The Steelers Weren't As Close As You Think To A Playoff Spot

The kick went wide right.  It was hard for Steelers fans to digest, even though it took place in a game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Diego Chargers.  A Chiefs win would send the Steelers to the playoffs.  A win by the Chargers would send themselves to the playoffs, and knock the Steelers into the offseason.  Kansas City, despite only starting two of its twenty-two starters, held a ten point lead in the fourth quarter.  The Chargers tied the game, setting up the Chiefs, led by backup QB Chase Daniel, with a chance to mount a game winning drive with the clock winding down.  Daniel and his offense marched down the field, into field goal range.  They were content to run down the clock, and attempt a field goal as the clock expired.  Steeler fans were already clearing their schedules for next weekend. Except the kick missed. San Diego would go on to win it in overtime.

You could blame the Kansas City kicker. It would be easy. But why would this Steelers team make the playoffs?  Sure, they had an impressive win here and there.  But there were too many blunders, too much incompetence, and too many errors.

Should a team who got essentially shut out through three quarters by the Tennessee Titans make the playoffs? Should a team who gave up the ball three times in the first quarter to the 8-8 Chicago Bears make the playoffs? Should a team who allowed the lowly Minnesota Vikings (led by Matt Cassel, no less!) make their defense look silly make the playoffs?

Should a team who allowed Oakland Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor to run ninety-three yards for a touchdown on the first play of the game make the playoffs?  What about a team who allowed fifty-five points to the New England Patriots?  Or the team that gave the Baltimore Ravens a free pass into the secondary, and killed their own rally by allowing Jacoby Jones to take a kickoff back for a "touchdown" (it only wasn't a touchdown because of Mike Tomlin's hijinx on the sideline)?  Maybe the team that let that Miami Dolphins receiver break three tackles (at once) and score a game winning touchdown?

That's what I thought.  There were far too many idiotic moments for this team to earn a playoff berth.  If they had won just one of the games I cited above, they would have been in the playoffs. Regardless of the Chiefs kicker.

Definition Of Home Field Advantage

Wow. That's the only word that comes to mind right now. Wow.  I'm writing this at 9:20 PM, on Sunday, Buctober 6th, 2013.  I just got home from PNC Park, where I witnessed the best crowd I've ever seen (having been to Steelers games at Heinz Field and Penguins playoff games at the old Civic Arena).  From 2 1/2 hours before first pitch, to long after the final out, the people of Pittsburgh were all hands on deck.

The game was scheduled for a 4:37 first pitch. Naturally, I arrived at the stadium at 2:15.  I walked across the Clemente Bridge, tipped the saxophone guy, and grabbed a free "#WeBelieve" sign.  I, along with a few hundred others, waited about 15 minutes for the stadium gates to open. At 2:30, when they finally opened, many fans sprinted inside in order to get the best standing room and bleacher spots.   The Cardinals were still out taking batting practice, and some fans went down to the front row to get some early taunting in.  As we walked in, each fan was given a black rally towel complete with "Raise The Jolly Roger".

The ballpark was packed by 4:10.  There was a mix of booing and "Let's Go Bucs" greeting the Cardinals as they were introduced.  As soon as PA Announcer Tim DeBacco said "Aaand for your Pirates" the crowd leapt to their feet, screaming and waving their towels.  Likable players like Jeff Karstens, Michael McKenry, and AJ Burnett drew loud applause, but the big noise came for the starting lineup. Few got a louder ovation than manager Clint Hurdle, who was greeted by a bowing-down Pirate Parrot.

Pirate ace Francisco Liriano cruised through the first inning, drawing cheers for each strike, and standing ovations for each out.  PNC got rocking early when Marlon Byrd hit a single with men on 2nd  and 3rd, giving the Pirates a 2-0 lead.  Liriano would play with fire throughout the day, and eventually he gave up two runs to tie the game, off of a 2 RBI single by Mr. October, Carlos Beltran.  Those runs were controversial, however, because shortly before Beltran's single, Jon Jay was called safe at third on a play where he should have actually been called out.  Liriano, along with the fans, bounced back and got out of the inning.  The fans went bananas as Liriano walked off the field, as they knew it would be his last inning.

The fans chanted the pitcher's name again (KEL-LY KEL-LY), although it didn't seem to rattle Joe Kelly like it rattled Johnny Cueto on Tuesday.  Joe Kelly did his job superbly.  The problem was,  he wasn't very efficient.  The Pirates got his pitch count up, and we won the game getting hits off of their bullpen.

In the bottom of the 7th inning, a sacrifice fly scored McCutchen to give Pittsburgh a 3-2 lead. That didn't last long, as Carlos Beltran led off the 8th with a home run to tie the game.  Once again, the crowd stayed in it through thick and thin.  Trust me, I've been to some tough losses. Take September 20th vs. the Reds. We blew a three run lead in the 9th.  After that, half the crowd left and the rest were dead silent. Tonight was the polar opposite.  After Mark Melancon let up that tying home run, the fans stood up and cheered louder.  And it worked.  Melancon got out of the inning with no further damage done.

What the Pirates did in the bottom of the 8th inning is what made this night unforgettable. That inning along was a rollercoaster of emotions.  Andrew McCutchen led off with a double, only to be thrown out at third on a ground ball off the bat of Justin Morneau.  That was a depressing blow to the rally, but Marlon Byrd came through with a single that moved pinch runner Josh Harrison to third.  Pedro Alvarez came up to bat, so Cards manager Mike Matheny decided to play some chess.  He brought in lefty Kevin Seigrist, because Pedro tends to be worse against left handed pitchers.  Pedro took matters into his own hands.  He threw the statistics out the window, and lined a single to left, scoring Harrison to give the Pirates the lead.  Russell Martin followed that up with a single to up the lead to 5-3.   No exaggeration, I felt the floor beneath my feet shake as the crowd went wild.

When Greg Brown yelled "It's Grilled Cheese Time!" as closer Jason Grilli trotted out for the ninth, the sea of black was pulsating.  My ears may still be ringing in fact.  Grilli didn't let a leadoff single by Matt Adams get to him.  He got the next three outs in short order.  The fireworks shot off, "New Pirates Generation" was blasted over the PA, and the crowd went nuts. It's something I don't think I'll ever forget. We stayed to hear some TBS guy interview Pedro, but we couldn't hear it.  We walked the winding path down the rotunda, as a loud Lets Go Bucs chant was shared by the thousands exiting the ballpark.  The Clemente Bridge was essentially a victory parade. Everyone was in good spirits waiting in line to get their car.  Pittsburgh collectively smiled.

It's Time

It's here. It's actually here. The Pittsburgh Pirates will play a playoff game at PNC Park tomorrow. It's a very surreal thought. Twenty years of playoff absence is about to be erased. 162 games of joy, depression, thrills, and heartbreak all comes down to this.  On Tuesday, October 1st, 2013, the Pirates will host the Cincinnati Reds in the NL Wild Card game at PNC Park.  It's all or nothing, winner take all, must-see baseball.  No players will be resting to prepare for future games. It's all hands on deck.

Pirate ace Francisco Liriano starts for the home team.  Liriano sports an amazing 1.47 earned run average when playing in Pittsburgh.  He works well against lefties, too, which is a large asset considering Cincinnati's Joey Votto, Jay Bruce, and Shin Soo Choo are all left handed.  Liriano started a game against the Reds nine days ago at PNC Park, and he turned in a fantastic performance with two earned runs, nine strikeouts, and eight innings pitched.

The Reds are sending Johnny Cueto to the mound to try to spoil the Pirates' fun.  This is a daunting development, considering Cueto's history of being very, very good pitching at PNC Park.  However, there is reason for optimism.  Cueto has spent much of this season on the DL, and is only two starts removed from his last injury.  Those two starts came against the New York Mets and the Chicago Cubs. In other words, he has yet to be tested by a winning lineup.  Andrew McCutchen has three home runs off of Cueto, however only bats .189 against him.  That shouldn't be too much of a concern, because, well, it's Andrew McCutchen.  One important note is that Marlon Byrd, acquired by the Pirates at the end of August, has terrific career numbers against Cueto (Cueto has not faced the Bucs since Byrd's arrival).  Cueto's health concerns, combined with a bolstered lineup for the Pirates makes me sweat a bit less over the pitching matchup.

It can not be understated how important home field advantage is in this game.  Let's remember, it's the first playoff game in nearly twenty-one years, and the first ever at PNC Park.  Tickets for the game sold out in minutes, and stubhub.com has standing room only tickets listed at over $150.  The players, led by Andrew McCutchen and Michael McKenry, launched a Twitter campaign calling for fans to wear black to the game, to create a unified atmosphere.  You can expect an excitable, Jolly Roger waving, unprecedentedly loud 40,000+ on hand tomorrow night.  You can bet the team will feed off of that.

Let's Go Bucs.

Pitching For The Playoffs

It's September 19th, and we're still watching Pirates games intently, and checking out of town scores almost as intently. That's new. The Pirates currently sit one game behind the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central Division, and two games ahead of the Cincinnati Reds. The Pirates and Reds will face off in a crucial three game series that kicks off Friday night at PNC Park.  How did we get to be in this position? The same way we've achieved anything in the past three years: quality pitching.

Before we dive into playoff pitching scenarios, I should mention that the Pirates can clinch a playoff berth as soon as Saturday.  In order to miss the playoffs, the Washington Nationals would need to make up a six game deficit over a nine game span. It simply won't happen. Your Pirates are going to play playoff ball.

There has been much debate about what the starting rotation should be going into the playoffs.  People have been swayed by recent performances, overall track records, and veteran experience. Here's what I think the rotation should be.

Game 1 (or Wild Card Game) -- Francisco Liriano RHP
Liriano has been the Pirates' obvious staff ace this season.  After missing the first month of the season, Frankie has posted sixteen wins and a solid 2.92 earned run average. That ERA would be a lot lower if it weren't for a couple bad outings. Ignore those two poor starts, and we're looking at an ERA under 2. Liriano has two complete games under his belt this season, and has seemed to always be able to dominate division rival St. Louis.  Above all, Liriano has served as a stopper.  A stopper is a pitcher who steps in in the midst of a slump and, as manager Clint Hurdle would say, "puts his foot down". This season, Frankie has done this countless times. He's your obvious game one starter.

Game 2 -- Gerrit Cole  RHP
This would've seemed a bit unrealistic about six weeks ago.  Since the end of August and throughout September, Cole has been dominating opponents.  This run of success started on August 28th against the Milwaukee Brewers, and has continued through today.  That stretch has seen Cole evolve from a rookie with a blistering fastball into a true, jam-getting-out-of, can't-be-rattled, strikeout pitcher.  Last week Cole went up against Texas' Yu Darvish, and showed him up by pitching eight scoreless innings with nine strikeouts (the Pirates would get the 1-0 win).  And today, in a game vs. the San Diego Padres, he turned in his best start yet.  Over six innings, he struck out a whopping twelve batters (out of 18 outs he created, 66% were K's).  He got out in front of batters, and looked completely in control.  I give the ball to him in game two.

Game 3-- Charlie Morton RHP
After returning from Tommy John's surgery in June, Morton has looked better than ever before.  He has posted a 7-4 record, and 3.35 ERA.  Those numbers aren't eye popping, but his pitching of late certainly has been.  He has continued his heavy use of the sinker to induce ground balls, and it has been working outstandingly.  He has also greatly inproved his curveball, which has increased his strikeout totals.  When healthy, Charlie is nasty.  Hard not to go to him for game #3

Game 4-- AJ Burnett RHP
After being the staff ace last year, you may have expected AJ to be higher on this list.  This season hasn't been a poor one by any means for him.  He has been playing far better than his 8-11 record suggests, and his 3.43 ERA proves it.  He is a veteran capable of getting out of the toughest jams, and there are few games I wouldn't trust him with.  I admit, it feels odd having him at #4.  However, given what the other three have been doing lately, I had no choice.

Over the next nine days the Pirates will battle.  They have their eyes set on the division title, avoiding the dreaded one game wild card playoff. Whatever happens, we have the pitching to win games. Should be a fun ride.

The Pirates Have Freed Themselves

This has been a season full of special moments for Pirates fans. There was Gerrit Cole's exciting debut in June. We saw an amazing five Pirates go to the All Star Game.  Russell Martin has four walkoff hits on the year, which has only added to his amazing season at catcher.  Who could forget that thrilling five game series against St. Louis at the end of July at PNC Park, which saw the Pirates assert themselves as a baseball superpower, taking the first four from the shellshocked Cardinals.  None of these fun moments, however, could compare to what happened last night in Milwaukee.

It wasn't so much the way we won the game that made it so special. That's not to say that Gerrit Cole's superb six IP and Travis Snider's go-ahead homer in the ninth inning weren't impressive.  The reason last night's win mean so much is that it was the Buccos' 81st win of the season. For those that don't know, that means that the win guaranteed that the Pirates will not have a losing season.  That's right, the nightmare is over. The longest losing streak in American pro sports history is over.  It started in 1992 with that slide by Sid Bream, and it was punctuated last year when Homer Bailey no-hit the Bucs in Pittsburgh to guarantee their 20th consecutive losing season.  Between those two dates, Pirate fans had to put up with a lot.

There were countless blown draft picks: Selecting reliever Daniel Moskos over Matt Weiters (Who now plays catcher for the Baltimore Orioles) is a striking example.  There were so many trades that saw star players leave the team.  The prospects that did find their way into the Pirates' farm system were woefully mismanaged.  The team was controversial in its use of Navy Seal training tactics on their players, which ultimately caused players and prospects to avoid signing with the Pirates. All of this combined for a nightmarish 20 years of losing.

But that's all over. We're free. Last year, we couldn't celebrate the progress of the team because we still had the losing streak hanging over us, casting its shadow. Now that it has been vanquished, this team can accomplish anything.  They currently sit two games ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals in first place in the NL Central Division.  It's September 4th, and the playoff chase is on. Fans celebrated last night's win, as they should have, but the players didn't dare.  They have one goal this year: Win the World Series. And with twenty years of losing lifted off their backs, they can fight to the end and maybe even bring it home. 

In honor of it being fun to be a Pirates fan right now, here's this:

Memories: The 2013 Pittsburgh Penguins

It was a cold December evening when I decided to start writing a blog about sports.  I was on the way to Consol Energy Center, to see, not NHL Hockey, but College Hockey.  It was in the final weeks of the lockout, not that we could see the end coming at the time.  It is fitting that my last post for a few months will be about the end of a hockey season.

For the Penguins, this season was magical.  It was late December, and many thought there would be no NHL season.  People were already making plans, and even I persuaded my Dad to buy Pirates tickets instead of spending money on Hockey tickets we would never receive.  Then, suddenly, it was over.  I woke up one Saturday morning and hockey was back.  We gleefully followed updates as various Penguins arrived at the Arena for practice.  We were clamoring for Hockey; enough to fill the 18,387 seat arena for an intra-squad scrimmage.  Hockey was back.

The regular season began excitingly enough, with a 3-1 handling of, guess who, the Philadelphia Flyers.  The next night, a 4-1 defeat of the "Cup Favorites" New York Rangers meant the Pens meant business.  The Penguins had an incredible regular season.  I'm only going to share a few highlights.

We dominated the Flyers in 3 of the 4 meetings, including an overtime win thanks to this beauty by Tyler Kennedy.  The Flyers, much to any Penguins fan's joy, had a dismal season.  They finished last in the Atlantic Division.  They weren't around in the playoffs to bother the Penguins.  It's always fun when the Flyers suck.

Then came the month of March.  I'll put it simply:  In the month of March, the Pens had 15 wins, and 0 losses.  It was a fun time to be a Pens fan.  The Penguins were not only scoring like there was no tomorrow, they weren't allowing many goals either (see: 3 consecutive shutouts).  The streak included wins against powerful wins such as Montreal (2), New York (Islanders), Boston (2), and Washington.  Make no mistake, Pens captain Sidney Crosby was the man behind all of this.  This is his team.

Next on our trip down memory lane: the Trade Deadline.  We went into this always-exciting time of year not expecting anything huge.  Maybe a depth winger or a 3rd line defenseman.  General Manager Ray Shero had other ideas.  The raid of the NHL began with the acquisition of winger Brenden Morrow from Dallas.  At the time, it was common thinking that he'd be a good tough guy to play alongside Evgeni Malkin.  We would have been content if Shero had stopped there.

Then came defenseman Douglas Murray, or "crankshaft".  We hadn't seen much of him (he played in San Jose), but we would soon find out that he was one of the better hitters in the NHL.

Next came the big prize.  It was the evening of March 27th.  It was pretty much agreed upon that star winger Jarome Iginla would be traded to Boston.  There was a deal "in place".  However, Iginla had a No-Trade Clause, meaning he could approve or reject any trade offers.  So, late at night, when all the Pens fans had gone to sleep, the Pens put in an offer.  It was inferior to that of Boston, but that was beside the point.  Iginla wanted to come to Pittsburgh.  It's the benefit of having Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.  People want to play here.   It was a Christmas-Morning scenario:  Pittsburghers everywhere woke up to the news that Ray Shero had robbed Boston of Jarome Iginla.

And now, the Playoffs.  The first round was kind of a mess.  It featured a dominant win in game one, then a hard fought loss in game two.  An overtime win in game three preempted a disgustingly sloppy loss in game four, allowing the Islanders to tie the series at two.  Marc Andre Fleury played awful, and that would be his last start of the playoffs, and possibly as a Penguin.  Vokoun entered the crease for the Pens, and they blew out New York in game five, and won a thrilling game six off a Brooks Orpik overtime goal.

Round two was a fun time for all.  We solidly took a 2-0 on home ice against the Ottawa Senators.  Game three was all Pens, but Craig Anderson robbed the Pens of the W.  Game four looked to be headed the same way, until the Pens broke Anderson and put in five goals in the third period.  Game five was a blowout, dispatching the Sens quickly.

Nobody wants to talk about the third round against Boston.  We all know what went wrong.  We couldn't score.  Yes, Bruin Goaltender Tuukka Rask was great.  However, we would have had a lot more goals if Penguins simply went to the net to provide screens and collet rebounds.  They didn't do that at all.  That's why we lost game three 2-1 and game four 1-0.  That's all I have to say about that series.

Overall, it was an incredible season.  I don't think Dan Bylsma should be fired, and I don't think he will be.  I'll be right here when training camp opens in September.

Losses aren't all bad

The panic has set in.  Already.  Apparently this town didn't learn anything from the Pens' first round win over the Islanders.  Going into last night's game 3 vs. the Ottawa Senators, the Pens held a 2-0 advantage in the best of 7 series.

The game was hard fought, and, in my opinion, the highest quality game of the playoffs so far.  Basically, here's how it went:  Both teams got a ridiculous amount of scoring chances, and both goaltenders stood on their heads to keep most of them out.  The only difference was, Ottawa goalie Craig Anderson allowed one goal, and Pittsburgh's Tomas Vokoun allowed two.  Neither goaltender deserved to lose.  That being said, Anderson did deserve to win more.  He was barraged all night, especially in both of the overtime periods, by quality scoring chances from the Penguins, who have some serious firepower.  It was a sight to behold, and Anderson turned in a performance you don't see often in the playoffs.

Late in the second overtime, it looked as though both goalies were brick walls.  Thoughts turned to the possibility of a third OT, and an even later Sunday night.  But then, after a shot from the point was stopped by Vokoun, Ottawa's speedy Colin Greening got to the rebound before a Penguins defenseman could, and backhanded home the game winner.  You can't fault Vokoun.  You can only feel sorry for him that his team couldn't do more with an incredible, 47 save performance.

So, heading into Wednesday's game 4 in Ottawa, I think the Penguins, and their fans, have no reason to be worried.  After all, we have a 2-1 series lead.  Experts and fans alike picked the Pens to win the series in five, six, or maybe seven games, so it is absurd to be too upset.  Because after all, you have two lose a game or two to win in five or six.  Nobody expected a sweep.

Here is why we shouldn't be too worried.

Last night's game was probably the Penguins' best performance of the playoffs so far.  Sometimes there are those nights, where you turn in an incredible performance as a team, and the other team slips away with the win.  You have to move on.  The Penguins generated scoring chance after scoring chance, tallying 49 shots over 4+ periods of play.  The first line, of Crosby, Kunitz, and Dupuis, was absolutely flying out there.  Evgeni Malkin looked like he was from another planet.  He looked like his old self again, last seen in 2012 and 2009.  He was flying through the neutral zone, and creating chaos in the zone with his puck movement, passes, and steals.  The fourth line generated some big pressure, which is a good bonus.  Anderson was having one of those nights.  He wouldn't be beaten

I also really liked the Pens' defense.  Ottawa was able to get a reasonable amount of offensive zone time, however, the Penguins seemed to be intercepting all of the cross ice passes and blocking most of the shots from the points.  We saw almost none of the carelessness we saw in round 1.

If they play like this on Wednesday, and beyond, things will be just fine.

Here's a video of Greening's game winner in 2OT:

Why The Pens Will Pull It Out

Penguins 2, Islanders 2.  In the aftermath of a disappointing game 4, I sit here writing this.  A game 4 that saw the Penguins take a 3-2 lead, and later a 4-3 lead.  The final score was 6-4, Islanders.  What happened?

First, the Pens continued to play stupid.  The Islanders tied it at 4 in the third period off of a silly turnover by Evgeni Malkin.  The game was filled with other similar mistakes.  But in this one, all eyes are on Marc Andre Fleury.  I am somebody who is usually the biggest Fleury defender.

Not tonight.

Three of the Islanders' six goals were inexcusable.  One was scored from behind the net, banking off of Fleury's leg.  Another was scored in the final two minutes of play, sliding past him so slow you could read the label on the puck.

So, the series is tied at two, with the Pens heading home to play game 5 on Thursday at Consol Energy Center.  I seriously think that the Pens pull this one out.  And not because I'm a homer, or a fan (I am both of those things, but they didn't have any influence over this post).  Here's why.

The Pens are a flat out better team.  When they play smart, they kill the Islanders.  The problem so far is that they haven't been playing smart.  I feel that the Penguins are better equipped to lock in for an impressive game 5/6 than the Islanders.  This is because the Islanders are so inexperienced.  Their star players, John Tavares, Matt Moulson, Kyle Okposo, have never been in the playoffs before.  They don't know the intensity of a game 5, or game 6.  The Penguins have people like Crosby, Malkin, and Letang who have been in deep playoff runs.  They know what it's like, they know what it takes.

That's why I think the Pens will take this one.  If, AND ONLY IF, the Pens can reach down, and focus.  If they can go into a mindset of 2008 or 2009.  If they can regain their Cup winning mentality, they can take two of the next three.  The Pens are by far the better team.  It's all mental.

The same goes for Marc Andre Fleury.  If he can't do that, I'm all for giving Tomas Vokoun the start for game 5.

Clean It Up, Pens

The first three games of the Stanley Cup Playoffs are in the books.  On paper, the Penguins appear to be in good shape.  You see a 5-0 blowout win in game one, a tight 4-3 loss in game two, and a 5-4 overtime win in the third game.  On paper, it appears that we not only took a series lead, but demoralized the Islanders.  They fought back so hard towards the end of the game to force overtime.  After all that, Crosby set up Kunitz for the winner in OT, making it look easy.  All in front of a wild crowd at the ancient Nassau Coliseum, a building that hadn't seen a playoff game in six years.

Sure, the Penguins are in a good position going forward in the series.  But if they hope to get close to a Stanley Cup, or even to get out of this series, things need to change.  The Pens are stocked with talent, we all know that.  The trouble is putting it to good use.  The Penguins need to play smart.  In Sunday's 5-4 win, there were two players who played smart:  Sidney Crosby and Douglas Murray.  Everybody else astounded with their dumb decisions.  Matt Niskanen had two turnovers, both of them costing the Pens a goal. Letang turned the puck over uncharacteristically.  Countless others did the same.  The bottom line is that none of the players need to play as well as Crosby, but they all need to play as smart is him.

They need to stop making blind passes.  They need to stop forcing passes to star players.  They need to stop slinging the puck 80 feet up ice, hoping it will connect with someone (this almost always ends up being a turnover).  They need to stop trying to outskill the Islanders' defense.  Instead of trying to walk right into the offensive zone, try dumping it in and using that fore-checking thing that worked so well in game one.

The Pens had a 15 game win streak this season.  They didn't accomplish that by speeding up the ice, beating the entire team and scoring 10 goals per game.  The played a tough, defensively sound game.  They hit their opponents hard, and lock it down in front of Marc Andre Fleury.  They waited for the other team to give them opportunities to score.  What they are doing now is essentially trying to force goals, and in the process, giving the Islanders opportunities to score.

This needs to stop.

Equipped for Success

Last year, the Penguins were a favorite to win the Cup for much of the year, especially after Sidney Crosby made his second return in March.  As the the trade deadline approached and passed, the Pens' GM Ray Shero did something out of character: nothing.  He made no moves to strengthen the team in any way.  This proved to be a mistake, as Philadelphia would eliminate the Penguins from the playoffs in the first round, embarrassing them defensively.

This year was obviously different.  Shero did a lot to strengthen the team.  In fact, he did far more than any other NHL GM.  Here's a look at the Pens' 5 acquisitions (In chronological order), and how they can help them to a Stanley Cup win.

1. Tomas Vokoun One of the glaring problems in the Pens' playoff loss to Philadelphia was the goaltending.  Marc-Andre Fleury played very poorly (an understatement).  This was in part because of fatigue.  Backup goalie Brent Johnson played so poorly in 2011-12 that he couldn't be trusted to win a game, forcing Fleury to play over 20 games in a row.  He had nothing left by the time the playoffs came around.  So, Shero went out and got a reliable backup who could relieve some of the load.  Enter Vokoun.  While he won't see the ice during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, he will give Fleury the rest he needs to play well.

2.  Brenden Morrow Before this season started, in my New Year's Resolutions blog, I pointed out that the Penguins needed to regain their toughness.  The toughness they had in their 2009 Cup win, but totally lacked in 2011-2012.  The bottom line:  The Playoffs are not a scoring-fest, they are a defensive, hard-hitting battle.  The Pens got some of the toughness back with the veteran winger Morrow.  He will play on the third line instead of Tyler Kennedy, making that line more of a traditional third line (hard-hitting, good defensively, hard to play against in general).

3.  Douglas Murray In 2009, as the Penguins were gearing up to eventually win the Stanley Cup, Shero acquired defenseman Hal Gill.  Gill was a great shutdown defenseman, something infinitely valuable in the Playoffs.  Gill left for Montreal after that year.  The Penguins have lacked that solid, veteran presence ever since, especially after Sergei Gonchar left town.  The Pens regained some of that when they got Doug Murray.  He is probably the most underrated hitters in the league.  He adds to the Penguins' toughness and defense, which (not to sound like a broken record) is incredibly important to win a Stanley Cup.

4. Jarome Iginla  This is the one we're all excited about.  Last Wednesday, we all went to bed thinking Iginla went to the Bruins.  To the delight of Pens fans everywhere, Ray Shero swooped in at the last minute and grabbed him.  This is an obviously great addition to this team.  Iginla has a scoring touch which is always a plus, and he can also hit and even fight.  Another player in the "tough to play against" list.

5.  Jussi Jokinen Jokinen is a 3rd-line-at-best center.  He was acquired mainly because Crosby is injured for the time being, and we need depth at center.  Tyler Kennedy wasn't exactly cutting it as a No. 1 center, so Shero pulled the trigger (Jokinen came with a very, very low price tag).  Once Crosby returns, he will be slotted into the fourth line, which desperately needs a spark.  He is a whiz at faceoffs, which the Penguins have lacked this year, even during the 15 game win streak.