hockey

There is an advantage to examining the playoffs from the mountain top of statistics rather than the valley of the games themselves. The view is much clearer.

They had to work overtime after blowing a two-goal lead, but the Pittsburgh Penguins have eliminated the New York Rangers and are moving on to face their bitter rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers, in the next round of the NHL playoffs.That means the road to the Stanley Cup finals leads through Pennsylvania, and it's guaranteed to be a bumpy ride.

NEW YORK -- Among the lesser-known incongruities rattling around the National Hockey League's exhaustive arithmetic, at least as the puck got dropped for Game 3 of these Eastern Conference semifinals, was the Pittsburgh Penguins Evgeni Malkin's total career goals at Madison Square Garden.Zero.Seven career games, two assists, no goals.That couldn't last.

DENVER -- The light pole banners here outside the Pepsi Center urge the Colorado Avalanche, "Play On!" What was meant as a command is now a wish.Backs against the wall, or backs against the boards as it were, is not the ideal place to play hockey. But it does bring clarity to the mission.

PHILADELPHIA -- "You can still get it."Bernie Parent looks more today like a riverboat card dealer -- styled silver hair, clipped Van Dyke beard -- than the goalie who once won two most-valuable-player awards bringing Stanley Cups to this city, but the words have not changed.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have won two games in a row against one of the NHL's finest teams.They've gotten six pucks behind one of the world's top goaltenders, and limited a volatile power play to one goal in nine opportunities.And that was the easy part.

Most of my workdays begin at home, in my office, where I'm researching topics or making phone calls or scouring the Internet for column ideas.And, usually, the TV is on.Tuned to ESPN2.First for "Mike & Mike in the Morning," then "First Take."And for a sizable chunk of the year, this is what I see, far more than anything else: The NBA.

DETROIT -- And, so, back to Hockeytown.Well, there are worse places, though the list is short. An active landfill. Reality television. Inside Dick Cheney's head.How, exactly, this became Hockeytown is unclear except the notion goes unchallenged, possibly because everyone else thinks the name is a practical joke that only Detroit does not get.

Scouting reports and predictions for the NHL's quarterfinal round (excluding New York Rangers-Pittsburgh Penguins, which the writer will cover).THE EASTMONTREAL CANADIENS vs. BOSTON BRUINS-- Season series: Montreal, 4-0.

MONTREAL -- As soon as his team survived its first-round scare in the NHL playoffs, Montreal Canadiens head coach Guy Carbonneau sought out his Boston Bruins counterpart, Claude Julien.Carbonneau was thankful his team was moving on to the second round and also admired the job Julien did with his upset-minded Bruins.