Two Words: Game Seven

The NHL Playoffs are the best postseason in sports. I will argue that until the day I die. Last night, I experienced exactly why. Game 7. Caps-Rangers. Verizon Center. Tied 1-1 with 5 minutes remaining, Sergei Fedorov, who had had an awful series, took the puck down the right side, stopped at the bottom of the circle, and fired a snapshot top-shelf over Henrik Lundqvist's glove.

The result: Absolute pandemonium at Verizon Center. The 18,300 fans "rocking the red" were all jumping up and down, high-fiving, hugging anyone around them: it was complete euphoria. The arena was so loud, you could not hear the PA announcer announce the goal. The fans then remained standing and cheering for a solid 5 minutes while the final minutes played out. When the final buzzer finally sounded, Verizon Center erupted yet again. The Caps had finally won a playoff series, in a comeback fashion that they loved last season: they came back from 3-1 in the series and 1-0 in the game.

An hour later, the Carolina Hurricanes, almost to one-up division rival Washington, scored two goals in the final 2 minutes on arguably the best goaltender of all-time. If you have Martin Brodeur in net and a lead with 2 minutes left in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, you can start celebrating. Guess not. It was a complete shocker that let the 19,000 in New Jersey in tears.

I love the NHL Playoffs. Caps vs. Penguins is going to be one of the best series of all-time.