Start The Countdown

You know you are in hockey withdrawal when

1. You begin to analyze a preseason schedule
2. You replay highlights over and over all summer
3. You know the first preseason game is only 69 days away

Now i know, I am a huge fan of hockey, one of the biggest, but can you blame me? If you are a vivid fan of any sports team, and they win the Championship, the offseason is excruciating, and you want nothing more then to get back to the action. Lets get to the Pre-Season schedule. They begin in Pittsburgh against Toronto where there is no real story line, just the defending champs playing against a team that will for sure finish below expectations. They move on Montreal where they will face former teammate Hal Gil. Watch Montreal to be a major threat in the Eastern Conference this year and give Pittsburgh a run for thier money. They have picked up players with oddles of offensive talent such as Mike Cammalleri, Brian Gionta, Scott Gomez, and Glen Metropolit. They then travel to Toronto, where they will once again feel like they are playing a minor league team. My suggestion? Cancel the two games against Toronto and have the Pens play the Baby Pens at Mellon Arena twice. Better competition and more interesting. The Pens play there second, and last pre-season game at home against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Plum native, R.J Umberger will be in town once again. For the last 5 years the NHL has set a Columbus/Pittsburgh matchup. Pondering it, it makes no sense. Columbus is no match for Pittsburgh's offensive skill and will be a walk in the park. Now we get to the the best game of the Pre-season. Yes, this is the first time in any major sport, (NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB) that a pre-season game will be interesting. Mark the calenders, Sunday September 27, 2009. Stanley Cup rematch, at Joe Louis Arena. Why will this be interesting you say? Well the last pre-season game is the one where all of the starters will see the most time so they are ready to start the season a week later. This means we get to see the matchup once again of Zetterburg vs Crosby, which quite frankly has turned into the best matchup in pro-sports today. There is some silver lining in this for Detroit. Max Talbot will miss the game because of shoulder surgery, so he doesnt have to break your hearts once again.