Next Up: Brno Enjoys the Cup with Sykora

Late Friday, Satan passed on the Stanley Cup to fellow "former" Penguin Petr Sykora who spent Saturday and Sunday with the pretigious trophy in Brno where he started his celebration with the people of the town. The Cup was on display as fans lined up to wait to talk to Sykora and get an autograph and pictures. Like Satan, Sykora enjoyed Lord Stanley's company for 2 days (why? IDK). On Sunday, Sykora was the Guest-of-Honor at the Pilsen VS Czech hockey game where he sported a Czech Milan jersey.

Next Up: OOPS - I Missed Fedotenko in WI with the Cup!

Ruslan Fedotenko had his day with the Cup a few weeks ago on Tuesday, August 18th and I didn't come across it until now (SORRY!).

Ruslan and his wife, Debbie, were married and own property in (Sister Bay) Door County, Wisconsin which is where he took Lord Stanley on his day. The day included numerous stops at Wilson's restaurant to eat ice cream from the Cup bowl, the top of the tower at Peninsula State Park, Johnson's Park where the Cup rode "shotgun" in a go-cart.

Fedotenko shared the Cup with fans in the afternoon at the Waterfront Restaurant for an autograph session.

What Does Tangers Do in the Off-Season?

Well go to VIP parties and hang out with lovely ladies, of course!!!

Kris Letang was recently spotted (by Hollywood P.Q.) at the VIP party celebrating the 6th anniversary of Dom Rebel (designer clothing company) - surrounded by beautiful woman with one on his arm!! The Cup MUST change everything!!

Pictures courtesy of Hollywood P.Q. (Freelance Underground)


















And what else has Letang been up to this summer aside from all the VIP parties and beautiful women? Deep-sea fishing, according to Joe Starkey! He went to the Bahamas with his uncle for a week and told Starkey he estimates catching around 80 fish including a 210 pound lemon shark which took him two-and-a-half hours to reel in. They enjoyed the "fruits of his labor" by dining on the shark which Letang says, "... tastes like swordfish."

2009-2010 "City of Champions" Season 'Preview'

If you're like me, you don't need much to get pumped about the upcoming football / hockey seasons; however, this video has been making its way around the internet this past weekend and if you want to get your heart rate up and start the competitive, "Pittsburgh Nation" juices flowing then -

WATCH THIS!!

Johnstown Jets Hold Training Camp

There hasn't been much news on the new junior hockey team in Johnstown although I haven't been checking the webpage as I had earlier this summer.

I did learn that they started their training camp this week (Monday, August 24th) and the season begins Saturday, September 12th. It looks like all UJHL games are played over the weekends - Saturday and Sunday.

The webpage has their schedule (which is combined for the entire UJHL). They have yet to have a players / coach roster up, but I'm thinking that it's just the fact that it's not being kept up especially since they're holding training camp this week (they need players and coaches for that!)!!

CLICK HERE FOR THE UJHL 2009-2010 SCHEDULE

I went to the UJHL official webpage and found the following news:

08/03/09 The Johnstown Jets ink four players from their tryouts last weekend. Forwards, Zack Brown from Turtle Creek, PA and Scott Mathis from Morton Grove, IL.; along with Defensemen, RC Double from Lyndora, PA and Kyle Firth from Raleigh, NC.

07/29/09 The Jets have hired Dr. Ian Katz as their Team Orthopedist, as well as Dr. Gary Minchau of Hilltop Dental Associates as their Team Dentist for the 2009-10 season

07/27/09 The Johnstown Jets have signed Forward, Donny Koewacich, from Sharon, PA. for the 2009-10 season.

07/23/09 The Johnstown Jets have signed goalie Cody Martin from Cumberland, MD. and forward, Josh Hine from Ashland, MD. for the 2009-10 season.

07/14/09 The Jets obtained the rights to Defenseman, Cory Petrie from the Philadelphia Thunder for a future draft selection in 2010. Cory is from Campbellcroft, Ontario, Canada.

07/07/09 The Johnstown Jets Junior are Rocking and Rolling as the Johnstown hockey tradition continues. They have signed Anthony McDaniel a Goalie from Florida. Anthony played last year for the Wooster Oilers. The Jets have also signed Lucas Glass, a defenseman from Altoona, PA and played High School hockey for Bishop Guilfoyle Marauders.

06/06/09 The Jets have hired Tammy Barnwell from Johnstown, PA., who will be the Jets Director of Community/Media Relations & Corporate Sponsorship Coordinator.

05/21/09 The Johnstown Jets announced their Head Coach and first player signing at their Press Conference this afternoon. Jets Head Coach is Bill Blanset and netminder, Scott Van Horn, along with the Jets Mascot, Morley.

05/18/09 The Jets have announced their Press Conference for this Thursday, May, 21, 2009 at the War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, PA. Where they will introduce their Coaching Staff, first player signing and their Mascot.

05/13/09 The Johnstown Jets have signed their first player, netminder, Scott Van Horn who played Midget 'AAA' last year for the Pittsburgh Huskies.

Next Up: Satan and Hometown Celebrates with Lord Stanley

Miroslav Satan and his family spent yesterday (August 27th) with the Stanley Cup in his hometown of Jacovieck, Slovakia beginning at his parent's house in the morning.

In the afternoon, he spent about an hour-and-a-half signing autographs for and taking pictures with 500 adoring fans.

Later that evening, Satan and Lord Stanley went to Topoľčany for a charity hockey game.

Satan handed over the Cup to Petr Sykora who gets his time with it today (August 28th).

Here's a few videos (and more pictures as well) from Pravda.sk (CLICK ON LINK); however, they're in Slovak. [the man with Satan in the picture to the left is his first coach, Jozef Nemec]

TSCSF Selected in Top 100 Hockey Blogs!!!

The Steel City Sports Fan (Penguins Edition)

Top hockey blogs

I'm excited to report that my blog was one of 100 blogs selected by The Daily Reviewer to be in an exclusive list of "Top 100 Hockey Blogs!"

The Daily Reviewer selects only the world's top blogs (and RSS feeds). We sift through thousands of blogs daily to present you the world's best writers. The blogs that we include are authoritative on their respective niche topics and are widely read. To be included in The Daily Reviewer is a mark of excellence.

I'd like to thank Angelina and The Daily Reviewer's selection committee for choosing The Steel City Sports Fan. It's an honor to have my hard-work and dedication to this blog and the Penguins be recognized! I'M THRILLED!!

Drop the Puck!!

I think we're all pretty anxious for the hockey season begin even though there really hasn't been any lack of news (with them winning the Cup and it touring this summer, and now with the men's Olympic orientation camps underway).

But I'm ready for some hockey and tickets for the two pre-season home games went on sale this morning at 10:00 AM. I was able to get two for the Friday, September 18th game against the Leafs.

Is it me or did the prices get ridiculous?? For Section F, I paid $54 / each (and that wasn't the cheapest tickets either)! I'm not complaining since I'm happy to be going and Section F is one of my preferred sections for the money, but I guess we (I) should expect this when they've been doing so well - that's just the price you pay for being a hockey fan!!

O [Team] Canada

This week Canada is following suit and is holding the men's Olympic hockey orientation camp (in Calgary). Among the chosen are three Penguins and these are their official team photos.

A reader from my other blog pointed out that Crosby and Fleury have both cover the Nike logo on their jerseys (since they Reebok endorsers) -- pretty clever; however, the more I look at it, I can't decide if they're actually hiding it or it was digitally "erased."

Orpik's Brother Given AHL Contract

The San Antonio Rampage announced the signing of right wing Andrew Orpik to an AHL contract.

Andrew is the younger brother of Brooks and was selected in the 7th round of the 2005 entry draft by the Buffalo Sabres and recently graduated from Boston college.

Next Up: Catching Up with the Cup (Goligoski, Kadar & Godard)!

OK so I let the ball drop on some of the Stanley Cup visits over the past week or so, but I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things.

Right now, I'm just going to give a short overview as to where / with whom Lord Stanley has visited!!!

AUGUST 19th - Alex Goligoski brought the Cup to the IRA Civic Center in Grand Rapids, MN (click here for audio)

AUGUST 22nd - Mike Kadar (Elnora Community Hall); the mayor declared this day "Mike Kadar Day" in Elnora (click for brief article / video)

AUGUST 23rd - Eric Godard (Vernon); made a stop at the local RCMP detachment, Vernon Boys & Girls Club, Vernon Fire Station as well as celebrated with family and friends at a private party.

TIOPS Tidbits

As always, here is some interesting information I found at TIOPS (please keep in mind that none of this has been confirmed at this point):

• Letang has turned down Pittsburgh's initial four-year deal
• Sykora is in talks with three teams: Philadelphia, TB, and another unknown team (not Buffalo or Minnesota)
• Talbot's shoulder is coming along nicely; he will be able to take contact within 6 weeks (and he should only miss 5 weeks of the regular season)
• Zigomanis is considering several camp invites (the NHLPA webpage has since updated his current contract information)

That's So MAF (musings of a Penguins goalie)!

Fleury was recently in Montreal doing a private signing according to Allan Walsh (being helped by Walsh's kids - shown in this picture). CUTE!!

Fleury began training last week in Montreal with fellow Penguin Ruslan Fedotenko among other NHL players. He's also taking part in Team Canada's orientation camp (he arrived at the Calgary International Airport on Monday to a bunch of fans).

Penguins Training Camp

I don't know about you, but I'm anxious for the hockey season to begin and even though the Penguins stretched out their season by winning the Cup, it still feels like a LONG off-season (a fellow fan / blogger pointed out that its because we're eager to defend the Cup).

The start of the season will be marked with the start of Penguins training camp which starts on Wednesday, September 12th - it was pushed up since the one pre-season game was made earlier due to G20 in Pittsburgh that same time (a little over than two weeks away), and that's at least something to look forward to!!!

2009-2010 THN Yearbook

The Hockey News 2009-2010 Yearbooks are out and there are a total of nine of them (Vancouver; Toronto & Ottawa; Pittsburgh & Philadelphia; New York, New Jersey & Washington; Montreal - English; Montreal - French; Detroit & Chicago; Boston & Buffalo; and Alberta).

Of course the cover of the Pittsburgh & Philadelphia yearbook is our very own coverboy and captain, Sidney Crosby. It retails for $9.99.

Top 50 player rankings and Stanley Cup champion predictions; Milan Lucic rise to stardom in Boston; how Ryan Getzlaf has become Anaheim's top dog; early storylines from the 2010 Olympics; coach Ron Wilson describes life in Toronto in his own words; John Tavares and the future of the Islanders; Team Reports evaluating each team's strengths and weaknesses; and more.

Also out now is the 2009-2010 Ultimate Pool Fantasy Guide which cover features another Penguins young gun, Evgeni Malkin. It retails for $7.99.

THN's annual Ultimate Fantasy Guide Poolbook, predictions for more than 350 NHL players; a fantasy outlook and examination of each of the 30 teams; and stories who to take No. 1, the best rookies, and more.

A Really Cool Cup Party Perspective

All summer long we've been following Lord Stanley on his journey all over the world with each member of the Penguins organization and the stories have all been told by the media who follow each Stanley Cup host.

I came across a really neat account of Mark Eaton's Stanley Cup celebration according to his party coordinator (a unique perspective that we haven't had yet!)!! It has some really awesome photos too (taken by professional photographers Anna Sawin and Steph Stevens). The company, TRUE & WESSON, plans seriously stylish events, so it looked like a pretty lavish party with a beautiful view of the Narragansett Bay at the Belle Mer in Newport, RI as the backdrop.

It looks like Mark and his family had a memorable day with some amazine photos to capture the event. What a great-looking family!

For more information and spectacular photos, visit the Hank & Willie blog or TRUE & WESSON blog.

Boucher to Return to Pittsburgh or Retire

TIOPS is reporting that unless Philippe Boucher receives a guaranteed offer with a role as a top-six defenseman, he is likely to return to Pittsburgh or retire.

According to TIOPS, Boucher and Letang became close both on and off the ice last season and also played a role as a leader in the locker room and mentor to the younger players; he has been receiving calls from Penguin teammates urging him to return.

TIOPS sources have reported that Pittsburgh made an offer for 1-year / $600,000. Boucher is to make a decision by September 1st.

More Cup Dates

August 14 - Bill Guerin
August 22 - Mike Kadar (Elnora):

• Elnora community hall (8:30 AM - 12:30 PM)

August 23 - Eric Godard (Vernon):

• Boys & Girls Club of Vernon (10 AM - 12 noon)
• Blue Heron Pub (5 PM - 8 PM); open to the general public with a donation to KidSport

September 4 - Scott Adams (Windsor)

USA Olympic Hockey Camp

The USA Olympic hockey camp started this week and among the American players are a few Penguins (well, one Penguin and a former Penguin) - Brooks Orpik and Rob Scuderi. Here are a few of the official pictures and an Orpik presser video.

Crosby Finally Receives Hometown Honor

Sidney Crosby was named a recipient of the Order of Nova Scotia last September, but was unable to attend the investiture ceremony last October due to his busy schedule (READ MORE HERE). He was finally presented with the medallion last Tuesday, August 18th, in the Red Chamber of the Province House.

"It’s special," he said after the private ceremony. "Hockey has taken me elsewhere outside the province, but I have family and friends back here and every time I get the opportunity, I’m proud to say I’m from here and Cole Harbour, so it means a lot to be recognized like this."

THANKS!!

I just wanted to take the time to thank all of you who emailed me or posted a comment to express your sympathy for my loss. I can't tell you how much it is appreciated and how it was a ray of sunshine on such a very sad event. This is proof that Pittsburgh fans are one of the kindest / friendliest group of people you'd ever want to meet or surround yourself with!!!

I am back at work today (not saying that things are "back to normal" yet), but I'm hoping to have a post or two for tomorrow so that I can get back to business as usual as quickly as possible.

THANKS again for all your support - it means alot!!

Lack of Updates

I apologize to all of you for the lack of updates these past few days, but I had a very unexpected death in my family over the weekend which has kept me pretty occupied. I'm hoping to get back up and writing sometime within the next few days and ask for your patience while I do so.

THANKS!!

Godard to Play in Pro-Am

Eric Godard will be among other NHL pros, semi-pros, college, and top junior prospects for the seventh annual Pr0-Am Scholarship charity game. It will be held today at the Sunwave Center - faceoff at 7:00 PM.

Partial proceeds will support the Canadian Cancer Society’s Terry Fox Run, Salmon Arm Minor Hockey, and the Salmon Arm Hockey Scholarship fund.

For more information, visit SAObserver.net.

Next Up: Dan Takes the Cup for a Ride Down the Grand Haven Channel

Pittsburgh Head coach Dan Bylsma started his day with the Cup yesterday with a charter fishing trip with 20 other people on four boats. In the afternoon, Bylsma shared Lord Stanley with fans that showed up at the Grand Haven Municipal Marina for autographs and pictures. And to end the day, Bylsma enjoyed a private dinner for family and friends that featured the salmon they caught earlier in the day.

"My hockey life is here, and my hockey life is with a lot of these people," Bylsma said. "Part of winning it is sharing it with the people who helped you get there."

Next Up: Kunitz Raises Money for Charity with the Cup

Yesterday was Chris Kunitz's day with Lord Stanley and the early part of the day was spent raising money for charity. Kunitz took the Cup to Regina's City Hall to share with everyone who came out.

Donations of five dollars or more raised nearly $4,000 dollars to benefit Regina's Allan Blair Cancer Centre. People giving a donation were able to get an autograph and pictures.

"It's nice to be back with the family right now, and meet the people in the city," he said. "But when we get out there and raise some money for charity... that's what it really means, to get the trophy on display for the public to see."

NEW DATE:
August 16th - Mark Eaton (Smithfield, RI)

Video of the Kunitz family party:

This Week's Cup Events

MONDAY, AUGUST 10th
Chris Kunitz brings home the Stanley Cup to Regina for his hometown to share from 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM at Regina's City Hall.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11th

Fans in Grand Haven, MI will have an opportunity to meet Lord Stanley and Dan Bylsma at the Grand Haven Municipal Marina from 12:00 noon - 2:00 PM (between the marina office and the Chinook Pier shops).

THURSDAY, AUGUST 13th

Hal Gill will be hosting "Coffee with the Cup" in the Nashoba Regional HS gymnasium at 8:30 AM. Fans will be able to meet Gill and have their picture taken professionally with him and the Cup (you are also able to bring personal cameras to take your own pictures as well, but you will be able to purchase the professional photo after the event). Admission is $10 and will benefit the school's Community Competition Complex project.

That's So MAF (musings of a Penguins goalie)!

This is just so MAF!! During his day with the Cup, Fleury took it on a boat on the St. Lawrence River to take a picture and it broke down in the middle of the water!! A man and his wife finally came by with their boat and helped him out (in exchange for a picture with Fleury and the Cup, of course!)!!

Next Up: Ones We Missed

With the excitement of Sid's birthday bash with the Cup this past weekend, I overlooked a few of the players days with Lord Stanley and here's a brief rundown.

AUGUST 1 - Pascal Dupuis

AUGUST 3 - Mathieu Garon
visited the Quebec Ronald McDonald House and had a private party at his home













AUGUST 5 - Kris Letang


AUGUST 6 - Marc-Andre Fleury

RECAP: Sid's B-day with the Cup

NHL.com followed Sid around Friday and Saturday and had a really great "real-time" account of the events. They also have a bunch a really awesome videos of highlights over the last two days and I've posted links to all of them.

Parade through Cole Harbour

Children's Hospital Visit

Naval Base Visit

Sid Gets the Stanley Cup

Sid the Goalie

Sidney Crosby Rally

Crosby Cleans the Cup

Visiting the Nova Scotia Hall of Fame

I also had a few readers that took part of in the festivities this past weekend who were kind enough to share their pictures and stories!! I'll be posting them soon (it was a busy weekend and I wasn't able to work on them), so check back!! I want to thank all of you who emailed me -- I appreciate it -- I really do!!

MORE Pics of Sid's Arrival with the Cup

These pictures are courtesy of The Globe and Mail

Crosby Kicks Off Celebration with a Helicoptor Ride!!

This is turning out to be some Cup / birthday bash and it's only just beginning!!!

In the picture to the right, Sid is getting off a Sea King helicoptor to hundreds of fans waiting for his arrival at the wharf in Halifax harbor! How cool is that?!!!!

“This is something that I felt was important,” he said. “There’s a lot of troops that aren’t here right now who are overseas ... but for the ones who are here I thought they would really get a kick out of it.”

“That’s what we get a kick out of us players is the sharing with everyone,” said Crosby, who is also making a private visit to a children’s hospital in Halifax.

I'll post more as I find it throughout the day today, so check back often!!!!!

I found that NHL.com is along for the ride with Sid and are posting a "real-time" blog at NHL.com -- CLICK HERE to see it. And it seems as though Talbot is also along for this Crosby bash (holding on to the Prince of Wales trophy)!! I'm wondering how many other Penguin players will be in attendance for this.