Archive for July, 2009

(Insert years of turmoil and despair here). But then the greatest player to ever strap on a pair of skates entered the proverbial picture and transformed a struggling franchise into one of the more excitable ones the NHL has ever seen. He, of course, was Mario Lemieux. Since the hockey god’s arrival in 1984-85, the Penguins have won two Stanley Cups, a host of division titles and more Art Ross and Hart trophies than an average mind can comprehend until he officially bid the game he loved so much adieu on January 24, 2006. They’ve continued in their winning ways [...]

It’s as much about having “them” as it is about having “it.” The former, of course, refers to the four horsemen, i.e. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Marc-Andre Fleury. But the latter is what makes the Penguins an unmatched franchise in today’s NHL. There’s just something about the recent Stanley Cup champions, and it goes beyond young talent or depth or the system in which they play. It’s the culture. The Penguins have the luxury of playing in front of some of the most loyal fans in all of professional sports. A brand new, state-of-the-art arena, the Consol [...]

You know how in movies characters often proclaim things like, “Great! How can this possibly get any worse?” and then moments later something does? Well, that was the feeling many Penguins fans justifiably had when the machine-like Detroit Red Wings clobbered the then on-the-rise Penguins in the Stanley Cup finals last season in a best-of-seven formality. As the puck floated over and just wide of the goal-line off the blade of Marianne Hossa (spelling error deliberate), just as time expired on the Penguins’ season, Penguins fans thought, “Great! How can this possibly get any worse?” Enter the off-season. Players like [...]

Welcome to Pens Labyrinth, your source for all things Penguins! Let’s take a moment, Pens loyalists, to pay homage to the 2008-09 Stanley Cup champions! Now, I recognize that the Boys of Summer are taking up our time Sunday nights at 10 p.m. only on HBO, but that doesn’t mean Pens Labyrinth gives up on and/or forgets about Pittsburgh’s Boys of Winter. The offseason, as yinz undoubtedly know, is all but a stagnant time for the National Hockey League, so we at Pens Labyrinth promise to keep you up to speed with what’s going on around the team and the [...]