I must say that I have never been prouder to be a Pittsburgh Penguins Fan.  I am sure that later today when I am listening to the sports talk radio stations I will be brought back down to Earth a bit.  It has been more than twelve hours since the Penguins lost to a team they probably should have beaten, and I have yet to hear or read one fan posting that calls for the Flower to be decapitated, maimed, or even traded. 

Are Penguins fans just tired from a long game seven day, or are the maybe smarter than I believe?  I’m sorry I know that last statement was not very nice, and I am not referring to “All” Penguins fans.  I am referring to the hoards of Johnny come lately fans that fail to learn the game, but also the people that have been watching and going to games for years that couldn’t tell you the difference between the neutral zone trap and a sand trap.

The knowledgeable people that read this blog will hear for months that Fluery is a bumb, they should get rid of him.  Don’t let it get you hot under the collar, keep in mind that there are still people in the town that think Terry Bradshaw was the second best quarterback named Terry on the team.  These same people still can’t admit to Jagr’s greatness because he left under less than stellar terms.  In other words anyone calling for Fluery to be traded or trying to blame him for all of the Penguins shortcomings is not worth listening to, just ignore them.

Let’s start to look at next season after the jump, what free agents should we sign and who do we let go?

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Although there is still a game seven to be played I would like to be the first to congratulate the Habs on defeating the President’s Cup winners then upending the defending Stanley Cup Champs.  The Penguins are done…. Stick a fork in them.

They will not be given a better chance to close out a series.  Gill was out of the line-up and Halak gave up a "soft" goal.  In a series that is this tight and scores this close, to be a champion you MUST capitalize on these situations.  After Pittsburgh went up 2 – 1 they hit the post three times, in situations that could have probably "put the nail in the coffin", another opportunity missed.

Not only have the Habs played a brilliant series in front of the best goaltending performance I have seen in many years, the Hockey Gods seem to be shining on Montreal. 

Has Lapierre ever scored such a beautiful goal?  How many times has a juicy rebound been sitting on the doorstep with no Penguins able to push it home?  How many times has a rookie D-man been called into action and performed as well as P.K. Subban?  Who predicted that Cammalerri would have found the back of the net so many times?  Who would have thought that Montreal would have the offensive firepower to win two games in this series that they were losing in the second period? 

I would like to once again congratulate the Habs on making the Eastern Conference Finals, and wish them well.  I will be cheering for you the rest of the way!! 

I would also like to take a minute to thank all of you Habs fans.  I always take the time to read the blogs of whom ever my beloved Penguins are playing and I have yet to run across fans that are as gracious in a loss as they are a win, and who have the ability to look past their fandom and appreciate both teams on the ice.

P.S.  Please stop booing Sid Crosby, I don’t think it has nearly the affect on him as Hall Gill and company do, and it doesn’t represent you in the way you deserve to be.

I’m not sayin, I’m just sayin.  (check the link after the jump)

Alex Goligoski again proved that against the Montreal Canadians, or against any team that goals will be at a premium, he is the wrong D-man to be on the ice. 

There is no question that Go Go brings offense to the line-up that is not there when Jay McKee dresses, but he has proven time and time again to be a liability in his own end.  He has turned the puck over at the worst possible times, fails to get the puck out of the zone when it counts, and has even failed to be the offensive “weapon” that he should have been in this series.

Last night Go Go played on of the worst games I have seen from a D-man in a long time.

• He caused the forth line to take an extended shift by failing to be able to clear the puck, then when he finally did on his next attempt he iced it.
• My eyes could be failing me, but it seemed as if the Habs are routinely carrying the puck directly at Go Go, seems like they have no fear of his defensive prowess.
• He got himself out of position to attempt to hammer Lapierre, but got nothing but the boards.
• After missing Lapierre he was slow to react causing Lapierre to get a step on him and carry the puck into the Pittsburgh end with speed.
• When Goligoski did catch Lapierre he made a third / forth line forward look like the second coming of Mario.
• While attempting feverishly to tie the game Goligoski failed to hold the puck in twice on plays that should be routine for a right hand shot.
• Once again there were numerous passes that hit the blade of his stick that bounced away harmlessly.

I am not suggesting that the Penguins release, trade, or even permanently sit Alex Goligoski, that being said in a series (game seven) that will be won by limiting the mistakes in your own end, why not dress McKee?

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Is it just me or is Alex Goligoski hurting the Penguins this post season, and specifically in this series? 

His statistics point to him having a productive post season: 7 points, 6 PP points, a +2, but he is not passing my WTF is he doing test.

Goligoski has had hands of stone this series, routinely failing to gather in pin point passes while trying to sneak back door.  He has turned the puck over more in his own end then any player I have seen in recent memory and when was the last time that he hit anyone? 

Montreal has shown, to anyone that was blind to the obvious that playing solid in your own end can lead to success in the playoffs.  With Leopold back from injury isn’t it time to sit Go Go and bring in the more physical, more defense first Jay McKee.  McKee is a solid D-man that can be put on the ice to kill penalties and can be counted on to block five to six shots per game.  Goligoski only blocks shots by accident.  Playing against a team that is opportunistic rather than offensively oppressive, to me it seems only logical to play people that will reduce the number of opportunities you give up.  You can bet that the Habs will come out flying tonight, would you rather see a D-man that it hitting ,blocking shots, and getting the puck deep or one that turns over the puck near his own blue line trying to make a cute behind the back pass?  

I am tired of hearing fans of any NHL team complain about officiating during an individual game or series.  Face it, as fans of the NHL it is one of those things that you will just have to accept.  There are rules on the books and although there really is no room for interpretation, each official looks at the rules a bit different.  They look at the situation in the game, which team has had the last penalty called on them, and the consequence of the players infraction before determining if they should raise their arm.

Hooking should be the same in the first period when the score is 5 – 0 as in the third period when the score 0 – 0.  Boarding should be the same regardless of the extent of the injury / non – injury it causes. 

I have been watching the NHL for the better part of 30 years and in that time I have seen it time and time again that the calls that are made in the regular season have changed come playoff time.  Please complain about the officiating in the NHL, I will gladly join you, but complain about the officiating as a whole otherwise you are wasting your time.  I take that back you are probably wasting your time anyway as Gary Bettman could care less what the fans think.