dlozo

May 24, 2008

2008 Stanley Cup Final Game 1 Live-Blog: Period 3

Above, we have visual evidence of goaltender interference. No one likes a stick between their legs. That’s just common sense.


As we wait for the start of the third period, let’s look at some numbers. Through two periods, the Wings have the shots advantage, 27-16. Nearly half the game has been played at something other than 5-on-5, as there have been 18 penalty minutes. It should be an exciting third period. It could end 1-0, but a barrage of goals isn’t out of the question, either. Also, I think barrage is a great word.


In more Detroit sports news, as clearly, Motown is now the epicenter of championship sports, the Celtics are up 50-32 in Auburn Hills. I’m no NBA expert, but 32 points at halftime of an NBA game doesn’t seem like a lot.


So hang tight, as we’ll be back with the third period of Game 1 when it gets started. Reply at will. Keep me honest here.


10:09 - Third period is under way. Power play Wings. Again, big moment here.


10:11 - Yet another successful penalty kill, but Mikael Samuelsson scores AGAIN to give the Wings a 2-0 lead. Fleury makes a bad play with the puck, Samuelsson picks up the puck, and beats Fleury low to the stick side. If Detroit is going to start getting two-goal games from Mikael Samuelsson, you can start the engraving process now. 2-0 Wings with 17 minutes left.


10:16 — The Penguins have responded well since the goal, but they just can’t seem to get one past Osgood.


10:18 - 12:51 to go, and it’s still 2-0 Red Wings. Call me crazy, but I really think the Penguins aren’t done yet. Usually a two-goal deficit against the Wings can seem like a six-goal hole, but I don’t know. I think this game gets to be 2-1 before it’s all said and done.


10:27 - Just nine minutes to go, and the Red Wings are in full-on suffocation mode. Even when they do make a mistake and Hal Gill has a shooting lane, Mikael Samuelsson blocks the shot. That guy is having a pretty decent game. Perhaps he can cap it with an empty-netter for the hat trick.


10:28 - Posts are good, too. Hossa rings one off the pipe, then Crosby can’t sneak the puck home seconds later.


10:32 - I have to give the Red Wings fans some credit. Unlike in series past that saw the fans booing Malkin and Crosby when they touched the puck, the fans in Detroit haven’t done any of that. Sure, Red Wings fans may smell like a bait shop (still can’t get that plastic bag thing from the Period 2 comments out of my head), but they sure are classy.


10:33 - Six minutes to go now. It’s clearly risk-taking time for Pittsburgh. Just two shots on goal this period for Pittsburgh.


10:38 - Hope for Pittsburgh, as Lidstrom takes ANOTHER penalty. Power play Pens. This season, Lidstrom had a total of 40 penalty minutes.


10:42 - And that my friends, is your ballgame. Or puckgame. You know what I mean. Dan Cleary picks up a shorty to make it 3-0. Cleary races down the ice, beats a Pens defenseman, and tallies the clincher. It’s a Cleary family tradition. Big hits and short-handed goals.


10:43 - That last entry is really funny if you’ve seen Wedding Crashers. Anyway, Jarko Ruutu takes a slashing penalty on Game 1 star Mikael Samuelsson with just 1:52 left. Let’s see if the Wings can get their PP on track.


10:46 - Henrik Zetterberg makes it 4-0 with a power-play goal. It’s an utterly perfect shot over Fleury’s glove. I hate to drop this cliche, but this game was way closer than the score indicates.


10:47 - And Game 1 is in the books. 4-0 Wings. It was a penalty-filled game for sure, but outside of the Holmstrom call (tell me how you guys really feel), you can’t really debate the calls. Even though they didn’t play poorly, the Penguins will have to step it up to avoid going back to Pittsburgh down 2-0.


I hope you guys had as much fun as I did. If you’re a Pens fan, I doubt that’s possible. But cheer up. It’s just one game. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get my eyes off this computer, as the rapid-fire action of an NHL playoff game has me worn out. Perhaps I’ll see you for Game 2.

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dlozo

May 24, 2008

2008 Stanley Cup Final Game 1 Live-Blog: Period 2

Hey there, boys and girls of all ages. Just getting everything set up for the second period. For those of you Detroit sports fans out there looking for some good news, the Tigers are beating the Twins 19-3 after five innings. Read that as many times as you’d like, but I swear nothing in there is a typo. Also, the Celtics and Pistons are just getting under way in Game 3 of the Eastern Finals in some other sports league. This is where you want to be, people. Don’t turn that dial, or url, as it may be.


9:16 — The second period is under way, and the Wings still have a minute on their power play.


9:17 — Just like every other power play tonight, this one is killed too.


9:18 — Wow. Crazy action. It looked as though the Red Wings just scored, but Draper’s shot off a bad rebound off of Fleury hits about every inch of the pipes and goes out. However, Crosby takes a slashing penalty, so it’s power play time again.


9:23 — In what probably isn’t a surprise anymore, a power play has been killed off. That’s seven so far tonight.


9:27 - Pascal Dupuis is stopped on a mini-breakaway by Osgood, as the crowd chants, “Ozz-ie, Ozz-ie.” Nothing to do with the goaltender. Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith is at the game. Kidding.


9:29 - In hindsight, I should’ve went with Ozzy Osbourne for that joke. I blew it.


9:38 — Folks, we’ve got ourselves a goal, and a sweet one at that. It’s 1-0 Detroit, as Mikael Samuelsson picks off a pass in the neutral zone, breaks in down the left side, swings around behind the net, and beats Fleury on a wraparound. If you had Samuelsson in your game-winning goal pool, you’re probably feeling way better right now than you did when you drew his name. And now the Wings are going on the power play with six minutes to go in the second period.


9:41 - The Pens get a huge penalty kill and avoid going down 2-0. A big moment in the game, and the Pens get through it.


9:43 - You know what I always wondered about games at Joe Louis? The octopus. How do people get them in the building? I remember as a younger man trying to sneak beer into sporting events, and a thorough pat-down would always sniff it out. I used the term “sniff it out,” because really, how do you get an octopus past security? It’s huge. It smells. You tell me.


9:47 - Fleury is really keeping the Pens in this game. The Red Wings seem to be really settling in with this lead. We’ve got two minutes left in the period.


9:50 - With 31.3 to go, Malkin is going to the box for tripping. A goal here for the Wings could be crushing.


9:52 — And the Pens kill the first 30 seconds of the penalty. Red Wings 1, Penguins 0. Despite what was said before the game, it doesn’t seem like it’s experience besting youth so far. The Penguins are composed, but the Red Wings have just been slightly better is all. I’m thinking the Wings will need another goal, as I can’t see the Pens getting blanked in this game. Perhaps a 2-0 lead will be enough to take the air of out Pittsburgh.

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dlozo

May 24, 2008

2008 Stanley Cup Final Game 1 Live-Blog: Period 1

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 2008 Stanley Cup Final between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Detroit Red Wings. We’re coming to you LIVE! from Motown, where the tension is thick and the excitement is off the charts.


OK. I’ll be honest. I’m not in Detroit. I have no idea how thick the tension is in Detroit right now. I’m in Hoboken. That’s in New Jersey. I would’ve been in Detroit, blogging my fingers off, but the NHL.com crew said something about not wanting someone with my body odor problems in the press box. It makes the company look bad.


Kidding. I smell great. My function here is to give you constant updates on all the action from tonight’s Game 1. Stuck at work and can’t watch the game? Just looking for some witty, in-depth, insightful commentary while you watch at home? That’s why I’m here.


So comment till your heart’s content, and feel free to exercise that F5 key. If I can, I’ll try to incorporate your thoughts into the live-blog. It should be a fantastic series. I’ll see you all when the game gets under way at 8 p.m. ET!

8:10 - Marc-Andre Fleury just stumbled and fell while taking the ice. I don’t know. That can’t be a good sign for the Penguins.


8:14 - Is it just me, but did the Red Wings’ PA guy just call Sidney Crosby “Steven?” Again, this is probably not how the Pens imagined the start of this game going.


8:17 - The opening faceoff is won by Pittsburgh. Things are turning the Penguins’ way already!


8:18 - The first shot on goal of the Final is recorded by Pens defenseman Hall Gill, and it was stopped by Chris Osgood.


8:20 - We have our first exchange of words after a whistle, as Georges Laraque and Darren McCarty have a little discussion that leaks into the following faceoff. Probably just discussing rising gas prices and the new Indiana Jones movie.


8:23 - As the Red Wings pepper Fleury, Kris Letang takes down Jiri Hudler. Power play Detroit. Unfortunately for those of you who worship the octopus, Tomas Holmstrom takes a high-sticking penalty, so we’re at 4-on-4 now.


8:28 - We’ve reached our first commercial break of the evening with the game still scoreless. Both goaltenders have looked sharp. The youthful Penguins have looked comfortable so far. The shots on goal are four apiece. And I don’t know about you, but I really like the Stanley Cup on Versus commercials. I can’t explain it. They get me excited.


8:32 - Pavel Datsyuk nearly beats Fleury, but he comes up with the save and the rebound. Then Fleury denies Maltby. So far, Fleury’s only misstep occurred before the game. Let’s see how many “Fleury tripped jokes” I can make between now and the end of the game.


8:34 — Mike Emrick just said “warming to the task,” so you know the Final is definitely under way now.


8:37 - Osgood shows Fleury he won’t be tripped up, either, making a nice save off a scramble in front with Sidney Crosby lurking around the crease. Versus shows us a shot of Mellon Arena where Pens fans have packed the building. You see fan support, I see thousands of people not reading this fantastic live-blog.


8:39 -Ryan Malone draws a penalty against Nicklas Lidstrom, an amazing feat in itself, as Lidstrom rarely gets himself into a bad position.


8:42 — The Red Wings kill off the penalty, as Petr Sykora’s wrister from the faceoff circle is the Pens’ only real chance, and Osgood stopped it.


8:43 — Yet another Red Wings penalty. It’s a tripping call on Darren Helm. A little uncharacteristic of the Wings, eh?


8:46 — Osgood absolutely robs Crosby after a shot from the point bounces off the boards. Crosby knocked it out of the air, but Osgood got it with his glove. The Pens really warmed to the task on the power play, but Osgood was outstanding, stopping an array of Pens chances.


8:48 — Score! Red Wings lead 1-0! Actually, just kidding. Although Red Wings fans won’t find it funny, as Holmstrom is called for goaltender interference. Replays show Holmstrom’s stick got in between Fleury’s legs. So not only is the goal wiped out, but Holmstrom is going to the box. On the bright side, that commercial with Ryan Miller speaking Japanese is funny.


8:54 — Osgood just absolutely robbed Marian Hossa, who had a gaping net to redirect the puck into. I haven’t seen a robbery so well-executed since the movie Heat.


8:53 - Once again, the Wings kill off the penalty. That’s four in a row, if you want to count that 10-second power play the Pens had. It’s pretty much the Chris Osgood Show right now. We remain scoreless.


8:56 - Hall Gill takes a high-sticking penalty with 59 seconds to go in the first period. Big moment here for the Pens.


9:00 — With 10 seconds to go, Fleury stones Brian Rafalski after a great cross-ice pass by Datsyuk. We head into the first intermission scoreless, and the story of the game is the stellar goaltending at Jou Louis Arena. The story of the live-blog is how fast the action is and how tough it is to keep up.

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