What a night in Pittsburgh. Partied until 3 am, had a long drive back home today with a huge hangover. Had a lot of good conversation with Pens fans at the bars last night. I guess it's easier to be humble in defeat but I was shocked. That game was amazing, I don't know if I'll go to Tampa, but if they can get to the SCF I'll definitely make a trip out to DC then probably go to Rehoboth Beach afterwards.
Anyways, I've lived in a state without professional teams my whole life (West Virginia). The local coverage for sports is ROOT and has always been Pittsburgh Steelers and Pens. Most sports fans around here are huge fans of both teams, or incidentally bandwagon fans (Patriots, Warriors, Yankees, etc.). I hope I can be forgiven for this here, but ever since I was 7 years old I've been a fan of the Philadelphia Phillies and Eagles, and like I've said I started rooting for the Caps when I was 12 in 99 (also became a Bullets/Wizards then). I never thought I'd see the Eagles win a championship and when they did, I shed a tear. Pretty much my whole life I've rooted for "loser" franchises, Phils were first pro team to lose 10,000 games, but they did win a title in 08. I just have to say, that last night beating the Pens, even just to get to the ECF is easily more enjoyable than those teams winning championships. I've never been happier over sports. Last night was magical and I'm going to enjoy it until Friday. Let's Go Caps!