Not lost to the mainstream media, mind you --- just here. And not purposely lost, either. Just because Talbot calling out Ovechkin for what he is was, I felt, just more noteworthy at the time.
As far as the Classic goes, however, the NHL cranked up the PR machine at Heinz, introducing a Winter Classic 2010 logo and team logos.
The classic logo is a nice cut of the city with the bridgescape across the top, in my opinion. Meanwhile. the Penguins unveiled the intent to reincarnate for the game what was their franchise's initial logo when the organization first came into the league in 1967 -- the skating Penguin with the scarf around his neck:
Personally, I like the old-school feel. I hope the Pens find a way to incorporate it into the jersey, however, because when the Penguins' debuted that logo, they wore blue jerseys that didn't feature it, but instead had "Pittsburgh" written diagonally across the jersey in blue.
Maybe Pittsburgh will go with that again for the Classic, but incorporate the logo into a shoulder patch?
Of course, we don't know how that's going to go because, while there had been some talk that uniform details would be revealed at yesterday's junket and that they might include gold-based jerseys that the team wore in owner Mario Lemieux's rookie year, such details were not provided.
It seems that official word about the teams' respective garb for the game is likely to come sometime in the early fall instead.
Fans and the media were also left wanting yesterday on information about ticket availability.
The team did release word that Penguins' season ticket holders would be able to buy 1 Winter Classic ticket for every season ticket they own, but beyond that, details for how the casual fan should expect to buy tickets were not released either.
Again, something else for the fall.
Perhaps the cheesiest moment of yesterday's presser was when the league staged a platform-type ramp and had all the players attending -- the Pens' Sidney Crosby, Talbot and Pascal Dupuis, and the Caps' Mike Knuble and David Steckel -- shoot pucks up the ramp and through the goal posts from ranges starting at 30 yards and up to and beyond 50 yards.
Curiously, Crosby was miserable with that task, going only 1 for 7.
Maybe had the Steelers stationed a dryer on the goalpost, he would have done better -- to wit:
Crosby v. Talbot
Anyway, while that was the strangest moment of the day, I think the best moment -- aside from Talbot's well-placed remarks in the morning -- was what went down at the Pens' new home, the Consol Energy Center, after the press conference.
At 2 PM, the two legendary pillars of the Penguins franchise, Lemieux and Crosby, took the first skate in the history of the building, stepping onto the ice at the same time.
Talk about an iconic moment.
The most talented player in the history of hockey who played for the team and captained the club to its first two franchise Stanley Cup Championships before rescuing it from bankrupcty and relocation more than once to become an owner -- and his tenant, currently the best player in the game, the NHL's most marketable force, and the youngest Captain to lead his team to a Cup, the franchise's 3rd. If there were two guys who deserved the first skate @ Consol in isolation to share a private moment, it was them.
Later, they were joined by several local children for a little pick-up shinny, but there was no luster lost on the signfiicance of #66 and #87 breaking in the ice there.
More soon.
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