NHL Eastern Confrence

If you look back at the regular season for the Penguins against the Flyers, you would think that the Flyers would have easily took this series—but you would have been wrong.

The Penguins took it to the Flyers in the series and in Game Five.  The Penguins won 6-0 behind an excellent performance from goalie Marc Andre Fleury.

Pittsbugh started the scoring early in the first period, with a goal coming off the skate of Ryan Malone. The shot originated of the stick of Sidney Crosby, then was redirected by the skate of Malone into the net.

The Penguins continued the scoring in the first on a seemingly empty-net goal by Evgeni Malkin. The play developed as the puck went behind the net and Philadelphia goalie Martin Biron and Pittsburgh's Ryan Malone went after the puck behind the net.

Malone came out with the puck and Biron came out of the scrum without his goalie stick. Needless to say, the Penguins took advantage of this when Evgeni Malkin to the puck from behind the net and stuffed it in the net off of Biron to give the Penguins a 2-0 lead.

The Penguins continued the scoring in the second, when Marian Hossa took an excellent feed from Sidney Crosby at the hash marks and deposited the puck into the back of the net. The Penguins then took a 4-0 lead, when Ryan Malone deflected a shot by Sergei Gonchar into the net past Biron.

Later on in the second period, Jordan Stall backhanded the puck past Biron to give the Penguins a 5-0 lead. The Penguins capped off the scoring with a goal by Pascal Dupuis, which was also deflected off a shot taken by Marian Hossa.

The Penguins are moving on to their first Stanley Cup Final since the won the Cup in 1992. They will either play the Detroit Red Wings or the Dallas Stars, who will play Game Six of their series tomorrow night in Dallas.

The biggest trade acquisition this year was the trade Pittsburgh Penguins GM Ray Shero made with Atlanta Thrashers GM Don Waddell. 

This trade sent the grinder Colby Armstrong, the shootout king Erik Christensen and some unknown talent in Angelo Esposito. Meanwhile the Penguins received the All-Star Marian Hossa, and speedy Pascal Dupius. The Penguins also traded the Toronto Maple Leafs for Hal Gill.

Now the trade for Hossa was a cross-your-fingers-and-hope-he-pays-off kind of trade.  Especially because they traded away one beloved player, another who was pretty much automatic shootout star and one who we don't even know could be amazing.

Of course with the luck the Penguins were having this season with injuries, the team lost Hossa only 13 shifts into his first game.  This was a devastating blow to the Penguins, since they were already missing Sidney Crosby and Gary Roberts.

Thank God the injury wasn't serious, and it only took a few weeks before he and Sid could get used to each other on a line with Pascal Dupuis.

In the regular season it was looking like "Hoss" wasn't going to pay off at all, only recording 10 points (3g, 7a) in 12 games.

When playoffs started, Pittsburgh finally got a taste of what a trade Shero made and actually why he made it—to get to the Stanley Cup finals and win!

In 13 playoff games Hossa has recorded 15 points, 8 goals, and 7 assists.  Those goals couldn't come at better times, scoring two game winning goals, and two goals in the 5th game against the Rangers in OT to lead the Penguins to the Conference finals.

Today at 3 P.M. EST the Penguins will look to finish off their cross-state rivals in 5 games.  This will only happen of course if the Penguins come out flying, get the first goal, play more physical and use the crowd to their advantage. 

If that doesn't happen unfortunately it's going to go back to the city of brotherly love for game 6.

Martin Biron is a crybaby. Being at Mellon Arena for this game, I was able to see what they don't show you on television. Biron would frequently leave his net after a stoppage in play, sometimes skating all the way out to the blue-line to voice his opinion to the referee. Marty: stay in your net so the Penguins can continue to score goals on you, thanks.

Recap

This was the first playoff game I have been to since 2001. That being said, Sunday night was the wildest atmosphere I have ever experienced at a Penguins game, both inside and outside of the arena. 17,132 people filled the seats inside, while another 3,000 watched the game from the lawn, in the rain. That's dedication to your team. Something special is happening with this team, this city, and these fans. If you don't believe it, go and experience it for yourself.

The igloo erupted when the scratches for the game were announced prior to the dropping of the puck. Maxime Talbot was not among them, meaning he would be back in the lineup for the Pens after missing the previous three games with a broken foot.

Four minutes into the game, the bad blood between these two teams finally materialized into a fight. Tyler Kennedy dropped the mits with Scottie Upshall, and the Penguins' third line spark plug put on a good show, and energized the 17,000 fans in attendance.

The Flyers took five penalties (to the Penguins' three) during the first period, only one of which the Penguins were able to capitalize on. The Penguins took the lead just over the half way mark of the first period, on a Sidney Crosby power play goal in which he barely snuck the puck under the arm of Biron.

After the goal, the Penguins put their "fourth line" on the ice. I say "fourth line" because this line was the Penguins' best during this game, and looked, at times, like a first line. The Roberts-Talbot-Laraque line put on a puck-possession clinic, making the Flyers defensemen look like they belonged on the blue line for Bob Errey's pee wee hockey club.

At 16:41 of the first period, a Sergei Gonchar shot trickled behind Biron. Crosby raised his arms indicating that the Penguins had just scored. The crowd responded, but was letdown when the official waived the goal off.

Hockey is the only sport on planet Earth in which a play is reviewed in another country. The War Room was called, and after eleven minutes that felt like an eternity, the call would stand. No goal and the game would remain 1-0 heading into the first intermission. If this same play happens against the Flyers, in Philadelphia, we won't hear the end of it until next fall.

The Flyers had to feel pretty good about only trailing by one goal, after being completely outplayed during the first twenty minutes.

The second period got under way, and the Flyers looked like a different team. Their determination paid off when Jeff Carter scored on the power play to tie the game, 1-1.

The Flyers continued to press the attack, but Fleury stood his ground.

Finally, Marian Hossa was able to bang one home in front of the net on the power play, once again giving the Penguins the lead, 2-1. I thought Hossa disappeared in the playoffs? Hmm, guess not.

The lead, however, would be short-lived. On the power play once again, Evgeni Malkin carried the puck into the zone for the Penguins. Malkin lofted an ill-advised pass across the blue line, and it was intercepted by Mike Richards, who went the other way, one-on-one with the goalie.

Richards buried it, shorthanded, to once again tie the game, 2-2 at the end of the second period. Malkin banged his stick off the boards in frustration, but hey, even the best player in the league can make one mistake, right?

The third period brought a more physical nature to this game, for both teams. Bodies were flying and Biron was crying as time wound down, the game still in a deadlock.

The Penguins' fourth line once again dominated in the offensive zone, possessing the puck for nearly a minute, but they couldn't get a shot on this shift. Their next shift, however, would prove to be different.

Maxime Talbot made a diving play at the blue line to keep the puck in the offensive zone. Georges Laraque dumped the puck hard off the end boards. What would Gary Roberts do? Track down the puck, and send a smooth backhand pass in front of the net. Talbot's hard work paid off, as he took the pass from Roberts, and put it where grandma keeps the peanut butter: top shelf. 3-2 Penguins.

The Mellon Arena exploded. Talbot has become a fan-favorite in Pittsburgh, due to his off-ice antics that always tend to put a smile on the faces of his teammates and coaches, and his "balls to the wall" style of play on the ice. It only seemed fitting that he got the eventual game winning goal in this game.

The Penguins' defense locked down for the final eleven minutes of the game. The Flyers' struggled to even gain the offensive zone, let alone get a shot on the net. They did manage to put together one solid shift, but Fleury wasn't having anything to do with overtime, and kept the puck out of the net.

Speaking of warranted goals, Jordan Staal capped off the night with an empty-netter just under thirty seconds before the final horn. Staal has been a workhorse for the Penguins all season long. His defensive game has improved tenfold from his rookie campaign, and everyone loves to see a guy get rewarded on the score sheet for his efforts that don't show up there.

Elvis ran into Daniel Briere on his way out of the building. Briere had been there since Game One. The game ended, 4-2 Penguins. The Penguins take a 2-0 advantage in the series as they head cross-state for Game Three on Tuesday night in Philadelphia.

Notes 

- Tyler Kennedy played hockey for nine minutes and fifteen seconds in this game. It was a more effective 9:15 than anything I have done for nine minutes in my entire life.

- Michel Therrien showed why he is, and has been since taking the reigns for the Pens, a players coach. He put his fourth line on the ice, late in a tied game, because they deserved to be out there.

- Ryan Whitney continues to disappoint defensively. Though there is a 99.9% chance that it won't happen, he needs to sit out a game, and let Darryl Sydor get some playing time.

- Ruutu's diving penalty in the third period, when Biron basically tried to remove his head from his shoulders, was a joke. Though the referees understandably didn't want to give the Penguins another power play, Ruutu took the hit from Biron, got up, skated away, took another shot from Briere, and skated away again. What in that series of events warrants an "even-up" call?

- A lot of teams would have been rattled after blowing two leads, and falling victim to a disallowed goal. The Penguins showed again that they aren't "a lot of teams."

- Biron = French Toast(ed)

-Game Three is Tuesday, 7:30 PM, on (sigh) VERSUS.

There was more buildup to this game than there has been to Jenna Bush's upcoming wedding. The difference is: more than 12 people actually cared about the result of the former.

Would Marty Biron be able to stave off the most talented offensive core he has faced during these playoffs? Could Derian Hatcher do something, anything, effective in the defensive zone? Would the "officials decide yet another game"?

The same answer can now be given to all of those questions: no.

Recap

The Mellonites were out in full force again tonight, dressed in all white, and ready to get this series under way. The Pens only needed six minutes to bring the raucous crowd to their feet.

Evgeni Malkin took a pass at center ice, gained the blue line, and dished it to Ryan Malone on the left wing. Malone sent a pass cross-ice to Petr Sykora, who froze Biron, then flipped the puck to his backhand before putting it top shelf to give the Penguins the early 1-0 advantage.

About two minutes later, Mike Richards took the puck for the Flyers, wrapped it around the net behind Fleury, and snuck it in off of MAF's leg pad. VERSUS immediately cut to one of the most homosexual things shown on television since the latest edition of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy by showing a bar somewhere in Philadelphia with grown men jumping up and down, flailing their arms like six year old girls.

The goal was initially waved off, most likely because the officials were trying to fix the game in Sidney Crosby's favor, but after review, the goal counted and the game was tied, 1-1.

Four minutes later, Mike Richards took advantage of a loose puck in front of the Penguins' net, and scored over Fleury, who was down and out on the play. 2-1 Flyers. This was the last sign of offensive production for the Flyers in the game.

Marty Biron left the net to play a puck, but Gary Bettman told him in his earpiece to turn the puck over to Marian Hossa so that the Penguins could tie the game. Biron obliged, Hossa fed a hard pass in front to Crosby, who redirected the puck between the pillows of Biron to tie the game, 2-2.

With seven seconds remaining in the period, and Derian Hatcher being incapable of clearing the puck in order to make a line change, Evgeni Malkin capitalized by ripping a hard wrist shot past Biron to make it 3-2 Pens heading into the first intermission.

Early in the second period, Brooks Orpik registered what seemed like his first of 50 hits in the game, by destroying a Flyer behind the Penguins' net. But, Orpik's free hand wrapped up the Flyer before the hit, and he was sent to the sin bin for holding.

On the ensuing Flyers power play, Evgeni Malkin stole the show yet again. Malkin got a shorthanded opportunity, but Biron made the save, and Mike Richards launched Geno into the boards (insert irrelevant diving accusation here). Malkin got up, but before he could make it to the red line, Hossa picked Danny Briere's pocket, and Sergei Gonchar sent a pass up the ice to a wide open Malkin at the opposite blue line.

Malkin, remembering his pathetic attempt at a penalty shot in the previous series, decided to bury his head and shoot the puck as hard as he could. The decision payed off, as Geno beat Biron, scoring the first shorthanded goal of his career, and giving the Pens a 4-2 lead.

A 4-2 lead would be all the Penguins would need. The game got a little more physical in the third period, as the Flyers tried to claw their way back into it. But, Orpik, Letang, Gill, Scuderi, Roberts, Ruutu, Malkin, Hossa, and even Sidney Crosby, were able to match the Flyers' physicality, and shut the door on their way to victory.

Notes

- The Penguins have won their previous 14 games at home (regular season and playoffs).

- This Penguins team is the first in franchise history to have a 6-0 home record in the playoffs.

- Kimmo Timonen would not have made a difference tonight. Flyer fans, keep telling yourselves that he would have, we know you need to place the blame somewhere.

- Both teams turned the puck over a lot tonight. The difference: the Penguins capitalized on the turnovers; the Flyers did not.

- As I predicted, Daniel Briere was invisible during this game.

- Fleury has a 19-3-1 record in his last 23 decisions (regular season and playoffs).

- The Flyers have lost Game One in all three of their playoff series'.

- Besides the hideous red beard, did anyone even notice Hartnell tonight?

- John Stevens has some sort of disease under his lip.

- VERSUS was not complete garbage tonight: they had a solid piece on Le Magnifique (Mario Lemieux) during the second intermission. Joe Beniati's voice is slightly less intolerable than Emrick's, and any resident of Philadelphia would be more tolerable to listen to than Eddie Olczyk.

- Malkin has recorded 18 points (8G, 10A) in 9 games against the Flyers this season.

- To quote 'the Badger' Bob Johnson: "You can lose three games, and still win the series."

- Game Two is Sunday, 7:38 PM ET, Mellon Arena. (I will be in attendance, but no one really cares.)

    What can I say about the Eastern Conference.  Well for one the winner will come from Pennsylvania.  Secondly both Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are really good teams coming into the Finals.  Philadelphia is the Cinderella team of the playoffs.  Pittsburgh on the other hand is a powerhouse only losing 1 of the 9 games played.  The only loss came in Game 4 against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.  Both teams have star players that have stepped up in order to get where they are today.  Philadelphia has Daniel Briere, Scott Hartnell, Mike Richards, Vaclav Prospal, Kimmo Timonen, Derian Hatcher, and Marty Biron.  Pittsburgh has Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marian Hossa, Petr Sykora, Marc-Andre Fleury, Sergei Gonchar, Daryl Sydor, Jordan Staal, and Pascal Dupuis.  The players who have come out of know where for their respective teams are R.J. Umberger for the Flyers, and Evgeni Malkin for the Pens.  Now yes Malkin is a great player but he only produced 2 goals and 5 assists against Ottawa.

    What more can I say about Pittsburgh except that they are the best team in the playoffs right now.  They swept the defending Eastern Conference Champion Ottawa Senators in the First Round and took the #5 seed New York Rangers in 5 games.  The acquisition of Marian Hossa and Pascal Dupuis at the trade deadline was one of the best if not the best trade made.  Brad Stuart was a good pick up for the Red Wings, but Hossa and Dupuis have proved that they deserve to be on this team and in the playoffs.  Now after sweeping the Senators in Round 1, I know many many hockey fans were looking forward to seeing Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals come to town and have the Pens and Caps square off in Round 2.  Unfortunately Philly came in and took the Caps to town.  In the Second Round Pittsburgh played the New York Rangers.  The Rangers had just come off a 4-1 series win against the New Jersey Devils who have been just terrible in the playoffs.  The Devils have not made it past the semifinals since 2003 when they last won the Cup.  New York was rolling making some people think that they could be a contender if they can beat the hot Penguins.  The Penguins were on fire in Game 1 and 2 and got lucky in Game 3.  Game 4 was not so lucky as they were shutout by the Rangers and were up in the series 3-1.  Back in Pittsburgh at Mellon Arena, they knew that losing Game 5 would not be good because they did not want the Rangers having that much momentum going back to New York.  Luckily for the Pens, Marian Hossa was there to save the day.  The Penguins moved on after winning the series 4-1.

     Philadelphia face the Washington Capitals in the First Round.  They were huge underdogs, at least in my mind.  Washington deserved to be in the playoffs as much as everyone wanted Pittsburgh to beat the Senators.  Washington proved to be a worthy opponent as this series went to seven games.  Joffrey Lupul scored the game winner in overtime in Game 7.  Ovechkin played a great series and with that the Capitals kept Bruce Boudreau and will have a great team next year.  Look out for Ovechkin and the Caps, as they will be a favorite to win the Stanley Cup.  Philadelphia looked as if they outplayed Washington the last 2 games but Washington battled hard.  In the end Philadelphia moved on to play the Montreal Canadiens, the top seed in the East.  Montreal played very well in Game 1 against the Flyers but Montreal couldn't keep up.  Philadelphia won the next four games and was on their way to the Eastern Conference Finals winning the series 4-1.

     Pittsburgh has the more well rounded team and will definitely beat the Flyers.  Philly will put up a good fight and there will be a huge rivalry but in the end the Penguins will take the series in 5 or 6 games.  The Cinderella Flyers had a good run but it will end against Pittsburgh.  Game 1 starts Friday night at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh on Versus at 7:30.  Be prepared to see mostly Pittsburgh fans, but there will be some orange in the crowd.  Don't worry Pens fans, Crosby and Hossa will shut them down.

The Pittsburgh Penguins will open their Eastern Conference Final series against their cross-state rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers, on Friday night at the Mellon Arena.

The Penguins come into the series clicking on all cylinders, with the 'Big Three' of Crosby, Malkin, and Hossa leading the way. The Penguins have outscored the opposition by an impressive 31-17 margin during the first two rounds, and will look to have that same kind of offensive production in the Conference Finals.

The Flyers have been this year's Cinderella team. They have knocked off the Ovechkin-powered Capitals in the first round, and the Eastern Conference's top seed from north of the border in the Conference Semifinals. Pittsburgh's own R.J. Umberger has led the way for the Fly-guys by nearly replicating his season total of 13 goals, by scoring 9 goals in these playoffs.

So, what will be the difference in this series? I think it will come down to what I like to call the 'X Factors.'

For the Flyers

- Win a game on the road: The Penguins are undefeated at the Mellon Arena in the playoffs, and if the Flyers can steal one (or both) of the first two games at the Igloo, it may just rattle the home-ice confidence of the Penguins. If the Flyers head back to Philadelphia down 2-0 and fail to win both games on their home ice, this series will be over sooner rather than later.

- Talk with your sticks, not your mouths: As is the case in any major sports rivalry (such as the one that exists between the Pens and Flyers), the 'war of words' oftentimes can overshadow actually winning games. If the Flyers, and/or the Philadelphia media pull a Tom Renney and get involved in a war of words with the opposition, it will only add fuel to an already raging Penguin fire. Don't worry about Crosby embellishing calls, or the officials "fixing games for the Penguins because Sidney Crosby is hott and deserves to win a Cup RIGHT NOW", but rather capitalize on the opportunities that are presented to your own team.

- Be physical, but don't take stupid penalties: Just ask New York Rangers' Ryan Hollweg how an untimely mid-series penalty can demolish any hopes your team has of advancing to the next round. Hollweg is probably still seeing the #17 on the back of Petr Sykora just before he launched him into the boards, killing all of the Rangers' new found momentum in Game Three of the Conference Semifinals round. The Flyers need to continue to be physical, as they have all season long, against the Penguins' top lines, but they also need to take care to avoid taking penalties that may ultimately give the Penguins the ability to win a game solely based on the performance of their power play.

-Daniel Briere: Briere has had a habit of disappearing against the Penguins. This series is going to be much more physical than the previous two have been, for both teams. If Briere can't stand up to the challenge, he might as well not even bother leaving his Lazy-Boy and showing up at the arena.

For the Penguins

- Attack Biron early, and often: Biron is surprisingly in the midst of just his first career postseason run. The Penguins need to make sure to get a lot of pucks on the net, and crash the net hard, looking for garbage goals. Sure, everyone would love to see five power play goals every game set up by Gonchar-to-Malkin one-timers, but this is the playoffs, and that just isn't going to happen.

- Match the desperation of the Flyers: Just because the Penguins are the favorite to win this series, doesn't mean they don't have to play the games. Everyone in the Penguins' locker room knows that the Flyers will be coming out firing, looking to gain an advantage early in the series. The Penguins need to put the pedal to the metal, so to speak, and not let off until they win four games. If they decide to take a night off, and it translates into a Flyers' victory, the result may not be as favorable for the Flightless Birds as it was in the previous round.

- Tyler Kennedy: This rookie forward has silently had one of the best post season's of any rookie who donned a Penguins jersey since the days of Jaromir Jagr during the Penguins' first Stanley Cup in 1990-91. Although the score sheet might not say so, this third-liner has put in solid minutes in each of the first two rounds. Kennedy will score the first goal of his playoff career during this series, and if the Penguins' are lucky enough, this type of 'third-ary' scoring will come at an ideal time. Playing along side Jarkko Ruutu and Jordan Staal on the Penguins' third line, this threesome of role-players will need to supply a few goals, if for no other reason than to alleviate the strain placed on the Crosby and Malkin units.

This series will undoubtedly be one for the ages, and do its part to further solidify this Pennsylvania rivalry as one of the most compelling and heated rivalries in all of professional sports.

Whether the series comes down to which team can out-muscle the other, a battle of goaltenders, a duel between superstars, or whose role players can out perform the others', one thing is certain: this series will not be for the weak at heart.

If you are expecting to see the Flyers finally fold under the playoff-pressure and accept defeat if they end up trailing in the series, or the Penguins waltz through this round unscathed, you will be disappointed.

If you are expecting to see a series in which every player on both teams plays every shift as if it were their last, tune in, because we are all in for a great show.

The Pittsburgh Penguins won their Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the New York Rangers by winning Game Five in overtime at the Mellon Arena on Sunday. The Penguins won the series, 4-1, which surprised a lot of people who expected this series to go at least six games.

So what went wrong for the Rangers, and what went right for the Penguins in this series?

The Rangers' Woes

The power play: The Rangers struggled on the power play in each game following Game 1. Did the Penguins penalty killers, and Marc-Andre Fleury have something to do with it? Most likely. However, you aren't going to win many playoff games if you can't capitalize on the man advantage.

You can't buy a championship: Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, and Brendan Shanahan made a combined $19 million this season. They combined for one goal in this series.

Defensemen: The Rangers defensemen did next to nothing (besides in Game 4) to slow down the Penguins' offensive attack. Marc Staal, Daniel Girardi, Michal Rozsival, and the others hung goaltender Henrik Lundqvist out to dry numerous times throughout the series. Darius Kasparitis anyone?

The Penguins

Home ice dominance: The Penguins continued their dominant play at Mellon Arena, winning each home game of the series, and remaining undefeated at home during the playoffs. Jaromir Jagr's inability to make a difference for his team on his former home ice made it very difficult for the Rangers to win since no one else stepped up to fill the void.

Penalty Killing: The Penguins' PK units shut down the Rangers in the series, making the Rangers beat them 5-on-5. The Rangers just couldn't match up with the Pens at even strength.

Syko MaMa: The line of Petr Sykora-Evgeni Malkin-Ryan Malone continued to be a force on the ice in this series. Malkin led the way with four goals and four assists in the series.

Deadline Acquisitions: Marian Hossa scored four goals in the series, including the series winner in overtime of Game 5. He finally silenced the critics who claimed that he disappears come playoff time. Pascal Dupuis was a key part of the penalty kill, and he added a big goal in Game 1, playing alongside Crosby and Hossa.

The Flower: Marc-Andre Fleury continued to impress during this series. While he wasn't as dominant in this series as he was in the first round, Fleury gave the Penguins a chance to win every game. His shutout in Game 2 was the 15th shutout in Penguins post season history, and his second of the 2008 playoffs.

In conclusion, the Penguins may not have been the more complete team heading in to this series, but they were the better team during the series.

The Rangers couldn't match the offensive firepower of the Penguins, and goaltender Henrik Lundqvist will have to stock up on the Advil after being expected to carry the Rangers on his back throughout the series.

So what's next? For the Rangers, their offseason will be filled with a lot of uncertainty. The New York media will spend the next four months formulating multiple conspiracy theories, and accusing Crosby of being the NHL's lovechild that will be handed a Stanley Cup simply because that's what the league wants.

Will Jagr go back to Europe? Will the Rangers resign Sean Avery? Will Brendan Shanahan pain fans by returning for yet another season? All of these questions, and more, will be answered in the coming months.

The Rangers have a great young core of talent, on both the offensive and defensive sides of the rink, and with Henrik Lundqvist between the pipes, the Rangers should feel good about what they have going for them.

The Penguins will move on to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000, where they will meet their hated cross-state rivals from Philadelphia.

This series should be nothing short of a blood bath. The Flyers tamed Ovechkin in the first round and knocked off the top-seeded Habs in the second round.

They are the most confident team in the playoffs right now, and Martin Biron will most likely play a huge role in this series. If Biron is on, the Flyers will make it a long series.

If not, break out the brooms.

Marian Hossa put on his most impressive performance in a Penguin uniform, scoring two goals, including the game-winner in overtime, to lead the Penguins into the Eastern Conference Finals.

Recap

Before the game started, things were much simpler than NBC made them out to be... The Penguins wanted to win this game, the Rangers had to win this game.

The Rangers came out flying, getting the first four shots of the game. Then, they remembered they were playing in the Mellon Arena, and the Penguins pressured Lundqvist while rattling off the next seven shots on goal.

During the Penguins' offensive assault, NBC announcer Mike "Doc" Emrick somehow discovers how to use the word "finesse" as a noun, verb, and adjective all in the same sentence... what a joke.

Jaromir Jagr took a penalty, but the Pens couldn't get anything going on the power play.

Jagr then drew two consecutive penalties, but the Rangers power play is nonexistent, and the Pens killed them both off.

After the power plays, the Penguins put their fourth line on the ice, and Gary Roberts went absolutely beserk. Roberts recorded three hits in about 25 seconds, and the Mellon-ites came alive.

Nigel Dawes got some good looks at the net at the other end of the ice, but pulled a Straka and missed the net both times. At the end of the first period, it was deadlocked at zero.

The second period opened with the Penguins' top unit buzzing in the offensive zone. Marian Hossa shot a puck wide of an open net, then headed to the bench in disbelief that he choked on a golden opportunity like it was dry chicken.

NBC showed a nasty shot of Chris Drury leaving the ice with a nice sized gash (that was actively gushing blood) on the side of his face. The replay showed that Drury took a high stick from Ryan Malone. Apparently, that isn't a penalty anymore, and no call was made.

The teams alternated chances on the power play, until the Penguins finally capitalized on the man advantage.  Sidney Crosby hit Ryan Malone with a pass in the high slot area. Malone quickly shuffled the puck back door to Marian Hossa, who buried it behind Lundqvist to make it 1-0 Pens.

Michal Rozsival took his first of 43 penalties in the game on the ensuing shift. On the power play, Gary Roberts had a golden opportunity to put his team ahead by two, but was robbed by another incredible save by Lundqvist.

The Penguins returned to full strength, and at about the 12:30 mark of the period, Eddie Olczyk wonders if the fatigue effect will begin to set in on Evgeni Malkin, who had been on the ice for an extended shift after an icing call.

Ten seconds later, Malkin answered Edjoke's question by going coast-to-coast, pulling up in front of the net, and scoring on a sick backhand shot to make it 2-0 Pens.

Rozsival took another penalty on the ensuing shift, and somewhere a Ranger sportswriter accuses him of throwing the game.

Gonchar rang a heavy shot off the post on the ensuing power play, but we would head into the break with the score 2-0 Pittsburgh.

Just over two minutes into the third period, Lauri Korpikoski wins a sweepstakes at the Mellon Arena that allows him to suit up to play one shift for the Rangers. Korpijokeski makes momma proud, and rifles a shot over the shoulder of Fleury, making it 2-1 Pens.

Just over a minute later, someone told Scott Gomez that he used to be a decent hockey player in New Jersey, and it all came back to him. Gomez threaded a sweet pass through traffic, onto the stick of Nigel Dawes. Dawes buried it, and all of a sudden the Penguins lead had vanished. 2-2.

The rest of the third period was back and forth hockey, and it seemed whichever goaltender made the first mistake would ultimately cost his team the game.

Queen Henry made some unreal saves down the stretch. He robbed the Sykora-Malkin-Malone line at least four times in one shift.

Neither team could put the puck in the net, then your fifth grade English teacher makes an appearance holding a sign that reads: "IRONY's A BITCH."

Chris Drury (who had been cut by a Malone high stick in the 2nd period, and no penalty was called) gets his stick up into the face of Malone, breaking the skin. The referee's immediately blow the whistle, and call the four minute double minor penalty.

If I were Chris Drury, through all the injuries, unlucky bounces when I thought I had a goal, and no-calls that I fell victim to in this series, I would seriously investigate multiple conspiracy theories against myself during my free time this off season. Then I would consider jumping off of a bridge.

The Pens couldn't score before the end of the period, so we would go into overtime with the Penguins still enjoying the man advantage.

All of Penguins nation (or at least the four people I was watching the game with) were praying that the Penguins didn't score on this power play. The last thing we needed was to listen to the New York media/fan base complain that the refs were homers, and they fixed the game because Crosby is hott.

Brad Watson was the man in charge on the ice tonight, and he has officiated some of the most lopsided Penguin games in recent history; with his favoritism being toward the opponent in each instance. Numerous "Watson sucks" chants filled the Mellon Arena this season, so tonight was an honest mistake. A horrible, horrible mistake, but honest nonetheless. Watson hates Pittsburgh more than Don Cherry.

The Penguins answer our prayers, and don't score during the power play. For the next four minutes, the Rangers looked like the Mighty Ducks playing against the Hawks before Gordon Bombay took over behind the bench.

Tom Renney's gameplan for overtime entailed not gaining possession of the puck throughout the entire overtime period, and hoping than Lundqvist made all the saves.

Well, it didn't work. Sidney Crosby took the puck in his own zone, gained the offensive zone, and dished it off to Pascal Dupuis on the left wing. Dupuis fumbled the pass between his feet, before the puck eventually squirted out into some open space before it was found by... the Hoss.

Hossa let a wicked wrister go, Lundqvist never saw the puck, game over, series over, Pens win.

The Penguins advance to the Eastern Conference Finals where they will take on the Philthadelphia Flyers.

Notes

This was the first time in team history that the Penguins won all of their first five home playoff games.

The Rangers fell to 0-4 all time against the Penguins in the playoffs.

Ruutu was getting inside Jagr's head all game long... it's about time.

Henrik Lundqvist was the Rangers in every game this series besides Game 4 when Jagr decided to play some hockey. Hopefully the Rangers don't turn into the Devils and disregard playing offense because they have a solid goaltender. The Atlantic Division is boring enough with the Devils already.

Lemieux > Balboa.

May 4, 2008.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Battle of Pennsylvania is on. Hold on to your hats and glasses; shield your children's eyes from the incoming blood splatter.

This is where the term "heated rivalry" becomes too much of an understatement. With Sunday afternoon's elimination of the New York Rangers by the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Eastern Conference Final is now set.

Pittsburgh's Sidney "Sid The Kid" Crosby and his lethally offensive teammates of Evgeni Malkin of Marian Hossa, will face off against the loud tough-talking Philadelphia Flyers. 

Steel Town against the "City of Brotherly Love" (where ironically, wearing an opposing jersey would get you torn apart); what else could NHL marketing, sponsors, and fans want?

Sure, it's not featuring the major media market of New York City, but Pittsburgh and Philadelphia do love their teams. And having a traditionally hockey-mad city (and media market) such as Philly, combined with the game's heir-apparent to the legendary Wayne Gretzky (Crosby), isn't such a bad consolation.

As global warming brings the summer heat closer to much of the United States, frozen rinks will be reflecting off plenty of watching eyeballs in the East Coast. 

Meanwhile in the West, the final conference match-up has yet to be determined. If the Dallas Stars seal the Sharks' fate tonight in Game Six, they will clash with the regular season's top-ranked Detroit Red Wings.

Of course, there's always the chance that the San Jose Sharks could pull off a historic comeback and continue California's hope of back-to-back Stanley Cup championships. The last time a NHL team came back from a 3-0 deficit to win a best-of-seven series, was in 1975 by the New York Islanders.

The Dallas Stars have yet to appear in the Final since 2000 (the year following their Cup win), but hockey has boomed in the Lone Star State since. The number of registered players and ice rink facilities had increased substantially in the Dallas area, becoming one of the largest in the country.

While that hasn't necessarily translated into huge local TV ratings or put the city in the same level buzz as a Original Six city, there is a passionate fan-base that will only continue to grow. With each step closer to the Cup, the crazier Dallas will get. 

If San Jose pulls off the upset against Dallas, then one of the NHL's expansion success stories will have a chance to show Detroit that the hockey is just as good from the Sunshine State.

Unlike the attendance problems found in Detroit's Joe Louis Arena (partially caused by the economy, admittedly), the city of San Jose bleeds teal and provide a significant boost to the coffers of local bars and downtown restaurants.

Most small businesses already proudly display "Sharks Territory" signs in their front windows. If they can bring their team to the national stage, hockey fans will see that frozen lakes aren't necessary to get a place mad about pucks. 

Detroit boasts one of the biggest fan-bases strewn around the country thanks to their long period of dominance, and being one of the NHL's Original Six teams since 1926.

The Red Wings call their Michigan home "Hockeytown" for a reason (besides being a marketing idea), and anything less than another championship is unacceptable to their fans.

Many transplants in places such as California and Florida will be tuning in to see their team make another run for glory.

Things are expected to heat up in the East. Regardless of the outcome in the West, it will still be a showcase of exciting hockey. Ratings have reportedly been up in many key markets and national broadcasts this year.

Sports and hockey fans can only expect plenty of entertainment in the coming weeks, as more blood, sweat, and broken bones are shed for North America's oldest professional trophy: the 115-year-old Stanley Cup.  

Files from TSN.ca were used in this report. 

Sports can be a matter of inches. It can also be a matter of luck. For Marian Hossa  and the Pittsburgh Penguins, it was both.

After relinquishing a two-goal lead in the third period the Penguins looked like they may be packing their bags to play Game Six tomorrow night in New York.

Luckily, a four-minute penalty on Chris Drury's high stick penalty returned the momentum to the Penguins.

The Penguins came back on the ice after the third intermission with two and a half minutes left in their power play and showed that their young legs could keep pumping into overtime.

The Pens kept the puck in their offensive zone for the majority of the 7:10 of overtime the two teams played. The team seemed to turn the afterburners on as they appeared to be faster than the older Rangers and playing with a renewed sense of purpose.   

They also benefited from a bit of luck. In the eighth minute, the Penguins' captain Sidney Crosby brought the puck into the Rangers zone and passed the puck to Pascal Dupris.

He then appeared to pass it to Marian Hossa, who put it through the five hole of Rangers' goalie Henry Lundqvist. Upon further review, Dupris' pass actually hit Rangers' defenseman Daniel Girardi's skate and slid into a perfect position for Hossa to hit the back of the net.

A few inches to the left or right, and the pass may have missed Hossa altogether and ended up along the boards.

It was Hossa's second goal of the game, and for the new Penguin, it seemed to solidify him as a part of the team. Hossa was acquired from Atlanta before the trade deadline and formed a triple threat with the already dangerous Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

Hossa was slow to start with the Penguins but had seemed to adjust to his new teammates before the end of the regular season. Hossa, however, has been quiet throughout the first two rounds of the playoffs.

Maybe quiet isn't the right word since he had scored three goals before Sunday's game. Perhaps, underachieving would be a better word.

Hossa has been known to dominate and control games and Penguins' fans seemed to expect a goal a game from the All Star. After a two goal game on Sunday, Hossa has five for the playoffs, tying him with teammate Malkin and sending the Penguin to the Eastern Conference finals.

Hossa also made a stellar defensive play, hustling to break up a Rangers short-handed charge on the Penguins' goal.

The finals should be a hard-hitting affair featuring one of the oldest rivalries in hockey. For the Penguins, it seems a little like a dream.

After winning only 22 games in the 2005-2006 campaign no one would have guessed the Pens would be able to put together a team contending for a chance to play for the Stanley Cup a mere two years later.

Smart front office moves (drafting Crosby, acquiring Malkin, Hossa and Petr Sykora, and putting a smart combination of talented youth with experienced veterans) have the Penguins one series away from the Stanley Cup finals with home ice advantage and an incredible amount of momentum in hand.