A few weeks ago (not here, but in a meeting) I mentioned to a co-worker that I though the Pens could sweep the 'Canes if they met in the playoffs.
The Pens made me look smart, but the Carolina coaching staff helped. Why would you try and outscore the best offense in the NHL? You may win one game, but you will not win four out of seven. You don't try and outscore great offense, you find a way to keep it in check.
That said, what made the 'Canes think having Bill Cowher ring the siren before a home playoff game in a conference would help their cause? He's 1-5 at home in conference championship games, they would have been better off with Cam Ward ringing the siren.
I'm not sure which one I like more, the one where Carl Lewis (you know the Olympian) ends entering a sauna with an 80-year-old woman. Or the one with the '86 Dodgers wearing satin jackets.
Now that it seems that Carolina fans are actually paying attention to the Stanley Cup playoffs, I thought I would make a prediction on the next round against the Pens.
Being a native of western Pennsylvania, the homer in me sees a sweep. Realistically however, I see the Pens prevailing in 6 or 7 games. I thought the match-ups for the 'Canes in rounds 1 and 2 really favored them. Both New Jersey and Boston are more about defense and are slower than the skill positions for Carolina. And when Carolina found room, they exploited the slower skaters for New Jersey and Boston.
Pittsburgh does not compare to New Jersey or Boston on the defense side of things, that's not to say their defense is suspect, it's just not as good as the two teams that Carolina has faced. I think the Pens will win based on the wide-open offensive style that they play and their team speed. Carolina will have to adjust to the speed of the Pens, just as Washington had to do in the previous round. Washington can match Pittsburgh's speed and had trouble adjusting in game 1, as well as games 3 and 4 in Pittsburgh, due to playing a 7 game series against the much slower Rangers in round 1.
The Pens strengths are the exact weaknesses of New Jersey and Boston, and those are the weaknesses that gave Carolina an edge in the previous rounds.
Carolina will get some goals, but in the end Cam Ward will need to be perfect for the 'Canes to have a shot. Ward is good, but Crosby is playing out of his mind right now.
So, I heard this driving to work this morning and thought it was rather humorous. Rob Ryan, a columnist for the Boston Globe, made fun of Carolina fans in general, which isn't a surprise given most people in Boston think they are better than everyone. But something that Mr. Ryan did point out however is this little tid-bit:
So I've lived in the Triangle for about a year (I'm another Northern transplant) and if there is one thing I have learned about Carolina sports, it's that the Carolina sports fan is what we call a front runner.
I suspected this first during the NFL season as I listened to local radio and read in local newspapers that the Panthers would start the seasons with two losses and it would be downhill from there. Well they won at San Diego and at Chicago and suddenly the Panthers were the Patriots. Jake Delhomme was great (as good as the golden boys in the AFC), until his dreadful performance in the playoffs and now I listen as people want him gone.
Next came basketball and the undefeated season for the Tar Heels. Well that went bye-bye at the start of the ACC season. Locals were down on this team after than point with the exception of the two Duke beat downs. Then the NCAA tournament came and Carolina played like you all thought they would all year. They won the championship, now I again hear that this is one of the greatest teams of all time. Oh and by the way, no one thought they would go undefeated anyway. That said, I think the Duke fans are more loyal than the typical Carolina fan, but they are all from the North.
Now it's the 'Canes. And as a hockey fan, this one bugs me more than the others. Do you know how many people talked about the 'Canes before somewhere around game five of the first round of the playoffs? Not one. This is a team that won the Cup just a few years ago, you would think they would have a rabid fan base. But nooooooo. Cam Ward could show up at your house with Samsonov and you would turn them away because you think they are from the church of John Smith. I listen to the locals now and the 'Canes are going to walk their way to a championship. When I talk about a potential match up with the much faster Caps or Pens, I get the deer in the headlight look.
All I'm saying is that the typical Carolina fan is a front runner, nothing more, nothing less. In the grand scheme of things there is nothing wrong with being a front runner, it just makes you a less credible fan.
This is one of those items that has been discussed since the 80's and anyone, whether they want to admit it or not, can see the injustice in the Crack/Cocaine laws in America.
It took an african american in the white house, but finnaly the issue is being addressed:
That said, I'm not sure that more, or stricter, laws will fix the drug problems in America. But if you're going to have laws, you might as well make the equal. It's at least a start.
