Stanley Cup Champions

Things are finally slowing down for me (I think) so I should be back up and running sometime this week.

As most of you know, I am a huge Pittsburgh fan, so I was pretty stoked when the Penguins captured the Stanley Cup on Friday.

If you may recall, I wrote about this last year when the fell to Detroit.

Anyway, here is the new gatorade commerical, Enjoy!

Quick Rant: Starting Times

The major sporting events are getting missed by many people in the United States, and it all has to do with the time zones.

For the most part, in order for the West Coast to view a sporting event during the week, the game must start after 6 p.m. Pacific Time. Unfortunately, for those on the East Coast this means all games (without going into overtime, or extra innings) are finishing around or after midnight.
This is hurting not only the working class, who must in fact get up for work in the morning and cannot stay up to finish a game that late, but it is also hurting the sport itself, because millions of children are not watching your product.

There is an easy fix for this, but for some reason it has not been looked into. The reason for the later starts is so that all those wishing to watch the game on the West Coast can get home after work before the start of the game. Well, my main question is, are you more inclined to watch a sporting event you know you can't see the end of? Or, are you more inclined to join a game in progress, that you know you will be able to finish?

I think the answer is pretty obvious.

But, this is not what is being done. Last night's NBA Finals Game against the storied Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers didn't even get started until after 9 p.m. Eastern Time, and was just heading into halftime just after 10:30 p.m.

The NBA isn't the only sport that is making it difficult for East Coast fans to watch major sporting events, or for children to catch something that might stay with them forever. Major League Baseball is possibly the worst at it. Because of their starting times, and the excruciating length of their games, there isn't many on the East Coast who are able watch the World Series. Let alone seven games if the series goes that long.

The NHL appeared to have gotten it somewhat right. But, that may be because both teams in the Stanley Cup Finals were relatively close to the East Coast. With Detroit and Pittsburgh in the Finals, most games started around 8 p.m. Eastern Time - so for a three hour contest, it's getting over at a more reasonable 11 p.m. instead of pushing well past midnight.

I doubt anyone with any real influence is reading this, but if there is any chance there is please take this into consideration. I am an NBA fan, and my son will probably be an NBA fan (if I am lucky) - I, in the future, would like to watch at least one NBA Finals game to it's conclusion without having to slug through the next day at work thanks to being overly tired.

In the days of DVRs, I am sure if a West Coaster wants to see the beginning of the game they will record the game and easily be able to catch up. What with all of the television commercials (but that is another story).

Hockey

I have been straying away from writing about this due to the fact of accidentally jinxing the team, but since the Stanley Cup Finals ended last night, I felt I could comment on what I believe is the start of something magical.

I am not going to lie to you, I am not a hockey fan. For some reason I have never truly gravitated to the sport. I even tried it once a long time ago, but it appears that you need to have a pretty good idea on how to skate to participate. Who knew?

There is just something that has always thrown me off about the game. Perhaps it's the fact that I live in a city where it's winter for basically 9 months out of the year. Going into a building to watch hockey, a sport that needs to be cold, just doesn't seem logical. Then again, it could also be the fact that I am a huge basketball fan, and the two sports coincide with each other during the season. Or, and this could be the main point (much like soccer), there just isn't enough scoring.

The only thing that has ever gotten me interested, at least to a point, is the Pittsburgh Penguins. I was born in Pittsburgh, and have lived there for 13 years of my life. I now consider myself a New Yorker, but my roots and my sporting allegiances will always lay in the great city of Pittsburgh.
The Penguins were the team in the early '90s, capturing back-to-back Stanley Cups on the wings of Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr. But, the Hodgkin's disease and injuries that Lemieux suffered over the years stopped the cups at two. And Jagr was traded to the Capitals to help with a struggling franchise.

It soon became apparent that the Penguins were no longer a draw in Pittsburgh. They were finishing in or around last for years, and had filed for bankruptcy. Lemieux purchased the team to help save the Penguins in the city of Pittsburgh, but even up to a few years ago it appeared that if the Penguins were to survive - it would be in another city.

Things began to change, however, a couple of years ago. With multiple losing seasons, Pittsburgh had built up a number of high draft picks over the years - that amazingly (unlike the Pittsburgh Pirates) began to play well together at the same time. Plus, landing a born superstar in Sidney Crosby, was just what Pittsburgh needed to stay in the city.

And now, the Penguins will be moving into a brand new building in the 2010-2011 season. Mellon Arena (or the Igloo) has been a staple in Pittsburgh for years. The arena is one of the oldest in the NHL, and the team definitely needed an upgrade (especially with fellow Pittsburgh teams - the Steelers and Pirates - moving into better fields a few seasons ago).

The Penguins had pulled me back into the NHL Playoffs this season. I watched a little bit last years, as this young team made it to the playoffs for the first time since 2000, but were knocked out in the quarterfinals.

This year, however, Pittsburgh had a bit of magic. They rolled through the first round against Ottawa, then lost just once to the Rangers. They defeated in-state rival, Philadelphia, in the Eastern Conference Finals, 4-1. The Penguins rolled through the playoffs, going 8-0 on their home ice.

The Stanley Cup Finals completed last night, as the veteran Detroit Red Wings knocked off the up-and-coming Penguins in six games. But, Pittsburgh can take a lot from this series, and this playoff run. Their core of players are in the 21 years old age range, and if they are able to stay together (if greed can stay subdued) then they have a chance to be one of the greatest teams ever - with multiple Stanley Cups in their future.

Pittsburgh, once for sale and about to move to Kansas City, is now the second best team in the NHL, the best team in the Eastern Conference, and the team with the most promising future. Detroit had been there before, they owned the experience - and in games 1 and 2 it showed. But the Penguins didn't roll over, and they made this a series. The City of Pittsburgh will be expecting big things from this team - and I think their expectations will be met.

Thanks for a great run Pens. You even made a non-hockey fan like myself, interested in a sport played on ice (what were they thinking?).