2009 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS: PITTSBURGH PENGUINS VS. DETROIT RED WINGS

wprager wrote:

shabbs wrote:A Game 7 going to OT would be so so sweet... my money is on the Wings winning this one... hopefully it's an end to end exciting game.

Actual money or are you just using that as an expression?

Just an expression...

The inimitable Stan 'The Maven' Fischler gives us his witty window on the series and its impending finale...

Detroit--Pittsburgh; No Shot, No Prize!

Stan Fischler, MaxHockey.com, June 10, 2009

The Detroit Red Wings opened the Cracker Jacks box but there was no prize in it.
Now what do they do?

Try another box.

There will be one left at Joe Louis Arena on Friday night.

That's the good news for the men from Motor City.

The bad news is that the same prize is readily available for the Pittsburgh Penguins, the only club that showed up on Tuesday night at The Igloo.

And since the visitors from Michigan had this novel idea that they could win by NOT shooting, the Goonybirds tied the Finals at three, 2-1.

For that, the Penguins can thank rebounding goalie -- remember, he got yanked in Game Five -- Marc-Andre Fleury and his Long Island-born defenseman Rob Scuderi who for one heart-throbbing moment played back-up goalie.

Leading by one, late in the third, Fleury foiled Dan Cleary's breakaway backhander to preserve the lead.

Then, after Detroit pulled goalie Chris Osgood for an extra skater, Fleury was out of position on the left when it appeared the Wings would put the biscuit in the open net.

Uh, uh!

Scuderi, who outplayed every single Detroit defenseman, astonishingly, made three leg saves until his netminder returned home while about ten other players joining the melee.

In terms of overall play, Mike Babc0ck's sextet had no business being so close, so late in the game.

Osgood singlehandedly kept his club alive over three periods while his teammates nonchalantly comported themselves as if this was the second game of the regular season being played somewhere in a meadow between Bosnia and Herzigovina.

Did someone not tell them that THE Stanley Cup was sitting in a large, wooden box right next to the Detroit dressing room? Judging by their indolence, the Detroiters must have figured that a lawn mower was inside.

Meanwhile, the Penguins do what they do best at home -- win.

It was a product of hustle, hitting and, yeah, even shooting; something Jordan Staal did very well at the start of the second period when he beat a totally embattled Osgood 51 seconds into the frame.

The goal hardly was an aberration. Nor was Tyler Kennedy's at 5:35 of the third when he, Slapsy Maxie Talbot and Ruslan (Don't Call Me Fat Boy) Fedotenko took command behind the Detroit goal. Kennedy moved it out front and capitalized on Osgood's one bad move of the game.

Unnecessarily down on the ice, Osgood was helpless as the Penguin easily lifted the shot over him.

Kris Draper eventually put Detroit on the board to make it 2-1 whereupon the Red Wings demonstrated that their heads were in Lapland.

Two straight power plays were exercises in bad judgement, lousy shots and an abject lesson in blowing a chance for the Stanley Cup.

For the defending champs, the scary part is that neither Sidney (Oh That Awful Moustache) Crosby nor Evgeni (I Invented The Crosscheck From Behind) Malkin scored -- although each of them contributed significant defensive gems.

Then there's the pitiful case of Marian Hossa, wherever he may be. (Could be vacationing in Club Med for all we know.)

Remember him. He deserted Pittsburgh for a better chance at Cup-winning in Detroit.

Right now Hossa epitomizes the schizophrenic hockey player. He's wearing a Red Wings jersey but he's so bad that he appears to be playing for the Penguins. (Take your pick because Babc0ck doesn't know.)

While, The Maven is at it, let me remind you that since I started predicting the winners in this series, I'm now four-for-four.

And, yes, before the series started, I did forecast a seven-game final with the Champs prevailing.

Based on Game Six, the only thing the Red Wings will win is the booby prize, plus one other item.

They'll win a goose egg if they continue their Game Six policy of train-watching. All night long, they'd Stop, Look and Listen as the Goonybirds whizzed by while
Osgood looked like a beleaguered station-master.

Babc0ck hardly played the genius but he's got one more chance to regain that title.

Anyone for the Cracker Jacks prize?

Anyone for The Stanley Cup?

I may have missed this being posted already, but Sykora is out with a broken foot. Not a big loss, but a loss none-the-less. Satan sat out Game Six, I wonder if Bylsma plays a hunch that he will "rebound" with a good effort?

So, looks like Sykora will be out for Game 7...

shabbs wrote:So, looks like Sykora will be out for Game 7...

Satan to be in I am guessing/heard, possible unsung hero for the pens in game 7 if it goes to OT, I pick the Mule for Detroit.

I suspect this game seven will dissappoint and the Wings will be ahead by 2 or even 3 goals by the third. boooooorrrrrriiiiiinnnnggggg.

Cap'n Clutch wrote:I suspect this game seven will dissappoint and the Wings will be ahead by 2 or even 3 goals by the third. boooooorrrrrriiiiiinnnnggggg.

that's not good for the NHL, be more creative than that

Imagine: Overtime on friday night.

HowieMorenz wrote:Imagine: Overtime on friday night.

that is what I am rooting for, what a way to end of this series, as long as Cleary or Mule scores the winner.

OK the Pens win it on a highly contreversial call. Something like Crosby falls on top of Osgood while Malkin buries the puck in a yawning cage breaking the 2-2 tie with 3.5 seconds left in regulation. Garbage rains down on the ice while Malkin is awarded the Conne Smythe.

SensFan71 wrote:

HowieMorenz wrote:Imagine: Overtime on friday night.

that is what I am rooting for, what a way to end of this series, as long as Cleary or Mule scores the winner.

... or Staal or Kennedy

A Pens win gives my bragging rights on Praguers pool and it makes me look smart with the Pens will win it all thread I started before the final started

I know it won't happen but hey one can dream right?

HowieMorenz wrote:

SensFan71 wrote:

HowieMorenz wrote:Imagine: Overtime on friday night.

that is what I am rooting for, what a way to end of this series, as long as Cleary or Mule scores the winner.

... or Staal or Kennedy

nah, not them, that means the Pens would win

If the pens loose, it's Kunitz's fault LOL

Man he's hard to watch ....

Cap'n Clutch wrote:I suspect this game seven will dissappoint and the Wings will be ahead by 2 or even 3 goals by the third. boooooorrrrrriiiiiinnnnggggg.

It's gonna be a shoot-out bonanza... both goalies will be swiss cheese... final score will be 8-7 in OT for Detroit... Hossa with the winner in OT... book it!

Wes Goldstein of CBSSports provides a pertinent perspective on the Penguins and their pipe patroller:

GUILTY OF BEING GREAT? JURY ON FLEURY MIGHT COME IN GAME SEVEN
Wes Goldstein, CBSSPORTS.COM/June 10, 2009

DETROIT -- Less than two minutes remained in a Game 6 the Pittsburgh Penguins needed to win to save their season ... and one of the Detroit Red Wings' most prolific scorers was breaking in alone on Marc-Andre Fleury.

It wasn't the most pleasant sight for the young goaltender whose confidence could have been reasonably undermined from being pulled in the previous game.

Fleury had only an instant to decide whether his best chance at preserving a 2-1 lead would be to attempt a poke check or to wait out Dan Cleary's move.

He opted for the latter, deflecting away the backhand shot and prompting Hall of Fame goalie Grant Fuhr to text message a friend in Penguins owner Mario Lemieux's box, saying, "That might be your Cup."

And Fleury's chance to prove he really is one of the game's elites.

The jury remains out on the 24-year-old netminder -- even if he has put up some big numbers over the last few seasons -- largely because his often-spectacular efforts tend to get overshadowed by much weaker ones at inopportune times.

Like in the deciding Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals last year, when Fleury allowed a pair of weak goals in a 3-2 loss after stealing a triple-overtime victory in the previous game.

Or in his three losses in these Finals in Detroit, all erratic outings that, despite some remarkable performances in these playoffs, have kept doubts alive. At least outside the Penguins inner circle, that is.

"Marc has a unique ability to refocus after pretty much any scenario that he's been given, he's not bogged down by outside attention or media," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said. "There were questions about him after Game 5 and we acted out of confidence and said the things we said as a team because of the way he's played in the past and the way he's responded in the past.

"The breakaway in the third period is a pretty big save at a pretty big time for our team, and that's what Marc-Andre has been able to do for our team throughout the playoffs."

Even so, Fleury has to prove he can get Pittsburgh to the next level, something the team has been counting on since anointing him franchise savior at the tender age of 18.

That was back in 2003, well before Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin arrived to take over that pressure, when Fleury became only the third goaltender in history to be drafted first overall. It was a special distinction, but the downside -- as it usually is for anyone taken with that pick -- is that it meant going to a pretty bad team.

In Fleury's case, the problem was compounded because of the dire financial straits Pittsburgh was in at the time.

Facing bankruptcy again, the Penguins had been unloading high-priced stars for a couple of years and were in need of an attraction.

So instead of giving its newest prize a chance to grow up before getting to the NHL, Pittsburgh rushed Fleury into the lineup the following season, when he was still eligible to play junior hockey.

It was as much an attempt to sell some tickets as it was to improve the team, but the plan bordered on the disaster because Fleury clearly wasn't ready and suffered the consequences with such a weak team in front of him.

"It was really hard to watch," recalled former Penguins forward Ryan Malone. "I mean, the guy was seeing so many shots, it was ridiculous. We didn't have a very good team and he was getting lit up all the time, so everyone really kept wondering why this was happening and where we were going."

That didn't long to figure out. The Penguins ended up dead last while Fleury played in 21 games, winning just four and posting a goals-against average of 3.64. He started the season in Pittsburgh and showed flashes of the talent that made him his draft year's prize, but Fleury was sent back to juniors in December, only to be recalled a month later, moves that raised questions about whether his development was being mishandled.

"I don't think so," Fleury said of his rush to the pros. "It was a tough situation with the team we had and I was pretty young, but getting to the NHL is everybody's dream and I was glad to have the chance. I think it helped me get better."

Not everyone agreed, even as recently as last season after Fleury had put together a 40-win 2006-07 and helped Pittsburgh get to the playoffs for the first time in six years.

Fleury had a slow start to 2007-08 and then went down with a high ankle sprain midway through.

But instead of fading, the Penguins caught fire under their backups, leading critics to argue that Fleury was really nothing more than an average goaltender on an offensively talented team.

It didn't help when GM Ray Shero joked before last year's playoffs that he had spent Christmas looking for the kind of goaltender many felt was the missing piece on the team, but "there were none available," although he quickly insisted that the organization never had any intention of giving up on Fleury.

Fleury responded with a strong postseason before falling short in the deciding game of the title round against Detroit.

Now, with a chance to win it all in Game 7 on Friday, he gets another chance to show he really is among the NHL's best -- even if that's not foremost in his mind right now.

"You have stuff happening in your head, but you have to just block all the outside, all the negative thoughts and just play the game, keep it simple, have some fun," Fleury said. "To have an opportunity like this to get [the Cup], it's awesome."

Pittsburgh 2, Detroit 1

GAME SEVEN, 2009 STANLEY CUP FINALS
PENGUINS WIN SERIES 4-3

	1	2	3	T
PIT	0	2	0	2
DET	0	0	1	1

Final

8:00 PM ET, June 12, 2009, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan

Fleury robs Wings in final seconds to secure Stanley Cup for underdog Penguins

DETROIT (ESPN/AP)-- Slide over Super Mario and make room on the Stanley Cup for a new batch of Pittsburgh Penguins.

Fast Facts


• Dan Bylsma became the second rookie head coach hired midseason to win the Stanley Cup (Al MacNeil of 1971 Canadiens).
• The Penguins are the first team to win a road Game 7 in the MLB/NBA/NHL since the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates. They ended an 18-game losing streak by road team in Game 7.
• Friday was the first Stanley Cup final rematch to go to a Game 7 and have the team that lost the previous year win.
• Chris Osgood allowed two goals in the second period after allowing just two goals total in the first three home games of this series.
• It was the fourth time in sports history that a city has won Stanley Cup after winning the NFL title (Detroit in 1953-54, Detroit in 1935-36, Chicago in 1933-34).
-- ESPN Stats & Information

Max Talbot scored two second-period goals, and the Penguins overcame the loss of captain Sidney Crosby to beat the defending champion Detroit Red Wings 2-1 on Friday night in Game 7 and win the Stanley Cup.

Instead of the Red Wings becoming the NHL's first repeat champion since winning titles in 1997 and 1998, this turned into a Penguins party. The last time Pittsburgh won the Cup, in 1991 and '92, it was captained by owner Mario Lemieux.

Marc-Andre Fleury was stellar in making 23 saves -- none bigger than the one he made with one second left as he dived across the crease and knocked away a shot by Niklas Lidstrom.

"I knew there wasn't much time left," Fleury said. "The rebound was wide. I just decided to get my body out there and it hit me in the ribs so it was good."

He erased the memories of a 5-0 loss in Game 5 at Joe Louis Arena that put the Penguins on the brink of elimination. Pittsburgh returned home and gutted out a 2-1 win, behind Fleury's 25 saves, on Tuesday that forced a seventh game in Detroit.

This was Pittsburgh's second championship in four months, following the Steelers' Super Bowl victory in February.

Fleury's last save started a wild scene in the crease that culminated in the awarding of the Cup. Crosby took it from NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and skated a half lap to center ice before handing it off to Bill Guerin, who joined the team at the trade deadline and became a champion for the first time since 1995 with New Jersey.

Lemieux, the No. 1 pick in the 1984 draft by Pittsburgh, celebrated on the ice with Crosby -- the phenom who has been living in the owner's house since joining the team.

The Penguins turned the tables on the Red Wings and captured the Cup on enemy ice, just as Detroit did in Pittsburgh last year. The Penguins are the first to win the title the year after losing in the finals since Edmonton did it 25 years against the New York Islanders -- the last finals rematch before this one.

Evgeni Malkin, who led the playoffs with 36 points, earned the Conn Smythe Trophy as the postseason MVP. He assisted on Talbot's first goal.

Crosby, just four years after being the No. 1 selection in the draft, became the youngest captain of a champion at 21 years old. He played just one shift after leaving the ice during the second period after taking a hard hit along the boards from Johan Franzen.

"It's unbelievable. It's the stuff you dream of as a kid. It's reality now," Crosby said. "We worked so hard. It's amazing to see how far we've come, and couldn't feel any better."

Jonathan Ericsson made it tense when he cut the Red Wings' deficit to 2-1 with 6:07 remaining. His shot from inside the blue line sailed past Fleury's glove and sent the fans into a frenzy.

Niklas Kronwall nearly tied it with 2:14 left, but his drive smacked the crossbar flush and caromed out of danger. The Red Wings pressed further in the Penguins end after goalie Chris Osgood was pulled, but the puck ended up behind the net as time ran out.

Pittsburgh had gone 1-5 in Detroit in the past two final series before pulling this one out at the most clutch time. The Penguins' only other victory at "The Joe" was a triple overtime win in Game 5 last year that kept them alive. Talbot made it possible by scoring the tying goal with 35 seconds left in regulation.

The Penguins are the first team since the 2004 Tampa Bay Lightning to win the Cup after trailing the series 3-2 and the first to take Game 7 on the road after the home team won the first six games since the 1971 Montreal Canadiens beat Chicago.

Crosby crumpled against the boards after he was hit and seemed to get his left leg caught. He glided to the bench hunched over and stayed bent at the waist as he was guided to the dressing room 5 1/2 minutes into the period.

He was limited to two shifts, totaling 2 minutes, 39 seconds of ice time in the frame, but his teammates doubled the lead while he was gone. Crosby made it back to the ice midway through the third period for the one shift.

"I just wanted them to keep doing what they were doing," Crosby said of what he told his teammates before the third period. "We did a pretty good job of keeping things away from (Fleury) and he was doing a good job of making saves when he needed to."

Uncharacteristic mistakes by the experience-laden Red Wings led to both Pittsburgh goals.

Malkin, the NHL's leading scorer in the regular season and the playoffs, forced defenseman Brad Stuart into making a bad pass from the right corner. Talbot intercepted the puck and fired it between Osgood's pads at 1:13.

The rest of the Penguins stood tall after Crosby left the ice, and Talbot turned a 2-on-1 into a two-goal lead.

"Max came up with some big goals there," Crosby said. "We just wanted to play the same way. It's not easy watching, especially this time of year."

Stuart pinched at the right point of the Penguins zone, and Chris Kunitz beat Jiri Hudler to a loose puck. Kunitz swept it out and onto the stick of Talbot, who raced up ice with Tyler Kennedy and only Kronwall back for Detroit.

Talbot snapped a wrist shot from the middle of the left circle that sneaked in under the crossbar to make it 2-0 at 10:07.

Fleury took care of the rest, looking more solid in the Detroit nets than ever before. He wasn't fazed by Red Wings crashing the net or screening him or any funky bounces off the end boards that tortured him in the earlier games of the series.

Rookie coach Dan Bylsma elected to keep his team home in Pittsburgh an extra day during the two-day break between Games 6 and 7, giving up a chance to practice in Detroit one more time.

The move paid off, and Bylsma became the second coach to win the Stanley Cup with a team he took over midseason. Bylsma helped rescue the Penguins from a near-playoff miss by leading them to a 18-3-4 mark after replacing Michel Therrien on Feb. 15.

Bylsma was on the losing side as a player in 2003 with Anaheim in the last series in which the home team won all seven games. The Mighty Ducks team that lost then was coached by current Red Wings bench boss Mike Wang.

The Red Wings were the overwhelming favorite coming in with four players on the verge of their fifth Stanley Cup rings. Detroit had been 11-1 at home in the playoffs.

NOTES: Bylsma is the 14th rookie coach to win the Cup. ... Both teams stood at the benches and tapped their sticks on the boards when Muhammad Ali was shown on the video screen and introduced to the crowd during a first-period stoppage. ... The last road team to win Game 7 of the championship round in any major league was the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates, who won the World Series in Baltimore.

So are the Pens for real or was this just a case of the stars aligning in terms of staying healthy, getting career years out of some unlikely players, hitting the right teams and hitting a tired and beaten up Wings team in the Finals?

Time will tell. It should become pretty obvious what the answer is by December.