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

davetherave wrote:

shabbs wrote:Where's the misquote? There are two different sets of quotes. The first two are attributed to the interview, the second two are attributed to a video interview done earlier. In the first two, only one seems to be in the French article, the other seems to come from nowhere.

Listen to the interview...the audio link is provided. According to Schrader, he himself never has.

I was just comparing the french quotes to the english ones, which seemed to match up ok. Have not listened to the interview.

The Finals as viewed by The Windsor Star:

Penguins won't be fooled

Red Wings host Game 1 tonight

Dave Waddell, The Windsor Star/May 30, 2009

The Pittsburgh Penguins were staking a lot of claims Friday.

They claimed they're better prepared, know what to expect and are just plain better than they were heading into last year's Stanley Cup final.

Most importantly, they claim to know how to fix the problems that led to their loss in six games to the Detroit Red Wings.

Whether all that's enough to change the the Stanley Cup Finals series outcome this time will begin to unfold tonight when the teams meet in Game 1 at Joe Louis Arena (8 p.m., CBC, NBC, live blog at windsorstar.com).

"I don't think they're much different and that's going to be the biggest issue for us," said Pittsburgh's Rob Scuderi, who has evolved into a shutdown defenceman this season. "They were champions last year and they're back again and they've played well through the entire playoffs even with all the injuries they've had. We didn't play them last year and you hop into the playoffs and you don't respect how good they were as a team. I don't think that'll be the disadvantage for us this year."

That was a common theme among the Penguins, that they were ill-prepared.

That wasn't exactly a ringing endorsement of former coach Michel Therrien.

"We know what to expect," Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby said. "There shouldn't be any surprises. This year, we know our opponent. Last year, that wasn't the case."

This year's Penguins are clearly a happier group under coach Dan Bylsma.

The 38-year-old native of Grand Haven, Mich., has employed a system that allows the Penguins to play a faster, more aggressive style that better exploits their talents.

The result was an 18-3-4 surge to secure a playoff berth followed by an impressive march to their second straight final.

"When you get to this point, you obviously believe in your game," Crosby said.
"We've definitely tried to play more aggressive with a lot of speed and I definitely think that's too our advantage.

"I don't think that's something we did as well last year."

However, for Pittsburgh, the challenge that remains is to get the Wings playing their style.

Last year, the Wings controlled the puck and the Penguins were frequently hemmed in their own end, cutting off service to their skilled forwards.

"Both teams are trying to dictate their style to the other team," Scuderi said.
"The amount of time we got caught in our zone last year, over the first period you're OK, but over the course of the game eventually you wear down and they create chances. That's what happened last year."

Scuderi said the style of hockey played in the west is a tough adjustment. It allows far less freedom for players.

"From all the west teams we've played, there is definitely a pretty big chasm the way the game is played between the conferences," Scuderi said. "They don't give up much and they always have good support through the neutral zone and chip pucks deep. The biggest difference is all four lines do it. It's tough to defend when you know it's going to happen."

Detroit winger Johan Franzen said from what he'd seen this spring, the Penguins have learned their lessons well from a year ago.

"They have a better all-around game from their top players," Franzen said. "They have a better understanding of what it takes, the little things whether it's faceoffs, backchecks everything matters in the finals. They're a bit smarter and from what I've seen, they're playing more solid hockey. That's probably why they're back in the finals."

All the experts are predicting a heavy Detroit win, and given the evidence, I tend to agree.

I am going for Pittsburg though, get hossa turncoat!

I am torn - part of me wants to see Hossa hoist the cup, but at the same time I'd rather not see a repeat champ... unless it was Ottawa. The other part of me wants to see Crosby win. Then there's the part that doesn't care unless it is Ottawa playing, and as long as Montreal isn't winning.

Go Detroit!

C'mon Hossa

Datsyuk and Draper will miss game 1. Draper is close, he'll take the warm up. With Datsyuk, man, I just don't know. Next game is tomorrow night and I think he'll miss that one as well. It can't be a bruise, it's got to be a break.

Pittsburgh 1, Detroit 3

GAME ONE, 2009 STANLEY CUP FINAL

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

Final

MORE FROM ESPN, INCLUDING BOX SCORE AND HIGHLIGHTS:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=290530005

8:00 PM ET, May 30, 2009, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan

Pens fail to fluster Osgood as supporting cast lifts Wings to Game 1 win

DETROIT (AP/ESPN)-- The Stanley Cup finals opener was full of flashbacks.

Pittsburgh superstars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were slowed down and the Detroit Red Wings scored some fortunate goals.

Johan Franzen scored the go-ahead goal late in the second period and Chris Osgood made 31 saves, helping the defending champion Red Wings beat the Penguins 3-1 on Saturday night in Game 1.

Franzen and Brad Stuart had goals that went off Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, whose sat on a shot that trickled in for Detroit's series-clinching goal last year.

"We're going to have to get goals like that," Red Wings coach Mike Babc0ck said. "I don't think there are going to be a whole lot of skill plays."

Crosby, though, didn't have such luck when his third-period shot went off Osgood, a post and landed in the middle of the goalie's back as lay on the ice.

Detroit rookie Justin Abdelkader scored his first playoff goal early in the third, providing a cushion.

Game 2 is Sunday night in Detroit.

"It's a race to four, and they got one," Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma said.

The NHL and its TV partners likely were happy with how the first Stanley Cup finals rematch in a quarter-century got started.

The action, especially in the first period, matched the hype.

"When you've been here before, you know what to expect so you're ready to start on time," Babc0ck said.

End-to-end action, big hits such as Crosby's left shoulder sending Henrik Zetterberg to the ice, scoring opportunities and a 1-1 score had to hold nontraditional viewers giving hockey a chance.

Detroit's first goal of the series brought back memories of its last Cup-clinching goal.

Stuart simply dumped the puck behind Fleury and was rewarded with a fortunate carom that sent the puck off Fleury's right skate and across the goal line with 6:22 left in the first period.

"They got some fortunate breaks," Bylsma said.

In Game 6 last year in Pittsburgh, the goal that ended up being the difference was pushed in when Fleury squatted on the puck.

The Penguins didn't need good fortune to tie Saturday's game.

Malkin baited Stuart into trying to clear a puck off the boards and took advantage of the turnover with a slap shot that Osgood couldn't control, leading to Ruslan Fedotenko's backhander off the rebound.

Pittsburgh had a breakaway and two power plays in the first half of the second period, and had nothing to show for it.

Osgood got part of his glove on Malkin's wrist shot on the breakaway, and Detroit's penalty killers limited the Penguins to two shots on their first play and none on their second.

"The goalie is the most important player every night," Babc0ck said. "It's hockey."

Osgood had to make a pair of saves two-thirds of the way through the second, denying Miroslav Satan on a shot just outside of the crease after Malkin set him up beautifully and turning away Crosby's backhander after a spectacular spin move.

Moments later, the Red Wings went on the power play for the first time and Fleury came through for Pittsburgh.

Brian Rafalski's blast was smothered by Fleury with a thud despite Tomas Holmstrom standing right in front of the goalie to obscure his vision.

Detroit went ahead 2-1 in the final minute, scoring again off the boards and Fleury.
Rafalski shot bounced off the boards, Franzen got to the loose puck and flipped a backhander over and off Fleury and into the net.

It was Franzen's his team-leading 11th goal of the playoffs and 24th score in the postseason since the start of last year's Stanley Cup run.

Game notes
Detroit was without Pavel Datsyuk, an MVP finalist along with Malkin, a fellow Russian, because of a foot injury, and Kris Draper, but welcomed the return of defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom and Jonathan Ericsson. ... Fleury finished with 27 saves.

Playoff tidbits from Sports Illustrated this morning:

Playoff Notebook: Abdelkader gets first NHL goal in Game 1

DETROIT (AP/SI.COM) --Justin Abdelkader's first NHL goal is hard to top.
The Detroit Red Wings rookie scored in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals on Saturday night.

His initial shot was turned away by Marc-Andre Fleury, but Abdelkader stuck with it, firing past the Pittsburgh goalie on his second try to give the Wings an insurance goal in their 3-1 win Saturday night.

While it was a huge goal for Abdelkader and the Wings, it may not have been the most significant goal the 22-year-old left wing has scored.

He scored for Michigan State in the 2007 NCAA championship game.

The Spartans that year beat favored Boston College 3-1. Abdelkader had the tiebreaker with 18.9 seconds to go.

"That one would be tough to beat," he said. "But I think this one is right up there."

Mr. Hockey

As Red Wings legends Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay stepped onto the Joe Louis Arena ice for the ceremonial pregame puck drop on Saturday night, Detroit fans filled the air with chants of "Gordie! Gordie!"

As Lindsay made his way toward captains Sidney Crosby and Nicklas Lidstrom, Howe -- whose No. 9 jersey hangs in the Joe Louis rafters -- stayed back to walk the length of the Wings bench to slap the players' gloves, much like NHL players do after a goal.

It's been a rough few months for Howe. His wife, Colleen, died in March at the age of 76.

But Howe was smiling Saturday when he emerged from the tunnel to the crowd's ovation.

Meet The Malkins

Evgeni Malkin's parents had a busy night.

They spent the game cheering on their son, who managed one assist in Detroit's 3-1 win over the Penguins.

And between periods, the Malkins -- visiting the U.S. from their native Russia -- were inundated with Penguins fans' requests to pose for pictures and to shake their hands.

At one point between the second and third periods, two Penguins fans rushed up and twirled in front of the Malkins to point out the No. 71 Penguins home jerseys they were wearing.

At least one Wings fan -- a woman wearing a Steve Yzerman jersey -- also greeted the Malkins.

Off-Ice Star Power

The Stanley Cup finals rematch between the Penguins and Red Wings is full of stars, from Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to Detroit's Henrik Zetterberg and Nicklas Lidstrom.

But the teams also feature a few off-the-ice luminaries.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger have taken in a Penguins playoff game or two in recent weeks, while the Wings count among their celebrity backers actress Kristen Bell and musician Kid Rock.

Actor John C. McGinley, a Red Wings fan, watches the games from his home in Malibu, Calif., and he tends to be a tad superstitious.

"I rotate throughout the house like I do for New York Giants football games. Whenever things are going bad, I switch my seat," said the star of the ABC comedy "Scrubs."

McGinley's rooting interest in Detroit stems from his friendship with 47-year-old Wings defenseman Chris Chelios, who lives and trains part of the year in Malibu.
McGinley, Chelios and some other pals who have properties in the seaside community, including actor John Cusack and former tennis star John McEnroe, comprise a group they lovingly call the "Malibu Mob." Detroiter Kid Rock is the latest Mob inductee.

While McGinley will "be watching Cheli in high-def" in southern California, fellow actor Michael Keaton expects to be at Mellon Arena for Games 3 and 4 this coming week, watching his hometown team with his son.

"You ask anybody who knew anything about hockey (last year), and they would have said: 'We were good. They were better,"' he said. "This year, different story, baby. Different story."

Octo-Yummy

A Detroit-area seafood company hosted an "octopus tasting party" on Saturday, treating guests to a free sampling of octopus chili, octopus salad and even barbecued octopus.

The Superior Fish Company has gained a reputation as a go-to place to buy the slimy mollusks, which have been tossed onto the Joe Louis Arena ice over the past half-century to celebrate a good play or goal.

"We're offering everybody the opportunity to savor the flavor of a hockey tradition," said co-owner Kevin Dean.

The Royal Oak business also is displaying a giant octopus, which it had flown in from Seattle. Wings fans and other curious folks have been rolling into Superior Fish since the playoffs began to have their pictures taken next to the octopus, which weighs in at 45 pounds (20 kilograms) and is 65 inches (1.65 meters) from head to toe.

Sure enough, as national anthem singer Karen Newman belted out her final note, one of the eight-legged sea creatures went flying through the air and hit the ice to the crowd's delight.

The view from Pittsburgh today:

Penguins control much of play, but Red Wings grind out victory

Dave Molinari, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 31, 2009

DETROIT -- Marc-Andre Fleury knew that this could happen.

Heck, he had discussed it at some length just two days earlier.

But realizing the boards at Joe Louis Arena can make life miserable for a goaltender doesn't necessarily translate to being able to prevent it, as Fleury was reminded during the Penguins' 3-1 loss to Detroit in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final last night.

Twice, in fact.

The Red Wings' first two goals stemmed directly from pucks bouncing off the back boards at something approaching warp speed.

On the first, the carom of a Brad Stuart shot from the left point that sailed wide of the near post caromed off Fleury and into the net. On the second, Johan Franzen corralled a Brian Rafalski shot that missed on the right side and banked the puck off Fleury's left leg, and into the net, as Fleury's sprawled on his stomach in the crease.

"It happens," Fleury said. "I'll try to forget about it. Watch the tape and see if I can do something else."

He won't have much time to contemplate those adjustments, however, because Game 2 will be tonight at Joe Louis Arena.

The Red Wings, predictably, weren't terribly sympathetic about the problems caused by the boards.

"Every building you go into there are little nuances, and you try to take advantage of them the best you possibly can," Detroit coach Mike Wang said.

Fleury's troubles with pucks coming off the boards cost the Penguins an opportunity to grab an early advantage in the series, because they competed evenly with the Red Wings for most of the game, and actually outplayed them at times.

That was particularly true during the second period, even though Franzen's winner was the only goal scored by either team then.

"We know that if we play [tonight)] like we did in the second period, we like our chances," forward Max Talbot said.

Perhaps, but the Penguins also have to realize that they turned in 60 minutes of solid work last night and got nothing but frustration to show for it.

"We had a lot of quality chances and carried the play for stretches," forward Craig Adams said. "They got a couple of good bounces, and we easily could have gotten a couple more goals. Right now, it feels like a missed opportunity."

Which it should, but not solely because of Fleury's misadventures with the boards. The Penguins were able to put one of 32 shots behind Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood, with Evgeni Malkin's inability to convert a breakaway early in the second period an especially costly failure.

"Their goalie played well, and we were unlucky a couple of times," Adams said.

Ruslan Fedotenko got the Penguins' only goal when, at 18:37 of the first period, Osgood failed to control the rebound of a Malkin shot, allowing Fedotenko to gain possession and backhand it into the net.

"I just got lucky, was first to the puck and put it in the net," Fedotenko said.

While Osgood was the Red Wings' best player, Fedotenko believes the Penguins didn't test him as often or as seriously as they will have to.

"We need to find a way to get better quality shots on him," he said.

They might also want to try to figure out how to win an occasional faceoff -- Detroit was 39-16 on draws -- and to generate more than token pressure on the power play. The Penguins had just two chances with the extra man, but got a total of only one shot from those opportunities.

"We did a lot of good things, but, when you look at the game, we think there are areas we need to do better," Bylsma said. "And we need to do better if we're going to continue to have success, or have success, in this series. "

So, despite the loss in Game 1, the Penguins will enter Game 2 confident that they can play better. Well enough to return home with a split that would give them the home-ice advantage in what would amount to a best-of-five series.

"When you go on the road for the first two games, you want to win one of them," Talbot said. "And there's still one game in front of us."

Play of the game

SECOND PERIOD/3:24: With the score tied, 1-1, Penguins center Evgeni Malkin steals the puck off Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall at the Penguins' blue line. Kronwall falls down and that sets Malkin free on a breakaway. Malkin races in, approaches net and shoots with his forehand. Osgood gets a piece of it with his glove and steers the puck away. The Penguins could've taken a lead at this point and controlled momentum. Instead, Detroit went up by a goal later in the period and never looked back.

Pittsburgh 1, Detroit 3

GAME TWO, 2009 STANLEY CUP FINAL

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

Final

8:00 PM ET, May 31, 2009, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan

Red Wings in familiar position with 2-0 lead over Penguins in finals

MORE FROM ESPN, INCLUDING VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=290531005

DETROIT (AP/ESPN)-- The Red Wings are tired, beat up, and just two wins away from hoisting the Stanley Cup again.
Detroit's foil is the same, the defending champion's method a little different.

For the second straight year, the young Pittsburgh Penguins came to Joe Louis Arena to kick off the Stanley Cup finals. And just like in 2008, they're heading home down 2-0. The Red Wings topped the Penguins 3-1 on Sunday night, giving them matching wins on consecutive nights as they pursue a repeat of their title.

"Playing back to backs and saying we'd be up 2-0, we'd be ecstatic," said Chris Osgood, who made 31 saves. "We still believe we can play better and we know we'll have to in Pittsburgh."


Fast Facts


• The Red Wings took a 2-0 lead in the Stanley Cup finals for the second straight year and are two wins away from becoming the first team to repeat as Stanley Cup champions since they did it in 1997-98.
• This was the first time Stanley Cup finals games were played on consecutive nights since 1955.
• Evgeni Malkin scored Pittsburgh's only goal. He has recorded a point in eight of his last nine games.
• Sidney Crosby, again, failed to record a point. It was the first time he has been held without a point in consecutive games this postseason and the first time since Games 1 and 2 of last year's Stanley Cup finals.
• Of the 44 teams to take a 2-0 lead in the Stanley Cup finals, 41 went on to win, but two of the three teams recovered from the deficit to beat the Red Wings ('66 Canadiens, '42 Maple Leafs).

-- ESPN Stats & Information

Whether the games are spaced out or on top of each other, the Red Wings seem to have all the answers. Detroit can rest Monday before playing road games Tuesday and Thursday nights.

Sure the Penguins aren't as scared as they were in their finals debut last year, and yes they are younger and were more rested than their championship-
laden opponents. And still they couldn't make a dent.

"It's not good," captain Sidney Crosby said, "but at the same time, it shows us our game can be successful. If we keep playing the same way, we're going to come out on the right side of things. We would have liked to have different results, but that's playoff hockey."

The Red Wings are closing in on their 12th title and fifth in 12 seasons despite the condensed schedule.

"It's hurt us. Don't kid yourself," Detroit coach Mike Wang said. "I thought we were exhausted out there. It's amazing what will does for you. We found a way to win two games, but we haven't been as good as we're capable of being."

Rookie defenseman Jonathan Ericsson, who watched the West finale Wednesday night in the dressing room hours after having his appendix removed, scored the tying goal for Detroit in the second period. He returned to the lineup Saturday.
"Just a couple years ago, it took people a month to recover," the 25-year-old Ericsson said. "It took me three days."

Valtteri Filppula added the go-ahead tally 6:08 later, and Justin Abdelkader scored his second of the series in the third. The Red Wings left the ice in front of their cheering, towel-waving fans and headed for Pittsburgh.

The odds favor the Red Wings in their bid to become the NHL's first repeat champion since they did it in 1997 and '98. Teams that win Games 1 and 2 at home have captured the Cup 31 of 32 times.

Frustration boiled over for Pittsburgh with 18.2 seconds left, when Max Talbot stuck his stick in Osgood's midsection after a save. That led to a fight between Evgeni Malkin and Henrik Zetterberg that left both players' jerseys on the ice.

Malkin was subject to a one-game suspension for being assessed in the final 5 minutes, but that punishment was quickly rescinded by league disciplinarian Colin Campbell.

"None of the criteria in this rule applied," Campbell said in a statement. "Suspensions are applied under this rule when a team attempts to send a message in the last five minutes by having a player instigate a fight. A suspension could also be applied when a player seeks retribution for a prior incident. Neither was the case here."

The Penguins, who dropped the opener 3-1 on Saturday night, played better in this two-game set compared to last year when the finals were new to them.

Malkin staked Pittsburgh to an early 1-0 lead. It just wasn't enough as Detroit -- especially Zetterberg -- bottled up Crosby and kept him pointless for the second straight night. Crosby had chances, first feeding a pass to Bill Guerin for a shot that hit the inside of the post in the second.

His luck was no better in the third when he too was stopped by the post. The no-goal was confirmed by video replay and induced a disgusted spit from Crosby on the bench.

Just over a minute later, Abdelkader sealed the win with his second NHL goal and second in two nights. Not bad for a rookie who hails from Michigan.

Osgood outplayed counterpart Marc-Andre Fleury again in earning his 73rd NHL playoff victory, eighth on the career list.

Ericsson tied it 1-1 at 4:21 of the second after Darren Helm won a faceoff in the Pittsburgh end.

Just 14 seconds after Malkin left the penalty box, Filppula backhanded in a rebound of Marian Hossa's shot -- with Tomas Holmstrom in front -- with 9:31 remaining.

After shutting out the Penguins by a combined 7-0 score in the first two games of last year's finals, the nicked-up Red Wings bent but didn't break. And they did it again without injured forwards Pavel Datsyuk, their leading scorer in the regular season, and four-time champion Kris Draper.

The Penguins needed nearly 7 minutes before Kris Letang recorded the team's first shot, but Pittsburgh finished the period with a flourish -- outshooting the Red Wings 9-0 to close the frame.

They took advantage when Niklas Kronwall was sent off for cross-checking Talbot, the only penalty called in the first.

Malkin, the playoff leader with 30 points, let go a drive that was batted in by defenseman Brad Stuart with 3:10 left in the period. Malkin has seven goals in six games and 13 during the postseason, one behind Crosby for the league lead.

Game notes
Pittsburgh's Ruslan Fedotenko had a three-game goal streak snapped. ... The Red Wings are 6-0 in Game 2s of the finals since losing to Montreal in 1954, outscoring opponents 25-9.

Source: http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/05/31/wings_beat_pens_game2/

THE CANADIAN PRESS

DETROIT -- Even though the Detroit Red Wings are halfway home to another Stanley Cup, they still feel like there's a long way to go.

The Red Wings managed to win the first two games of this championship series despite missing key players from their lineup and getting outchanced by the Pittsburgh Penguins. It left goalie Chris Osgood and several other players speaking cautiously after Sunday's 3-1 victory.

"By no means are we going to say we outplayed them in two games -- they played good hockey the first two games and gave us everything we can handle," said Osgood, who finished with 31 saves. "We feel good that we're up 2-0 but we know that we can play better in Game 3.

"We've got to get a day off and rest up and have our best game."

The Detroit goals came from a trio of players currently assuming bigger roles in the post-season than they had from October to April -- Jonathan Ericsson, Valtteri Filppula and Justin Abdelkader.

A second victory in as many nights greatly increased the odds that those guys will soon have their names inscribed on the NHL's championship trophy. Teams winning the first two games of the Stanley Cup final on home ice have gone on to take the series 31 of 32 times.

Evgeni Malkin replied for Pittsburgh, which will look to rebound at Mellon Arena starting with Game 3 on Tuesday night.

"We played two good games," said Penguins forward Pascal Dupuis. "We (outshot) them in two games. If we keep playing well, the hockey gods are going to be on our side."

They received a big break when the NHL decided to rescind an automatic one-game suspension that Malkin could have received after being assessed an instigator penalty in the final minute. He fought Henrik Zetterberg and was ejected for not having his jersey tied down.

However, that didn't warrant any extra punishment.

"Suspensions are applied under this rule when a team attempts to send a message in the last five minutes by having a player instigate a fight," league disciplinarian Colin Campbell said in a statement. "A suspension could also be applied when a player seeks retribution for a prior incident.

"Neither was the case here and therefore the one game suspension is rescinded."

Until now, the good fortune has gone mostly to Detroit.

Filppula's goal at 10:29 of the second period stood up as the winner and came just moments after teammate Marian Hossa had broke Dupuis' stick with a hard slash. That would be called a penalty in almost any other game of the season.

Bill Guerin and Sidney Crosby each hit posts while the Penguins were trailing 2-1 and Crosby had a further chance stopped by a diving Zetterberg, who appeared to grab the puck in the crease for a second straight game. Again, no penalty shot was awarded.

That was soon followed by an Abdelkader goal that came on an innocent-looking play. He swiped at a bouncing puck on a lone rush and had it float behind Marc-Andre Fleury at 2:47 of the third period.

And the Red Wings are lights out with a two-goal lead.

"I thought we bent but didn't break," said Detroit GM Ken Holland. "They had a good push in the second period and we hung in there.

"We got a great goal from Abdelkader in the third. With a two-goal lead, we can play our game."

The most amazing part of the two victories in this series might be that they came on back-to-back nights and without Pavel Datsyuk, a finalist for the Hart Trophy who has been sidelined with a foot problem. It's the first time since 1955 that two Stanley Cup games were played consecutively.

Osgood was arguably the first star on both occasions.

"I thought Pittsburgh played very well in the first two games," said Red Wings forward Dan Cleary. "Just that Ozzie's been great."

His best saves in Game 2 came against the Penguins top two snipers -- Osgood got a glove on a Malkin chance from in-close during the second period and his toe on an opportunity from Crosby that came after the Penguins captain skated through a few players in the third.

Malkin and Crosby are the top two scorers during this post-season but have been limited to a combined two points so far in the Stanley Cup.

"We had stretches where we played good," said Penguins coach Dan Bylsma. "We got scoring chances and pucks around the net and we didn't capitalize on them when we needed to.".

Even though his team now trails the Wings 2-0 in the Stanley Cup final for the second straight spring, the similarities between the series end there. Pittsburgh outshot the Wings in both games this time around and arguably deserved a victory here -- if not two.

They'll actually carry some confidence into Game 3.

"Last year we got beaten pretty badly (in the first two games)," said Penguins defenceman Hal Gill. "Last year we went home thinking, `What do we have to do?' This year we know what to do."

It seemed to be a fact that was understood well in the other dressing room as well.

A handful of Red Wings players indicated that their team was a bit fortunate to have come out on top in each of the first two games.

"They had a lot of chances, they created a lot," said Zetterberg. "Ozzie played good again and it saved us."

Notes: The Red Wings are 10-1 at Joe Louis Arena during these playoffs ... Pascal Dupuis was inserted into Pittsburgh's lineup for the first time in nine games at the expense of Phillippe Boucher ... It was two years to the day since Crosby was named the Penguins captain ... Referee Bill McCreary is working his 14th Stanley Cup final and took part in his 38th championship game ... Linesman Jean Morin used a towel to remove an octopus from the ice late in the second period.

No suspension for Malkin:

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/05/31/malkin_no_suspension/

No surprise.

Is it time yet Crosby?

SensFan71 wrote:

Is it time yet Crosby?

I don't think so yet... Game 3 is most certainly a must win for them. Let's see how Game 3 goes.

Detroit has really looked calm throughout the first two games, even when Pittsburgh has turned on the after jets and took the game to them, that is where the experience pays off and having the experienced coach behind the bench, Bylsma hasn't been here before, Wang has. Having a handful of players trying to get their 5th cup ring doesn't hurt either, maybe not panic time yet, but results have to come soon.

shabbs wrote:No suspension for Malkin:

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/05/31/malkin_no_suspension/

No surprise.

it is such a load of crap but the pens are the leagues favourite team malkin deserves a suspension but the league has already shown that they are not consistent