Well, I have been distant recently, but I hope this post will make up for some of it. There has been a lot going on with our teams lately and as my co-authors have been tremendous at voicing their thoughts and opinions, I believe it is my turn to give you a little insight into my head about these happenings.

I will start off with the easy one. The Pittsburgh Penguins. I love what we have done with the team this offseason. We have solidified our team unlike most Stanley Cup teams in the past, with the exception of the Wings from 2007-08 to 2008-09. We were able to give our superstars line the all important line security for a whole season. That has yet to happen since the lockout for our Penguins. We seemed to be hit or miss in finding guys to work with the stars that we already had in place. Not only did we keep the talent signed on for another run at the cup, after this season, we will have fully capable replacements, if it comes to that, for the free agents that leave. That is all due to quality trades, salary dumping, and drafting. The rumor was going around that the salary cap was going to come down significantly next year, in the range of 5 or more million. The latest on that is that it may not move at all. The NHL is still selling tickets at a remarkable rate and the fan base seems to be getting bigger and bigger. That will be great for this team, considering they are practically at their limit right now and really can't afford a dip too big after this upcoming season. Overall, I love what we are looking like and our chances for a repeat. I just hope we don't expect it though, that is always a downfall...ask the Wings!

The Steelers are a similar story. I know that everyone was and/or is complaining about our offensive line. For those complainers...stop. Believe in these guys. Ben Roethlisberger is a great quarterback, but he is in no way, shape, or form an easy person to block for. If you go back to his college film, it is exactly the same there as it is here. If you haven't made yourself get used to it, you better start. The line worked harder and harder to get better last season and they finally, amidst all the injuries and changing of the guards, were able to gel. They will be the same unit as last year, but gelling from the start. Consider it for a minute. The other great thing that is going to be going on it the one-two punch of a healthy Willie Parker and Rashard Mendenhall. Parker feels like he played terrible last season and is out to prove a point. We didn't see much of Mendenhall, but I will guarantee more of a run-game this year than last. I also want to quell the craziness going on about Michael Vick coming to the Steelers. The only reason it was ever mentioned is because of how great the quality of the organization we have here. That is it. Period. Anyone that knows our team at all knows that we will never take any guy that will cause any type of distraction, no matter how great an athlete he is. I am proud of that. Like the Pens, I see another possible Superbowl run on the horizon, let's just stay healthy!

The big news. The Pirates. I will admit that I was sad to see our guys go the past couple weeks, but it was for the best. Look at what we have now, an up and coming team to get excited about. I can honestly say I am finally excited for what is to come. I haven't been since 1991. Every one of you should be this way too. We finally reached our goal. It may seem terrible right now, but look at the big picture, we will have a good team for years to come at the expense of some of last season and this season. You have to ignore the 15 1/2 years before that because it was under different management. I say, like I did before, give them 5 total years to make a deep playoff run. We are almost 2 years into it and it is looking bright. We finally have a minor league system to look at and know that there is major league talent in there that just needs honing. Like I said, this is the first time in 17 years that we can say that we have major talent in OUR minor league system. Get used to the idea.

Ok, a side note here. The G20 summit. It is a tremendous thing for the city, we will get world recognition. The possibilities will be endless. However, it may get dangerous with all the protests. All I have to say is that you should do what you need to, but be safe and be smart if you are going to be a part of it all. Make our city look great.

This will probably be my last post for a short while as I will be moving to California for about 18 months to attend the Defense Language Institute (DLI). I will be learning a new language for the Army. I know, I am crazy, but it is a good thing for me and my wife. Wish us luck, oh, if you are ever in Monterey, let me know!

Alright. I have had enough. I am sick and tired of hearing about how our organization sucks and we aren't going anywhere. I am sick of seeing people write over and over again that we are never going anywhere with these trades. I am tired of hearing that we are getting nothing in return for these players. Maybe this will help ease your minds.

First of all, as I have seen written only a few times in the past months since the start of the season, GM Neal Huntington and President Frank Coonelly are trying to right the ship. All I hear is how we have been rebuilding for the past 16 years, which is the farthest from the truth. We have been stupid. We finally have some guys in the front office that want to make this team win and the fans are not letting them do this. I understand the questioning, but step back for a second and look at the whole picture.

It took the Penguins five years from start to finish to go from last to first. It required some heartache and a ton of fan loyalty. We almost lost the team to another city as well as bankruptcy as well. We gave up all of our veteran players that weren't going to carry the team anymore for some good prospects. Not all the prospects panned out, but no GM is perfect. They have to take chances. The point is that they got the job done with the continued support of our fans. It is a necessary evil to get a winning team back on the ice.

The same thing is going to happen with the Pirates. The difference is that we have to ignore the 15 years leading up to the leadership change. We have to act as though they never existed. The reason for this is because those leaders weren't building a team, they were just putting enough guys on the field to play. They never drafted well, they never built up a minor league system. They never did anything to make a better team.

Now, we have the leadership to do just that. They are almost like starting a new franchise. They have to rebuild a minor league system first. This is accomplished by learning to draft well. Drafting well requires a plan on what kind of team you want. For example, if you haven't noticed, we are currently trying to build a great pitching, great defending team. We are designing our team with less power and more base hits and speed. Once you have your plan, which this one is the first plan in 15 years, you can start drafting better. They are also forced to trade their current veterans for a couple potential prospects while their stocks are high. This is very necessary to get the minors up to par with the rest of the league.

My overall point to this post is to tell the fans that they have to treat the team as they did the Penguins when they were down and out. Support them any way you can. Trust the leadership for once and be patient. It isn't going to happen overnight. The current leadership has had a year and a half of rebuilding from the ground up. Trust me when I say that we are on the right track. It may not seem like it now, but what do you expect? Would you rather have five more years of mediocre seasons, not making the playoffs and keeping all the fan favorites, or would you want a perennial winning team in the division with a possible deep playoff run in a couple years while getting all kinds of new blood in the system? You tell me what is better.

Now, I figure I will be hearing it for this one, but the only people that respond in a negative nature truly don't understand what is going on here. The supporters are true fans that know what is going on. I just wish that the supporters outnumbered the anti-Pirate 'fans'. We will get a number of bandwagon jumpers when we finally turn the corner and I can't wait to say I stuck with my team through it all and was positive the whole time.