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2009 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins!

Talk about one of the most impressive series in some time! Whenever it goes to game seven, you know that it’s going to be a hard fought game with big hits, big saves, and big goals.

I honestly thought that no one could beat the Detroit Red Wings this year considering they had Pavel Datsyuk, Kris Draper, Henrik Zetterberg, Marian Hossa, Chris Chelios, Niklas Lidstrom, and Brian Rafalski! But the sheer determination exhibited by the Pittsburgh Penguins had over-ridden all of the talent Detriot had to offer. On another note, it’s great to see Sidney Crosby with a Stanley Cup on his resume already, being the youngest captain to hoist the Cup. Crosby and Malkin were truly amazing throughout the entire series. If you are a Penguins fan, you can find great deals on Penguins memorabilia here at GetItNext!

Which NHL Player is Dumber Than Sean Avery?

Let me start off by saying we all know Ryan Hollweg is a dumber player.  However a new force in stupidity has emerged.

This new hero of the stupid is none other than Philadelphia Flyers Daniel Carcillo.  With the Flyers leading 3-0 in yesterdays must win with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Carcillo thought it would be the perfect time to throw some big hits, and then challenge light weight Maxime Talbot to a fight.  He of course won the battle but the Flyers lost the war.  The fight charged the otherwise sleeping Pens and they scored 5 unanswered goals and win the series. 

2009 NHL Playoff Round 1 Predictions - East

Alright here are the Red Line's NHL Round 1 playoff predictions for the Eastern Conference:

                                         Chris       Matt       Nick        Ron       Colin 

Bruins Vs Canadians           Bruins      Bruins   Bruins    Bruins     Boston 

Caps vs Rangers                 Caps        Caps     Caps       Caps       Caps

Devils vs Hurricanes           NJ           Canes    NJ          NJ          Canes 

Pens Vs Flyers                    Pitt          Pitt       Flyers     Pitt        Pitt

          

4 NHL Rule Changes For 2008-2009 Season

The NHL is introducing 4 new rule changes for the 2008-2009 season.  I am not always in agreement with changes that are introduced by the league but I have to say that 3 of the 4 new tweaks should help the game.  I think that #2 could be a good rule but it is very subjective and the refs will not enforce it properly.

1. A change to Rule 76.2 ("Face-Offs") will place the first face-off of a power play in the defending zone of the team that committed the foul.
2. A change to Rule 81.1 ("Icing") states that "Any contact between opposing players while pursuing the puck on an icing must be for the sole purpose of playing the puck and not for eliminating the opponent from playing the puck. Unnecessary or dangerous contact could result in penalties being assessed to the offending player."
3. A change to Rule 85.5 ("Face-Off Location") provides that if a puck is shot off the goal frame, goal post or crossbar, the subsequent face-off will remain in the end zone where the puck went out of play.
4. I can't find the official wording for this one but I've heard that its approved.  When a puck is iced intentionally the game will NOT be delayed but a tv timeout even if one was scheduled.  This is a great rule change as coaches really started to abuse this last year and take advantage of the ability to ice the puck when they knew a tv timeout was coming.  Bravo NHL.

Now next year, slim down the goalie equipment.

Does NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman Have Parkinson's?

Did anyone notice that when NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman was presenting the Stanley Cup to the Detroit Red Wings that his hands were shaking?  Now it could have been due to the booing but after more than 10+ years on the job Gary has gotten used to it and I've never noticed him shaking before.  I also noticed him trying to keep his hands closer to the cup almost trying to hold it to shield or hide the shaking.  I have been one of Bettman's most outspoken critics but I hope I am wrong and he doesn't have Parkinson's.  Lets hope it was just a case of him being excited about awarding the greatest trophy in sports.

Pittsburgh Penguins Losing Cup Bad For New York Rangers

Bad news New York Rangers fans, the Pittsburgh Penguins are more likely to stay together.  While watching the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Pengiuns battle it out in the Stanley Cup Finals I often wondered what would be best for the New York Rangers and the rest of the Atlantic division. 

I came to the conclusion that the Penguins would have had a tougher time retaining impending free agents if they had won the Stanley Cup. If the Pens hoisted the cup the players may have felt fullfilled and been more likely to grab the pay day rather then returning and trying to finish what they started. 

Now that they have lost this dramatic series they may feel like they have unfinished business to take care of and Orpik, Malone and Hossa may stay with the club.

Stanley Cup Game 5 - Bad Timing

Yesterday I watched most of Game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals.  When I say most I watched until Detroit scored to make it 3 to 2 and then I headed off to bed secure in the knowledge that Detroit had just won the Cup.  I woke up this morning totally shocked to hear that the Pens won in triple overtime.  Oooops!  This sets up a truly pivital game tomorrow.  Not because the Cup is on the line once again but because Pittsburgh might finally be getting into this series.  The Red Wings looked extremely nervous for the first half of the game and now Pittsburgh has a ton of momentum going back home for Game 5. 

If the Wings don't manage to clinch the series tomorrow night I believe the Pens will win it back in Detroit.  If the Wings were nervous before Game 4 they'll be turning their sticks into splinters in Game 7 they'll be gripping them so tight.  It would be the biggest modern day choke in the NHL.  A team hasn't lost the Stanley Cup after already winning 3 games since the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs beat the (you guessed it) Detroit Red Wings.  Now that's one piece of history the Wings have no desire to repeat.  For history buffs, the 1945 Red Wings almost returned the favor (coming back to win the Cup after losing 3 games) against the Leafs but lost in Game 7.