Watching the recent attempt at the playoffs of the Pittsburgh penguins, the efforts rudely shattered in front of the noisy house crowd in Steel City, I was amazed not only by the monumental challenge faced by the Runes to win three consecutive NHL championships, but also a subtle and sometimes decisive role, which luck can play in the quest team championship.
Just imagine, if the Steelers began preparing for the next season of 2018 on the wings of two consecutive league titles - exactly where the penguins stood at the beginning of this season of hockey. We can easily imagine overestimated rhetoric and harsh conversations about the new Steelers dynasty, which extends to the sports media of Pittsburgh. But this happens with human psychology - when we are at the top, we feel unstoppable and inclined to reject the obvious, but undesirable seeds of our inevitable fall from grace.
The fact that the Steelers Nation is hungry for the seventh Lombardi Trophy seems self-evident, like the desire of a family dog to this juicy steak on your dinner plate. But there is a key difference between the hardships of fans supporting teams that have never tried the championship and fans such as Pittsburgh. As soon as the team and its fans experience such success, which the Steelers have achieved, the once impossible dream of the championship turns into a long-term expectation. Thus, at an early stage of each Steelers season, when Black-and-gold performance in the field does not match the high and often unrealistic expectations of fans, we invariably hear a chorus of irritating calls to the heads of anyone associated with the team.
If they demonstrated anything, the last two NFL seasons underscored the reality that most often strange events occur to determine which team is leaving with the brilliant equipment at the end of the season. Consider, for example, the case of Super Bowl LI, a game dominated by Atlanta Falcons almost three quarters of the game before their strange and complete collapse in the last quarter. Similarly, think of the mockery that any sports expert might face if they bravely predicted that the Philadelphia Eagles won the LII Super Cup with Carson Wentz watching from the street clothes while Nick Falls stepped out of Tom Brady's duel.
While the Steelers managed to find some kind of defensive assistance during the offseason, it is clear that their main focus in the NFL project of 2018 was to strengthen the already powerful offense. And considering the trend in the league today to the starting wins (for example, 87 points scored in the victory in the playoffs in the Stilkers in a match with "Jacksonville" or 74 points in the LII Super Cup), it's difficult to honestly see the Front of the Steelers office for downloading on offensive talent, which was more accessible at those points when they were doing their projects.
At least for me, seeing that the hometown of the Penguins can not cope with their almost impossible search to seize the third consecutive NHL title, brought home some valuable lessons that we hope will be borne in mind when we are preparing for the next season 2018. First, it will help to avoid the mentality habitual for chronic critics, which "you did-for-us" in recent times. Perhaps we could even try to express some gratitude for the opportunity to be part of the tremendous success achieved by the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise over time. These golden sports epochs are not often met (just ask Pittsburgh Pirates). When they do, they are as fast as they are glorious. For example, despite the fact that penguins are still a very competitive NHL team, who knows how long it can be before Pittsburgh raises another Stanley Cup in triumph? Secondly, it is important to recognize that every human desire entails a significant and sometimes decisive element of luck that remains completely unpredictable and inaccessible to any human planning, no matter how well understood.
So, here we are, when the Steelers Nation introduced its annual season of high expectations. In our journey, some of the initial hopes will be too optimistic, while the inevitable paranoia of the preseason period is manifested as being excessively pessimistic. But, as always, the pleasure of this season of 2018, Steelers, will depend not so much on the opinion that is considered to be the most predictable, but mainly on our long-awaited opportunity to share the joy and secrets of a completely new season from week to week.
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