The major storylines

A lot to talk about on this Monday, the start of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Firstly, the series-winning goal by Scott Walker got a lot more significant, considering he announced that his wife had been recently diagnosed with cervical cancer. From the N&O article:

"The last couple [of] games, I don't even really remember playing them," Walker said. "I talked to [Maurice] about that. I played those games, and sometimes I would look up or at the end of the game, I'd be like, 'Wow, we just played a game.' I was trying to do my job and play as hard as I could and try and keep my mind as calm as I could. After that game [Thursday], so much emotion went out of me."

I know my thoughts are certainly with the Walker family as they deal with this. Luckily, his wife is expected to make a full recovery.

On a much more happier note, the Canes-Penguins series begins tonight! Let me tell you ahead of time what the Versus coverage will consist of (enabling you to put the TV on mute and instead listen to Chuck K):

- OMG! Sidney Crosby is in this game! Let me repeat that again - SIDNEY CROSBY IS IN THIS GAME! And guess who he beat in the last round? ALEXANDER OVECHKIN! Sidney Crosby had 8 goals in that series! SID CROSBY SCORED 13 POINTS IN A SERIES AGAINST AO! SIDNEY CROSBY!!!!!!!!

- Hey! There are two guys named Staal in this series! Isn't that wierd? And, get this, they're brothers! Wow, that's like the first time that's happened in like, ever! And, get this, they have two other brothers that play hockey! It's like, a whole family of hockey players! That's like a completely new concept!

- Remember that guy Erik Cole? You know the guy who checked him from behind? He's on the Penguins! And Cole's on the Hurricanes! And they're going to play at Mellon Arena, where Cole got hit! Wow, it's like they've never faced off against each other!

I think the most pathetic thing is that all of these subplots have been covered when these teams have played in the regular season (I should know, I've yammered on about them enough)- it's just all of a sudden they've been blown out of proportion because it's the playoffs - but you would think there would be new material for the playoffs, not just the same old storyline. But I guess that's too much to ask.

Anyways, here's some random Pittsburgh blogs I've run across:
Pensburgh
I Bleed Black 'n Gold
Igloo Dreams
The Pensblog

The series begins tonight!

Canes play Pens!

Canes play Pittsburgh tonight!

I just love going to these games. Not only to I get to boo the despised one, but they're always great, high-paced games. And it's always nice to see the Canes shut down the Pens young core, including Sid Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal. (er... knock on wood...) And there's the subplot with the Staal brothers fighting it out for family pride.

The lame news today? Apparently, according to the N&O, Erik Cole's goal has disappeared:

Carolina's first goal Wednesday, originally credited to Eric Staal, then changed to Erik Cole, has been officially credited to Staal.

Can you say LAME? Oh well... Cole'll just have to make it up tonight!

Plea bargain offered to Staals

A plea bargain has been offered to Eric Staal in the continuing saga of a bachelor party gone horribly, horribly wrong. (Sounds like an intro to some cheap horror novel, doesn't it?)

Staal is expected to accept the bargain when he gets back from his honeymoon. He will be charged with a petty misdemeanor and will pay a $587 fine.

His brother, Jordan, will have to pay an extra $150 for his underage drinking.

Eric Staal Arrested (!)

Apparently Eric Staal's bachelor party got out of hand... he along with his brother Jordan and several other people were arrested in Minnesota and charged with disorderly conduct.

The group of twenty people or so was making a lot of noise in the wee hours of the morning and was told to quiet down by the cops. Apparently Eric and Jordan went to bed, but were still woken up to be kicked out of the hotel. Then the group was harrassing motorists and finally arrested.

Eric spent the night in jail, while Jordan was released after booking, but got slapped with consuming alcohol while underage.

My response? Finally, some exciting hockey news this summer!