PENS SIGN CHRIS BOURQUE, LOSE BISSONNETTE

The Penguins aren't quite done shuffling their deck, as they claimed LW Chris Bourque off waivers from the Washington Capitals and lost LW Paul Bissonnette to Phoenix today.

The 23-year-old Bourque, son of NHL legend/hired Avalanche mercenary Ray Bourque, was the 33rd selection in the 2004 draft by the Caps. Last season, he scored one goal in eight NHL games while notching 21 goals and 52 assists in 69 games for Hershey of the AHL. He's young, he's got some upside, and he's not going to break the bank. Plus, they took him away from Washington, as a little bonus.

Bissonnette, a fourth-round pick of the Penguins in 2003, appeared in 15 games with the team last season, with one assist and 22 penalty minutes to his credit. In 57 AHL games in 2008-09, he tallied nine goals, seven assists, and a team-leading 176 penalty minutes. He was a tough guy, but that role's already been filled by Eric Godard. As a result, he'll be headed to Phoenix, where at least the weather is better than the hockey.

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In other Pens news, the team released the first photo of the freshly-engraved Stanley Cup. Rings, Cup engravings...you can see how this is slowly building to a dramatic banner-raising later this week.

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BLOWN LEADS FOR EVERYONE

Programming note: Keep sending in your Pittsburgh photos and memories of things no longer in Pittsburgh for "Readers Rule Week" (sponsored by Champion) starting next Tuesday. Based on the material you've sent in so far, this is going to be a really enjoyable feature. Keep it up!

The email address is mondesishouse@gmail.com.

CAPITALS (3-1-0) 4

PENGUINS (2-2-1) 3

PENS GOALS: GOLIGOSKI (2), MALKIN (2), SATAN (2)

What do the Penguins and the Tampa Bay Rays have in common? They both blew leads last night. The only difference was that a trip to the championship wasn't on the line for the Penguins. And Paul Bissonnette didn't beat the crap out of anyone in Boston.

I must admit, it was great thinking about all of those "loyal members of Red Sox Nation" who totally gave up on their team last night and left early. They must be feeling great about themselves this morning. Conversely, the Pens fans who stuck around for the full 60 minutes probably wish they would've left when the Boys of Winter were up 3-0 after two periods.

Once again, the Pens exhibited the alarming trend of getting dominated in the third period, as they were outshot 21-6 and outscored 3-0 in the final 20 minutes. The story of the game was Alexander Ovechkin and his thirst to make Evgeni Malkin a piece of roadkill on the Mellon Arena ice at any opportunity. I tell you, he's rapidly rising up the chart of most hated Pittsburgh opponents (coincidentally, a chart I'll be putting together soon - get your thinking caps on).

As tough as it was to watch a lead evaporate against a rival, it was a very entertaining game with the feel of a true "event". There was a certain electricity in the air (albeit much more electric when the Penguins had a three-goal lead), but you know these teams are just setting up the drama for their future matchups this season.

I think it's safe to say that Malkin-Ovechkin has far surpassed Malkin-Crosby as the marquee head-to-head matchup in these games, based purely on the fact that Ovechkin doesn't chase Crosby like Wile E. Coyote chasing the Road Runner every time they meet. Not that Sid would try any less to bury Ovie's team whenever possible.

The Pens are back in action Saturday against Toronto at Mellon Arena, with a 7 PM start. Good tickets available...from guys selling them on the street. And by the way, Bob Smizik thinks it might be time to "ring the alarm".