http://www.hockeyfights.com/fights/101801

The fact is that the Isles got their asses handed to them by the better team, and instead of trying harder, they punked out and called up two extra goons and tried to injure some Pens to settle the score. They got fined for this.

Face it, they were wrong.

Hitting a guy when he’s down and turtled is an attempt to injure. This happened twice. Gillies hit Tangradi from behind with an elbow, then punched him in the back of the head when he was down, more than once.

Michael Haley then had somebody turtled again, and hit them while he was down, and then skated over to challenge Johnson. I wish Eric Godard would have stayed on the bench, because that punch that ended DiPetro’s season looked like it could be repeated.

The Islanders planned this because Brent Johnson ended Rick DiPietro’s season when dumbass Rick first tripped Matt Cooke as he skated by, then challenged Johnson to a fight. He proceeded to break his face on Johnson’s fist on just one punch.

The fact that the Pens bench thought this was amusing (since glass-bones DiPietro went looking for the fight).

The fact that Gillies got only nine games was obviously stupid. This was made even more obvious when he got suspended the first game he got back — again.

Here’s the perfect opportunity for the league to act for the good of the game. The Islanders obviously need to be fined again as they didn’t get the message the first time.

Plain and simple, the Pens were the dirtiest team in the league last year. Don’t believe me? Go check the number of penalties they received last year. Also, let’s not forget that their goon of choice, Cooke, is directly responsible for ending several careers and trying to end others. I’m just sorry he wasn’t on the ice when the Islanders pounded the rest of that roster into the ice.

I hope they open up next season’s game with the Pens by doing the same damn thing… just go easy on my Caps when they next meet.

Lets be clear: There was NOT “blatant attemptS” to injure… there was ONE attempt to injure, and that one play does not define the whole game. If your a Pens fan though, perhaps it does since its easier to focus on that then the fact your team got its ass beat into the ground both physicly and on the score board by the worst team in the NHL.

As for the line: “If they’re gonna circle-jerk to a run-of-the-mill 9-3 drubbing”… that has to make you laugh. I mean who writes like that? Not only is there no such thing as a “run of the mill” 9-3 drubbing, since when has it become wrong to celebrate success? I mean, using a phrase like “circle jerk” to describe a team celebrating a win… who the hell does that? Sounds to me like that writer is just thinking about what hes going to be doing later, and it just crept into his writing.

Bottom Line: The Pens got curb stomped by a team that does not stomp anyone, ever… I think the Islanders are celebrating the fact they actually managed to drub a team 9-3, then the ONE dirty hit in the game. The PensBlog guys are just butt hurt, thats all.

Next time you get some comments to put in a piece, maybe they should be pertinent, AND from a neutral group?

In this case, getting reactions from Capitals fans wouldn’t be good either. The Caps and Caps fans have a hatred for the Islanders (dating from several OT playoff games), and now they are not fond (putting it mildly) of the Penquins, either.

Was there a cheap shot in this game? Yes. Did Gillies act like the low life goon he is? Sure did. However you have to remember that the Islanders did in fact blow Pittsburgh out of the water in this game, and won by 6 goals. For a team that hasn’t had much to celebrate over the last few years… this game, the cheap shot aside, was definatlly a bright spot and I see no reason not to replay it.

As for the fighting in the game… the Pens were more then willing to take part in the fighting for most of the game. Lets not try and re-write histroy and make it seem like the Islanders were just out for blood all night, constantly going out of the way to fight. Pit dropped the gloves as well. Hockey is a game that has fighting in it… and some nights games get out of hand. It happens. Again, not a reason for the team not to replay one of their best games of the last few years.

The Islanders have so many other problems right now… lets give them a break on this one.