Pittsburgh Penguins Look Forward to a Great 2009

With all of the recent losses the Penguins have had, it's only natural for fans and critics alike to start voicing concerns or throwing in the towel.

However, unlike the popular belief among fans these days, I think a lot of this hand-wringing is unsubstantiated, and it's really too early to have such pessimistic views of this team—especially Crosby!

And, yes, I am getting somewhat frustrated with the Pens since I know they're better than this, and it's not fun to watch your team lose.

But some of the reactions are starting to get a little bit ridiculous even though writers like Rob Rossi also seem to be adopting this mode of thinking:

"Their biggest mistake may be presuming all will be well just because it has been in the second half of the past two seasons."

Quite honestly, I'm seriously getting tired with fans blaming Coach Therrien and wanting him fired (this is just ridiculous, people, and you know it) as well as wanting to give up on Crosby because he's having a slow season. 

Come on now, Sid is amazing, but he is human and no one ever claimed that he would be "on" night after night or season after season—that's just impossible!

Tuesday, Therrien seemed to abruptly end the post-game press conference by getting up and leaving, and I think I can see where he's coming from and share in his frustration. He's essentially obligated by his job as a head coach to address the media and answer questions and, of course, the questions will focus on the losses and what the problems are / could be.

I'm assuming that how he sees it, he could record a statement then stand there and play it back at the press conferences after each loss (which I'm sure he would find more enjoyable) because the same thing remains true—the Pens are a good team, they're simply getting beat and it happens.

It's not necessarily any one particular thing and you could sit and pin-point a ton of reasons for each and every loss. It's just not the end of this amazing team—like some people are acting like it is.

The fact remains that the season is long and it's too early right now to be focusing on "the downward spiral" of this team and Sidney Crosby's career. Crosby is not a captain (excuse the pun) that's going down with his sinking ship, so let's put this into perspective.

And speaking of captain, the idea that he doesn't make a good one is simply ludicrous, since no one is in the locker room or on the bench to witness his abilities as a leader.

Let's just sit back, take a deep breath, and let it out slow, so we can clear our minds and realistically think about where this team is at this point and what lies ahead.

Let me pose a few questions to all of you pessimistic fans: Where were we this time last season? Were we any better off than we are now?

We were in about the same boat, if not worse off, last season and it really didn't turn around until midway through—which we are currently approaching right now. And they played well enough to get two games away from clinching the Stanley Cup!

That doesn't sound so dismal to me, especially since this team had it's best start this season since 1995 and that's without two of their best D-men!

Now, that's not to say that I won't start worrying and joining this bandwagon come late February or March—at that point, our asses will definitely be in a sling!

But seriously, guys, can we just stop all the "gloom and doom" and take the time to realize what a great 2009 this could be? Let's make that our New Year's resolution for 2009!