Victory!

Holy crap I told you the Penguins had frickin missiles! For the first time since 1971 the road team won game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Maxime Talbot scored both goals in a 2-1 victory. Who the hell is Maxime Talbot? Fucked if I know! Some guy with way better facial hair than Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Crosby didn't even make it through the game, crumpling to the ice after a check led to a knee injury. Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury played spectacular including a diving, sprawling save as time expired. The hero of the series is Detroit's Marion Hossa, who turned down a more lucrative offer from the Penguins to sign with Detroit because they had a better chance of winning the cup. Hahahahaha!

Presenting your Stanley Cup Champions!

The Detroit Red Wings won game 6 last night in dramatic fashion, clinching the Stanley Cup for the 4th time in the past 12 years. In case it didn't come through clearly, I was rooting like hell for Pittsburgh because fuck Detroit!

Anyway, Henrik Zetterberg deservedly took home the Conn Smyth trophy as the playoff MVP, scoring the eventual game winning goal in the third period. Pittsburgh goalie Marc Andre Fleury followed his 55 save virtuoso performance with a rather pedestrian effort in game 6. The third goal was a screened wrist shot that Fleury saved but could not hold. The puck trickled behind him and when he realized it he pushed the puck into his own net with his ass trying to flop backwards to cover it. Of course, without Fleury's heroics in game 5, this game never happens, so you really can't fault him. Much.

The game was not without its moments of controversy. Late in the third period with Detroit holding a seemingly insurmountable two goal lead, Pittsburgh was awarded a power play on a questionable hooking call. In a vacuum, it was a no doubt call as the Jiri Hudler had his stick parallel to the ice and used it to impede the progress of Evgeni Malkin. Given how the game and the series had been called to that point, it seemed like a no call. On the ensuing power play, Marian Hossa scored on a deflection of a Sergei Gonchar wrist shot. The reason Hossa was able to get a free stick on the shot was Pittsburgh's Ryan Malone slashed the stick out of Detroit's Andreas Lilja's hands, sending it spinning gracefully through the air. It made for a beautiful, artistic moment, but it was also a no doubt, easy to call slash on Malone that should have ended Pittsburgh's advantage.

Within a goal, Pittsburgh was making a final, desperate push with their goalie pulled for an extra attacker when Pavel Datsyuk gathered the puck for Detroit and skated towards the empty net. Right around the red line a Penguins player ripped Datsyuk's feet out from under him, sending the Russian sprawling and leading to one of the more exciting finishes to a playoff series I've ever seen. The puck worked its way across the ice as the time dwindled down. With only a few seconds left, all world superstar Sidney Crosby found the puck on his stick with a clear shot at the net. Crosby ripped off one of the great backhands you'll ever see. Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood got the tip of his glove on the shot and the puck trickled behind him. In a last desperate effort for a team that never gave up Hossa lunged for the loose puck and pushed it across the goal mouth as the clock wound down to zero.

It was a great end to a great series. The best team won and the NHL got a spectacular show out of its marquis match up.

You wouldn't make it in the NHL

Last night Pittsburgh survived game 5 in Detroit 4-3 in triple overtime. Petr Sykora scored about halfway through the 6th period on a power play goal. Ryan Malone planted himself directly in front of goalie Chris Osgood, blocking his vision on the winning tally. Earlier in the game Malone took a heavy slapshot off his already broken nose after planting himself directly in front of Osgood trying to block his vision. Hockey players are tough.

Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar earned an assist on the winning tally nearly two hours after he left the game with concussion-like symptoms that popped up when Gonchar crashed full speed head first into the boards. Gonchar on his game-winning assist said, "The game was so long. I wanted to help our guys. I started feeling better at the end of the second overtime, so I thought there was a chance." Hockey players are tough.

Sykora's goal came on a four minute power play. Defenseman Rob Scuderi took a high-stick to his face that caused a cut. The NHL has an automatic 4 minute penalty for any stick infraction that draws blood. Scuderi talking about his face said, "I was just praying for blood." Hockey players are out of their fucking minds.

Game 6 is back in Pittsburgh Wednesday night. Pretend it's a football game that moves faster than a snail's pace and doesn't stop every 8 seconds for 45 minutes for everyone to catch their breath and FUCKING WATCH IT!