Stay tuned for our musings during tonight’s game:
PREGAME
– We might be totally off-base here, but we’re thinking we might have gotten a sign about winningness being in the air — mere moments ago we received notice that we won a big fabric giveaway from our favorite online quilting store! We won some very spicy, foxy fabrics, and that can only mean the Devils are going to win a very spicy, foxy game tonight. Right?
– The MSG+ intro includes this fun factoid: the Devils and Penguins are the winningest teams in hockey. We literally had no idea about that.
– The game can start now that we’re all caught up on Carol Browne’s fantastic “XMAS Bandit” blog series. If you combined the charm of V.E. Mats, the fun of Christmas spirit, and the genius stylings of Carol, you’d get the XMAS Bandit.
FIRST PERIOD
– Look who’s back! It’s ol’ butterfingers Oduya! How charming was that when Doc had to call during some frantic Devils backchecking, “Someone has lost their stick… It’s Oduya…”? It felt like the good old days.
– WOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Just when we’re saying to the TV, “Give it to Travis — he’s a beast in this building,” the Devils give it to the Iron Boar and he scores from the point. Well, it’s not Travis, but we’ll take it. And meanwhile, they are loading kindling into cars to set fire to them all across IronBoarsylvania.
– Our Geico Quotebook is something about Marty talking about how much more pressure is on Sid in Canada than on the rest of their Olympic team right now. In it, Marty says, “We’re all superstars.” We hope when he said that he turned to teammates like Egg and Hambone and Pando and said, “I mean, you guys know how it is to be a superstar, right?”
– Doc tells us the Penguins PP is 30th overall. We’re very suspicious of these numbers — winningest teams, 30th-best power play, etc, etc, etc. During the commercial, we determine the only possible explanation for this is that Pookie, who is notoriously bad at math (let’s just say she may or may not have shown up to a house closing with a check that was significantly short due to a little problem with decimal points), was the one reading the stats sheet. As if on cue, Doc says, “The Penguins are 4 for 20 on the PP, which is easy enough math that even I can tell you is 20%”. Pookie, “Wait, lemme carry the two… minus four… divide by… uh… sure, Doc, sure. 20%. *shifty eyes*”
– We are discussing how much Hambone might possibly be transcending just being pleasantly surprising. After he attempts a power move to the Pens net, Pookie suggests that Hambone County is pleased with its emperor-god. Schnookie then suggests Hambone Township, or the Incorporated Village of Hambone. Pookie then floats that the District of Hambonia is growing so rapidly in population that it might be getting its own train station soon. Boomer: “A train station isn’t that big of a deal. It would be more impressive if it was getting its own cellular tower.”
SECOND PERIOD
– BoogerforsNation doesn’t even bother rioting anymore when its emperor-god scores, because it’s just such old hat. And Sid is obviously not a citizen of BoogerforsNation, because after Boogerfors scores to give the Devils a 2-0 lead, Sid lashes out by petulantly flicking Niedermayer (the Lesser)’s stick out of his hands and getting called for interference on the play. Pookie: “Sid has such a short fuse when it comes to the Devils.”
– Good grief! We’ve managed to go 34 games this season before the word (“word”?) “rabbydoo” gets pulled out on a Devils broadcast. And it’s Doc who brings it up. Chico sounds surprised by it, almost as if this time around it’s his mind being blown.
– One of our favorite gauges of how shitty the Flyers are on their broadcasts is their power play contest for the fans. Each power play chance will net a lucky selected fan $25 if the Flyers score, and with each PP on which they don’t score, the $25 accumulates. So if they fail on a PP, the next lucky fan will win $50 if they score on the next one, and if they don’t score then, the next lucky fan will win $75, and so on. At one point this season, the kitty was up to almost $700. Anyway, the point of this is that when the Devils take a too many men penalty early in the period here, Pookie remarks that the Devils could have had their own similar sweepstakes, but where a lucky fan wins the kitty every time the Devils take a too many men penalty.
– Gronk gets a faceful of puck when he decides to lean into Whitey’s clearing attempt behind the goal line with his head about a foot off the ice. He explodes, with blood everywhere. The fans figuratively shower the ice with beer-soaked mousepads, and we wonder why Gronk doesn’t wear a shield (not that it would have helped there, but maybe we should be wondering why Gronk was trying to stop that clear with his head at knee height).
– During the absolutely kick-ass shift by the newly-minted Z.E. Hambone line that yields the Devils’ third goal, Schnookie mercilessly derides Oduya for passing when he should have taken a chance at an open net down low. Then she mercilessly derides him for having a history of dropping his stick. After the goal, Chico exults, “That was a great shift by Oduya!” Schnookie, shiftily: “Yeeeaaah. That’s exactly what I was saying at the time.”
– And Z.E. Hambone does it again with its sheer, unmitigated awesomeness, Fraser makes it 4-0 Devils, and Doc says, “Perhaps it’s time for a change.” Chico then gets the line of the night by saying, “Yeah, but how many guys can you change?” What a rabby-doo!
THIRD PERIOD
– The period starts a little quiet and tense. Finally we realize the problem: things just aren’t the same since Hambone got that 10-minute misconduct.
– With 7:12 left in the game, we’re all officially well past the point where we are so tense we feel like we’re going to puke.
– That. Was. Awesome. It was dead silent in the arena for the entire third period, as well as dead silent at stately IPB Manor, and even Chico marveled at how nobody wanted to do anything other than just shut up and watch to see if it would happen. AND IT DID. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!! 104th career shutout for Marty!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!! What else is there to say? It just Marty, and it just WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Is it too early to be angry at Brodeur’s starting this game? Especially with the Olympics, Jacques really needs to start putting the needs of the team ahead of one player, as the last game (and last several playoffs before that) showed.
I have to watch this game on the Pittsburgh channel rerun tonight so I will be in a truly foul mood watching this one.
Pittsburgh rerun?! That’s AWFUL. I’m so, so, so sorry. As for Marty, I’m hoping he’ll get benched in favor of Luongo in Vancouver. Just like when Roy started instead of him. A girl can dream, right?
I don’t have a problem with Marty starting tonight, since first place in the division is on the line. I still have a problem with Marty starting in Atlanta, though. :D
And I can’t even tell you how sorry I am that you’re stuck with FSN Pittsburgh, Mike! That’s a fate worse than death!
I know we’re all pleasantly surprised by him, but it’s weird that McAmmond is centering Zach and Patty, right?
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! IronBoarsylvania rejoices!
WOOOO!!! Salvador is a goal scoring MACHINE!
I know we’re all pleasantly surprised by him, but it’s weird that McAmmond is centering Zach and Patty, right?
Wait, you don’t feel great confidence in our top line being a Hambone line?
I was, but then I saw the Uncle Pecos video.
I was, but then I saw the Uncle Pecos video.
:^::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Yeah, that was pretty discouraging. Although I’m pretty sure he’d win any Movember mustache contest…
In Bryce’s defense, he did get the puck.
Has David Clarkson been coaching the Penguins while on the IR?
It really seems that way, doesn’t it?
I’m hoping if he is, we’ll get Sid in return. He can coach the guys on winning playoff serieses. BURN!
Uhhh… Pookie…. you just burned us
So where is the District of Hambonia in relation to IronBoarsylvania and PandoNation? Google Maps is of no help!
you just burned us
Hey, that Carolina series still hurts, okay? It hurts a lot.
Google Maps is of no help!
:^:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Google Maps is SO out of date. IPB should start IPB Maps to compete with them, since we’ve got all the most current information about incorporated villages and border shifts.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! Surely Google Maps knows where BoogerforsNation is!
That’ll help put it on the map, that’s for sure!
Belated: Bor! Bor! Bor!
Oh, Land Zhark. http://www.sadtrombone.com/
Well played with the sound effect!
How awesome would it be to have founded “sadtrombone.com”? You could have business cards with “www.sadtrombone.com” printed on them. That would rock.
Aww! Too many men! It brings a tear. I love this year’s Devils team.
Funfetti.com appears to be unused.
It would almost be worth getting sued by Pillsbury…
I’ve got a bad feeling that wasn’t his nose.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! That was AWESOME! I love Z.E. Hambone! This line rawks!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! Foecal oysters for everyone!
WOOOOO!!!!!
Though I thought the Mites on Ice played during intermission.
That was an UGLY series. WOO goal, though.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! This game rocks, Mites on Ice and all!
WOOO!!! FRASER!
Anagram for Parise McAmmond Elias:
Melodic Camerman Piss.
*Cameraman
Hey, who doesn’t love melodic cameraman piss? I know I sure do!
Your game sounds like so much fun, melodically pissing cameramen aside, of course.
How’re the Sabres doing, Amy? And who are they playing?
Zach’s so cute in a scrum:
“Guys! Guys! No! Use your words! Guys!”
Did Hambone just pop the ref?
How’re the Sabres doing, Amy? And who are they playing?
Losing 2-1 to the Laffs.
Oof, sorry Amy. But there’s still plenty of Brahms left!
“Guys! Guys! No! Use your words! Guys!”
:^::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mammalian Iced Corpses
“Guys! Guys! No! Use your words! Guys!”
AAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! He is SO Tracy Flick.
You know what I’m fairly confident isn’t going to happen tonight? What Doc and Chico were just talking about. Heh.
Is Johnson amphibious? I’ve never seen a goalie drink/splash so much from the water bottle. He’s like a beached whale – you have to keep ‘em wet!
He’s like a beached whale – you have to keep ‘em wet!
:^::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: I guess that might be one of the contributing factors to him being a backup, since, according to Chico, it’s not his quality of play.
The clock is going soooooooooo slowly!
Looks like the ZZ Bor! line is back together.
You know, if things were to happen tonight, I’m kind of disappointed that Center Ice tonight isn’t sharing Doc and Chico with us. Who did we piss off?
And my darlings finished playing their Brahms and won the game!
Way to go, Sabres!
Woo hooo! Go Sabres!
Center Ice is only playing the Pens feed? Because I bet that’s a doozy tonight. I wonder how much they’ve complained about trapping during this game. Which has been played almost exclusively in the respective offensive zones.
Okay Ookies, does Farts look like he is going to cry after every game? His post game interview was positively heart wrenching, and I was wondering if that is his usual post game demeanor.
Yes, Farts frequently looks — and more importantly sounds — like he’s going to cry. But I bet his being on the trading block doesn’t help things. I gather tonight’s game didn’t go well?
Center Ice is only playing the Pens feed?
Yuppers. I hope that as this game nears the end that NHL-N will pick it up.
I did like the Pens “Happy Holidays” commercial with the hat trick hats falling out of the sky while “Let it Snow” played.
AGGH shut up Chico! :) Dont curse it!!!
This game is KILLING ME.
ARGH! All PandoNation wanted for Christmas was a goal for its emperor-god.
Ah yes Pookie, it was his cracking voice that really made me think he was going to cry. I know y’all have way more experience with Farts and Beaks post game interviews than I do! And I can’t say that I actually watched the game, but no, it did not go well.
*whimper*
Oh thank god.
Hahahha! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! GO MARTY!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I did like that the Pens fans gave him a round of applause.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That was AWESOME! Have I mentioned today how much I love Marty? Because I do. :D
And that was very nice of the remaining Pens fans to cheer Marty. It was no Montreal, but what is? :P
Yeah, that was pretty cool of them. They wanted to throw beer-soaked mousepads as a sign of respect. :D
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
Woooooooooooooooo Marty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I listened to the last 6ish minutes after the Sabres game ended, and frankly, that entire time I had no doubt that he would make it.
What a great game. What a strange contest, too. The Devils as a team played a terrific game in the second period, absolutely pinning the Pens in their own zone for big chunks of time, and scoring repeatedly. Then the third period began and the contest’s emotional emphasis shifted entirely to the possibility of a shutout. We can’t recall another game in any sport providing such a sense of sustained tension for as long as tonight’s did. Congratulations, Marty. Also, a tip of the Devils cap to MSG+ for listing the five Devils who had been on the ice with Brodeur the most times during his shutout streak. That was a nice touch.
Kathleen, you had more faith than I did!
And douglas, you just described the game perfectly. The tension was just UNREAL, and not just in that “Oh, it’s the last few minutes — time to freak out!” way. The outcome wasn’t really in doubt win-wise by the third period, so yeah, it was just the shutout. I have never heard an arena sound like that. It was the craziest silent, we’re-getting-beaten-down arena EVER.
Also, a tip of the Devils cap to MSG+ for listing the five Devils who had been on the ice with Brodeur the most times during his shutout streak. That was a nice touch.
That was SUCH a cool stat to see!
What a great game. What a strange contest, too
It really was bizarre! It seemed so tense.
We can’t recall another game in any sport providing such a sense of sustained tension for as long as tonight’s did.
Certainly not in the regular season! That was like a playoff game! I couldn’t sit still I was so nervous.
Also, a tip of the Devils cap to MSG+ for listing the five Devils who had been on the ice with Brodeur the most times during his shutout streak.
That was so awesome! I can’t believe Pando played in as many as Stevens! (I’m also totally loving their new stat to show the plus-minus ratings of the other team’s top five scorers compared to the Devils’.)
Congrats to Marty for 104!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
Sorry we didn’t get to see the game. We watched the Stars score as many goals as the Sharks but unfortunately one Stars goal was a bad misplay right into our empty net so it ended 4-2 Sharks.
Will have to check if they will replay the Devils game. Sounds like two lifetime events, the shutout record and Chico quiet.
Hey guys! I missed the game (Christmas festivities preempted the game for me) but I understand Marty broke the record. Huzzah! Congratulations. He looked pretty spiff in his suit.
You must be very pleased. The King of Kings, indeed.
Mummers just walked into my room going “I TOLD YOU, NOT THE PENGUINS!”. As it was 6:30am, I responded with “*groan*… Wait.. WHAT? DEVILS!?!” And then I bounced out of bed, and now I’m watching the highlights. And that’s my story of Marty’s 104th shutout.
Hey! Good morning Mags! I’m just ready to go to bed. Love the snow shots on your blog. Dreamy! Also, your dog is the best. Please give the pooch a pat on the head for me. Thanks!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
I was stuck having to watch the Pens feed but I don’t care. Here are a few of my obvservations:
1. After Chico’s diatribe about how other members of the media use the term “trap” when refering to the Devils, I decided to keep a running tally how often the Pens announcers did. That didn’t keep me busy at all. They used phrases such as “defensive scheme” and “clogging the neutral zone” a lot but did not say the word “trap” until there was 10:30 remaining in the third period. That was also the only time they did.
2. The Pens announcers admitted that the only reason the Devils were assessed an extra two minutes during the Parise-Elias-McAmmond scrum was because they were up 4-0
3. The Pens announcers came right out and admitted that Malkin “embellished a little” on Iron Boar’s holding penalty.
4. The Pens announcers/stat graphic guys pretty much made the self fulfilling prophesy come to fruition by not letting me go five minutes the entire game without reminding me that Marty was on the verge of shutout #104.
5. Any resident or visa holder of ClarksonNation who has not moved to Hambone County will…willl…well we’ll deal with them later.
6.WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
And something else that I have been thinking about the past week: I think we should start a campaign for “Take Back The Rock” night on Thu Mar 25, 2010. I say all of us non-season-ticket-holder Devils fans (including all Irregular closet fans) start making plans and buying tickets ASAP. And this time I say let’s start with the cheap seats, that way any of the “road team” fans that try to go have to pay extra. What do you think?*
*Odd’s of Frisby getting arrested are subject to change
I think we should start a campaign for “Take Back The Rock” night on Thu Mar 25, 2010.
:::raises hand::::
What is the significance of the game on 3/25/10?
Bravo Marty! What a goalie. I’m glad I’ve been a hockey fan while he’s been playing. I missed Gretzky and Lemieux, but I can say I saw Marty playing during his prime.
And I’m glad it happened against Pittsburgh!
What is the significance of the game on 3/25/10?
I’d like to second this question…Enlighten the ignorant here, folks!
What a great game! I know that there will be some tough sledding this year for the Devs, but I will bottle this feeling to get me through them. I mean how often do you get to revel in:
A four zip beat down of a rival, in their building, to vault ahead of them for best record in the NHL AND
Have your team be said best for the Christmas break AND
Have your goalie break an “unbreakable” record all at the same time.
Let’s just say this season is going waaaaaaay better than hoped for. Still early, but WOW.
Amy, Meg, 3/25 is when the Devils play the Rangers at the Rock. :D
Mags, I’m sorry you missed the game, but I’m glad you’re getting to see highlights of it!
Frisby, are you sure you were getting the regular Pens guys? Errey and Steigy?! Admitting that Malkin embellished a play?!? Dogs and cats living together!
5. Any resident or visa holder of ClarksonNation who has not moved to Hambone County will…willl…well we’ll deal with them later.
:^:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: I have to say I was losing faith in Lou, after the whole Sutter thing, and the not getting any good players in trades and through free agency, and blah blah blah. So he goes and gets Dean McAmmond who spends weeks on IR so we all forget he was ever picked up. And then all of a sudden, blammo! We have all these awesome kids and Hambone steps in and says, “Excuse me while I bring a heapin’ helping of pleasantly surprising to this season.” I’m just totally flabbergasted at how this season is going. It’s the exact opposite of how it looked going into September.
Bravo Marty! What a goalie. I’m glad I’ve been a hockey fan while he’s been playing.
Me too! :D Gretzky was at the tail end of his career when I got on board, and Lemiuex… well, the whole Atlantic Division thing kept me from ever being able to really bother appreciating him. But I do feel really fortunate to be able to say I saw Marty, Stevens, and Neidermayer in their primes.
Let’s just say this season is going waaaaaaay better than hoped for. Still early, but WOW.
I KNOW! WOW is so right. I knew the Devs were doing good, but I just assumed that Chicago and maybe San Jose were way ahead. And I also don’t check the standings regularly, so I also assumed Washington had pulled ahead a bit, too. There’s still a LOT of Brahms left to be played and I’m getting increasingly pissed that the Olympics are coming up. I’m getting strong vibes that just like Torino, Patty’s going to get hurt. But, I’ll cross that bridge when we get there. For now, I’m going to spend Christmas vacation luxuriating in the deliciousness that is the Devils as the best team in the league! Woo-hoo!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good morning, everyone! I second everything Pookie said! And Morgan! And Frisby! I’m still so pumped from last night’s UNMITIGATED AWESOMENESS!!!! We are, like, the luckiest kids in the world to have Marty as our goalie! :D
(I’m very pro Take Back The Rawk for 3/25, but we’ll be out of town, so you guys go ahead without us. Heh. I’m also hopeful that, if the Rangers continue to suck ass as much as they have been, that by 3/25, their fans will be less inclined to head to Newark. I mean, they haven’t even been inclined to go into their OWN building lately. Heh heh.)
I think we should start a campaign for “Take Back The Rock” night on Thu Mar 25, 2010.
As always, I will do my very, very best to be there. Doing some quick math, that is quite possibly during a finals week, and my exams usually fall early in the week, so MAYBE I can go. MAYBE. My hockey team isn’t making it to the playoffs this year anyway, so it’s not like we’ll still be playing around then.
Let’s just say this season is going waaaaaaay better than hoped for. Still early, but WOW.
I catch myself thinking that from time to time, and then chastising myself for it. I’m a Hockey God fearing fan.
I’m sorry you missed the game
Oh, don’t be! I mean it sucks to miss something that big. But I played chauffeur for my Dad to yesterday (because he’s concussed) and seriously underestimated the need for sunglasses to combat the glare off the road/snow. I had a monster headache last night, and fell asleep at 9. My health > NHL records. Sorry Marty.
Merry Christmas everyone and great game last night! I survived the Pens feed and while they didn’t say trap very often, they did use the words “chess match” which should become a drinking game when watching non-Devils announcers. The Pens feed was entertaining in its’ own way, the first half of the game they were making all kinds of excuses for the Pens but after the 4th goal they realized it was over and they spent the rest of the game saying how great the Devils were, it was quite surprising. So can Danis finally get some starts now?
they did use the words “chess match” which should become a drinking game when watching non-Devils announcers.
:^:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: So true! I’m glad you got to enjoy the Pens feed. Heh. Their guys REALLY crapped the bed last night, and I had a feeling they’d be pushed past just bitching about the trap. Heh heh. Also, Chico was so freaked out during the third period that I suspect the Pens feed had more interesting commentary. :P
I was really heartened, after the way the Devils sucked in Atlanta, to see that they CAN rise to the occasion and play a top-to-bottom GREAT game, instead of just eking out a win. I believe you might call last night’s game something of a “statement”. :D
Congratulations, Devils fans! I didn’t get to see it, but it sounds like it was pretty cool to watch.
if the Rangers continue to suck ass as much as they have been, that by 3/25, their fans will be less inclined to head to Newark.
Heh. When your coach having meltdowns in front of the media is the most exciting thing about your team, you know you have a problem.
Good morning everyone!! Congrats to Marty! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
I just took my last final, I’m completely shit-faced, and it’s time for some Crhistmas shopping!! (I’m leavin the typo cause schoolin’ is done for me until Jan 20, so suck it spell check!!)
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! for completing your finals, mcguggs!