Brilliant, just freaking brilliant. For my first NHL game ever, this game did not disappoint. It had tears, it had laughter, it had a fight, Sidney Crosby throwing a temper tantrum and a dramatic shootout featuring 23 different shooters.
As soon as I entered the building and saw the players warming up I was instantly giddy and excited. Of course pretty much everybody there was cheering for the good ol' Canadian boy Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. There was also a alot of girls in Crosby t-shirts and jerseys who went absolutely nuts and shouting his name whenever he was taking a face-off in their corner. He also proved that he was in no way ready to be captain when he started arguing with a ref [I believe it was Bill McCleary] and got an unsportsmanlike conduct. For all of those fans who were there chanting "Sid the Kid" there sure was alot of people cheering when they saw him heading into the box.
The game itself started out rather lopsided, the Buffalo defense must have not gotten the notice because they were more or less non-existent for the first half of the first period. Eventually, they got their head into it and most of the play ended up in the Penguin zone but the shots were pretty even near the end of the first period.Buffalo started to lay on the pressure when they were down 2-1. They were outshooting Pittsburgh by about 20 goals and had managed to tie up the game. By the end of regulation, the shots were about 40-18 for Buffalo.
The shootout featured about 23 different shooters, Sidney Crosby scored for the Penguins and my camera chose that specific time not to record for me. It looked so nice on my display screen too.
The story of the night had to be the Penguins' netminder Dany Sabourin though. Not only did he feature a crafty little mask but stopping 44 out of 46 shots is pretty damn impressive. Ryan Miller looked very shaky at first, letting in a soft goal but calmed down and was very steady throughout the rest of the game.
Brooks Orpik was the source of much jeering from the crowd and it did actually affect him, he cou
ghed up the puck a few times. The only reason I could think of was because of that vicious hit that broke Erik Cole's neck. But my favourite jeer of the night had to be when the players were lining up for the anthems and a gentleman to my right shouted "YOUR JERSEYS ARE HIDEOUS!" the players could only look down in shameful agreement. Because the security at the Copps Coliseum is more or less nonexistent, and the game was nowhere near sold out, my friends and I moved closer to the front after the first period so there are many high quality pictures for you to enjoy. No, I do not have a Ryan Miller and Sidney Crosby obsession, I just happen to know people who are so inclined and thought I'd be nice. Plus I secretly wonder how much money I could get for those pictures, mwahaha.
For those of you wondering if this was going to be a preview of Sidney Crosby: Captain of the Hamilton Ironworkers/Car Manufacturers/Steelers [If Pittsburgh doesn't mind sharing], the absolute first thing that would need to happen would be to either build a new arena or complete makeover for Copps. First of all the fact that security is so lacksidasical probably wouldn't work for an NHL game. The fact that it is in fact a coliseum and therefore circular means there is only one way to enter and exit the game which doesn't exactly help with traffic control.Running the team in Hamilton is going to be totally different than in Pittsburgh; because Toronto is just up the road on the 403 you can expect the team to either sell-out every night, or for it to be half empty when the Leafs are playing. Not to mention because Buffalo is so close and of similar size, with all three teams in such close vicinity, one of them will probably not survive, and it won't be the gajabillionaires at MLSE.
Not that it matters to me, I'd still be cheering for Ottawa.
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Buffalo Sabres @ Copps Coliseum Gallery
I really liked watching the Penguins when they played against the Sens. And the bright yellow pads!
Gosh that sounds like so much fun, my jealousy is seeping through.
I'm surprised people can score on him with those bright things flashing in their eyes!
You'll need to make it to a game someday Jordi, have faith!
Crosby threw a tantrum? That's a shocker. The girls may think he's cute and all, but he still acts like a kid.
First NHL games are always memorable.
"YOUR JERSEYS ARE HIDEOUS!"
ha ha ha!
It wasn't a tantrum as in foot stomping and teeth gnashing but it was still pretty silly. He was arguing with McCleary about a non-call and got sent to the box. To be fair, he is still a kid but he's playing a man's game and if the Pens want to make him captain he better grow up real fast.
Oh, it was memorable for so many reasons haha.
And yes, it might be stating the obvious but the fact that the jerseys are hideous cannot be said enough.