Spring Training: Burnett 'furious' about demotion

It had been anticipated that Sean Burnett would not take it well if the Pirates were to cut him. He did not. "I'm furious," he said yesterday by phone from Wellington, Fla., where his first child was born Thursday. "It's frustrating and disappointing. I really thought I had a chance of making this team. And to hear the reasons they gave me -- or more like the excuses they made up -- they didn't really give me a chance." Burnett was reassigned to Class AAA Indianapolis yesterday, making him the last official cut to achieve the 25-man limit for opening day Monday.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08089/868967-63.stm

Dixon Stays at Pitt - For Now

ESPN is reporting that Jamie Dixon has turned down the Cal coaching job. Maybe he's being truthful when he says he enjoys living in Pittsburgh, maybe Cal isn't a good enough program to lure him away. Whatever the reason, Pitt fans will have to get used to this and unless the Pitt administration and Steve Pederson doles out the big cash, Dixon is a candidate to bolt.

Dixon has no interest in Cal, enjoys coaching Pittsburgh

SI Archives - Pens in the 70s

Let's take a tour of what SI offered up about our Penguins before Mario arrived. It wasn't so pretty:

• "Kelly's Light Shines Under Pitt's Bushel" (April 20, 1970): The Pens had a coach and some young talent but where were the fans? In light of 40+ straight sellouts, it's interesting to remember how things were, though keep in mind the capacity was less in 1970 without either balcony being built yet.
  
• "Who Said Penguins Can't Fly?" (April 28, 1975): Thirty years of financial instability kick off with the playoff bound Pens. The savior of the moment, Pierre Larouche, didn't have quite enough to keep the team. Except for that last item, it sounds all too familiar, let's hope the new arena puts these worries to rest for a loong time.
• "With a Little Help From His Friends" (May 12, 1975): Long before John Tonelli, David Volek and Tom Fitzgerald, there was 1975 and Chico Resch with some help from the pipes. That's 3 times the Isles have derailed the Pens.
• "Pittsburgh Lands a Rare Bird" (Oct 15, 1984): The first sentence says it all:
  

  Let posterity note that the light at the end of the tunnel that is Pittsburgh Penguin hockey was first glimpsed at 2:29 p.m. (E.D.T.) on Sept. 20, 1984, which was when Mario Lemieux scored his first goal in a Penguin intrasquad scrimmage.

And on that note, we'll save the more numerous and positive post-Mario articles for another day.

Seahawks Fans Still Can't Get Over It

Whether you agree with them or not (and most sane people do not), IT'S BEEN OVER 2 YEARS NOW!!! LET IT GO!

Watch what you eat in Seattle if you're wearing black and gold:

A 24-year-old South Kitsap man — and self-proclaimed Seattle Seahawks fan — was arrested Sunday for allegedly spitting on the hamburger he prepared for a man wearing Pittsburgh Steelers attire, according to Kitsap County Sheriff's Office reports.

Deputies said the 37-year-old man in Steelers garb took his daughters to a Mile Hill Drive fast food restaurant Saturday evening, and "began trading friendly barbs about his team and their victory over the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XL," reports said.

One employee told the man that he'd "better not say that to the guy that's making your food," but the man thought it was a joke, reports said.

That is, until he opened his "clamshell-style" hamburger container and discovered what he called a "loogie" on his hamburger.

The rest of the story, including the not so surprising ending can be found here:
Seahawks Fan — and Fast Food Cook — Arrested for Spitting on Steeler Fan's Burger

Pens-Isles game draws huge rating on FSN

Pittsburgh Penguins - News: Pens-Isles game draws huge rating on FSN - 03/28/2008

Thursday’s game between the Penguins and New York Islanders at Mellon Arena drew a 10.7 rating on FSN Pittsburgh – the second-highest all-time rating for a Penguins regular season game on FSN.

Only Mario Lemieux’s dramatic comeback game on Dec. 27, 2000 drew a higher rating – a 15.9.