Well, everyone wondered what the Penguins would do with the return of Sydney Crosby. Now we know--they keep on winning. Crosby has five assists in two games playing on a line with Matt Cooke (two 2-goal games with Crosby) and Tyler Kennedy. This match up is perfect as it doesn't mess with the Pens two "magic" lines who have played so well with Crosby out.
Cooke is the Penguins' candidate for the NHL's Masterton Trophy and should be seriously considered. After suffering league suspensions last year, including one that keep him out of the playoffs as the Pens lost in the first round to Tampa Bay, he has completely changed his approach to the game and is prospering, even before joinng Crosby. He truly deserves to be playing with on this line with the Captain and Tyler Kennedy is ALWAYS deserving with his hard work.
If they can now stay healthy I think the Pens should be the favorite for Stanley's Cup particularly with their record against the Western Conference this year.
The Pens all but wore out Marty Brodeur with 43 shots, a 3-1 margin over the Devils. If Brodeur hadn't played so well it could have been VERY ugly. Can anyone say "juggernaugt?"
Good news is that many Penguins have lost so much time to injuries that they should be a fairly "fresh" team going into the playoffs. Their main problem is beating out the Rangers for the Division title as, if they don't, they'll finish fourth behind two teams that will undoubtedly have accumulated more at least 10 fewer points than them in the standings. This is another year that emphasizes why the best 8 teams should make the playoffs, in order of point total, REGARDLESS of Division. Why should a team be ranked above another simply because their Division competition stinks?
Now, on to the "Crosby Sucks" fest at the dump in Philadelphia. What morons. I usually watch the games in Philly with the sound off so as not to have my blood pressure reach 300. Besides, what is a "flyer" anyway but a piece of worthless paper that everyone throws out before even looking at it?
