Game Seven

Well, Easter is coming to a close, and even though it's not a Penguins game day, we did have hockey on at our house.  George is showing great progress as he's the one who pointed out we'd be able to catch the Flyers-Sabres game on NBC today (normally Buffalo's games are blacked out as we don't have MSG).

Quick sidebar:  I saw on NBC there was an option to like NHL on NBC through facebook, and I'm curious--does anyone actually like watching hockey on NBC, or are they doing it for the same reason I am, as a necessity?  Personally, I'm not a fan of any of the announcers or commentators, except that I can deal with good old Eddie O.  And aren't the commentators what separates the stations from one another?  Maybe I'm missing something, but back to the topic at hand.

I think George was a little confused that I didn't want the Flyers to lose today.  He made it clear that they could head out to the golf course tomorrow, for all he cared; I'm nearly certain he thought I'd share that sentiment.

It's not as though I were rooting for them.

I explained to him the strategy I currently employ during the playoffs:  hope every series but our own goes the full seven games.  If our team goes on to the next round, I could only hope the team they play next was as tired, run down, and beat up as possible.  I want the teams to make each other suffer and wear each other down.  I want to see seven full games of them testing each other's strengths and divulging each other's weaknesses.

I could actually care less if Philly or Buffalo won their series.  I watch the hockey for love of the game, but find fantasy leagues detrimental.  Participating in polls that encourage me to cheer for the Penguins' opponents to move on to the next round only distracts from my focus on my team.

In the past, I had rarely chosen favorites in other playoff match ups.  While I preferred we not play the Caps or the Devils or [insert team name here], I didn't worry about it and let the ice chips fall where they may.

Last season, though, I let it get personal.  I let myself get distracted.  And as the Penguins defeated the Senators in six games, I let myself get sucked into the Caps-Habs series that extended to seven games.  I cheered on the underdogs as they clawed back from being down 3-1.  And I gloried in the fall of the number one seed to the Canadiens.

Of course, we all know how this played out.  Even though the Penguins won 3 of 4 regular season games against the Habs, and they had outscored them 15 to 9 in those games, we all know the playoffs are their own story.  This story did not end well for Pittsburgh.

And so rather than putting myself in a position to wonder if I rooted for a team because they were an underdog, or if I cheered for that team because I felt they were the easier team for us to beat, I'll just hope for game seven, round by round.

You might say that the Caps-Habs game did just that--went to game seven.

True.  But I chose a favorite in that series, and it wasn't the Penguins.  Regardless of which two teams are competing, my focus--the favorite--should always be the Penguins.

So I'm happy to say that the Blackhawks and Flyers have both forced a game seven today.  Let's go, Pens!