Pens 3, Panthers 0; Arena deal by Friday ???

If you notice, this sort of stuff is starting to become a habit.

Pens blank the Cats last night for their first win against them in a long time.

Earlier in the year, it was the Leafs.

Before that, of course it was the Flyers.

Common demoninator; The Pens are starting to beat the teams that they've had big problems with in the last several years.

I'd say that's a good sign.

Have to say though, the Panthers sure put the pressure on for most of the game. If it were not for Fleury's solid game (again), last night's outcome may have been quite different.

In addition, the Panthers played a clean but physical game against Sid as well, holding him to only one assist. Of course, that one assist may have put the game away, on yet another backdoor goal on the power play by Whitney.

And once again, the muckers had a good game, contributing with a goal that was a result of great hustle by Ruutu combined with a nice backhand to the 5 hole of Belfour. Maybe Eddie would have had that in his late 30's.

Big, big game on Thursday, as the Canadiens come to town. The Pens turn around and travel to Montreal on Sunday afternoon. Sandwiched between the two is Alex Ovechkin and the Caps on Saturday afternoon at the Igloo.

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KDKA's Andy Sheehan is now reporting that the new arena deal between the government officials and the Pens could be completed by Thursday, with an announcement possibly by Friday.

Continued great news. Outside of a catastrophic collapse in negotiations, put this one in the books.

Then I'll be interested to see all of those "I told you so" experts. Yeah, right.

KDKA; Arena deal may be reached this week....

According to KDKA's Andy Sheehan, who's done a great investigative job on the Penguins arena and ownership issues, talks between the Penguins and the government official are very close to a deal and if all goes well, they could have an announcement in the next few days.

Of course, I think we all won't be content until we see Mario and Gov. Rendell together in the press conference, but if it holds true, and there's no reason not to believe Sheehan, this is obviously great news.

In addition, Sheehan quotes Mayor Ravenstahl as stating "it's my hope that sometime this week we can get back to talks with the Penguins and ultimately reach a deal".

Great timing as well, with the Pens starting a three game homestand tomorrow night vs. Florida.

Goose Egg for Sid at All-Star game; Pens roller coaster ride coming back up

Well, hope he had fun anyways.

All of the hype surrounding Sid's first All-Star game, the matching up of Sid and Ovechkin on the 1st line, the new uniforms, yadda, yadda....

Well, it kinda went off like a dud, if you were looking for fireworks anyway.

Neither Sid nor Alex really had any flashes of their collective brilliance during the game, although Alex did get a tap-in goal late in the game.

But Sid was either bottled up or was the subject of poor passes the entire game, and never really got off a good shot.

I read some articles today that said the Western Conference's D-men had already agreed that they would simply clutter up the middle of their own zone in order to eliminate the chance of the usual spectacular cross-ice passes.

Thanks for playing along, boys.

And, not unexpectedly, I thought that the line that had the most chemistry, and therefore looked the best, was the one with Lecavalier and St. Louis.

A lot of the hockey articles today also mentioned that Gretzky had a goose egg in his first All-Star game.

At least Sid's got that going for him.

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It's also been widely reported that Gov. Rendell had a lengthy conversation with Ron Burkle Tuesday night discussing some of the details that had been a sticking point during last Thursday's heated negotations.

Everyone needs to understand, Rendell and Burkle are longtime buddies. They've negotiated business deals for many years.

Does anyone SERIOUSLY think this isn't going to happen ??

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Demolition will begin in February on 11 buildings that will be cleared in preparation for the construction of the new arena.

I say again, still think it's not going to happen ??

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And finally, Noah Welch probably has worn out the PA highways (dunno how those guys make the trip, I-79 to I-80 to I-81, or Turnpike to I-81 ? Who knows) going up and down from Pittsburgh to Wilkes-Barre. So a couple of days after being sent down, he's now on his way back up. I guess the thinking is that they want the extra D-man just in case Eaton isn't quite ready.

Lemieux continues his posturing (to his credit)....

I really don't want to be portraying my opinions of the arena deal in a denegrating fashion towards Mario Lemieux.

Christ, how could I, or anyone else for that matter ??

He's an incredible role model, and I consider him (along with Roberto Clemente) one of my lifelong idols.

But boy oh boy, Mario is playing his cards like he should be on ESPN on one of those poker shows (don't get me started on that).

Mario used the occasion of media day at the NHL All-Star game to once again portray the gloom and doom of the Penguins' arena situation.

Lemieux said "I heard it wasn't very good. Our people were offended and very disappointed. Now, as always, we have to go out and explore our options. Once we find a deal we like, we'll sign it up."

Pretty strong comments, touche' Mario.

As I said, I give Mario all the credit in the world. He's gonna get the best deal for the Penguins (and his wallet) that he can.

However, having said all of that, in my humble opinion, it is all pure posturing, nothing more.

Get your money Mario, you deserve it.

But you aren't moving the Penguins, sure I'll call you out on it.

You've been living in Pittsburgh long enough, you fully know irregardless of how bad you've gotten screwed over by the politicians, you will get vilified if you move this team.

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On a more positive note, Stan Savran reported on Sportsbeat tonight that the majority of the current investment group of the Penguins, plus a couple of other outside investors, are in the process of increasing each of their investments up to $10 million a piece, in order to purchase the Penguins, and get Mario his money due. Of course, this is a separate evolution to the arena issue, so we'll have to see what happens with this as well.

The Confluence's Blurbs from the Burgh

• You have to forgive the Buccos for continuing to be absolute giddy after the announcement of the LaRoche trade. I'll admit it, I was pretty damn excited myself. But let's not kid ourselves; This trade simply makes the Bucs a closer bet to finish .500 or better, and that's about it. At the very best scenario, it may give the Bucs an outside shot at a wild card spot. Come on people, after 14 years of futility, let's not get carried away.
• Seems that as soon as the 'Burgh press started mentioning the renewed possibility of signing Trot Nixon, the Indians signed him. Coincidence ??
• Speaking of coincidence, isn't it a small MLB when immediately after the LaRoche trade was announced, the Braves signed Craig Wilson. Decent signing for the Braves, I just hope they realize he hasn't hit a curve ball since his wiffleball days.
• Bucs also signed Shawn Chacon to a ridiculous 1 year, 3.825 million dollar contract today. Ya know, I knew when I joined the Navy in '83 at the age of 19 I was going into the wrong line of business. I wish I would've known how much they were looking for left-handed junk pitchers, 'cause I would have stuck with it.
• Still no news from Steelers HQ after the Round 2 interviews of Tomlin and Grimm. Who knows, maybe the Steelers will be waiting until after Ron Rivera and the Bears are eliminated (which I really hope is Sunday). As I told my buddy Pojo Risin the other day, something seems fishy to me about Grimm. Russ has had several interviews over the last few years, and not only hasn't he gotten a head coach job, he hasn't gotten a 2nd interview yet. That isn't adding up to me, and makes me think that maybe Grimm isn't the #1 choice. I could very well be wrong, we'll see.
• Looks like new Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt will grab Steelers special teams coach Kevin Spencer. Two words; Good Riddance.
• How about that Michael Vick. What an idiot. Enough said.
• I've read a lot of the comments concerning the Pens inability to win shootouts. There's one common theme I agree with, especially thinking back to the Pens' recent shootouts; Get the Puck up. Really seems like the Pens shooters are deking the goalies well enough that the goalies must sprawl, but the shots are simply not high enough. Take a look at Christensen's goals, top shelf. Remember Malkin's successful shootout goal; deke, then roof it. Even Sid's jock drop on Theodore last year; deke, then backhand top shelf.
• Shero poo-poo'd the trade rumors for Malone going to the Rangers recently. I'm not buying it just yet. I agree with some of the other bloggers recently who say that Malone was propped on the 1st line to boost his trade value, and even that the trade rumors may have been put out there on purpose as a motivation tool, although I feel that eventually he's going to pull the trigger on the deal.
• I was probably a little harsh on MAF last night, trust me it was only 'cause I was pissed off. MAF stood on his French-Canadian head last night.
• I continue to love that 2nd line of Staal/Malkin/Ouellet.
• Part of me wants to see Petrovicky given more of a shot. It's not like Ruutu is really doing anything recently.
• The Pens not cashing in on that 5 on 3 for 1:50 last night absolutely lost them the game. Once again, they're way too reliant on Gonchar on the PP.
• More negotiations last night on the new arena deal between the Governor, city officials, and the Pens. More progress, but no new deal just yet. Getting some impatient fans out there, but everyone needs to realize, there's dozens of details that need to be negotiated, one by one. The deal's gonna get done, just be patient.
• And when the deal's done, I'm gonna be firing off some emails to some "experts" who were so sure the Pens were gone. I can't wait for that.

Trib's Conte: New arena deal may come next week

Andrew Conte, who has been on top of the Pens arena and ownership situations since day one, reports in today's Tribune-Review that "talks between the Penguins owners, Lemieux and billionaire investor Ron Burkle, and Gov. Ed Rendell, county Chief Executive Dan Onorato and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl went so well there could be a deal as soon as next week, sources said".

This follows comments made from Mario after last night's meeting with local officials which he described as "very optimistic" and "very positive".

Hopefully we'll continue to get more promising news as the days go on.

K.C. offers Mario everything but the kitchen sink, but he's still "very optimistic" about new 'Burgh arena deal

Five words.

The proof is in the pudding.

All over the hockey 'Net world this afternoon, the only phrase you saw was "free rent", emanating from today's meeting with Kansas City's Sprint Center representatives. The Pens would indeed play rent-free if they accepted the offer proposed in their meeting today in K.C.

Then, the Pens' boys hopped on Ronny Burkle's private plane and headed back to Pittsburgh, were they met this afternoon with Gov. Rendell, County Exec. Dan Onorato, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, among others.

Mario briefly met with the media after the meeting, using terms that he was "very optimistic" after the meeting and that the meeting was "very positive".

Those are his words folks, not mine (I know, I know, hence the quotes, duh).

So what I'm saying is for those who may be making hotel reservations for Kansas City for next October's season opener, ya'll need to chill out. No one outside of those two parties knows what's in the fine print of that K.C. proposal. Unless you're 18 years old, you should know by now that nothing in this world is free.

In addition, and more importantly, anyone paying close attention to the arena and/or ownership situation has seen and read that Mario Lemieux has been extremely careful about how he is wording his comments and his statements to the media. Monsieur Lemieux absolutely would not be throwing out words like "very optimistic" and "very positive" towards the new arena deal just to blow smoke up the collective asses of Pens fans.

He and his ownership group are doing what they need to do in terms of exploring ALL of their options. Although it's unpleasant to see photos of Lemieux in K.C.'s arena and watch press conferences in K.C. discussing a possible timeline of the Pens playing in K.C. next season, it's the necessary due diligence that businessmen MUST DO with a multi-million dollar investment.

But this deal will get done, my friends. Is it possible they're still headed to K.C. ?? Absolutely, I'm not that naive.

But the deal is on the table, the terms have obviously been sweetened for the Pens, it's a matter of time.

Monsieur Lemieux will, once again, save the Pens, and in Pittsburgh.

And let the posturing begin...

It's almost like Mario's statement on Thursday has done nothing but fuel even more speculation and posturing among all of the respective parties involved with the Penguins' current situation.

Dan Onorato reiterated his support for Plan B today, saying a new arena was his top priority and he hoped to be able to achieve it in six to eight weeks.

I give Onorato props since the slots license decision was handed down on Wednesday. He's been on several interviews since then, and has consistently been calm, explaining the situation very clearly to those not well-informed (and that's a lot of people, judging by some of the Internet articles).

And, as has been said several times before, progress is continuing to be made on the new arena's future site. The SEA (Sports & Exhibition Authority) authorized $1.7 million in contracts to clear asbestos from buildings to be demolished to make way for a new arena and to prevent work stoppages during construction.

Demolition will begin in January, agreement in place or not.

And finally, Jim Balsillie tossed his hat back in the ring. You can imagine this was coming, especially since the selling price will now be about 40 million less.

The inaccurate reporting of the Pens' situation gets more ridiculous every day. One of the biggest misconceptions is the statement that Plan B will involve taxpayers money. That is completely false, there is zero money coming from taxpayers. Specifically, in the portion that some are calling "taxpayer money", 7 million dollars per year for 30 years will be coming from a slots-backed state economic development fund.

We'll probably see the official statement die down for a little bit, until the Pens officially release from the IOC. Until then, the status won't change.

Pens gameday; I'm concerned for these guys....

The events of the past two days have been pretty damn dramatic.

And not the good type of dramatic, that's for sure.

You've been hearing interviews with the Pens in the months leading up to the awarding of the slots license, and all of them have said that pretty much that's something that's out of their control.

And those are true statements, of course.

But now, first with the IOC losing the slots license on Wednesday, and today with Mario issuing a terse statement that for the first time used the word "Relocation", combined with the Pens' comments on those two, I have to admit, I'm concerned that the situation with the ownership and the arena is going to start affecting the Pens on the ice.

Maybe not during the game, naturally I don't think they'll be thinking about Plan B while trying not to get hit by Hatcher.

But I think, subconsciously, this might cause the Pens to take a turn downward in the conference standings.

Now I could be completely off of my rocker on this one, I sure hope I'm dead wrong.

Tonight's game will be an immediate test on that psyche. I'm sure that the Thrashers are gonna come out strong after losing to the Pens last week.

And if the Pens come out flat again tonight, with the Thrashers firepower, this could be a blowout quickly.

So let's hope that the boys have their head on straight, not only tonight, but for the future. Let the politicians duke it out over the arena, you guys just worry about hockey.

LET'S GO PENS !!!!

That Lemieux fella is one smart cookie, I tell ya....

Mario, Mario, Mario.

No one can refer to you as a dumb jock, no siree.

Mario came out with another statement today, a day after the IOC failed to win the slots license.

And as you can imagine, this one was much more alarming for Penguin fans and the city/county officials.

Why ?? Because Mario threw the "R" word out there for the first time.

R for relocation, that is.

Here was Mario's statement from the Pens website;

"Recent developments, including Wednesday’s decision by the PGCB, and the recent termination of the purchase agreement by Jim Balsillie have convinced us that it is time to take control of our own destiny. Accordingly, starting Thursday, the team is off the market, and we will begin to explore relocation options in cities outside Pennsylvania. After seven years of trying to work out a new arena deal exclusively in Pittsburgh, we need to take into consideration the long-term viability of the team and begin discussions with other cities that may be interested in NHL teams.

As soon as we are no longer restricted by our agreement with Isle of Capri from negotiating an arena deal here, in the next few weeks, we will also begin discussions with local leaders about a viable Pittsburgh arena plan.

We will have no further comment at this time."

A couple of comments:

Did you notice that Mario did not put the more optimistic approach, that being towards Plan B, in the beginning of the article ?? He did the calculated, political approach towards his statement, he put the shock into those reading it right off the bat.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out what Mario's doing. The more that Mario and the Pens throw out the "R" word, the more that the Pens feel that the City and State will negotiate a better Plan B deal for the Pens new arena.

Also, just because Mario SAYS that the team is off the market doesn't mean that it's going to STAY off the market. Mario still wants to sell this team, believe that. And that includes a time when the asking price for the franchise will go down from 175 million to probably around 130 to 140 million because of the failure of IOC to win the license.

And lastly, as I said last night, a professional sports team paying X million dollars per year for a arena/stadium lease is PAR FOR THE COURSE. Right now Plan B has them paying 8.5 million up front, then 4.1 million per year. You can bet the house that those two figures are going to go down a bit for the Pens to sign the deal.

So, like I said, Mario is using the Pens position of strength to his advantage, so everyone's going to have to get used to these types of statements to the media.

And of course, all of those statements will have the "R" word.

PITG wins slots license; It's just a bump in the road, people...

Wow, are there some pissed off Pens fans tonight.

Face it boys, that decision is over, there is no good gonna come out of stewing over it for days, weeks, or however long you plan on being pissed off.

The IOC bid for the slots license undoubtedly would have given the Pens an immediate answer to their future, that future being in Pittsburgh.

But while the PITG's win does still leave an amount of doubt into the Pens' future home, don't fall into the doom and gloom that the media is now portraying, along with the idiots that comment to those media articles.

There are two distinct, but joined, evolutions that will be going on in earnest in the coming weeks and months that will, in my view, ensure the Penguins remaining in Pittsburgh for a long, long time.

First of all, we have the ownership issue. All of the familiar names are coming up again. I'm not going to name them all again. Some people are already speculating that Mario is so pissed off now that he's going to sell to the highest bidder, and he's not going to care if that person wants to move the team.

That, my friends, is what General Norman Schwartzkoff referred to as "bovine feces".

And he's right, that is utter bullshit.

I don't care what everyone is saying, Mario Lemieux will not get this team moved if he has any say in it.

We may have even more prospective owners coming out of the woodwork now, due to the fact that the value of the selling price went down about 40 million clams, after the IOC failed to win the bid.

Which leads us to Plan B.

Plan B is not some diabolical scheme concocted by mad scientists.

Plan B is a relatively simple plan that, with a minimal amount of negotiations, can ensure the Pens' staying in the 'Burgh.

Now that the Pens can talk to the city and county again, I'm sure that we'll hear over the next few days that Plan B is viable, they'd be stupid not to say something to that effect.

The new owner will now have to pluck down about approx. 130 million over 30 years, which includes 8.5 million up front plus 4.1 million yearly, all of which is entirely negotiable with the state.

PITG has already formally agreed to 7.5 million for 30 years, plus 7 million annually will come from the State's development fund, which comes directly from slots revenue.

And there's your Plan B.

No city money, no county money, no tax money.

The property for the new arena has already been bought, demolition WILL commence in January.

So yes, boohoo, the Pens will have to kick in some money for the arena. They won't be getting a completely free arena, OK fine, join the party like every other NHL club has had to do.

So it will do everyone a helluva lot of good right now for the Pens to stop the "oh, I don't now about Plan B" talk.

It's a very good deal, and the sooner they start negotiating, either by the Lemieux group or whether they defer to the prospective owner, the quicker they'll have a deal.

Pens gameday; Distractions = Trap game

This "should" be a relatively easy one, if any game in the new NHL can be considered easy.

The St. Louis Blues have lost 11 straight games, just the sort of streak that a young team like the Pens could easily allow them to relax a bit.

And then there's that little discussion about the ownership.

If words around the Igloo are anything like they are around the 'Net, this could easily become a big distraction for the Pens tonight.

It's really easy to SAY that the slots decision won't be an issue when they get on the ice, but it's gotta be hard for them to totally get it out of their mind.

Looks like Dom Moore is the healthy scratch tonight, that's a curious one. Although he hasn't scored a goal in a while, he's been a good with the puckhandling.

LET'S GO PENS !!!!

Lemieux calls Balsillie's bluff, and he's keeping the dinero, too

Uh-0h, now you did it.

You done pissed Mario off.

Le Magnifique thought everything was peaches and cream between he and his golfing buddy Jimbo.

I mean really, what's 175 million clams between friends ??

Psyche !!

Well, today Mario basically said "aight", then informed today's press conference that the Penguins would be keeping Balsillie's deposit, believed to be approx. $10 million. The Pens believe that Balsillie's pullout consitutes a breach of contract.

And to top it off, despite public pronouncements over the weekend by Balsillie that he could still make a deal for the Pens, Lemieux squashed that notion, informing the press today that the deal with Balsillie is "dead".

Mario also stated that the Pens will now have no ownership discussions until after the Pittsburgh slots license is hopefully awarded on Wednesday in Harrisburg.

In the meantime though, you're beginning to hear the same familiar names as rearing their ugly heads once again pertaining to the possibility of owning the Pens.

Cuban. Murstein. Lemieux again.

And a new Canadian one, but this one's adamant that if he owns the Pens, in Pittsburgh they most definitely would stay.

Frank D'Angelo, whose company owns Steelback beer in Canada (never tried that one, someone let me know how that brewski tastes), has told anyone who wants to listen that he wants to buy the Pens and keep them in the 'Burgh. By the way, would that be poetic justice if the new owner of the PITTSBURGH Penguins owns STEELBACK Beer, or what.

I listened to him this afternoon on XM Home Ice 204 with Todd Lewis and Phil Esposito, a good friend of D'Angelo's. In fact, it's Espo who is attempting to set the meeting up between D'Angelo's team and Ken Sawyer and Mario. Some of his comments were quite surprising, albeit a good kind of surprising. I have even read tonight the possibility of D'Angelo building an arena with his own cash, where he could have naming rights and beer sales.

To be honest, I can't even think about any future possibilities with anyone right now, not until Wednesday.

I'm just trying to imagine just how in the hell ANYONE EXCEPT Isle of Capri could possibly win this license.

A state-of-the-art multi-purpose facility (we REALLY need to stop referring to this as simply a hockey arena) that's built with absolutely no taxpayer money.

That should be the kicker right there.

A slots casino location MUCH more accessible from the entire Pittsburgh metro area, as compared to the traffic cluster f%$k around the Station Square area.

What could POSSIBLY be any VALID reasons why Harrah's could win ??

This should be a slam dunk.

Will it ?? I have to think IOC is gonna win it, it's just clear in my mind.

But could they lose it ?? Sadly, this isn't about hockey, this is about politics. I've seen worse.

Balsilliegate; Not so quick with the bashing, this ain't over by a longshot

I really don't know where to start.

I've read so many views of the Pens' situation with prospective Jim Balsillie my head hurts. Usually it takes, oh I don't know, Christmas shopping to make it hurt this much.

But there's one predominant view that I believe everyone needs to take a step back and realize; This situation with Balsillie is not even close to being finished.

As a matter of fact, he may have never intended for the situation to BE finished.

Think about that.

Did anyone else notice the common demoninator in the comments from the NHL and the Penguins ?? That's right, the emphasis on the Isle of Capri winning the bid.

These are well-seasoned, smart businessmen. It's not an outlandish idea to suggest that this is a well-timed, public ploy by Balsillie and the Pens to exert enormous pressure on the PA Gaming Board to award the Pittsburgh slots license to the IOC.

In addition, according to Joe Starkey from the Trib, Balsillie stated Friday night "Right now, I'm not giving up on anything," said Balsillie, who was hosting a Christmas party last night at his home in Waterloo, Ontario. "I wish it could move forward."

There are a lot of Pens fans around the 'Net, the message boards and the blogs that are really slamming Balsillie this morning. Repeating their opinions towards Balsillie is unnecessary, I'm sure you guys can imagine their frustration and their anger. But in my view, this is a knee-jerk reaction, and those fans may not necessarily be looking at this in all points of view, and only that of a Penguins fan. And right now, you HAVE to look at this in the political point of view, because that is the predominant view that is driving this.

The primary question towards Balsillie's rejection of the deal is this; Did he pull out because he has ALWAYS had intentions on moving the team to Ontario, as has been speculated often (especially in the Canadian hockey media), or as I mentioned earlier, is this simply based on political motives calculated in cahoots with the Pens to exert that pressure upon the Gaming Board ??

During last night's Pens press conference during the 1st intermission, which basically was as useless as tits on a bull ("uh, you'd have to ask him" was the primary answer), Ken Sawyer stated that he spoke to Balsillie on Wednesday at the hearings in Harrisburg. And while he admitted that they were aware that Balsillie was having problems with the NHL, he had no indication that Balsillie would go as far as to pull the bid. So let me get this straight; Are you telling me that Balsillie would not tell Sawyer during face-to-face discussions that the possibility existed that he might pull his bid, but then goes ahead and does it two days later ?? As my Southern friends might say, that dog ain't huntin'.

Also, you have to put yourself in Balsillie's shoes as a businessman. Even if this is a political move, does he really want to sign an agreement that states that he will keep the Pens in Pittsburgh under ANY circumstances, AND that the NHL could take control of the franchise if the shit hits the fan, irregardless of his real intentions, that being to keep the team in Pittsburgh or not ??

Now, the focus shifts directly on the PA Gaming Board. Talk about pressure. They've already announced that they've moved the December 20th Board Meeting to a bigger venue, to accommodate the additional public interest. I'd say that interest just got ratched up a couple more notches. But this new development now raises new philosophical questions to the board. Do they actually have to take into account the ownership status of the Penguins in their discussions to award a slots license for the city of Pittsburgh ?? It's not like the Penguins don't have an owner now, it's just that the new prospective owner pulled his offer.

Balsillie's announcement also, of course, raises new possibilities concerning new and/or previous ownership bids for the Penguins. The main name I've read about 100 times since last night is Mark Cuban. Cuban freely admitted in October that he "screwed up" in not making a stronger bid for the Pens, especially after watching the Pens live against New Jersey, the game in which Malkin undressed the Devils' defense and Marty Brodeur.

But to me, it also re-raises this possibility; Assuming the IOC wins the slots license, does anyone believe that the Lemieux group could retain their ownership now, and simply acquire some additional investors, such as Cuban ?? I think there's a chance that this could be a possibility as well, but of course I have no way of knowing that.

Another person that has had his share of bashing in Pens' circles in the past is Gary Bettman. If the NHL's reported demands to Balsillie are accurate, Pens fans worldwide need to give one collective thank you to Bettman. Bettman and the NHL are clearly on the Pens' side on this one, and the Penguins fans need to acknowledge as much.

Mario must be one frustrated son of a bitch this morning. He probably just saw about 40 million clams leave his hands Friday (albeit probably temporarily). This ongoing soap opera, which has gone on now for about six years, looks like it's going to last a little while longer.

The real unfortunate part of this story is the Penguins themselves. The Pens are playing their best hockey since the Lemieux comeback season of '00-'01, in which they made it to the Eastern Conference finals. The attendance continues to be strong, despite Canadian media's continued bashing of a crowd of 12,000 for a Tuesday night game in December against the Panthers. Last night they had a sellout crowd of over 17,000 against the Islanders, who the NHL's scheduling gurus had decided to have the Pens play five times in under 60 days. They've got the two biggest up-and-coming stars in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, but yet no one can discuss the Penguins without mentioning the ownership situation. Mark Recchi, who besides hometown boy Ryan Malone is the closest Pen to being a Pittsburgher, admitted last night that the situation is "scary".

We'll all see where this situation leads itself up to Wednesday, where I'm sure that there will be throngs of Pens fans on the edge of their seats.

Pens 7, Isles 4; Despite wild speculation, Pens focus on the ice...

Is this team fun to watch or what ??

Now if we could just get some damn closure with the ownership and the arena.

I'll tell ya right off of the bat, I'm gonna leave the ownership talk out of tonight's post. I need some time to read all of the different points of view, think about it, and then I'll throw my .02 in there.

Back to the ice, the Pens really showed some excellent pressure starting off the game, and were rewarded with a 3-1 lead after one period.

The thing about being aggressive is that you're getting off a lot of shots, and when they do that, you're going to get the lucky bounces that you weren't getting earlier in the season. That is exactly how Sid got his goal tonight, he got a shot on net, bounced it off of BOTH Isles D-men, and in the back of the net. But ya know what, in the box score, that was a laser shot.

The best scene of the night ??

Crosby's 4 more points ?? NO

Recchi's 800th assist ?? NO

Malone's hat trick ?? NO

The best scene of the night was Dan Potash's interview with the girlfriends of Fleury and Armstrong !! Holy bat shit, good work boys !!

What a scene as Sid juked Zhitnik out of his jock, then fed Malone for the hat trick. What a better night to have a ski hat giveaway, half of them ended up on the ice !!

I could be a scrooge and complain about the Pens getting WAAAAY too fancy on the power play, but I won't.

Let's just hope that the Pens haven't blown their collective loads the last two games, 'cause they're going to need another excellent effort going into Montreal Saturday night.

Balsille pulls Pens' bid; Let the politics begin...

What the f&$k is going on now.

Shockingly, the Penguins have announced that Jim Balsillie has withdrawn his offer to buy the Penguins after reaching a stalement with the NHL over last-minute demands by the league.

According to the Post-Gazette, "Those demands included a promise to keep the team in Pittsburgh under any circumstance and give the NHL the right to take control of the Penguins."

There are a lot of ways to look at this, in both the positive and negative.

The naysayer may look at it as in Balsille's intention right from the start was to move the team.

However, and this is the one I'm shooting for, optimists will say that his withdrawl is a political move aimed at the PA Gaming Board to ensure they give the IOC the Pittsburgh slots license.

Stan Savran will emcee a press conference at the end of the 1st period, where hopefully we will get more information.

That's all for now, I'm just pissed off that this is taking place now, 6 days before the license is awarded.

Who pissed in Darren Dreger's Wheaties ???

So I'm watching the Sens/Caps tonight on NHL Center Ice, and they're broadcasting the TSN feed.

The TSN boys are doing their thing during the 2nd intermission, which I've always enjoyed as compared to a U.S. broadcast.

They start discussing the shootout, how some like it, some don't, yadda, yadda.

Then they go into the topic of the schedule during the BOG meetings, and the example that the Western teams don't get to see Crosby and Ovechkin but every three years.

And what does Darren Dreger do ?? Immediately changes the subject and starts blasting the Penguins about only getting 12,000 through the turnstiles last night (yes we know Darren, even Tuesday night games in December against the Panthers still sell out the ACC, we frickin' get it). Calls it "unacceptable".

Bob McKenzie defends the Pens and Caps to a certain extent, saying they've been bad teams for a while now, they need to start winning in order to consistently sell tickets well. And what does Dreger respond with ?? "Well, then just let them leave"

And if Dreger had his way, surely that's exactly what he'd do.

Dreger has had a hard-on for the demise of the Penguins ever since Lemieux put the team up for sale. This guy must be getting a kickback for any future deal involving moving the Pens to Canada. EVERY commentary this guy makes slants the future of the Pens towards the possibility that Jim Balsillie "wants" to move the team, and QUICKLY dismisses the very real possibility that 1) the Isle of Capri wins the slots license, or that 2) Balsillie will actually negotiate a deal in support of Plan "B".

Darren, I fully expect to read your full and hearty congratulations to Balsillie and the Penguins on December 20th, when hopefully the Isle of Capri wins the slots license for the city of Pittsburgh.

And if the IOC doesn't win, why don't you practice some actual journalism for a change, rather than the same old boring Canadian-slanted hockey propaganda.

These Pens are a tough nut to crack

I honestly don't know where to start.

I've lost track how many times I've crept to the edge of my La-z-boy as the Pens make a nice rush up ice, only to have them blow it because of the pass was too cute, they missed the open net, or some other ridiculous reason.

The end result, by the way is the same for me, that being me falling back on the chair exclaiming "What the F%$k !?!?"

I honestly felt that the Pens played a pretty decent game of hockey Tuesday night. They moved the puck pretty well, and skated with plenty of zip. Even the power play, with two PP goals, looked better, but overall they're still falling into the same old ruts, those being the inability to bring the puck into the opponent's zone and not capitalizing on loose pucks around the net.

By the way, the Panthers had two of their goals that way. Although, with the way that the Pens are playing defense around their own net, it couldn't have been that difficult. Therrien's comments after the game last night promise to make some changes to the PK unit, so we'll see.

Can someone please tell me how long the leash is now for Joe Melichar ?? Just how bad can this guy be ??

We'll see who gets scratched in New York tomorrow when Dumont gets his chance to play.

Reading a lot of posts on the boards recently concerning Malkin's perceived lackadaisical efforts at times. I have to admit, some of those thoughts have crept into my head recently as well. For as good of a defender that he is, he really could do a better job of forechecking, and just plain checking.

Maybe a nice road trip is what this team needs. For sure, New York, Atlanta, and Washington are three teams that are not fond of Crosby and his buddies. I'm looking forward to the Atlanta game. Don't let Sid's comments that he's sure make before that game fool you, he's gonna remember that finger pointing incident by Kovalchuk very well. Look for a big game by Sid, that's easy money.

We're at the two week mark to go before the slots license award. Articles in the press now are surfacing claiming that Balsillie reportedly told Bettman recently that if the IOC doesn't get the license, it's "gonna be a war". While I think that remark is getting a little carried away, I'd like to think that this is a case of planting a few more seeds into the Gaming Board's minds. Ya know, the fear factor if the IOC doesn't win.

I'm optimistic, I really am. I can't wait until it hopefully happens, when I email all those experts (mostly Canadian press, yes I'm talking to you Darren Dreger) who were just so sure that the Pens were on their way to Canada.

Slow 'Burgh news day - Hey, it happens

• The Buccos are hot on the trail of a free agent pitcher. Jason Schmidt ?? Yeah, right. Barry Zito ?? Don't even try it. Uh, try Tomo Ohka. Excuse me if don't show the least bit of interest in that one.
• There are whispers that the Buccos are talking with Jeff Suppan again. After his postseason performance last year ?? I mean, why would they even try ?? Do they enjoy the rejection ??
• Pretty harsh (but justified) article about Dave Littlefield on CBS Sportsline. Wow, the first sentence says it all; "The Pittsburgh Pirates might be one of baseball's two or three franchises truly beyond resuscitation, and I can tell you why in three words: Dave Motherbleepin' Littlefield."
• Am I the only one that is completely skipping reading articles on what's wrong with the Steelers ??
• Isn't it freakin' amazing, at game 12, that there are already articles talking about who the Super Bowl Champion Steelers should take in next year's NFL Draft??
• Condolences to the Bettis family, as Jerome's father passed away after suffering a heart attack yesterday.
• 3 weeks from today, for the City of Pittsburgh slots license decision by the PA Gaming Board. Let the mudslinging begin, I fully expect this to get nasty, LOTS of cash at stake.
• Good commentary by KDKA's John Steigerwald on Sidney Crosby, and his feeling that Crosby could be the best player in the world, even at age 19.
• Might have been just me, but damn if that Fleury bobblehead wasn't a dead ringer.
• Gary Bettman estimated that the Pens sale to Jim Balsillie should be final in 2-3 weeks. Blackberry's for everyone !! [[ Trust me fellas, I work with Blackberry's for a living, they're frickin' addicting, they don't call them Crackberry's for nothin'. ]]

Pens gameday; Now is not the time to get complacent

Make no mistake, the Penguins are at absolutely no stage to take anyone lightly on their schedule, especially the Flyers, who've played much better lately on their West Coast swing. That includes a blowout win vs. Anaheim, who the Pens lost to when they went out yonder.

Depending on who you believe, either John Leclair is in the lineup or will be the infamous "game-time decision". I'm sure he's not the kind who's gonna bitch about his benching on Saturday night. Leclair's no dummy, but I'm sure he's beginning to see the writing on the wall. But as I said previously, the Pens' roster needs to improve it's depth. The return (or shall I say arrival) of Petrovicky was a pleasant surprise, for one game anyway. Ryan Malone is due back in a few weeks, after getting his ass handed to him yet again in a fight. Who knows, Malone's return may pull the trigger on the trade that's been rumored for quite a few months now. But just having Malone return won't be enough. The Pens have had Cairns and Roy in the press box for the majority of the year so far, and there is nothing to suggest that their situation is going to change. Unfortunately, the trading of either of them isn't exactly going to bring back anything substantive. In order to get either a scoring winger or a decent right-handed defenseman, you're going to have to part with a decent young forward (Malone/Ouellet/Christensen) and possibly a draft pick, and then, and only then, may you be lucky enough to get one of those needed commodities.

I've read some places that Sid is going through a slump, I imagine to them because he's not gathering so many of the top headlines in his 2nd go-round in the league. Yeah, they must be right. He's 4 points out of the NHL scoring lead, with either 3 or 4 less games than those above him. And I have to repeat, just imagine what this kid's gonna do when he actually has someone who can put the puck in the net regularly.

We are at the T-minus one month mark for the awarding of the slots license in Pittsburgh. Today is the day that the IOC and Forest City (Harrah's) make their final sales pitches to the Gaming Board. I have to admit, I am nothing close to being an expert on the city of Pittsburgh itself. However, one of the big issues I'm reading is talking about the locations of the two main casinos-to-be. To me, in my amateurish point of view, this is a no-brainer. Everytime I've drove over to Station Square, it's always been a royal pain in my buttocks. However, I have NEVER had a problem driving in the IOC location, whether that's right around the Igloo, or down towards the Sports Museum. Easy access to 79/279 and elsewhere. Throw in the new arena freebie, and what's the discussion ??? I just hope that politics doesn't rear it's ugly head in the discussions in the next month. Let's hope we get an early XMAS present on Dec. 20th.

Nice article in the Trib concerning Jordan Stall shacking up with Mark Recchi in his guest house. That's gotta be a pretty sweet deal. Get a good home-cooked meal from Mark's wife, and have a private place to crash (and invite the honeys). Compare that to Sid, who still lives in "Maison Lemieux", and Geno, who lives with Gonchar. You can tell by Geno's comments that he's itching to get his own place, English speaking or not. I do know enough about Pittsburgh that there are plenty of Russians there.

Gotta pat myself on the ass a little for my prediction on the Colts losing their first game yesterday. They've been winning by the skin of their frickin' teeth for a lot of the year, it just caught up to them in Dallas yesterday.

And finally, thanks to Dan Patrick for bringing the fact that Bo Derek turns 50 today. Yes, that makes me feel older as well. But damn, any of you seen her lately ?? She is still quite a gorgeous woman. Those of you in my age group revere "10" as one of the classic hot chick flicks of all time.

And yes, for those of you wondering, IN A HEARTBEAT.

LET'S GO PENS !!!!!