-in and night-out, for 21 and 22 minutes a night, and we thank you for learning and growing. Our smiles grow so much wider when we imagine just how much all this experience will benefit you and when we imagine that if you can play 21 and 22 minutes a night at age 21, we'll be really, really excited to watch your potential continue to develop over the next few seasons. Right now, we thank you for potential translating to actual performance in the form of playing top-pairing minutes with Brooks Orpik and making nice outlet passes to our world-class forwards and for being a solid defensive defenseman.

Evgeni Malkin: Thanks for being at the forefront of the debate of who is the best hockey player in the world. Thanks for your wonderful English interviews and your willingness to give English interviews this season. Thanks for scoring goals and setting up goals; thanks for killing penalties, and thanks for releasing your booming slapshot from the point on the number 1 power play unit. Thank you for being humble, giving credit to your teammates, and thank you for caring enough to expect the best from your teammates and yourself. Thanks for doing something, each and every night, even when a goal isn't scored, to make us drool, roll our eyes, and be very, very glad you signed a deal to play in Pittsburgh for the next several seasons.

Miroslav Satan: Thanks for scoring power play goals. Thanks for being there when goals are needed to "snipe" one home, and thanks that we have your "goal scorer" hands on our side and available to us in the shootout.

Sidney Crosby: Thanks for still being at the forefront of who is the best player in hockey debate. Thanks for being stand-up, all the time; thanks for not tolerating poor play from yourself or others. Thanks for the high expectations you maintain for yourself, and thanks for the high expectations others maintain for you. Thanks for fighting through whatever you've been fighting through this season and still remaining close to the top of the league in scoring. Thank you, too, that just like Malkin, you do something on the ice, each time, that makes us drool, or roll our eyes, and be grateful that we get to watch you play hockey for our team for the next several seasons. And really, thank you for being who you are and saying things like, "I don't think it's acceptable to play well 2 out of 3 games or 3 out of 4 games because people don't get to show up for work three days out of seven." Are you sure you're only 21 years old? Thank you for being mature and focused on what matters.

Other Players:

Darryl Sydor: Thanks for being a pro's pro and thanks for teaching the kids how they should behave, if they were ever to find themselves in your predicament, in 10 or 15 years. Thanks for being such a stalwart in Dallas that they wanted you back and were willing to give a defenseman who could provide some more depth.

Jeff Taffe: Thanks for not pouting upon your return to Wilkes-Barre but for producing. Producing over pouting is huge.

Paul Bissonnette: Thanks for your great attitude and appreciation for being in the NHL. Thanks for reminding us that drastic turnarounds and huge change remain possibilities.

Janne Pesonen: Thanks for being the potential "next big thing!" whom we can all discuss. No, seriously, thanks for coming over here and playing well in the minor leagues while adjusting to North America. We're glad you're here.

The Coaching Staff:

Michel Therrien: You know the deal if you're an NHL coach. Your team wins, it's because of the players; your team loses, it's your fault. In all seriousness, though, you do some things that make us all crazy, but we can't dispute the fact that the team wins. We also can't dispute that your staff's handling of certain players this season has impressed us. You give Letang and Goligoski big minutes, you work with them, and when they make mistakes, you do what you have to within the game--but you're still letting them learn while the team wins. This impresses us. Knowing when to change goalies, and the fact that your team can and does mount comebacks, well, we'll admit it, we can't argue with your team's winning record. So thank you for the fact that you initially demanded accountability and have now created a team that, most of the time, holds itself accountable. We appreciate that your players expect the best of themselves and that you demand and expect their best.

Andre Savard: Seriously, you're in charge of the defense? In charge of a defense that's missing two top-tier offensive defensemen and has two inexperienced players playing huge minutes and well--people don't think of "defense" and "Pittsburgh" and roll their eyes anymore? It hasn't been said, really, but we must commend you for doing an outstanding job, especially with whatever you're doing (or even not doing in terms of just letting the kids play) with the two youngsters on the blue line.

Mike Yeo: You've gotta know, right, that a lot of people don't want to thank you? That our power play, even missing an elite PP quarterback, is supposed to be top five in the league given that we have two of the best players in the world on our power play? I want to thank you, in all seriousness, for being willing, recently, to adjust and to adapt to get better results.

Gilles Meloche: Thanks for being there for the goalies. Thanks for doing whatever it is that you do, whether work on positioning or make sure goalies are in the right mental place to stop pucks.

Training Staff: Thanks for being there to help with the countless injuries, the ones we know of, the ones we don't know of, and thanks for taking such good care of our team.

Equipment Staff: Thanks for making sure our guys have skates and sticks and everything else that enables them to be their best.

Ray Shero: Thanks for not panicking and making rash decisions. Thanks for having patience with the kids and for giving them a real chance to play and to show what they can do. Thanks for believing in them.

Mario Lemieux: Thanks for working with the people you worked with to keep the team here and to build a new arena. It is going to be so much fun watching these kids for the next few seasons.

General thanksgiving:

13-5-2: Seriously, we are thankful for a team that is winning hockey games.

7-4 when trailing after 2 periods of play. We are thankful that (even against the reigning Stanley Cup champions) a three goal deficit never feels like a deep hole that cannot be escaped.

Crosby-Malkin "debate": We are thankful Pittsburgh fans can "debate" as to whether Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin is the better player. We are thankful that such a debate is moot point as they are both barely able to drink legally in the States, and they are both already elite, world-class superstar centers. They are both property of our organization for the next several seasons, and we are grateful we can enjoy watching them dominate.

Luck: We are thankful for luck and "fortuitous" bounces and good fortune--Crosby and Malkin have been healthy; other key defensemen have not been injured, and when one players stumbles or is hurt, another player is there to step in and fill the void.

The announcing teams: We are grateful for the fact that Steiggy loves what he does, that Bob Errey makes us laugh, each and every night, that Mike Lange still calls the games with his wonderful sayings, and that the old 29er contributes his insights.


Oh, and yes, of course we are concerned. Concerned about our team's power play. Concerned about needing more scoring from the wings. Wondering when our team will learn how to hold a lead or to get a lead rather than play from behind all the time. Worried about what will happen if a losing streak occurs when a few or some of these things we're thankful for disappear (whatever the reason) for a game or two or seven.

But on this day after Thanksgiving, it is not a day for concern but for gratitude, appreciation, and yes--thanksgiving--for our hockey team.

So we're thankful that the Penguins are our team and that we root for you to win...and we're thankful that the Pens play competitive hockey, exciting hockey, and that the Pens win...and that the Pens remind us why we love HOF hockey.

I Am a Spoiled Brat

(Note: If you're a Pittsburgh Penguins fan of a certain generation,
read to see if this statement applies to you.)

Last night, several moments coalesced to lead me to the conclusion that I am a spoiled brat--at least when it comes to the quality of hockey I have come to expect of my team, the Pittsburgh Penguins. Here is a brief summary of those moments:

• After the Penguins defeat the Bruins in a shootout (thank you, Evgeni Malkin), I check the updated standings on yahoo's NHL site and note that the Penguins--in spite of, in my opinion, playing rather atrocious (read: extremely mediocre) hockey, somehow have a managed a 4-2-1 record.

• I am mature/sane enough to recognize that complaining about winning games while playing bad (read: average at best) hockey is, generally, not really worth complaining about (I mean, if you can win when you're not playing your best hockey, that's some sign you're a decent or at least lucky team, right?). However, I do find myself complaining about the quality of the opposition . It is not exactly as though the Penguins have beaten quality opponents, I find myself saying. Let's wait until they play Montreal. Or even the Rangers. Or dare I say the Red Wings. Because right now, the way the Penguins are playing, well, to put it mildly, I am not going to be convinced until they can beat quality opponents (and they did a poor job of convincing me they could do that when squandering a 3-0 lead to the Washington Capitals).

• I am irritated and irate (yes, the words hold the same general meaning, and the emotions I feel warrant two adjectives describing my emotions) when the Penguins allow other Eastern Conference teams to pick up a point when a tied game goes to overtime. Especially when, let's be real: These are teams that the Penguins, if they want to purport themselves to be a great team, should be finishing off in regulation. The Versus announcers (note I was kind and didn't call them bozos; perhaps this is early season kindness but we shall see if it lasts) can tell me all they want about Phil Kessel scoring goals and the Bruins being a likely playoff team, and I don't care: The Penguins are supposed to beat the Bruins in regulation. Every time. There is no excuse for not doing so if you are an elite team.

• Speaking of being an elite team, at several moments during last night's game, I realized that there is no getting around the fact that I am accustomed to watching the game's best players do what only elite hockey players are capable of doing. This, of course, means that I am accustomed to watching the best tandem of offensive defensemen this side of Anaheim's duo and the league's best power play quarterback sans Lidstrom when Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney play the points on the Pittsburgh power play.
  I am accustomed to elite play from elite players--players who make the good play in their sleep, players capable of making the great play when being set up by two of the best centers in the world.

Being accustomed to elite play from kids who are barely able to drink legally in the States in Crosby and Malkin is a privilege, but it's also a drawback that can lead me to have unrealistic expectations for other players who will follow a more, er, normal developmental path. The young defensemen who have assumed many of Gonchar and Whitney's responsibilities are not yet elite players, and--gasp (snark warning)--they're not even going to be legitimate candidates for the All-Star team at this juncture of their careers! And the 20-year-old center who was drafted second overall and didn't come close to leading the NHL in scoring in his second full big-league season (as Crosby did and as Evgeni Malkin came tantalizingly close to doing) and who's struggling to find his offensive game--he doesn't look like a franchise player yet; he still looks like a kid who's trying to figure out aspects of the NHL game!

As a spoiled brat fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins, as the girl who grew up watching Mario Lemieux in his prime, only to be supplanted by watching Jaromir Jagr in his prime, as the one who got "hooked on HOF hockey" while watching several Hall of Famers and/or future Hall of Famers work on the same power play in the early nineties, and as the adult fan who's now had the chance to recharge my addiction to HOF hockey while watching Crosby and Malkin perform their show--let's just reiterate the obvious. I am a spoiled brat. I grew up watching elite players play the elite hockey only players of a generous God-given talent set are able to play. After a few years of, um, watching mere mortals play hockey as mere mortals do (lots of losses), I again got to watch a new generation of all-world players perform at all-world level--so much so that the team tore through the Eastern Conference playoffs last year (really, probably, in the eyes of fans and managerial types who care to be candid, a year or two ahead of "schedule"). And, well, in October of the season following that oh-so-close and yet oh-so-far Stanley Cup Finals loss, I may say that I don't expect perfection...and fine, I don't expect perfection. Well, not exactly.
I just expect the Penguins to play like an elite team...never mind that some of their young players aren't yet at an elite level and thus aren't yet capable of consistently playing at an elite level. Never mind that the season is barely a few weeks old and that the quality of hockey, in general, is not yet what it will be once teams and players have had time to gel.

Here's the thing. In order for my team to be what I want them to be--they have to beat the Bruins in regulation. They can't squander three goal leads to the Capitals. Jordan Staal must learn how to find the net, and another winger must learn to find the net at even strength on a consistent basis. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin cannot remain on the same line indefinitely; the Penguins need multiple lines capable of scoring goals at even strength. And while the Pittsburgh power play (after a porous start) has shown improvement, Malkin and the two young offensive defensemen have to use the skills they already have to produce on the power play. There can't be talk about potential when it comes to a team expected to be elite, for one that should be a contender--there has to be production, and not merely production, but productive production, the type of production that results in a complete team that literally, as a matter of course, bulldozes its way to victory after victory after victory.

Does the rational side of my brain understand that Letang and Goligoski are kids learning to play a tough position and that it's unfair to expect a 20-year-old to play the two-way game Sergei Gonchar's only gotten really good at playing in the past few seasons? Can I understand that certain players need time to adjust to a new team, new linemates, and new expectations, and a team culture that demands victories? Could I even cut the elite players slight slack when they're taking risks to create something great and occasionally make boneheaded (or, at least, not the "smartest") decisions with the puck? Of course. And sometimes, I do. Or I tell myself that I should.

But here's the cold, harsh truth. I am a spoiled brat fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who possess two of the best players in all of hockey, and--I am hopeful--a goaltender who in many ways has grown up before our eyes into the elite goalie he was for the playoff run last spring. And being a spoiled brat fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins entails that as much as I will love watching my team, as much as I will understand that Letang and Goligoski aren't Whitney and Gonchar and that Crosby and Malkin are the exception, not the rule, when it comes to the developmental curve of most young players, I will still expect that my team finishes off teams who will finish fifth through eighth in a conference in regulation, and I will still expect that my team handily beat teams that will not participate in the postseason. I will still expect the young defensemen to perform at a level high enough to result in production that helps the team to win games. I will still expect that the coach and his team figure out how to get this group of players arranged in such a way that even-strength goal scoring becomes the norm.

Absurd expectations? Unfair expectations? Ludicrous? Outlandish? Difficult?
Hmm. Maybe. Slightly. A little. But you know what--I don't need to hear excuses. "But this, but that." It bores this spoiled brat fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who expects one thing: victories. Lots and lots of wins--and hopefully, at some point come the spring, a chance, once more not just to come close to capturing hockey's holy grail...but actually to cling to the Cup upon season's end.

In the meantime, however, I'll concern myself with the Penguins winning enough games to make the playoffs, and when I find myself frustrated by a shootout win against a conference opponent that gives that opponent a point in the standings, I will note, that, yes, indeed, being a fan of the contemporary Pittsburgh Penguins means that you are, in fact, a spoiled brat who tends to expect nothing less than perfection.

Wins Are Great
Superstars Are Great, Too
Don't Get Too Excited
And Other Thoughts

-Don't get me wrong, I love watching the Penguins win. I especially love watching the Penguins win on Hockey Night in Canada. But here's the thing. The Toronto Maple Leafs are not expected to be a good hockey team. The Toronto Maple Leafs are expected to "contend" for the top overall pick in the 2009 draft. As such, the Pittsburgh Penguins, the young, promising team that went to the Stanley Cup Finals last season, are supposed to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs. And to be perfectly blunt, the Pittsburgh Penguins--even sans their top two offensive defensemen in Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney and even with the offseason losses of wingers Hossa and Malone--are supposed to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs handily--you know, by a substantial margin. So, while it was a wonderful night for statistical milestones in Pittsburgh, and while it's reassuring to know the Penguins can still score on the power play, may no one delude themselves into thinking that the Penguins did anything wonderful or great tonight. The Pittsburgh Penguins merely did what a team with two of the top players in the world should do: beat a much less talented hockey team. The Penguins are going to need to continue to beat inferior opponents, and while they're at it, they're going to apply any lessons learned thus far in order to beat clubs far more talented than the Toronto Maple Leafs.



-Speaking of applying lessons learned, watching the Penguins power play sans Gonchar and Whitney has been, um, interesting, thus far this season. In fact, just watching the Penguins defense without Gonchar and Whitney has been, er, equally interesting.

But first to the power play...watching tonight, I was struck by a few things. I think it's good for Crosby and Malkin both to know how to play the point on the power play. I think it'll eventually be a useful skill for both of them, and perhaps something they'll get very, very good at, that can be used at certain times (recall that Mario Lemieux' career did include playing the point on the power play with much success). Even though the Penguins' power play was solid tonight (against an inferior opponent, when it should have been solid), I was struck by the pucks that Malkin didn't keep in the zone that Gonchar (or yes, even Whitney) generally keep in the zone, and keep in the zone with ease. Even for the best players, there is a learning curve. Malkin and Crosby are already at the top of the NHL as forwards, and their skillsets can be applied to manning the point on the power play. But neither Crosby or Malkin, at least not initially, is going to provide the same level of all-world power play point-man play we see in defensemen like Lidstrom. Numbers 87 and 71, as their statistics show, have got the talent--but now it's a matter of applying that talent in new situations. Which is just a long-winded way of saying: Crosby and Malkin are great, world-class players, but don't be shocked if, early this season, it takes some time for their all-world skill to manifest itself at an all-world level when they're manning the point on the power play.

Having noted that even a kid who's accumulated over 200 points in 161 NHL games is going to have a learning curve while manning the point on the power play for the first time, why not note that young offensive defensemen Alex Goligoski and Kris Letang are going to experience an even larger learning curve? Just like Paul Coffey (remember the Doctor swooned over Letang when visiting the Pittsburgh broadcasting booth last season), I love Letang's potential and style. And in tonight's game against Toronto, I saw the glimpses we'll see from time to time this season. I saw Letang rushing the puck confidently, I saw him hold the puck in, and I saw him knock down a Maple Leaf with a solid check. All of which, of course, I hope will one day become par for the course. But as Letang's current plus-minus rating might indicate, he is not yet at the stage where he's going to give you 24 to 25 minutes of solid, mistake-free play on a game-in, game-out basis. There are going to be lapses, there are going to be errors, and there's going to be the learning curve that comes when an inexperienced defenseman is "thrown to the wolves," so to speak, to get the experience he needs in order to improve. Goligoski and Letang both played less than 20 minutes tonight, and Goligoski, the rookie, has been a bit more protected (ice-time wise) than Letang thus far this season, but the bottom line is that Pittsburgh fans are watching two young, inexperienced defensemen....which, of course, is another long-winded way of saying: Don't expect Letang and Goligoski to replace Gonchar and Whitney. Don't expect them to do what Gonchar does, or even what Whitney does, at least not initially. Not because they may not one day be able to, but because reality dictates that just as Gonchar and Whitney needed NHL games to learn, so, too, will Letang and Goligoski.



-Oh, and my other thought about tonight's game, and about the Penguins in general? When you have two players as good as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, well, you're just spoiled rotten, and you should expect to win games when you can dress two of the best players in all of hockey. I'm generally not a fan of Evgeni Malkin as Crosby's wing save for certain, special circumstances (Malkin, as last year proved, is a world-class center in his own right), and teams with only one line that is capable of generating scoring chances at even-strength may make the playoffs, but they generally are not built to advance in the playoffs. That said, the season is young, the Penguins in October (for better or worse, as the case may be) are not the same team they will be in January or in March--and the same goes for other NHL teams as well.
But just staring at the statistical milestones tonight, notating the points that two players have already put up, so quickly, is astonishing when you realize those two players play for your team and who, provided they stay healthy, are still at the nascent point of their careers. These players are going to score more goals, get more assists, learn how to play the point on the power play, and maybe Malkin's even going to get good at winning face-offs someday, too...but the point is, these players are already great. And as such, well, fretting about the state of the Pittsburgh Penguins seems a little overblown when both Crosby and Malkin are in the fold. Say what you will for the years of Mario Lemieux/Jaromir Jagr and what could have been/should have been, but those teams nearly always competed for division titles. The presence of world-class players in a lineup--especially two world-class players--means that talent can triumph against many opponents, and I'm looking forward to watching Crosby and Malkin do their shiny superstar thing this season.


-Oh, and while I already mentioned this in passing, it bears repeating, especially given that the playoff loss against the Red Wings probably still feels fresh. October hockey is not playoff hockey. Yes, a team needs to win the games and accumulate the points necessary to get into the postseason to compete for the Stanley Cup. But no hockey team in the autumn will be the same hockey team in the spring. For better or worse, injuries will occur, trades will happen, lines will be tweaked, etc., etc...the list is long.

Right now, it's interesting for me to ponder the blog post I wrote back in the spring of 2007, believing that sans a loss of Crosby, Malkin, or Fleury, the Penguins would be in the most trouble if Sergei Gonchar or Ryan Whitney were lost to injury. I find it interesting because both Gonchar and Whitney are out with injuries now, and no one can argue the Penguins don't miss those two players. The Penguins are a weaker team without Gonchar and Whitney--their power play is weaker, their power play options are weaker, ditto for the penalty kill, and while they still have depth on the NHL blueline, no one can argue that the defensemen who have assumed Gonchar and Whitney's minutes are as adept with outlet passes as are Gonchar and Whitney.

And yet what's interesting is what the Penguins know full well: They have to win games without Gonchar and Whitney. They have to rely on different players to win those games. And in order to win those games, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are going to take their turns at the point on the power plays on 5 on 3's, and we're going to wince more than a few times as Malkin gets comfortable at the point on the power play. We're going to wince way more often than that when we watch Goligoski and Letang get turned around or caught out of position or just not quite be able to do something that we've seen Gonchar do as a matter of course. And yet--the team in October won't be the same as the team in April.

Given last season, of course, I'm hopeful, but the season can go a ton of different ways, and the bottom line is the Penguins have to do what they did against Toronto tonight on a frequent basis against teams of a much higher caliber than the Maple Leafs. It should be a fun ride to see what they can do and how they do and who steps up to do it.


-Oh, and one last thought? Speaking of fun rides, the evolution of Marc-Andre Fleury from "kid with potential" to "goalie who makes the big save" and is congratulated on his postseason work by Martin Brodeur, that's just great. Here's to hoping Fleury continues his upward curve, and that a few of his teammates join him in creating upward curves of their own--to becoming peak players at their positions/within their roles, and in so doing, win lots of games...because, after all, winning is the name of the game. (And, yes, it's fun to beat any Canadian team on Hockey Night in Canada.)

Whitney, Letang, and Young Defensemen

As a recent news report made clear, Ryan Whitney was apparently dealing with a foot injury last season. I'd rather not debate the merits or particulars of Whitney playing while injured or the fact that he apparently did not share the details of said injury with the coaching staff. I don't even want to discuss the timing of his surgery (you can check lots of other Penguins sites for discussions/arguments/commentary about each of those issues). Rather, I'd like to discuss how Whitney performed and was treated last season, and then I'd like to turn my eyes upon Kris Letang, who may or may not be asked to step in and fill the void left by Whitney's absence.

First, let's talk about Whitney last season. He wasn't great by any stretch of the imagination. He didn't produce as much offensively as he had the previous season, he didn't play the body as much as is typically expected of a man his size, and he even got called out by Coach Therrien for costing the Penguins a regular season game. And yet Whitney still had a few of those moments that made you pause and see why he'd been given that 24 million dollar contract. His response to being called out by Coach Therrien, for example. Or that wonderful performance in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals--fifty minutes of high quality play to be expected from a top-pairing defenseman.

In contrast to Whitney's virtuoso Game 5 performance, Kris Letang, the other, young, offensive Pittsburgh defenseman, wasn't even dressed for that game. Letang had played solid defensively during the regular season, and he was a regular season shootout star. But the Red Wings took advantage of his inexperience and his youth, and Letang never regained his place in the lineup for the duration of the Cup Finals. And to be sure, it was Letang's first full season out of junior hockey; he's a few years younger than Whitney.

And yet the things Letang and Whitney share (despite how many parties want to dispute which player has more talent, and again, you can read these disagreements/discussions/arguments/conflicts elsewhere) include youth, inexperience, and talent. They're both young players. They're both still relatively inexperienced professionally (Letang, of course, being much greener than Whitney as this juncture of their careers). But the most important trait they share is talent. And the most important thing for the Pittsburgh organization to do is to develop and deploy that talent in a way that will be of the most short and long-term benefit both to the player and to the whole organization.

What does needing to develop Letang in a way that benefits him both now and in the future but also benefits the organization both now and in the future actually look like in reality? Especially given the reality of Whitney's injury? Well, it could mean that Letang gets all of Whitney's power play time. It could mean that Letang is entrusted with more ice time and more responsibilities. It could be that he is set free to roam, to play "his" offensive game, to pinch as needed, and to take risks. And this seems to be what most fans are anticipating. And given their love affair with the shiny Letang (one I shared, and one shared by the Doctor himself, Hockey HOF member Paul Coffey), they expect this to be a good thing.

And who knows. It very well could be a good thing for Letang to assume Whitney's minutes. It could be a great thing for his long-term benefit and development. But in the short-term, as Penguins fans who have watched Whitney throughout his career have to know, and as any fan who's had to watch a young defenseman learn the NHL game, please be aware that when Letang's playing that many minutes, suddenly unprotected, you're no longer going to love him every second. He's going to make mistakes. He's going to have to learn through experience. Hopefully he learns quickly. But no matter how talented he is--and I believe he's very talented--he's not going to have the poise about making the perfect play for that precise situation which he may one day possess.

And, then, when, to protect the team in the short-term, but also to protect Letang's long-term development, the team deploys Darryl Sydor, or someone else, to take some of Whitney's minutes, I'm probably going to have to remind myself to take a deep breath and not to shriek or scream or demand that Michel Therrien get a clue. Because, at some point, Letang may need to watch. The way Whitney needed to watch a penalty kill when he wasn't helping on the penalty kill. I am not saying it will be necessary with Letang, who's obviously a different player than Whitney, but it might be necessary.

It's wonderful, great, and grandiose to expect kids to perform at All-Star levels when they first arrive in the NHL, but truth is, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are the exception, not the rule. And for offensive defensemen, honestly, it's twice as hard. They have to find the right mix of creating scoring chances for their own team without allowing the other team scoring chances. Even for kids who possess a skillset that makes Paul Coffey rave, it takes time and development.

So, I guess I want to counsel myself, and like-minded Penguins fans, to have some patience with Letang. To think about both short-term and long-term benefit to the organization and to the player.

Just kindly link to this post the first time I want to scream that Therrien needs to put Letang back at the point on the power play or the first time I want to scream at Letang when he's on the ice for three goals against in a game.

And be aware that many, many other times, will follow after I have my initial screaming/sighing (or more likely in my case blog ranting fit) about Therrien's refusal to use Letang as I feel he should or my frustration with the still-to-be-honed-and-harnessed areas of Letang's game.

In the meantime, enjoy that SCF Game 5 performance of Whitney's, and remember that it came after lots and lots of screaming/blog ranting about both Therrien and Whitney.

Sometimes it does all work out in the end--so hopefully that's the case for Therrien, Letang, and Whitney next season.

It Already Feels Different
It's a New Season

Empty Netters recently posted a video of Game 5 of the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals. If you're in the mood for a hockey fix, as I was, that high-quality video is definitely a potential cure.

That said, as I fast-forwarded just to key in on some beautiful moments from a Pittsburgh perspective, it occurred to me that watching this game already felt different. For one, I knew the outcome, and not just the outcome of the game. I knew the Red Wings would win Game 6 in Pittsburgh. More than that, though, I knew Marian Hossa would depart for the Red Wings in the offseason. And I knew, too, that players who were a key part of that team: Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, and the back-up goalie who played a huge role in the regular season if not the actual postseason games, would not be Penguins in the upcoming season.

And I didn't have the hours I made available to watch that game a couple months ago--when I didn't care about the three hours (barely, sort of) of sleep I got due to an early morning appointment but really didn't care about the four to five hours of sleep I missed by staying up until the beautiful end to that contest. Because, really, when you know the outcome--well, it's not the same as watching a 3OT playoff game the first time, that's all there really is to it.

Yet the video is still great, still grand, and yeah, not to be too over-the-top, but it's still got those glimpses of playoff glory. And yet watching, all I felt was, this is just a little too fresh. Too fresh because I can't expect this same team to materialize on the ice for training camp within a few weeks.

The same team won't be gathering for training camp. Oh, the stars are still there, all kids, all a year older, and all with the experience of having come to the very cusp of clasping the Cup, who now know what it takes to get to the Finals, even what it takes to win a triple overtime game in the Finals, but who haven't yet experienced the sheer magnificence of a Cup win in all its glorious grandeur. And basically what I felt as I stared at the video is only a little different than what I feel when I watch a video of that wonderful quadruple overtime win in 1996 or Game 1 of the 1992 Stanley Cup Finals. It was great. It was wonderful. But it is in the past. And to be blunt, it's history.

Last season is now in the history books. And watching Game 5 of the 2008 Cup Finals, it occurred to me, there will first be 82 regular season games for the Penguins, none of which will go beyond a 5 minute overtime and a shootout. And there will be a different team, different players...

And yet, the bittersweetness of that victory. The thrill of silencing the Red Wings faithful screaming they wanted the Cup--if only for a night. The wonder of that night. And the hope that next season will bring greater glimpses. And, perhaps, eventually, at season's end, celebration of a championship.

But it will be with a different team. With different players comprising that team.

In the meantime, we can enjoy that Game 5 video. So long as we don't expect to see Game 5 exactly replayed next season. Because it's now in the past, and yes, indeed, relegated to where the past belongs: history.

And very soon, the season begins anew.

Random Thoughts



--I haven't blogged in a LONG time (busy with work), but to get back in the flow, some bullet points seemed in order. Especially given the fun and excitement and energy the NHL trade deadline provides.

--In a few recent games, the Penguins have developed what might be charitably called "bad habits." I might call these habits "dangerous." I'd also call them deadly poison to any hopes of a long post season run. Among things a team that fancies itself a Cup contender shouldn't do in the playoffs:
-Relinquish two goal leads.
-Relinquish three goal leads.
-Rely on your goaltender to save 50 out of 52 shots (no, I don't care how bad the shots were, that's just way too many shots to make your goalie stop).
-Take careless penalties.
-Take mental breaks or vacations for periods of time throughout games.
The Penguins would be advised to stop these bad habits immediately in order to prepare for the postseason. I might like to swat them with a rolled up paper of last year's playoff box scores and say, "Don't!" But, whatever works. Just stop the bad habits and keep winning.

--Fans who read through the above list and take a peek at the standings will no doubt note that the Pens managed to earn points in every game in which they kept doing foolhardy things like falling asleep and relinquishing leads and experiencing mental lapses of varying severity. As much fun as it is to watch a team that's often good enough to win on talent alone, it's also scary. And yeah, sometimes it's scary good. But more often, it's scary bad...scary bad because...you're doing that now...but, in a 7 game series...well, really...Maybe one game you pull that off? But four in seven? You really think that's going to fly? Really?

--I have been spoiled for most of my life as a hockey fan. I was a kid when Mario Lemieux was in his prime. I was a teenager when Jaromir Jagr was in his prime. I got to watch the best player in the world, supplanted by the best player in the world...and now I get to watch 2 of the best players in the world on my same team, yet again? It's almost too good to be true (mind you, I am not asking the fairy tale aspects of my hockey team end any time soon, as I surely appreciate what I get to witness). But Evgeni Malkin has been phenomenal to watch...and how awesome is it that when one of the best players in the world is out of my team's lineup, my team has a replacement who can play at the same otherworldly level? (That's a rhetorical question, but wow....yeah, all I can say is, of course I'm spoiled, and I absolutely love being spoiled.)

--Reading over deadline day deals, it occurred to me that the "new" NHL has changed the landscape. A lot. Players have the opportunity to make a lot more money a lot more quickly than they did in the "old" NHL. While I'm sure this is a topic that will be worthy of further consideration (though preferably minus hand wringing over whatever my Penguins will do with "so much" young talent--I just plan to appreciate it for as long as my team has it, and I advise all hockey fans to do the same), right now I'm just wondering about it in terms of "going for the Cup." In the past, younger, more inexperienced players weren't necessarily expected to be the core players on Cup contenders, and if they were, they were typically extremely talented and supplanted by savvy veterans in significant supporting roles. And yet, with the structure of the new NHL, I'm wondering: How much faster are younger players going to be expected to be THE players? And how much does that have to do with how the game has changed to favor speed and skill? In any case, it's food for future thought. Or another blog post.

Is Chemistry a Concern?
Nope.
What About Reality?
Hmm...
Welcome to Reality

Among the most interesting reactions to the Hossa trade today was the concern for the "chemistry" of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Because, as Pittsburgh fans well know, Colby Armstrong is a hilarious guy, and Erik Christiansen seemed to be another well-liked member of the team. And, really, these guys were close-knit; how else do you explain them winning like crazy sans the league's reigning MVP and scoring champion (I'd contend they're winning due to having an "understudy" who can also play the game at the same rarefied scoring champ/MVP level, but that's a whole other tangent for another blog post, so I'll stop digressing for the moment)?

However, chemistry is not the issue. Not in the short-term and not in the long-term. You say, "Say what" Because, even those who love the trade and are excited about a genuine top flight winger for the first line can at least admit that chemistry, on some level, however minor or major, matters.

To which I say: Nope. Not for this group of Penguins. Chemistry isn't the issue. Reality, however, is, and reality, in this case, means growing up--but not in the ways we've come to think of players "maturing."

The young Penguins were hit smack-dab with reality today. With the reality of the NHL where your friends and teammates get traded, and it's part of the game...part of the business. Where a guy who helped you win games, with whom you hung out playing all kinds of crazy tricks, with whom you came up, is no longer part of your team's future. No longer someone who will be there when you (if you're lucky enough to) lift the Cup.

On some level, all hockey players get this aspect of the game, even relatively "young" ones--trades happen in the major junior leagues, and players leave teams at lower levels than the NHL. It happens.

Yet in the short and long-term, chemistry's just the wrong word for what concerns this group of still young, still otherworldly talented Penguins. Reality hit home today, and you could see the shell-shock of that reality check in much of the game against the Islanders (a game which the Penguins somehow won despite being outshot by a ridiculous margin, something which they need to stop making a habit of if they hope to advance in the postseason, and yet again, I'm going to have to stop digressing). The short-term shock of, "Oh, it's not a joke...friends and teammates and good players really do get traded, and it happens to OUR team." And while the Pens are all professionals, for some of the kids, it could be the first time they're experiencing such a feeling in the NHL.

Which brings me to a long-term concern about reality as it pertains to the kids who, as Shero's move today and ownership's approval of the move signifies, are no longer regarded as kids for whom the future is at some nebulous point in the distance but in the present. Today there was a lot of discussion about the salary cap and the business of resigning or not resigning Hossa, being able to sign our other young players as their entry level deals expire, if Hossa was a rental, etc.

But here's my reality question: I knew trades like today's would happen (though, of course, I was completely taken aback by this trade) eventually. Yet, I also know what happens when trades like these happen. Because I've seen it happen in the 20 plus years I've been a hockey fan. Young players learn the "rules of the game" and learn that the rules of the game are really the rules of the business. They learn to accept player trades as something that occurs, they learn no team stays together forever, and they learn--on an individual level--how to look out for themselves in the business.

My concern about future reality isn't to be cynical and jaded and to say that the current crop of young Pittsburgh hockey stars isn't going to want to remain in Pittsburgh. But it is to say that when reality crashes home, as the rules of the business are learned by the kids, the kids don't just grow up on the ice. They grow up off the ice, too. And some may be about the business of winning Stanley Cups, or of establishing them as a key cog on a Stanley Cup contender, or of making as much money as possible...(and I don't know who's about what, and I'm not trying to insinuate that I do, or make any erroneous assumptions about any player, and that's actually not a digression). But the bottom line is: For the youthful Penguins players, reality changed today. Reality changed in the form of a GM saying:
Your time is now...and, oh yes, in addition to your time being now, this form of reality (your friends and teammates being traded) is part of that reality.

Welcome to the grown-up world of reality, young Pittsburgh Penguins.

And as for us concerned fans? May as well just enjoy the whirlwind that comes from watching children grow up--and note that whirlwind will span the gamut from great to good to awful to bad to merely mediocre moments...but here's to enjoying reality. On what, hopefully, may become a long postseason run.