Dribs & Drabs of the Pittsburgh Penguins

Seventeen: KPR -- Game 14

Another one of those occasions where I meant to post this last night, then was lame and accidentally passed out. Humor me, and pretend it's last night all over again, at least for this.

Tonight, the Penguins beat Montreal 4-3 in a shoutout, helping them advance to a 9-5-0 record (which probably seemed pretty damn impossible after the slow start of the season they had.)
A majority of my night was spent at hockey practice, but I was able to watch overtime and the shoutout. These are my bitch observations from the portion I saw.

Part One: My badass little Finnish fluff ball

Granted, I did not see the hit to Ol's face, so I really can't say much about it, but I did get to see him with his cute little swollen lip and blood all over his chin. Quite frankly, I'm glad I didn't watch him get hit, since I would've absolutely lost it. Poor little darling, you know?

But in all seriousness, I'm glad he's okay. Like I said, I didn't get to actually watch it happen, so I have no idea how severe (or not severe) it appeared in real-time, however; I'm very thankful it wasn't anything major.

Plus, let's face it, we all found the blood on his lip and chin hot. At least, I know I did. And as I was sitting there, in my living room by myself, screaming at the TV when they showed him all cut up, I completely muttered to myself how I wouldn't mind kissing him so he felt better.

But for the love of God, was anyone else frustrated that the cute little doofus didn't wipe the blood off his chin? When I first saw it, I was like, "Holy fuck, his whole mouth is busted open!" and then I realized he just hasn't cleaned himself off. (Jeez, Ol.)

Part Two: Geno and the Giant Shift

Maybe I was the only one bothered by it, but did anyone else notice how Malkin was out there for an obscenely long shift during overtime?

I understand the idea that he's the second-best player on our team, and that an overtime power play is when you want to put all your firepower on the ice. Really, I see the science behind it. But what good are you serving when you keep a player out there for several minutes, who is making turnovers left-and-right by the time he comes off?

Personally, as much as I like to yell and scream about Malkin, I'm dumping all the blame on Johnston and Tocchet for that one. As professional coaches, you need to be conscious of how long your guys are on the ice.

I love Geno, make no mistake, and the team wouldn't be nearly as successful as they are without him, but the coaching staff cannot run him into the ground in a November, out-of-division overtime. He was completely sucking air by the end of his shift. Where's the point in having someone like that for minutes?

The poor thing was standing by the bench door, and it was so fucking obvious he wanted to come off -- but what, he couldn't? Because we were on a 4-on-3 power play?

I don't know, maybe it's just another reason for me to complain about this team, but it bothered me.

Part Three: Backhand Your Way to My Damn Bed, Sidney

Ever since the beginning of the season, there's been all the controversy surrounding Sidney Crosby, his age, and "lack of offensive production". He's gotten slammed for not scoring enough; for passing the puck too frequently; for not being flashy.

For him to get that game-winning goal tonight -- that was something he deserved so deeply. I'm sure it felt nice for him to clear the elephant in the room, and get that one under his belt.

And that shot -- goodness gracious, it was a fucking beauty. That backhand, man.. that backhand is fucking wicked. I can only aspire to have a forehand shot that even comes close to it, let alone a backhand shot.

I'm very happy for Sidney. As a fan of this team, it's frustrating to listen to all the criticism people are handing him, just because his numbers aren't as high as they were in seasons past. I'm as biased as anyone, but Sid's been making plays all over the ice, even if they aren't showing up on the scoresheet.

Part Four: Off Topic, but Pouliot

Most Penguins fans know, but last week, Penguins defense prospect Derrick Pouliot was cited for public drunkenness, and ultimately received no open discipline for it.

Am I happy with Derrick? God no. Then again, I'm just some fangirl; my opinion is invalid.

Personally, I am frustrated with what he did. Who wouldn't be? I can respect the fact that it was the first occurrence, but I don't know, I hold my players to a higher standard than that.

I'm still going to support him and all, no question, but I don't know, it was just kind of frustrating.

But, just to make these a little more Steve Dangle-y, I want to start doing a question of the game, where you guys can comment your opinions on a certain topic.

So, Question of the Game: Who's the new Penguin that's impressed you the most this season, so far?