Well, since I'm a pathetic Leafs fan
, I don't really have a dog in this fight. So, my take on it is that there's dirty play going on by both teams. The Pens are absolutely shell-shocked right now. It shouldn't be a big surprise though, because the Flyers weren't that far behind them in the standings and really had the upper hand against the Pens during their last regular season games. Fleury has been abysmal, which isn't helpful when the rest of the team wants to run n' gun while forgetting about defense. Lucky for the Flyers too, because Bryzgalov hasn't exactly been shining either.
I have to wonder if the Pens' team chemistry has been thrown off by Crosby's return. Perhaps they figured they would just concentrate on scoring goals without looking after their own end of the rink. The way the Flyers are playing, looks like the Pens will be on the golf course in a couple of days. That said, Bryzgalov needs to get better for the next round. He won't get away with that level of net-minding if he wants to drink from Lord Stanley's mug...
The first few games of the playoffs have been quite bizarre, with all the really rough and dirty play. Shea Weber should've been suspended for ramming Zetterberg's head into the glass in WWE style.
It cracked his helmet, for f*** sake! Ottawa and NY have gotten pretty dirty with each other as well.
Years ago, we didn't see this cr@p during the playoffs. It was certainly "intense", but hardly any fighting, because of the stakes involved.
On a brighter note, the Canadian women brought the world championship gold medal to its rightful home.
