I really don't have much of substance to say. I think Ray Shero's critically changed the chemistry of the Penguins, and I doubt that Hossa was worth it. I think it's very indicative that you haven't heard anything out of Army and Crush, only out of Hossa (who's supposedly an old buddy of Shero's), and I think that the Pens have crippled themselves for the future by losing Espo and the draft pick. Regardless of whether they get the Cup this year or not, I think it's going to be a very painful next couple of years for them, as I see very little depth in WBS. In short, I'm having rather a crisis of Penguins faith.
I don't think I can outrightly stop watching them, but as I've admitted before, Army is really the singular player that got me into hockey, and it's rather wrenching to see him not on my first love team anymore, and I'm man enough to admit that there were waterworks when I found out (just ask Caps Chick.) In addition, the longer I spend in DC, the more the Caps grow on me, and with the DC/Atlanta rivalry the way it is, it's especially hard to figure out where my loyalties are supposed to be in this situation.
However, rather than being ridiculously emo and lamenting how much life sucks (which it does, trust me, I'm not out of the depression phase into acceptance yet by a long shot) I've chosen to channel it into making the....
Ray Shero, Please Walk Off A Cliff mix.
Midnight Train to Georgia Gladys Knight and the Pips
Expendable Youth Slayer
Boys Don't Cry The Cure
Mad World Gary Jules
Don't You Forget About Me Simple Minds
Sunshine (Go Away Today) Jonathan Edwards
Everybody Hurts REM
Worst Day Since Yesterday Flogging Molly
Big Yellow Taxi Joni Mitchell
Don't Dream It's Over Crowded House
Take A Picture Filter
Hurt Johnny Cash
The Stolen Child The Waterboys
Wonderwall Oasis
I'll Be There For You The Rembrandts
Hallelujah Rufus Wainwright
Leaving Town Dexter Freebish
Move Along The All American Rejects
Ashokan FarewellMark O'Connor
And an extra, for Joe Motzko
5 comments:
I'm so sorry Teka. Please don't cry! (I have to say, I threw up (no joke)). It just... Army *pout*
I've been a Pens fan forever, and a Colby fan since he was drafted in 2001 and I was completely stunned yesterday. I got online shortly after the 3:00 deadline, saw a headline that the Pens acquired Hossa and when I read the article my heart just sank.
I feel that I'm in a weird position because I live and breathe Pittsburgh Penguins hockey, but this just hurts. I didn't feel like watching the Pens play the Isles at all last night. Colby was a perfect fit on this team, and the more that I think about this trade the more frustrated I get.
For one, the trade reeks of Lemieux and his offensive juggernaut ideals, and you know the Pens ownership had to play a huge part in a blockbuster deal like this. Shero couldn't do something like this without their consent.
The fact that they get Pascal Dupuis, a guy with a similar skill set, reeks of Ray Shero's anti-Colby bias also. I'm not sure if you know, but there were reports last year that Shero referred to Colby as "that fucking minor leaguer," and it's no exaggeration that Colby was involved in nearly every trade rumor since Shero was hired as GM. IMO, the trade could have been made without Army and Dupuis included, but I think Shero took it as an opportunity and I guess you never know what Atlanta may have been demanding.
Shero also fed the media some bull about not wanting to mess with team chemistry at the deadline. He dealt the one player that Ryan Whitney pointed out in a Hockey News article as being the glue that held the team together and no one else was "even close" to Colby in that regard.
To be honest, I don't think that adding a guy like Hossa gets the Pens the Cup this year, and if he isn't signed before July 1st this deal is downright laughable.
Anyways, I'm done now. I apologize for the long comment, but I'm sure you won't mind letting another Colby fan vent their frustrations.
Oh, not at all. I've been sort of half-trying to brace myself for the inevitability of this since those reports on Shero's attitude problem came out. I really figured he was gone when they went into arbitration over the last summer.
At this point, I'm torn as to whether I want him to really start producing points-wise in Atlanta (because, let's be real, he was producing just about everywhere else) and give Shero a big "fuck you" or whether I want him to just slump horribly and have them try to give him away over the summer.
Best case, as I see it if he goes somewhere else (because I doubt, as much as people are saying it, that Pittsburgh'll take him back at this point) is that he winds up on one of the other up and coming younger teams like the Caps or the Hawks. I feel like both of them could use a background player with a good team attitude.
Besides, seeing the Mike Green/Army interaction would be wicked funny.
I want Colby to return to Pittsburgh more than anything, but I don't see that happening for several reasons. One, I really do believe that Shero had something against him and Armstrong is signed through next season and only becomes a RFA next summer. People keep saying to watch for him to come back at that point, but I don't understand the logic. He's a RFA and Atlanta would only have to give him a qualifying offer to retain his rights, he can't just simply move to the Pens.
Of course, the Pens could give him an offer, but it would have to be one that the Thrashers thought they couldn't match, and that's just not going to happen. The Pens will be pretty much maxed out at that point budget-wise and the Thrashers will still be a rebuilding team with cash to spare. If I'm missing something here, let me know, but I'm pretty sure I've got this right and it means that Colby's chances of returning to the Burgh are slim to none.
So, I've made up my mind as far as that part goes, I want Colby to succeed in Atlanta. I want him to play his game and be successful with the extra ice time he will receive on a rebuilding team, and I want what's best for his career. I don't want him to slump. I don't want to see him bounced around the NHL or put on waivers, I think he deserves better. Although, if he is moved in the future I could see him going to a young, rebuilding team like you said, but I can honestly see him going to a play-off team too. Ottawa had their eye on him ever since last year's play-offs.
It's just a shitty situation, I feel as if I've lost a friend and I've been betrayed by a team that I've rooted for since I was five.
If you want to know Colby's point of view on this, watch the Pens play the Thrashers this Sunday. Of course, this is just my speculation, but if Colby thinks he has a chance of coming back to Pittsburgh he will play good, quiet game. If he thinks there's no way in hell of him coming back, I might watch out for one of his patented checks, he knows how unforgiving the fans in Pitt can be.
Translation of an article in French from Therrien:
"Therrien doesn't keep it as a secret. the 2 hard last were emotionally hard
Before Leaving for Long Island, I went in Shero's office, said Therrien. We said the priority and the need of the team. We weren't yet on the race for Hossa on Tuesday morning. Things started to be developed around noon and it was finalized on the last hour.
Air was full of emotion, when Therrien told Armstrong and Erik Christensen that they were leaving for Atlanta.
We grew up together in our team school, he says. Armstrong fell in my arms and he was crying like a child. The two took the announcement really hard."
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