Game 7 Oilers Vs. Hurricanes

From June 19, 2006

Yes! This is the only time I will ever be happy about not feeling well. I got to come home because I was turning green, but I've taken a bunch of stomache stuff and feel a little better now. I'm soo excited for this. Game 7, do or die and honestly I never thought it would get to this point. This has been quite a series. Every game has had something different so who knows what's in store for us tonight.

8:18- National anthems- Oiler fans can be heard throughout the building. Canes fans are trying to out shine the Rexall atmosphere and not succeeding but doing a nice job.

8:22- Carolina wins the draw. Time to disprove the theory.

8:24- Good flurry for the Canes leads to a massive amount of traffic in front of Markkanen which leads to a goal from the point from Aaron Ward 1-0 Carolina.

8:28- Penalty on Carolina for goalie interference.

8:30- Ward makes a couple nice saves on the powerplay. Carolina looks like a team possessed right now.

8:32- What a pace to start this game, the fans haven't sat down since the opening draw. This is why I love hockey. It doesn't get any better than Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Finals

8:37- First sustained pressure by Edmonton leads to a couple of saves by Ward.

8:41- Penalty on Edmonton for holding, critical kill upcomming.

8:45- Successful kill, and they continue to weather the storm. Can't believe the Carolina team I'm seeing here.

8:48- Where has Edmonton's hitting game gone?? Oh yeah Carolina. The Hurricanes are taking a page out of the Oilers' book and hitting anything that moves.

8:52- Interference penalty on the Oilers When is MacTavish gonna learn, don't play the kid Greene. All he does it take penalties.

8:57- Oh God penalty shot for Carolina perhaps.

9:00- NO PENALTY SHOT!!!! Hooray for delayed penalties, but they still haven't decided if it's a goal or not.

9:03- NO GOAL! Finally a break, but a penalty on Moreau for high sticking.

9:04- End of the first period, 1-0 Carolina who will resume their powerplay when the second period starts. Fast paced period.

9:13 Just had this convo with my little sis.

Me: "That really should have been a penalty shot."
Cait: "Yes it should have been, but it wasn't MUAHAHAHA!"
Me: "Pretty much my thoughts exactly."

9:23- Second period under way and the Hurricanes resume te powerplay.

9:25- Good work from the NBC truck guys to show that Carolina clearly scored on that controversial play. Oh well.

9:27- What a sequence! Markkanen with a great save on a 2-on-1 followed by a mini break away by Edmonton, but a good play on D to close him off.

9:28- Spacek goes for holding.

9:29- Blast from the point tickles the twine and its 2-0 Carolina on the powerplay.

9:41- Just got a text message from the king of predictions, A.K.A. Greg and he pretty much sums up my thoughts about this game.

Greg: "Not good."

9:49- No one on Edmonton wants to shoot the puck. This is frustrating, but at least Edmonton is going on the powerplay.

9:52- Delay of game for shooting the puck directly over the glass on Ward!! 5-on-3 powerplay!

9:54- Stupid penalty on Smyth, steam is coming out of my ears.

9:56- This is unbelievable, no one will put the puck on net. You're down by two in Game 7 throw everything at the net for crying out loud! This is ridiculous!

End of two periods. The Cup is coming out to play in 20 minutes. Write it down.

So there's nothing I can really say now that the game is over. I spent the 3rd period with my head in the wall and pulled it out in time to see the Cup in the wrong hands. Ty Conklin, I blame you for this, and the theory is 7-0 in the Finals.

Oilers' Second Time Against the Wall

Figured I should move over some old stuff to this better site. So enjoy!

From 6/17/06

Well as with the last game it's a do or die mentality. Advantage for Edmonton tonight is that they are back on home ice. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I love Oiler fans and I want to go to Rexall Place to watch a game and just breathe in the atmosphere.

So apparently Laviolette lied because Cole is back in the lineup for the first time since our boy Brooks Orpik put him down for the count. That addition should give the Canes an emotional pickup.

It's official, the Oilers have the best entrance onto the ice ever. The double sliding doors to the locker room plus the fire and everything, it's just awesome.

8:19- National anthems. I get chills every time the fans take over, again it's just amazing.

8:23- Edmonton wins the opening draw! 5-0 so far, could we see 6-0?

8:24- Penalty on Edmonton, not a good start.

8:26- Shorthanded 3-on-1 for Edmonton leads to nothing thanks to too much passing, but the PK looks good right now as the penalty expires.

8:30- Pens get publicity during the Finals! They just showed Brooks' hit on Cole, I don't know what all the fuss is about. Looked clean to me.

8:31- Penalty on Carolina, could we perhaps see another powerplay goal from the lowly Oiler powerplay unit??

8:57- Ok I know I just missed a bunch of stuff, but I was watching. The reason for a lack of updates is because Erin and I adopted a kitten today and the little guy is exploring and we're trying to get him used to us. For the majority of the period the cat was on my lap intently watching the game along with me, so I think we have a winner here. 0-0 after the first.

9:15- Second period is underway and the Canes are on a carryover powerplay.

9:17- Too many men on the ice penalty on the Oilers.

9:19- Pass into the slot to Pisani.... SCCCCCCOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

9:21- Greg: "My man again. Mr. Conn Smythe"

9:22- Penalty on Carolina, perhaps another powerplay goal??

9:28- Matching minors for a hook and a dive. Of course now the refs call a dive, but of course its on Edmonton because Carolina would never do such a thing. (Obviously Tarnstrom hauled Recchi down in Game 5, I mean come on Recchi should have gotten an Oscar for that performance.)

9:31- The cat (Max) has been asleep on Diana's lap for about 30 minutes now. Apparently he tuckered himself out with all the exploring. Diana came running over as soon as she found out we adopted it as she wants one herself. I guess she's getting her cat fix from poor little Max.

9:35- Staios blasts one from the point and SCOOORRRRRRRREEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!
2-0 on the deflection by Torres!

9:38- Powerplay Edmonton, come on boys send this back to Carolina for Game 7 right here.

9:41- Edmonton is by far the better team in the game right now. They are just absolutely controlling the play and making Carolina play out of their style.

9:43- Timeout Carolina...Laviolette is getting nervous if you ask me.

9:53- Penalty on Tarnstrom, Carolina going on the powerplay again. Big kill coming up here.

9:55- The Oilers are taking a page out of Carolina's penalty kill. They're blocking everything thrown at Markkanen.

9:57- Breakaway for Hemsky is nullfied by a penalty on Jason Smith. Not quite sure for what seeing as how he was on his ass in his own crease. Don't even tell me the Edmonton screw job is coming, cause I'll hunt these refs down.

10:00- End of period two, 2-0 Edmonton! Time to fetch the cat from behind the bookcase.

10:19- Third period underway and we're 20 minutes from Game 7! Yeah I know I just cursed the whole thing, but that's the reality of the situation.

10:21- They better be going upstairs to review this goal by Edmonton. If it isn't it would be one hell of a save by Cam Ward on a 3-on-1.

10:22- No goal thanks to nothing conclusive on the replays, but common sense would tell you the puck was in the net. Oh well, on we play 2-0 Oilers.

10:24- Penalty on Carolina! Time to put it away and send this back to Raleigh for a do or die Game 7.

10:25- SMYTH SCOOOOORRRRREEEEEEEEESSSSSSSS!!!!! WHAT A SHOT ON THE BACKHANDER!!! POWERPLAY GOAL 3-0!!!! Who needs that last goal that was disallowed? They got it anyway!

10:27- Another too many men on the ice penalty against Carolina! Blood is in the water boys! Open up those floodgates!

10:34- Penalty on Edmonton with 10:30 to go in the game. If Carolina has a snowball's chance in hell of coming back it's gotta come right here.

10:38- Penalty on Carolina on what would have been a breakaway for Pisani, but he was hooked from behind by Whitney.

10:43- SCOOOORRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! HORCOFF GETS THE GOAL ON THE POWERPLAY, 4-0!!!!!! WE'RE GOING TO A GAME 7 BABY!!! WHOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

10:46- The Edmonton fans have been cheering "We want the Cup!" for a solid 2-3 minutes without fading at all. Now the game is starting to get a little nasty, Game 7 is going to be a barnburner. Oh and the Oilers are going back on the powerplay, time to add insult to injury.

10:49- Too many men on the ice against Edmonton, oh well 4-0 lead is fine with me.

10:52- Two minutes until Game 7! Time for the happy dance in the middle of the living room. If Edmonton wins on Monday I'm changing this cat's name to lucky. Second "We want the Cup!" chant roars from the seats. No one is sitting down right now.

10:54-One minute!......30 seconds!

10:55- 20!.....10, 9, 8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1.0!!!!!!! IT'S OVER!!!! SHUTOUT MARKKANEN!!!!! SERIES TIED 3-3!!! WHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THEY MADE HISTORY AS NO TEAM DOWN 3-1 WINNING GAME 5 IN OT WENT ON TO WIN GAME 6!!!!!! YESSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

HOLY @#$$!!!!!!!!!!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAHAHAAH!!!!!

10:57- Yes again the theory was upheld, 6-0 in the Finals. Anyone wanna bet the winner of Game 7 wins the opening draw??

I already know I will not be able to post a blog in real time on Monday as I have to work until 11pm. Yes I know, I'm pretty much pissed off too right about now, but I will be taping the game and potentially keeping a blog then depending on how tired I am from working at 7am-11pm. Don't ask, it sucks, but what can you do?

Game 5 Oilers Vs. Hurricanes

From June 14, 2006

Ok so here it goes. It's all or nothing tonight for Edmonton. Win or go home, it's as simple as that. I must confess I was grilling and eating dinner for the duration of the first period however I did see everything.

Here are some thoughts and highlights from the first period:

1. Edmonton wins the opening draw, good sign (4-0 so far).

2. Pronger rips one to the cage just 16 seconds into the period for the very quick 1-0 lead. Oilers take a penalty about a minute after the goal,

3. Hurricanes tie it up at 1-1 on the powerplay when Markkanen fails to control a rebound and the defense fails to pick up Staal who buries it off his own rebound.

4. Canes stirke again on another powerplay goal (2 for 3 at this point), on a blast through traffic over the shoulder of Markkanen who never saw it and had no chance even if he would have. 2-1 Canes.

5. Edmonton finally gets a powerplay goal of their own on an absolute laser to the shelf over Ward on a one-timer by Hemsky. I love watching this kid, so smooth and nifty with the puck.

6. Turnover at the Canes blueline leads to a sweet goal by my man Peca on a great feed by who else but Hemsky with 17 seconds to go in the period.

9:20- Start of the 2nd period and Markkanen tested early, but makes a nice save to preserve the lead. The 4-on-4 is over and the shortened powerplay goes to.......EDMONTON!

9:23 In 20 seconds of powerplay time Edmonton musters two solid shots, both stopped by Ward. The first he never saw and it just hit him, the second was a cannon blast from the point that he kicked out to stop. I'm still in shock at how much he's stepped up his game in this series.

9:25- Penalty on the Canes and the much improved Oiler powerplay is back on the ice. Keys to Edmonton's three goals so far? Ward can't see anything coming his way rendering him like a one legged man in an ass kicking contest.

9:27- Edmonton actually held possession of the puck in the zone for a large part of the penalty and Ward makes a decent save on the lone shot. Off the draw Stoll gets caught for hooking and it's all even at 4-on-4.

9:37- Canes with a lot of pressure as Edmonton failed to clear resulting in a powerplay for Carolina.

9:39- Stall just registered his third point of the game on a very odd goal. Watch the highlights b/c the bounce that puck takes is rather generous. Third powerplay goal of the game for the Canes, 3-3 and with that Erin has gotten up to get ready to go to the gym. Yes I'm looking for all the positives in this situation right now.

9:43- Erin has come downstairs and has informed me that she will NOT be going to the gym as she wants to update her resume to apply for a new job. Great.

9:51- High sticking penalty on Brind'Amour. Powerplay Edmonton.

9:54- Still a lightning quick pace even with the penalty. This is truly something special to be watching. Edmonton is playing hard and not leaving anything in the tank to win this game and keep the series alive.

9:58- Second period over, 3-3. If the third period is anything like the first two we are in for a treat.

10:13- Gonna call Greg soon to make sure he's still alive and hasn't hung himself yet from watching this game, because I'm a concerned friend like that.

10:17- Third period starts out with a bang, literally. Doug Weight just got sandwiched and limped to the locker room holding his left arm. Looks like a seperated shoulder or dislocated shoulder to me. Injury report coming soon. Aaron Ward also went down earlier in the game so the Canes are down two men now.

10:23- Holding penalty on Carolina as a result of Edmonton with some pretty good puck control and cycling in the zone.

10:24- Pronger is on autofire right now, any puck coming his way he's letting it fly. About damn time if you ask me.

10:27- Another penalty on Carolina, this has to catch up with them eventually and with the powerplay looking better now would be a great time to score for Edmonton.

10:32- Aaron Ward has just returned to the ice for his first shift since getting injured back in the first period. Come on Edmonton, pounce on the weak guy in the herd.

10:34- First showing of the Stanley Cup coming out of the box and being polished up. Let's all hope that it goes back in the box.

10:40- Carolina just woke up big time. Just controlled the play for a good solid two minutes and rang the post on a down and out Markkanen. My heart rate is immeasurable right now.

10:45- Ward hurt again from blocking a Pronger shot. Weight is back too now. Gutsy guys, I'll give them that.

10:46- Icing call....1:18 from overtime.

10:50- Holy crap here we go. Overtime in a potentially deciding Stanley Cup Final game. Gonna go take some Valium to get through this one.....

11:04- Start of overtime and Edmonton wins the draw clean this time unlike the sort of a tie from the game opening draw.

11:06- 4 shots on net already for Edmonton....please oh please.

11:08- Oilers ring the post, puck goes back the other way and Recchi draws a penalty on Edmonton.....please kill this!

11:09- Pisani picks off an outlet pass and goes in on a breakaway. He shoots and he SCCCCCCCCCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WAHOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

HOLY #$%%!!!!!!

In the words of Pens our wonderful Pens announcer...Ladies and Gentlemen, Elvis has just left the building. A shorthanded goal in overtime by Fernando Pisani sends the series back to Edmonton for a Game 6 on Saturday night!!! Oh baby am I pumped up now!

Again, just as a final note the theory is 5-0. Bet you don't think I'm crazy now do you?

Game 4 Oilers Vs. Hurricanes

Ok so first off I'm sorry for not doing one of these for Game 3. I was an idiot and failed to make the connection that we were celebrating Greg's birthday on the same day as Game 3. Instead of devoting all our attention to the game, as is normall the case, we made productive use of our time by going to the horse track and betting on the ponies. First up was the Belmont which I had pegged except for that stupid Jazil. Played him in the Derby and he was a dog, so I leave him out of this one and naturally he wins. My trifecta pick finished 2,3,4 in the race, so once again Jazil screwed me over.

In any event, we stayed for the track's own racing and each hit a race so we walked out with at least some money for the first time in a year or so at that God forsaken track. We a;ready have plans to return based on our good fortune on Saturday.

The track did conveniently have the game on so I was able to cath bits and pieces, specifically the opening draw which was won by the Oilers if you'll remember. I'm 3-0 in this series, believe me now? There's something to this, I'm certain. If anyone knows how to look this up from year's past let me know and I'll do the math out to further prove this.

8:09- Game hasn't even started and Greg is already predicting things again. To his credit he was right about Game 3 so maybe we'll get lucky.

Greg: "It's all about the Oilers tonight, this series is goin back to Carolina 2-2."
Me: "It better."
Greg: "Oh it will."

8:18- I really want to go watch a game at the Rexall Place. I can't emphasize this enough, the atmosphere is nuts. Hockey is a way of life in Canada, so within a couple years I'm moving there to be a part of it.

8:21- National anthem time and if you haven't seen this building take over the Canadian National Anthem, you have not see anything. It's truly something special to see and hear. I just got chills listening to the sellout crowd take it an run with it. One word. Awesome.

8:25- Damnit! Canes win the draw.

Greg sums it all up for you: "Crap."

8:31- Furious pace early, but the Oilers have some jumo tonight on home ice. Best start for them yet in the series.

8:33- First commercial break and I have to catch my breath. This is shaping up to be a great game. Edmonton is hitting anything that moves right now, trying to get into the Canes heads. I LOVE IT!!!

8:38- SCCCCOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! WHAT A GOAL BY SAMSONOV!!! OH BABY WHAT A PLAY!!! 1-0 OILERS!

8:39- Cardinal sin in hockey. Do not take a penalty on the next shift after your team scored. Torres just committed it. PP Carolina, and they score, Stillman on the one-timer 1-1.

8:42- Penalty on the Canes. Will Edmonton's PP wake up finally in this series?

8:48- Edmonton forces a turnover at the Canes blueline and draws a hooking call on Whitney. Back on the PP.

8:52- The PP isnt looking great, but there are signs of improvement and they'll get to work on it more again as Whitney takes a seat again.

8:55- 5-on-3 PP for Edmonton for 1:12, can you say opportunity??

8:59- Ok so they didn't score, but the PP is looking much better now that they moved a man out to the high slot to take some pressure off the point.

9:00- Another stupid penalty on Edmonton. This time with under a minute to go in the period, boy a shorthanded goal would be real nice here.

9:02- End of the first period, 1-1. What a period. Edmonton is stepping up the physical aspect in a big way hitting anything that moves and punishing every Canes player to touch the puck. There is a sense of hunger that wasn't there in the first two games. Time for ice cream!

9:19- The Grim Reaper for the Edmonton Oilers just came home, I know that sounds harsh and I wish I were joking, but look back at the first two games of the series and try and convince me otherwise. Go ahead, I dare you.

9:21- Second period underway and the Canes resume the PP.

9:23- I just went from yelling praises of Markkanen to cursing out Ward. What a sequence, both goalies with excellent saves.

9:25- Holding penalty on Pronger....uh oh, best penalty killer on the team in the box for two minutes.

9:26- Markkanen with a save I can't even begin to describe. Wow.

9:28- Markkanen again! Across the crease double stacked the pads, unbelieveable. Penalty over.

9:35- Bret Hedican takes a retalitory penalty and Jaroslav Spacek also goes for some unknown reason.

9:36- Referee mishap, Spacek just used his get out of jail free card, PP for Edmonton after all!

9:38- Pronger unloads and it gets through traffic to Ward. Finally a shot on net from the point.

9:42- Observation- Edmonton was generating all their offense and flow from dumping the puck and yet they aren't doing it now, not sure why.

9:48- Markkanen stops Recchi with a pretty glove save.

9:50- Pronger turns it over and Recchi gets his revenge. 2-1 Canes.

9:53- Edmonton gets called for holding, now granted it was a call but Carolina is getting away with murder out there right now. This is sickening.

9:54- Finally a retribution call on Carolina. 4-on-4 for 1:30ish.

9:56- Another penalty on Pronger. Fans have it correct by chanting "We want refs!" Complete inconsistancy going on right now.

9:58- End of two, 2-1 Carolina. Maybe the refs will wake up inbetween periods here and keep it even. If I was MacTavish I would have been tossed from this game already.

10:01- Greg's trying to cheer me up.

Greg: "2-1 end of two."
Me: "Horrible."
Greg: "It's ok, still 20:00 left. Optimism, don't be a pessimist. Believe Casey believe."
Me: "I'd have an easier time believing if the refs didn't suck."

10:16-Moment of truth right here. Third period under way.

10:17- You can't spell glove without love baby as Markkanen flashes leather to rob a golden Carolina chance off a rebound. Pretty stuff.

10:24- Looks like Edmonton is going back to the first period game plan. Back to hitting and dumping the puck in.

10:26- The refs have put the whistles away again. Will it stay like this for the remainder of the game or just until Edmonton does something? Yes I'm well aware that I'm harping on this, but nothing annoyed me more as a player than inconsistant refs.

10:29- Delay to fix the boards. Cotton Eyed Joe is playing over the PA system and yes I'm dancing around the living room while Erin sits on the couch painting her nails shaking her head.

10:34- Spacek drilled by Staal and shaken up.....not good. 10 minutes to go. Greatest commercial out there right now? New Dodge Caliber commercial with the cute little animals. The manufacturers ask them what they think of the car. The last one replies "It scares the C@ out of me." Said of course in a cute little voice making it that much funnier.

10:38- Ward looking like he did in Game 1. Stopping EVERYTHING!

10:45- BRAD WATSON IS IN THE DOGHOUSE. How the hell do you call a penalty like that after letting everything else go in the 3rd period. This is a joke and Watson should never be allowed to ref a game ever again. 4:40 to go in the third, unbelievable.

10:50- Penalty over. I am livid if you couldn't tell. Timeout Canes.

10:52- Markkanen out of the net.

10:54- 50 secs to go timeout Edmonton.

10:56- 2-1 Final, 3-1 in the series. A great game tainted by horrible officiating. The theory is 4-0, I'm really starting to believe that it's real and not just a theory.

It could all be over on Wednesday, and that is such a horrible thing because this season has been fun to watch.

Game 2 Oilers Vs. Hurricanes

Before we get this thing started up here, I'd just like to thank all of you who have read my account of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, I can't thank you enough. As a writer it is always a great feeling to know that people are reading your things, and to those of you who were kind enough to IM, e-mail, or leave comments somewhere here on Myspace.com, thank you for your words of encouragement. You have no idea how much it means to me to know people like what I am doing, even if it is only for fun.

Ok so enough of the sappy stuff here, it's time to get down to business. Game 2 is only a couple minutes away and I'm back on the couch for the last OLN broadcast of the season, (thank God cause the technical problems all season have been horrible. Anyone remember that 15 minute freeze up during the San Jose and Nashville series in the third period mind you?) The hole in the wall has been repaired and Erin is still at work and as much as I like having her around....I can't help but think that she was the reason the Oilers lost Game 1. If you'll recall they were up 3-0 until my darling girlfriend returned home and then they fell apart like John Daly after a couple of beers. She just textmessaged me and said she probably won't be home until later than usual...could this be a good sign? I guess we shall soon see.

8:03- Doc and JD doing their intros and look who's in net for Edmonton, Jussi Markkanen, not Ty Conklin. I wonder what swayed MacTavish's mind into giving a guy who hasn't started a game in months over a guy who can't stop a beach ball. Rock in a hard place much? Saying it now, if the Oilers pull off a miracle and win the Cup, Jussi will make a couple bucks off a jersey sale to me.

8:17- Opening draw won by Brind'Amour again. Based on the theory there is no need to watch the rest of this game, but I will.

8:18- Markkanen tested early and passes despite a tricky rebound that was cleared. Back the other way and Ward makes a nice stop on his first shot of the game. Both look pretty good early.

8:20- More bad news. Another text message from Erin reveals that she will in fact be home around the normal time she arrives home from work. Sorry boys, but it's not your night tonight.

8:21- Penalty on Carolina! Interference, perhaps another quick start? If only they could get set up on the PP....

8:23- I have never seen a team block more shots in all my years of watching hockey! Aaron Ward and Brind'Amour block two huge ones before the Oilers finally get one to the goaltender. PP over and it at least looked better than the ones in the 3rd period of Game 1.

8:25- 2-on-1 for Carolina and Andrew Ladd gets a fortunate deflection off the sprawling defenseman and over Markkanen for the early 1-0 lead, here we go again.

8:33- Markkanen makes a nice stop, but there's a hooking penalty on Edmonton, time to kill it off boys. Carolina is dominating play up to this point so Edmonton is going to need to weather the storm, (note the play on words there).

8:38- Hooray! Penalty on Carolina to even things up! Edmonton going back on the PP in just a few seconds.

8:47- Another penalty on Carolina! Edmonton appears to have gotten out the jitters and Markkanen is looking confident so maybe there is some shred of hope here.

8:50- Well that's the end of the first and all things considered I suppose it was a decent period. Once they stopped trying to play a run and gun game the pace slowed down and they at least looked like a tema competing for the Cup. Twenty minutes in the books and only down one goal, I can live with that....time for some cake to ease the eventual doom.

9:08- Apparently the Canes blocked 11 shots in the first period alone and Wesley had to have blocked about 8. Oilers still on the PP on carryover time.

9:13- Samsonov stoned by Ward. Yes the same guy who's been pulled on a couple of occasions in the playoffs and countless others during the regular season. Eat your heart out Martin Gerber.

9:15- Penalty on Edmonton....don't have a good feeling about this at all.

9:16- Yet another penalty on the Oilers. 5-on-3 PP for the Canes. Really not feeling good about this.

9:19- First penalty over and Matt Greene just out of the box almost scored a shorthanded goal. They kill off the remaining time and here comes the third straight penalty on the Oilers. Someone may need to remind them that a hat-trick only applies when goals are scored, not penalties.

9:22-Diana: "So how's the game."
Me: "1-0 Carolina, Edmonton keeps taking stupid penalties."
Diana: "Your team is losing?"
Me: Yes.
Diana: "Don't cry."
Me: "I'm not.... yet."
Diana: "I'll get you a Kleenex."

9:24- Kaberle scores on the PP and just like that it's 2-0. Nice shot through a crowd...still feeling sick.

9:26- Ward continues to stand on his head on a delayed penalty call against the Canes. If ever there was a time for a goal, it's now Oilers. Get it done already! You already knocked off Legace, Toskala, and a combo of Giggy and Bryzgalov, if you can't knock off Ward there is something seriously wrong.

9:29- Ward just stopped the puck and Samsonov who got dumped into him. Apparently pucks aren't the only thing this kid stops.

9:31- I think Roloson is still playing hockey in this series, but somehow he's changed teams without any of us knowing. "Ward" just stopped a shot with his stick somehow from point blank, and of course play goes the other way and Edmonton takes a penalty. To quote Anger Management "The anger sharks are swimming in my head."

9:34- Make or break time here for the Oilers. If they have any chance of winning this game they need to kill this off, not just for them but for me and all of Canada, but mainly for me.

9:37- Horcoff is going to wake up when he's 90 still having nightmares about Cam Ward's glove robbing him.

9:39- Hide the kids for this comment from JD. "Oilers had another chance but it was Michael Peca who couldn't finish." Use your imagination.

9:41- Markkanen makes a solid stop on a rip from the point off the rush from Wesley who decided to shoot the puck instead of stop it for once.

9:42- What a mad scramble around the net. 3-0 Carolina on a goal by Stillman with 2 seconds to go in the period. I give up.

9:44- Me: "3-0 after two."
Gary: "Yuck. Carolina does deserve it though."
Me: "@#$hem."
Gary: "It's better than NJ winning."
Me: "Good point sir."

He always did know how to cheer me up.

9:50- Greg is back with another guaruntee.

Greg: "That's alright Oilers WILL comeback. I guaruntee it. This game is going to overtime."

If his predictions so far have taught us anything it's that this game is over.

10:01- Third period under way and Edmonton is controlling play early.

10:04- Penalty on Edmonton, good way to kill momentum, and I just thought I'd mention Erin just sat down on the couch. Coincedence? I think not.

10:07- Carolina goal under review....looks to me like it shouldn't count, but knowing my luck it will.

10:08- .....................................................it counts, 4-0. I really don't understand the logic behind calling that a goal at all.

10:10- Frustration penalty on Edmonton, time for some fights if you ask me. Good look from above on the goal. Apparently he did touch it with his stick despite kicking it to get it there in the first place.

10:12-5-0 on a deflection by Recchi. I'd come up with a witty remark, but im in total shock.

10:14- Another penalty on Edmonton. Let's go for a six pack and try to forget this night ever happened.

10:26- Penalty on Edmonton. This game has been over from the opening draw.

10:32- Penalty on Carolina, time for a meaningless goal potentially. All I'm asking for at this point is just to break up the shutout of this rook. Don't I deserve at least that much?

10:35- Laraque is tossed for a cheap hit from behind after the penalty expires.

10:40- Penaly on the Canes. Anyone noticing a trend here in the late stages of the game? If there's one good thing about this it's that the refs are keeping it from getting way out of control.

10:42- Game over 5-0 final. Shutout for the rook Ward. No need to get violent tonight, Edmonton didn't play a bad game, they just got beat. No complaints from the effort, but if they want to get back in this series they may want to take Ward's steroids away from him because I have never seen such a turnaround in play ever. It's unreal.

Signing off for the evening, but to bring things full circle, it's official. Canes won the opening draw again tonight and won the game. My theory is 2-0 and no I'm not happy about that at all.

10:45- Erin: "What is Versus?"
Me:- "OLN is changing their name to Versus."
Erin: "But what will they do with fishing? There's no real versus in fishing."
Me: "Good point, we're still trying to figure out the point of changing."

10:46 Power surge. All the lights just went out in the house. I'd say it's pretty symbolic since the lights are slowly going out on Edmonton's season.

Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to go get that Kleenex from Diana and come up with a gameplan for Saturday, because this spot on the couch certainly isn't working.

Game 1 Oilers Vs. Hurricanes

So as I sit here on my comfy couch I cannot contain my excitement. After two years I finally get to watch a Stanley Cup Finals game and what better way to share my excitement than to keep a running blog of what's going on?

For those of you who don't know by now, the Edmonton Oilers better win this series for two reasons. First, it would be the biggest kick in the ass to the players from the owners because having an 8-seed win the Stanley Cup would prove their theory about parity. Secondly, I ran an NHL playoff pool and right now I'm in the lead and as long as Carolina doesn't win the Cup I win. I don't even care about the money, just the bragging rights that come along with it and where I won the NCAA Tournament Pool with my friends it would be the total sweep.

8:13- Nice camera shot of some of the Canes cheerleaders. Where were the cheerleaders when I used to play? That would have given us some extra motivation to play. Oh and she's singing the Canadian national anthem and she's being drowned out by the Oiler fans...that's dedication right there as a fan.

8:18- Opening draw won by Brind'Amour, not thrilled based on my scientific theory that the winner of the opening draw, goes on to win the game.

8:20- Penalty on Mike Commodore of the Canes! Oilers going on the PP! Look out for Pronger at the point.

8:25- Commodore just smoked Ryan Smyth who was skating out of his own zone. The hitting is picking up in this fast paced period. Man I missed this.

8:27- First commercial break, I suppose I should bring the dishes from dinner into the kitchen before my better half gets home and kills me.

8:31- SCORRRRREEEEEEEEE!!!!!! YESSSSSSS!!!!! 1-0 Oilers! Goalmouth scramble, great save by Cam Ward on Fernando Pisani's initial shot, but he picked up his own rebound and tucked it behind the down and out Ward. Good start for me!

8:36- Penalty on Steve Staios for "going to low on a hip check," total BS if you ask me but oh well time for the PK.

8:41-Another penalty on the Oilers. My friend Greg isn't impressed.

"Bad call...Devorski blows."

8:44- Ethan Moreau draws a penalty to even things up.

8:45- Another penalty on the Canes! 4-on-3 powerplay soon to be a 5-on-3!!

8:48- Another penalty on Carolina! Lazy penalties by the Canes. Timeout Edmonton. Craig MacTavish calls the troops over to draw up a play.

8:50- Glen Wesley just set the unofficial record for most body parts injured in one shift. Somehow he's still skating around.

8:54- End of the first period. 1-0 Edmonton, I can live with this. Great action and making me feel all warm and fuzzy inside to be watching Cup Finals hockey once again. Time to do the dishes.

9:04- Umm....OLN is changing their name to Versus? Versus what? At least with OLN you knew what you were getting, but come on Versus? What the hell is that?

9:12- Second period under way!

9:17- Looks like Carolina woke up inbetween periods. Coach Laviolette must have screamed obscenities at his club, because no coach ever does that type of thing to get his team going.

9:19- First unbelievable save of the night goes to Cam Ward. Stops the first shot from point blank and somehow got the rebound shot too. Good stuff from the rook.

9:22- Random thought. Worst name in hockey? Michael Peca. No need to explain that as I'm sure you can use your imagination. Perhaps that's why he's going to the box right now.

9:25- Just had this convo with a future nurse.

Me: "Edmonton is up 1-0."

Diana: "Where's Edmonton?"

Me: "Not much of a geography buff are you?"

9:31- PENALTY SHOT FOR EDMONTON!!! The most exciting play in hockey!

9:32 Pronger moves in and SCOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRREEEEEESSSSSSSS!!!!!! 2-0 OILERS!!!!! YAHHHHHOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

9:45 SCOOOOOORRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! 3-0 EDMONTON!! ETHAN MOREAU THROWS IT AT THE NET AND IT DEFLECTS IN!!!!! SWEET!!!

9:47: Greg: "This game is over." Hopefully he's right, but I tend to believe him.

9:48- Uh oh. Can I take that last line back? 3-1 on a rebound goal by Brind'Amour. I really don't want to have to eat my words on this one, come on Oilers get it back please!

9:50- Penalty on Edmonton why am I hearing "It's the end of the world as we know it," in my head.

9:51 End to end rushes with unbelievable saves at both ends! What an end to the period and a start to the series!! 3-1 after two.

10:11- Third period under way and the Canes start out on the PP on carryover time, in other news Erin came home and is still confused about the sport despite my efforts to explain, but I'll keep on trying to make a hockey fan out of her if it kills me.

10:13- The song is getting louder in my head. 3-2 Ray Whitney on an absolute rip on a one-timer off the rush. No chance for Roloson.

10:14- Penalty on Carolina. Please oh please Edmonton get one here!

10:17- Well that was one heck of a powerplay there by Edmonton. I think a group of midgets with one leg each could have executed a better PP and of course Moreau takes a penalty to give Carolina a chance to tie it up now. The wheels are coming off the wagon.

10:19- I am officially ripping the hair out of my head, 3-3 and Erin is now afraid to talk to me. Edmonton's defense is standing around watching instead of reacting.

10:24- Golden chance for Edmonton stopped by a diving outstretched glove of Ward on the ice. I can't believe what I'm seeing out here. There is a massive pit in my stomache right now from being so stressed out from this game. Imagine what I'd be like if the Penguins were playing in the Finals.

10:25- Penalty on Carolina. Doubt this will have any positive effect judging from how this period is going.

10:29- I'm just going to shut up now. Shorthanded goal for Justin Williams. 4-3 Carolina. Ward is turning into a stonewall.

Erin: "Am I bad luck?"

Me: "Yes."

Erin: "Do you want me to go back to work?"

Me: "Yes."

10:31- Me: "I'm blaming you for this, you said it was over after 3-0."

Greg: "It is over oilers are gonna win in double ot, they just wanna have more drama."

Me: "Yeah, ok."

10:33- Erin has left the room. Come on Edmonton the hex is off now go win me a hockey game.

10:34- Ward makes another unbelievable save. This one might as well be over as far as I'm concerned.

Greg: "I want Ward tested for steroids."

10:37- SCOOOOOORRRRRRREEEEEEEEEE!!!!! WHAT A GOAL BY ALES HEMSKY ON THE PP!!!!!! YESSSSSSSS!!!!!!

Erin from upstairs: "I'll stay up here."

Me: "Good."

10:38- Uh oh. Rolo gets plowed into and crashes into the post and isn't getting up and of course OLN has to go to commercial. Apparently the Erin hex still applies from upstairs.

10:41- The song from before is louder than ever as Rolo glides off to the locker room and they're bringing in Ty Conklin from UNH. You heard it here first. Game. Set. Match. Carolina.

10:44- JD is commenting on Conklin being in.

Me: "Why is he laughing about this whole thing? It's not funny."

Greg: "I know he is so cruel, what an ass. He is like hahaha Rolo's hurt."

10:50- Conklin faces his first shot and makes a routine save, but leaves a massive rebound that was thankfully cleared away. This is gonna be over soon.

10:54- Ty Conklin is the worst goalie of all time. Comes out to play a puck behind the net and coughs it up, gets trapped behind the net and Brind'Amour picks up the loose change and tucks it into an empty net after Jason Smith fanned on the outlet pass. 5-4 Carolina.

10:56- Ward stands on his head to rob Horcoff from point blank who had an empty net. Game over. Carolina wins 5-4 and leads the best of seven 1-0.

Excuse me while I go put my head through a wall.

11:14- Pulled my head out of the sheetrock long enough to hear Coach MacTavish say Roloson is out for the series. Bye bye hockey pool money. This series is already over.

Going to go try and fix that hole in the wall before Game 2 and let me refer you back to my theory from the opening draw. I was right and the theory is 1-0 in the Finals.

Life As A Pens Fan

In a recent conversation with my roommate, Greg, I figured out that I have supplanted the suffering from being a Red Sox fan with being a Penguins fan.

Follow me on this, back in the early 90's the Penguins won two Stanley Cups while the Red Sox were busy sucking it up. Thoughts of never seeing the Sox win a World Series resonated throughout New England until 2004 when it finally happened and somehow the world didn't come to an end.

I know its only been 14 years since the Penguins won a Stanley Cup, but I am starting to wonder if they will ever do it again. A series of events of the past 14 years had led me to this state of mind I am in right now, capped off with the past two NHL seasons which is why I am going to take over the Pittsburgh Penguins and restore them back to the league's elite teams.

Here are 4 things I would do to the team if I took over this off-season.

1) First and foremost this team needs some defense. As of right now they have given up a league high 287 goals through 72 games this season, which is 15 more than the Washington Capitals who rank 29th in goals against.

There are plenty of unrestricted free agents on the market this upcoming season and here is just afew that would be a good fit in Pittsburgh.

Dallas Stars D- Willie Mitchell- Although he came over at the trade deadline, it would take some work to get Mitchell into the black and gold. Mitchell would bring a physical presence to an already soft defensive core.

Nashville Predators D- Marek Zidlicky- Again the chances are slight that the Preds would allow Zidlicky to go elsewhere. This is an electric defensemen that is smart enough to know when to jump up in the play and has a lethal slapshot from the point on the powerplay. Combine that with Crosby's skill level and an already scary powrplay and opposing coaches would being losing sleep over how to stop it.

Ottawa Senators D- Zdeno Chara- The Sens appear to be looking to keep Wade Redden over Chara, but if there was ever a guy that would bring a mean streak back to Pittsburgh, he'd be it. At 6'9 Chara is the biggest man in the NHL and is downright scary when he winds up. His reach is unmatched making him almost impossible to get around in the defensive zone. He has said he wants to go to a winning team, but I'd make a serious push for a player of his caliber.

2) A solid veteran goaltender that has actually proven something in the league, unlike failed experiment Jocelyn Thibault. Hopefully there are no hard feelings between Curtis Joseph and the Pens after the boched signing attempt last summer. Marc-Andre Fleury is a great young goalie, but if he the tutilige of a proven goaltender, his maturation process would be accelerated.

3) What this team needs right now aside from the above is veteren players who are not old, like their signings last summer of John LeClair. Guys like Marc Savard who are proven scorers and who can cut it in the new NHL. Also on the market is Daniel Briere and Maxim Afinogenov from the Buffalo Sabres who have been much improved this season in helping their team sneak under the radar and become a playoff contender.

4) Now on to the current team and players that are not helping and are not a good fit on this young Penguins team.

John LeClair- Granted he's been better of late, but an overall disappointment this season. LeClair has made a career of parking himself in front of the net and getting garbage rebound goals. This season it appears as though he thinks he is 20 again and can skate with the best of them. Hey John wake up and realize how old you are and leave the Pens or go back to what made you a great player.

Sergei Gonchar- Another complete bust and waste of money. Classic example of a player who was great in the old NHL, but for some reason could not adjust to the faster game.Something tells me that he will be a better player next year, but if I had it my way he would have been out of Pittsburgh a long time ago.

I would have gone on to rip Ziggy Palffy, but that's right, he picked up and left faster than your friend who got walked in on by his girlfriends father while they were engaging in pre-marital relations.

Andre Roy- Real tough guy, took one punch to the face in the begining of the season and broke his orbital bone. Pretty hard to protect Sid the Kid when you're in the luxury box with a patch over your eye.

Jocelyn Thibault- See above, but an additional note. If you cannot stop a beachball in the net, why continue to play goalie? Find a job elsewhere seling balloons to little kids at the circus or something. Yes I blame the begining of the season and the ultimate downfall on him. I am not quite sure on this one, but I'm pretty sure he set the record for most 3 goal blown leads in one season.

Stay tuned for the next couple seasons as this team should be one to look out for, but then again I could be right back here writing this same thing again.