Sorry for the late start here gang, but I was wearing multiple hats this afternoon and early evening! I was toiling at the day gig, had to go straight into a live chat with the great Herschel Walker that I was hosting for Versus.com and just arrived at the CEC at 7:15. It made for a long and hectic day, but a very enjoyable one! If you haven’t checked out our “Countdown to Heisman” chats over at Versus.com, you really should, as we have gotten some great insights from some legendary former winners… I have had the opportunity to chat with Ron Dayne, Archie Griffin and Herschel Walker thus far. We will be continuing with George Rogers tomorrow at noon…
Now on to the matter at hand, the Penguins/Devils game. The evening started off with a bang, as there was a pre-game ceremony honoring Bill Guerin. Guerin announced his retirement this morning and it couldn’t have come on a better day as the Penguins are facing the Devils… giving Guerin the opportunity to make the announcement in the shadow of his first and final teams… During the ceremony he was presented a framed piece of custom artwork, a trip to Hawaii, a customized Guerin jersey and a dozen red roses for his wife. They also showed a montage of his finest moments as a Penguin including his Stanley Cup win with the team back in 2009. A very awesome and fitting tribute to the man who almost immediately became a Pittsburgh hockey legend…
The game is obviously underway and the the teams have yet to score, though the Penguins have outshot the Devils 12-5 to this point of the evening.
Stay tuned for thoughts, analysis, observations and more… live from the CONSOL Energy Center…
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Unbelievable play for the Sidney Crosby line… they were breaking out of the zone with Pascal Dupuis carrying the puck. He went blue line to blue line with a pass to Crosby, who kicked it to himself with his back foot and between his legs. He took a couple strides after gathering the puck and hit Kunitz in stride for a one timer that beat Hedberg…. amazing.
From his back foot between his legs to himself!
1-0 Penguins…
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One period in the books in Pittsburgh and the Penguins and Devils are tied at 1-1… The Penguins are outshooting the Devils by a 2-1 margin… 16-8, though the Moose has been up to the challenge.
Sidney Crosby is leading the game with four shots on goal… Kris Letang is right behind him with three… for the Devils Brian Rolston and Patrik Elias are tied with two shots a piece…
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Brian Rolston smashed Paul Martin and got into a scrum with Craig Adams for his trouble… they each got penalties, but Rolston got an extra one for boarding Martin… the Birds are back on the power play….
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The Devils got the kill and the two sides are even up… The Penguins are still outshooting the Devils by a wide margin 23-13.
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Bill Guerin was just up on press row… he is making the rounds. Did an intermission hit with the Devils broadcast and then sat in for a portion of the period’s call with Bibs and Steigy…
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Crosby keeps it rolling with another goal… not sure how he continues to find himself unchecked by the side of the cage, but he did it again and found himself in perfect position to knock home a rebound… the puck came off of Moose Hedberg and Crosby made no mistake burying it behind the Moose…
2-1 Penguins…
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Two periods in the books in Pittsburgh and the Penguins are holding onto a 2-1 lead. They are also still outshooting the Devils 27-18… Crosby is leading the game with seven shots on goal. Jamie Langenbrunner and Anton Volchenkov are leading the Devils with three a piece…
John Hedberg has been doing a good bit of barking at the referees this evening. Not sure that I have ever seen him behave that way…
The Devils do seem to be in some disarray… very understandable considering the injuries that they are working with, though they were sort of looking like that when the roster was a lot healthier…
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The boys are back on the ice and the teams are ready for the third period… will the Birds be able to secure another 1-goal victory? We shall see… Though the Devils have been struggling, they still have some guys who can score goals… Kovalchuk, Elias, Rolston, Tedenby, Arnott and company are very capable of scoring the one goal that is needed to tie this one up. An insurance marker could really help the cause…
The Devils were just whistled for delay of game when Rod Pelley shot the puck out of play…
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Sidney Crosby just missed a one timer from the right dot… had an empty net to work with, but shot it over the cage…
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Tyler Kennedy was just whistled for hooking… ending the rest of the Penguins power play…
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Crosby just turned on the jets to get around the Devils defense and get to a loose puck. He got in alone on Hedberg, but his shot rung off of the far post… came within centimeters of scoring again… on fire indeed!
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For those keeping track at home… Sidney Crosby has now notched 49 points in 29 games…
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I actually remembered to grab a couple of drinks from the food area! Normally forget to grab a post game water or soda and they lock it down before I get back up here to write up some post game thoughts… Yaaaay me! Just saying…
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Sidney Crosby is benefiting your fantasy team in countless ways! He was just issued a hooking penalty… two minutes to go with the two points and seven shots that he has put up this evening!
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Down to 4:46 remaining in the game… can they hold the Devils off? Still holding the one goal lead outshooting the Devils 33-23.
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The Penguins did indeed hold the Devils off… they were unable to hit an empty net though, but that is just fine when you still come away with the victory and do not allow a goal…
Wooooooo, you are a cross dresser after all!
You have outed me… cross dressing as a college football analyst! WOOO!
I dont know if I ever want to get in the same room as you two….
I dont think I would make it out alive….