Penguins-Flyers Game 1

Ron Cook is being a little too optimistic in his Post-Gazette column today, but I agree it was a dominant performance by the Pens last night. I have to give it up to Evgeni Malkin, who not only had two goals (including that blistering slap-shot from about ten feet) but put a big hit on Braydon Coburn and jumped right in when Derian Hatcher tried to get a fight going. The guy is unquestionably the Penguins’ playoff MVP and seems only to be improving. It’s still par for the Flyers course to lose Game 1 in these playoffs, so we’ll see.

An odd moment of the night was when one of the announcers was talking about RJ Umberger growing up in Pittsburgh in the ’80s. “Growing up around here in Pittsburgh, idolizing Mario Lemieux in Lemieux’s greatest days — man, it’s unimaginable what that would be like.” Yes, what Pittsburgh native between the ages of 20 and 35 could ever imagine what it would be like to live in such a fantasy land.