Time to get back on track.

I have to apologize. It has been a little while since I have written a post. However, I have a good excuse. Shortly into the Penguins' winning streak I realized that I had not posted during the early stages of the winning streak. While I used to be more superstitious, sometimes I still find superstitions that I hold onto. Apparently, not posting was a good thing. At least until 2 games ago. Therefore, I was absent from this blog, but within good reason. What a streak it was!
I have found that I have abandoned most of my old superstitions, but sometimes a realization will come to mind and I can not quite shake it. I've toned it down a good bit though. I used to have lucky sweatpants, various lucky t-shirts. I had to be wearing my hair a certain way or wearing a certain pair of glasses (I still get caught up on this one from time to time.)Certain food I ate that day or where I was watching the game. Lucky undergarments along with lucky socks and I am sure there were more. We have all been there though and like the commercial says, "It's only crazy if it doesn't work." I realized that a while ago and realized that sooner or later, the Pens lost no matter what I did. You can't win them all. So, now I may have fewer superstitions and I now know that no matter what I do, it does not impact how the Pens are going to play. Or else I would have tried everything the past 2 games to get the Pens to take less penalties or play better defense or just play a solid game of hockey.
It's tough to see a winning streak come to an end. One knows it's going to happen sooner or later, but it's still not all that easy. Especially when it comes to a crashing halt. It would be better to end a streak in a dignified way. Perhaps a game that we did our best but just could not catch a break with scoring, or maybe a hard fought battle into overtime or a shootout where things just did not go our way. Yes, those kind of games may have been easier to see than the loss to Buffalo and a lot better than that loss to the Rangers last night.

It is time to move on though. A lot has changed since the winning streak has begun. We have new faces on the injured list and new faces in the locker room. Not sure if you heard, but while I was on my superstitious break, the Pens acquired some guys through trades, including some guy with the last name, Iginla.
While the Pens were making headlines with the winning streak, the Pens landed some big names through trades. I won't give you a run-down of the players, it's already old news. Though, these new players won't mean much of anything if the Pens continue to play the way they have the past 2 games.

At the beginning of this shortened season, a lot of people were saying the Pens had the best chance to win the Stanley Cup this season. This trade deadline season, Ray Shero did what he thought would make us an even better team to complete the task. Every team wants to win the Stanley Cup at the start of the season. However, by the time of trade deadline, it sometimes becomes clear what teams just won't make it happen. Also, some teams know they won't be able to keep certain players and rather than lose them in free agency over the summer, players are dealt to teams for something in return (I'm not going to even mention the Calgary Flames and what they got in return for Iginla).
Shero wanted to prove that the Pens are very serious in their quest of winning the Stanley Cup and I think he accomplished just that. The Hockey News' writer Ken Campbell wrote earlier in the week, "A lot of GMs in this league would be content to have both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in their lineup and hope for the best. Not Shero. Nobody in the league today has a better feel for his team, for the league and the fact that standing pat and doing nothing is tantamount to moving backward."

Well, while the last 2 games have been rough, we should give the Pens some time to get things back together. A lot has changed in the past week and a half for this team. Although, that is certainly no excuse for the way they have been playing. All I can do is hope for the team to play better next game and wait and see what this team can do with new players and injuries. 2 bad games is enough though, I'm ready to see a win.

I certainly won't be thinking of the playoffs just yet; we have a season to finish. However, Ken Campbell knows Shero is thinking far ahead, "Shero knows that only one team can win the Stanley Cup in any given year. And with the unpredictability of the playoffs, you can assume he’s also aware there is no guarantee his team will be the one to do it this spring. But Shero knows as well as anyone else that when you have a legitimate chance to win a Stanley Cup with a group like he has, you seize it with gusto.

'What are you supposed to say, that we’re not all in?' Shero said, shortly after making the Iginla trade. 'Yeah, we’re all in. We want to win.'


Well, that's good to hear. Let's start by playing better the next game and getting a win in that one.

Pens season starts tomorrow.

For most of us Pens fans out there, today is like Christmas Eve. The anticipation and excitement most of us are feeling can only compare to that of a child waiting to open all their presents Christmas morning. I believe hockey fans have it a bit better though. Whereas a child gets a short amount of time opening all those presents and then enjoying playing with their new toys, hockey fans get months of nail-biting games, superb goals, jaw-dropping moments, great battles, intense rivalries, great saves, awesome breakaways, last minute goals to tie a game or break a tie and so much more. I can not wait for a new season to start, but I look forward to each and every game and this season has me particularly excited because I have a feeling we will see some great things. I may have trouble sleeping tonight because of excitement for a new hockey season, but I will need to rest to stay up for the late start for the Penguins tomorrow night in Vancouver. Something tells me though that I won't have any trouble keeping my eyes open.

So, we are almost there hockey fans! Another season is about to begin and anything is possible. At this point, any team can be lifting Lord Stanley's Cup at the end of the season. Ok, some teams and that dream are really far-fetched, but anything is possible at this point.

I also have to wish a Happy Birthday to the beloved Mario Lemieux. The Pittsburgh Penguins would not be what they are today without him. I truly believe that Mario Lemieux is one of the greatest people to ever step foot on this planet and the greatest player to ever grace the NHL. Thank you for all you have done Mario!

Pens face off against Tampa Bay tonight.

The Pens will play the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight and this game has become a must-win situation. That is, if the Pens are looking to make the playoffs. Our next few games are against some tough teams to beat and the Pens will need to scrounge up all the points they need from now til the end of the season. The Pens are not in a great spot to make the playoffs and that is unacceptable to me. One season after the Pens make it to the Stanley Cup Final they are struggling to make it to the top 8 in the East more than midway through the season and are doubtful to make it in the playoffs. And to think, people said that the Pens would be back in the final this season to win it. Well, maybe someone should tell the Pens they have to win regularly during the regular season to make it to the playoffs and get their chance to claim Lord Stanley's Cup.