It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year 
or It's Penguins' Playoff Hockey season, BABY!!

what you probably can't tell is this is the actual
signage on the actual side of Consol Energy Center
snapped from a monitor at the special k
i am too lame to walk the four blocks
don't judge 

This is the most beautiful sign in town for a hockey fan. As the chyron states... Pittsburgh has playoff fever!

Our Boys of Winter came within one point of division leader, the dreaded New York Rangers, ending with a whopping 108. Astounding for a team whose two top scorers and leading defense man were missing for a good part of the season.

Oh, and then there was all the rancor from the Flyers' coaches Laviolette and Berube the last week of regulation play, calling Pens' Coach Bylsma gutless and Sid and Geno the "two dirtiest players" on our team.

Really?

No DeeJay's ribs for you. EVER.*

Then NBC's commentator, Mike Milbury, jumped on the Haters bandwagon, calling Sid a goody-two-shoes punk and Byslma a skirt wearer.

Top that off with Ranger's Coach Tortorella declaring the Pens the "most arrogant organization in the league" and calling our top two players whiners.

Sounds like somebody feels a wee bit threatened, no? Could it be because he's back

too cute with the flowing mane

and he's finally back

le sigh

and him...he's back with a vengeance! 

proudly posing with 50 goal puck
(he's kind of an adorable neanderthal)

Scoring 50 goals and posting 109 points total, to capture his second career Art Ross scoring championship trophy, despite missing a portion of the schedule due to injury. Awwwsome!

The other teams should be scared. Finally our battered club is healthy with only two players on the DL. In Sid's long absence, the lines have gelled, proving a formidable force in his absence. Crosby's return is the extra grease in an already well-oiled machine, quietly making an impact with his every touch of the puck.

But that's all in the past now. The slate is wiped clean. It's Stanley Cup playoff season. This is an entirely different beast with an intensity unlike no other. The level of play is through the roof. Anything can happen.

It's the only sport in which I look forward to watching OTHER teams compete. It's the only sport I miss when it's all said and done. It's the only sport that incites me stand in my own living room and scream out with enough force to bruise my ovaries.

I am not even kidding about that last one.

Sweet Baby Jesus, I love this game!

The north east cover of Sports Illustrated posed the following question:

I think you know my answer.

It all starts tonight with game one at home against our cross-state rivals, the effing Flyers. Bring it on!

So what could be better than the Pens hoisting the cup once again? Sid or the Tanger taking this kind of victory lap.



A girl can dream, right?

LET'S GO PENS!!!!!



*Laviolette let slip he attributes the Flyers 5-1 winning record at Consol to a standing order of local proprietor, DeeJay's famous ribs delivered to the plane after each game.