I'm back and the Pens are coming back too!

Well, after a two year hiatus, I decided I would come back to the blog world and do something I love about something I love: write about hockey! College got a tad busy and my blog went on the back burner. However, I have graduated and the job market allows me to dedicate a good amount of time on my blog now!

We all know the Pens season is just days away as we all have been waiting anxiously. The Pens were stellar in the preseason, going 5-1. Evgeni Malkin looked strong out there and with Sidney Crosby out with a concussion for who knows how long, it's great to see that Malkin is dedicated this season and worked hard in the offseason.

The Pens did extremely well last season under the circumstances with all the injuries. Remember, Malkin, Jordan Staal and Crosby played together for about 40 minutes. We made it to the playoffs only to be eliminated by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Our power play was atrocious during that round and was definitely something discussed and addressed. Enough about last season though, it's time for a brand new Penguins season to start and I know I am extremely excited for it to begin.

New hockey seasons bring a wide range of possibilities along for the ride. I love to see some surprise teams and players, whether it be a pleasant surprise or a disappointment. The Pens are getting high marks in a lot of different rankings, but I tend not to look at those too closely. With the players we have on our team, we are bound to end up high on most lists. And yes, I have heard that some are predicting that the Pens will win the Cup this season, but I am focused on just the beginning of the season and watching how the Pens shape up to be. One thing I am hoping for is that James Neal finds his scoring touch. He was not that stellar after coming over in a trade late last season, but I am hoping that we get to see his confidence and goal scoring go up.

The Pens 2011-2012 season starts this Thursday with a late start time for the East Coast at 10 p.m. as the game is in Vancouver. When that puck drops, anything is possible and all those possibilities of a new, fresh hockey season are why I love hockey and love this time of year! Let's go PENS!!!

Boucher announces retirement.

Penguins defenseman Philippe Boucher has announced his retirement. Boucher will retire a champion and that fact helped him with his decision. "I have always admired athletes that have retired as champions and I am humbled to have the chance to count myself among them," Boucher said today in a statement. "I would like to take this opportunity to thank my teammates, my coaches and the organizations I played with over the years. I am going to miss being with the boys."
Boucher did not forget to thank the fans in his statement either. "I would also like to recognize the best fans in all of sports. I never took for granted what a privilege it is to play this game and how important the fans are."

Congratulations Philippe Boucher on going out a Champion.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=289832

Pens name Tony Granato Assistant Coach.

It was announced today that Tony Granato will be Assistant Coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Granato has been behind the bench for the Colorado Avalanche the past 6 seasons. Granato was head coach for 3 of those seasons.
Granato is extremely excited for the opportunity to be coming to Pittsburgh. He looks forward to joining the organization and being a part of a successful team with such great players.

For more information on Tony Granato:
http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=463547

http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=463559

Pre-season game against Columbus date change.

The pre-season game at Mellon Arena between the Pens and the Columbus Blue Jackets has been moved to Tuesday, September 15th. The game was originally scheduled for Friday, September 25th.
The conflict in the schedule was due to the G-20 Summit taking place the 24th through the 25th.

John Hynes named Assistant Coach of Baby Pens.

This past weekend, John Hynes was named the Assistant Coach of the Baby Penguins. He will be working with head coach Todd Reirden this upcoming season.

"Hynes, 34, has spent the past six seasons as a head coach with USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, posting an overall record of 216-113-19-9. In 2008-09 he was head coach of the U.S. Under-17 Development Team, going 42-17-6."

http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=463412

Crosby named #1 Canadian Hockey Player.

When asked who the best hockey player is, Pens fans will almost surely tell you Sidney Crosby, or Evgeni Malkin. Narrowing that down to only Canadian hockey players, the answer will surely be Sidney Crosby by Pens fans. Well, it seems NHL.com agrees. When rating the top Canadian hockey players in the NHL today, NHL.com gave Sidney Crosby the coveted number one spot. NHL.com gave their opinion in their list of the Top 10 Canadian players and Crosby was not the only Pen who was honored with appearing on the list. Marc Andre Fleury received the #4 spot. Though, Martin Brodeur received the #2 spot on the list.
No other NHL team had 2 players on the list.

To view the entire list:
http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=463385

Pens sign goaltender John Curry.

John Curry was expected to re-sign with the Pens and he did so a few days ago. Curry signed a 2-way contract.
"Curry registered a 33-15-1 record in 50 games last season with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League (AHL), earning a .916 save percentage and a 2.38 goals-against average. He made seven post-season appearances with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, posting a 4-3 record, a .885 save percentage and a 3.36 goals-against average."
http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=458027


The Penguins also signed 2 forwards that look to be fixtures with the AHL Baby Pens. The Pens signed Wade Brookbank and Wyatt Smith to one-year contracts.

For stats and more info on these players:
http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=457958