Nov. 14, 2015: The Penguins Darkest Hour Before the Dawn

It was my first covered Pittsburgh Penguins road game. I had covered the Penguins in New York and other cities but I wasn’t there to cover the Penguins. So, as we began to cover the Pittsburgh Penguins for the local sports radio station, I hit the road to cover the struggling Penguins in New Jersey on Nov. 14, 2015.

The Prudential Center is in Newark, NJ. If you’re unfamiliar, you may be surprised by the rough-looking crew who preceded me on the sidewalk under Penn Station. In addition to something which resembled a weapon in one of their waistbands, they fired up a “cigarette,” the size of which would have made Cheech and Chong jealous.

Welcome to Newark, eh?

Inside the arena, the night was a moment in Penguins history which turned out to be not the death of a potential dynasty, but the birth of back-to-back Stanley Cup champions. Things are darkest before the dawn, and just after 10 p.m. on Nov. 14, the Penguins experienced that moment.