SLAP SHOTS

I admit, I’m a little down this week. The Pirates are quickly sinking out of the wildcard race and the Steelers dropped their season opener to Peyton Friggin’ Manning. I needed to get a black-n-gold sports fix elsewhere to brighten my mood. There’s always the Penguins, right? Wrong. True, a group of players, including James Neal, Pascal Dupuis, Matt Cooke, Chris Kuntiz, and Craig Adams, have been getting together lately for workouts. Now comes word that Sid joined them at Southpointe today. Training camp starts September 21, right? Wrong. The CBA expires on September 15. The NHLPA and over 200 players are expected in New York tomorrow and Thursday to discuss the situation. There are currently no talks scheduled with the league. Will the owners lock the players out and risk losing their fan base, along with revenue, again? The owners think that because these guys have been playing since they learned to skate, that they won’t be able to live with another lockout. However, players are already weighing their options. Geno struck a deal to play in the KHL and Sid has talked about playing in Europe. These guys may love their hockey but they’ll find it elsewhere, if need be. And can the owners afford to, essentially, lockout the fans, too? They already did that once and they’re still trying to win back fans because of it. I don’t think they can afford to go through this again. Both sides may want to get some talks scheduled again and quickly, before the season slips away. Let’s do it. Go Pens!!!