Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Day 65: Is it Just Me or Do the Penguins Appear to Have Happy Feet?

I love playoff hockey. There's just nothing quite like it—the heart-pounding excitement where you're seriously on the edge of your seat, shifting and wincing with every pass and shot on goal. I've admitted in the past that I'm a total pink hat and don't watch many regular season games, but I can't get enough of the postseason. *whispers* Especially when the Bruins are playing like they are right now.

What makes this series against the Penguins even more fun is that the best regular season team in the Eastern Conference looks a little... off. Superstars Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Chris Kunitz have been silenced. And Crosby, Pittsburgh's leading scorer in the regular season, often looks like a lost puppy (with a really sad beard.) My biggest question coming into this series was how would Tuukka Rask handle the slick puck handlers. The answer? Quite well, thank you very much, allowing just one goal over the first two games of the series... on the road, no less.

The Bruins look determined. They look like a team and they're playing like a team. Their passing is accurate, their defense is solid and their puck handling intense. All four lines are contributing with the top six forwards scoring a robust eight goals in just two games—led by David Krejci who leads the NHL with 20 points in the playoffs and is a strong candidate for the Conn Smythe trophy.

On the other side of the puck, the Penguins look confused, sluggish and uncoordinated. And their goal tending leaves a lot to be desired. Word on the street is that both goalies suffered some serious sunburn on the back of their necks last night. You know, from that red light going on so much. If the Pittsburgh goalies can't pull their shit together, this team is in some serious trouble.

I don't watch enough hockey to hate other teams or players, but these Penguins really bug me. Maybe it's the crybaby look on Crosby's face when he doesn't get his way... I half expect him to throw himself onto the ice and execute a tantrum so spectacular, it would make a three year old envious.

Now we head back to Boston for games three and four. Go Bruins!

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