FanHouse Ron Francis

HOMESTEAD, Pa. -- Phil Bourque spent eight of his 12 NHL seasons as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins, helping the team win two Stanley Cups in the early 1990s. Since the 2003-04 campaign, he's worked as an analyst for the Penguins radio network, and we had an opportunity to catch up with him at the team's Championship DVD release on Monday night.

Among the topics discussed: How do the current Penguins compare to the teams he played on, which current Penguin is the modern-day Phil Bourque, and why are hockey players the most approachable, fan-friendly athletes in sports?

It wasn't even 30 seconds into Eric Staal's post game interview on VERSUS Thursday night when we received our first reference to the fact that he and his brother, Jordan Staal, were about to face off in the Eastern Conference Finals. Get used to it, because you're going to hear about it ... a lot. To get you ready for the Staal family reunion, head on over to Puck Huffers to get your set of rules for the official Staal Brothers Drinking Game.

Over/under on number of references in the series: 200

This is just one of the many random story lines you're sure to hear about as the Penguins and Hurricanes fight for a trip to the Stanley Cup Final. Here are some of the others.

On Wednesday the Devils and the Hurricanes will drop the puck on their first-round series. These two teams have quite a bit of history in the playoffs in the 'Canes relatively short term down south; this will be the fourth meeting between the two teams since their first battle in 2001, with the 'Canes winning two of the previous three. But in '01 it was the Devils in six games, and, exactly eight years to the day before their 2009 series begins, Scott Stevens rattled Shane Willis' insides. Later in the video, Stevens levels Ron Francis in the same series. The Devils went on to lose to Colorado in a seven-game Stanley Cup final.

With the NHL playoffs just around the corner, FanHouse takes a look at some of the lesser-known teams that qualified. Friday's installment: the Carolina Hurricanes

When the Whalers left Hartford back in 1997 to become the Carolina Hurricanes, they left a lot of things behind: the best jerseys in the NHL, Brass Bonanza, and, perhaps, most importantly, a losing tradition. In their 18 seasons in Hartford, the Whalers qualified for the playoffs eight times, and only once advanced beyond the first round.

Since moving to Carolina, the team has played in the Stanley Cup Final twice (2002 and 2006) while ultimately winning it all during the 2005-06 campaign. Heading into the playoffs this year, the Hurricanes are one of the hottest teams in the NHL, steamrolling the opposition. So, who are these guys?

A couple of weeks ago, TSN hockey analyst Gord Miller came to the conclusion that in order for the Pittsburgh Penguins to remain competitive in the NHL, they would have to deal the league's leading scorer, Evgeni Malkin, for a first-line winger, a No. 2 center, and "hopefully" a pick or a prospect. It was a laughable proposal.

On Sunday night, Rob Rossi, Penguins beat writer for the Tribune-Review, appeared on a weekly Pittsburgh talk show and suggested the team would be wise to put Sidney Crosby on the trade block this offseason. I guess this is what happens when you go from being two wins away from hoisting the Stanley Cup to being the No. 10 team in the Eastern Conference in a matter of one season.