The Growing Rivalry - Franzén is Still a Joke

You know, when I first started watching the Penguins game yesterday, I didn't really care. It was the end of the preseason, my boy Bissonnette was probably going to get sent back down to the minors despite having a huge preseason because of Godard and Rupp already being on the team, douche bags from Detroit were talking about my team like they were a bunch of clowns, just all around bad news. But, then, something glorious happened in a 3rd period of a game that was otherwise nobody caring, well, I mean, especially if we're going off those slim few that came out for the defending Western Conference Champions in Detroit (Hockeytown Indeed), my man Chris Kunitz reminded everyone that in his heart, he's still a Western Conference boy with venom in his blood.

We'll set the stage, like it's some sort of dramatic one act play. Johan Franzén, the stalwart of humanity he is, decides it's a good time to strike at the Penguins, deciding to go after the long haired lady killer, one Kris Letang. Now, if this game was in Pittsburgh, what happened next wouldn't have had a chance to happen. Roughly 90 percent of the female population in the Igloo would have beaten any Penguin to the punch and Franzén would've found himself dealing with some pissed off women. However, since the game was in Detroit and the Joe wasn't even 90 percent full period, the Penguins had to handle their business themselves.

Apparently, Franzén believed that Guerin was going to be the only Penguin after him after he dropped another Penguin to the ice with a cross check to the throat, mind boggling. Guerin skates at him, gets tangled up with another Wing momentarily, and Franzén seemingly thinks that it's all over. Really? Cross check a dude twice high, put him on his knees, and you think that's the only retribution that's coming your way? Enter Chris Kunitz, and enter this chaos that follows:


[Penguins Website, by way of the fine bitches over at Puck Huffers]

Chris Kunitz rolls in, gloves already off, ready for a good scrap and tackles an unbeknown Franzén who then gets Bill Guerin ontop of him as an added bonus with only tiny Brian Rafalski there to try and save him. Of course, since the only televised feed of this is the Detroit feed, we get some tasty homer style broadcasting. Cries of how it's dangerous that Kunitz came after him like that are repeated over and over. Though, then again, I guess it's true that it would be dangerous for "The Mule." I mean, the guy is used to going after people he's three inches taller than and has 20 pounds on. Either that or he's used to diving to the ice after taking a hit once he sees the ref when he turns around...



On the replay, it's like you can see Franzén's thought process laid out in full: "Man...that guy smacked me in the head...OH! Hey ref! OH MY FACE!" Literally in one shot he does a fucking double take at the ref before he drops to the ice, clutching his face. I assume the conversation between him and the trainer went something like this: "So, did a draw a penalty? Hope I didn't get one for diving..." Joke.

So yeah, I guess it would be dangerous for Franzén in this case. He's not ripping mouth guards out of smaller players' mouths or going after guys half his size, he actually had to defend himself for a few terrible seconds. Maybe that's why Kunitz caught him off guard, Franzén had no idea that could actually happen. The poor boy...

Later on (because we all know one good scrum deserves another), we find the hero of tGB, Eric Godard, with Mattias Ritola's life in his hands. RIIIIIIITOLA makes the mistake of the century by pairing off with Eric Godard during a scrum by the benches:


[Penguins Website, by way of the fine bitches over at Puck Huffers]

Everyone paired off after a hit near the bench and Brooks Orpik starting to throw Red Wings to the ice like he was a Scotsman at a caber toss. However, I take this moment to tip my hat to the linesmen of the NHL. These boys are essentially rodeo clowns when the gloves come off, having to dive in at a split second's notice to break something up before it turns ugly...well...uglier. RIIIIIIITOLA knows about the second he grabs Godard's jersey that it's going to only end badly for him and is basically saved by the linesman getting in between them.

I realize this a preseason game, I realize I talked about how the game didn't even matter, but really, when you see the scrums at the end of the game, Guerin, Kunitz, Orpik, and Godard all mixing it up, it warms my heart. Certainly this is a rivalry that is growing by the day and even though these teams barely play each other, the hate is there. All we really need is a hit on Draper to blow the top off of it.

Though, then again, he'd probably still be more pissed that Crosby didn't shake someone's hand...