Penguins Re-sign Guerin, Adams

Time to move in the family from Long Island.

Tonight, the Pittsburgh Peguins re-signed one of the key contributors
to their recent run to the Stanley Cup when RW Bill Guerin inked a
one-year deal worth a reported 2.8 million dollars.

Incentives supposedly can push the deal above 3 million.

It's great to have Billy G back to patrol Sidney Crosby's right wing
for one more year. And, in my opinion, a one-year deal was the right
move for the Penguins, too. Two years would have been too much.

The Penguins also re-signed 4th liner Craig Adams to a two-year, 1.1
million dollar deal earlier today. Adams actually took less money than
last season in exchange for being able to get an extra year in the
contract.

At this point, GM Ray Shero's focus can now turn pretty much
exclusively to LW Ruslan Fedotenko during the last day remaining before
July 1.

We'll see whether anything breaks on that front in the next 24 hours or
so.

Countdown To Free Agency

Now that the NHL entry draft is complete, and with less than two (2) days to the official start of unrestricted free agency at midnight on Wednesday, July 1, the Penguins are close to knowing where they stand going into the crazed signing period.

At this point, they are about 9 million dollars under the salary cap ceiling of approximately 57 big ones per season -- a figure they are bound to be just at or under for nearly the 3rd straight season.

Of course, with owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle adding about 40 million to their coffers after a second straight Stanley Cup Final run, there are no hesitations in Pittsburgh about reaching the cap ceiling.

Of all the Penguin free agents, the guy Pittsburgh is probably closest to signing is RW Bill Guerin.

The Pens' have reportedly tendered Guerin a 1-year deal around 2.6 or 2.7 million dollars, with incentives that could push the deal upwards of nearly 3.3 million. Right now, the ball is in Guerin's court and word is his camp will respond today.

At this point, I'd say the odds are better than 50% that the Penguins and Guerin will come to an agreement before Wednesday.

The Penguins are also near a deal with center and faceoff ace Mike Zigomanis on a 2-year deal which would pay Zigo a total of 1.5 million (750K per season). That could be announced today, I'm hearing.

The biggest mystery for Pittsburgh is what's going to happen with Ruslan Fedotneko.

It seems that the Penguins have offered the Russian Tank a 2-year contract at about 2.5 million dollars per season. Fedotenko is currently mulling this proposal, but is said to want a 3rd year and a little more money if he can get it.

Things with Fedotenko may go down to the wire and if, in fact, he hits free agency, he's going to get a lot of interest on the open market -- enough interest for enough years and enough money that we might not see Rusty return.

Speaking of the open market, that's where Pens' defenseman Rob Scuderi is sure to land on Wednesday. The Penguins do not intend to offer Scuderi a contract before then. There seems to be an understanding between the parties that Pittsburgh is Scuds' first choice and that he will give the Penguins an opportunity to at least come close to the best offer he receives.

While that's nice in theory and may very well play out, it's certainly more unlikely that Scuderi will return if he hits free agency. While he was quoted over the weekend as not being someone who's interested in breaking the bank, and saying that he's very aware of what it means to play for a winner, he also was quoted as recognizing that this may be his only chance for security in his career. Although word is he may not get offers as high as originially thought (near 4 million per), some team is still going to throw more money at Scuderi than the Pens can pay and, even if given the chance to come close to that offer, I'm not optimistic the Penguins will be able to get close enough to what "The Piece" is almost surely likely to see, at bottom, on the open market (3 million).

As I've said before in this space, I don't expect this to be another Brooks Orpik situation. Orpik testing the market and then re-signing here was the exception and not the rule. You can't expect that to happen again with Scuderi. I sure don't.

Surprisingly, there seems to be some possible interest in maybe having Petr Sykora return to the team. The Penguins do not appear ready to offer him a contract before letting him test the market, but I don't think Pittsburgh has completely closed the door to him returning after all.

I'm just about certain the Penguins also won't make contract offers to Miroslav Satan and Hal Gill before July 1. Philippe Boucher is in the same boat, but he is interested in returning to Pittsburgh and, depending on what happens with Scuderi, I think the Penguins might be interested in bringing him back as a 6th defenseman and continued mentor to the young player on the team with whom he's the closest -- fellow french-canadian blueliner Kris Letang.

Of course, Boucher would have to take a meaningful pay cut to return -- maybe to 1 million or 1.5 million for one year -- but I'm told he may be willing to do that.

I'll try to post any updates between now and Wednesday. And whether there are updates or not, I'll lead off Wednesday morning with news about who the Penguins may be chasing from other teams starting that day. There are a few people of note. Nobody who's going to break the bank, mind you, but a notable player or two anyway. And depending on what happens with Fedotenko, the Penguins' potential targets on July 1 may grow -- both in number and stature.

All In The Family: Penguins 2009 NHL Entry Draft Recap

It's a good thing Mario Lemieux's son Austin wasn't eligible for this year's NHL entry draft.



If he was, and what the Pittsburgh Penguins did yesterday was any indication, Pittsburgh surely would have taken him, and the buzz that would have ensued might have stolen the show from the hometown Habitants.



As it was, the Penguins had to settle for drafting two other young prospects with bloodline connections to their franchise past.



Those selections -- Philip Sameulsson, son of current Phoenix Coyotes Assistant Coach but also former Penguin defenseman, 2-time Pittsburgh Stanley Cup winner and team Hall of Fame member Ulf Samuelsson, and Andy Bathgate, grandson of the Penguin star and NHL Hall of Famer of the same name from the late 1960's and early 1970's -- were picked on day 2 yesterday in the 2nd and 5th rounds, respectively.



But more on them in a bit. The Penguins did have a first round pick to speak of.



In round 1 on Friday night, at 30th overall, the Penguins picked the skater that was ranked as the 8th best North American player available -- Simon Despres.



Despres, a defenseman with the Saint John Sea Dogs of the Quebec Major Junior League, is nearly 6' 4", 205 lbs, and had 2 goals and 30 assists in 66 games last season. While generally regarded as a defenseive defenseman, Despres has some two-way potential in his game.



Despres is a good skater and can move the puck well. Pens' Director of Scouting Jay Heinbuck projects him as a #3 or #4 defenseman in the league.



Getting Despres as late as the Penguins did was undoubtedly some surprise, not unlike the Penguins having scoring star Angelo Esposito fall to their lap 2 years ago around 20th overall. Esposito, of course, was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers organization in the Marion Hossa trade in March of 2008, but has yet to demonstrate he's on his way to being an impact player in the NHL.



Whether Despres ends up in the same boat, despite the similarity of dropping in the draft, remains to be seen, but by adding Despres, the Penguins undoubtedly added to the stable of defense propects they have developed quite well over the last 5 seasons.



Samuelsson, another defenseman, is 6' 2: and about 200 lbs. He was the Penguins choice in round 2. He had 22 points in 54 games with Chicago of the U.S. Hockey League. Ranked 60th by NHL Central Scouting, but higher (in numbers) by most other services, picking Samuelsson seems to have been regarded in NHL circles as a bit of a reach for Pittsburgh.



Samuelsson, while known as a defensive defenseman like his father, isn't nearly the same punishing player physically that his dad was. Still, he has a reputation as a good penalty killer and a guy that clears the front of the net well. He recently led the 2009 U.S. Under-18 World Championships entry to a gold medal with a plus 9 rating. He is said to need a little improvement as a skater and with his aggressiveness.



Picking near the top of the 3rd round (with the selection of the Tampa Bay Lightning they acquired before free agency last year when Ryan Malone and Gary Roberts were shipped south), the Penguins chose winger Ben Hanowski, a Minnesota high school senior who will be going to St. Cloud State to play Division I college hockey this fall.



Hanowski, 6' 2", 200 lbs, was a wicked scorer at the high school level. With 405 points in his 4 years, he scored more points than any other player in the history of Minnesota high school hockey. Just this past season, for example, he had 57 goals and 110 points in 25 games. He was ranked 35th overall by NHL Central Scouting and, at least from that point of view, was a high value pick for Pittsburgh early in round 3.



I really like Hanowki's offensive potential. It will be good to see how he fares against stronger competition at the college level.



In round 4, the Penguins went back to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and picked right winger Nicholas Peterson from Shawinigan. Peterson, also 6' 2" and about 200 lbs, had 37 goals and 90 points in 68 games this last season.



In round 5, Pittsburgh had 2 selections. First they chose defenseman Alex Velischek, son of former New Jersey Devils defenseman Randy Velischek. He had 16 goals and 51 points in 30 games as a high school senior in New Jersey and will play at Providence College this coming season. He was ranked 63rd overall by NHL Central Scouting.



The Penguins chose Bathgate with their 2nd pick. Bathgate is a 6' 0" center who had 17 points in an injury-shortened 49 game season with Bellville in the Ontario Hockey League.



In round 6, the Penguins went back to defense and chose Victor Ekbom, a 6' 1" 190 lb defenseman from the swedish elite league.



The Penguins traded their 7th round and final pick of the draft to the Montreal Canadiens for their 6th round choice next season.



Overall, I'm relatively pleased with the Penguins' draft. Despres and Samuelsson are going to need a bit of work, but have the potential to be solid contributors at their position. I also really like Velischek. He should have a decent career at Providence College. Hanowski and Peterson are the scorers, and the Pens' need those in their system. They'll have different development paths -- one at a Division I school like Velischek, and the other through the junior ranks. Let's hope their potential manifests itself into top-6 forward positions for the Penguins in the long term.



Starting tomorrow, the focus shifts to free agency in this forum.



I'll give updates on the status of the Pens' key free agents -- including RW Bill Guerin, LW Ruslan Fedotenko and D Rob Scuderi, and talk a bit about who the Penguins may be targeting themselves come July 1.

The Penguins At The 2009 NHL Entry Draft

Envy is the word of the day for the Pittsburgh Penguins as they head into the first round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft tonight (7PM EST) in Montreal.

Not because they are front-and-center with draft day trade buzz, but because they have the draft pick everyone else would love to have.

And it's the last one in the first round.

Of course, that pick is reserved for a special team every season -- the one that just claimed the Stanley Cup, which is what the Penguins did 2 weeks ago tonight.

So, with their 30th overall choice in round 1 this evening, the Penguins probably won't make a big splash. I haven't heard a lot of talk of them trading the pick to move up (or down) and they don't seem to be involved in the large number of trade talks involving high-profile players throughout the league.

That aside, Penguins' Director of Scouting Jay Heinbuck will gladly make a choice after every other team has made one in the first round.

Especially after not picking until 120th last year, thanks to a series of trades over the prior 2 seasons where GM Ray Shero had moved Pittsburgh's first three picks.

This year, in addition to picking 30th, the Penguins will also choose #61 and #63 on Saturday. The Penguins own their own choice in the #61 hole, but own the pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the #63 hole thanks to the trade which sent Ryan Malone to Tampa last year just before free agency.

So basically, the Penguins will have a late first round pick, and two picks that might as well be considered to be at the back end of round 2. In those positions, the Penguins should be able to get some decent prospects, and they need to restock their cupboard a little bit after having only 4 choices overall last season.

If this draft from Heinbuck is anything like the 2007 draft -- where the Penguins landed solid prospects in almost every round: Luca Caputi, Alex Grant, Casey-Pierro Zabotel, Dustin Jeffrey, among others -- the Penguins will be in good shape.

While the Penguins will probably pick the best player available in round 1 tomorrow (and most of rounds 2-7 on Saturday, for that matter), I can't help but lean towards them stocking their system with a nice winger with their first pick.

Here's a list of players that either have been rumored to be on the Penguins' radar, should be on their radar, or both, and that may be around when they pick first:

- 6' 2" 200 lb LW Jordan Caron from Rimouski in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Caron had 36 goals and 31 assists for 67 points in 56 games last season. He's a decent 2-way hockey player who goes up and down the wing. He has a scoring touch and a phsyical element to his game, too.

- 5' 10" 190 lb RW Kyle Palmieri from the US Under-18 National Team. Palmieri has good offensive instincts and determination. He had 15 goals and 15 assists in 33 games for the National Team.

- 6' 1" 190 lb LW Jeremy Morin -- another guy from the US Under-18 squad. Morin is a pretty good goal scorer at his age. While contributing to the USA's gold medal at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Under 18 Championship, he had 6 goals in 7 games. With the National Team, he had 26 goals and 22 assists for 48 points in 46 games.

- 6' 3" 205 lb RW Carl Klingberg, who played for Frolunda in the Swedish Elite League last season. Klingberg is another physical player with offensive flair to his game.

- 6' 3" 230 lb RW Kyle Budish, a guy who suited up in the Minnesota High School Elite League last season. Budish is certainly a boy in a man's body, and uses that size to his advantage on the ice. He had a knee injury that wiped out a lot of last season for him and that may cause some teams to be hesitant about him, but the general consensus is that Budish can be an offensive impact player in the NHL. He had 14 goals and 13 assists for 27 points in 15 games last season.

All of these players are intriguing possibilities for Pittsburgh. In truth, though, there's a heck of a lot more guesswork which goes on when you're picking 30th than 3rd. So time will have to tell exactly who the Penguins add to their stable of propsects over the next few days.

Weekend updates to come.

Penguins Free Agency Update

In all the continued hoopla surrounding the Penguins' Stanley Cup Championship (and in all the continued hoopla surrounding my vacation last week), I neglected to say anything about last Thursday's annual NHL Awards ceremony.

No big deal really, since Pens' center Evgeni Malkin -- nominated for both the Hart Trophy as league MVP and the Lester Pearson award for MVP as voted by the players -- finished 2nd in the voting in both races, as expected, to Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin.

Fellow teammate Sidney Crosby was a nominee for a lesser award -- the Mark Messier NHL leadership award -- but he finished 2nd in that voting to Calgary Flames RW Jarome Iginla.

Crosby also was nominated for one other even lesser award, but I can't recall what. Whatever it was, I know he didn't win it either.

So, the Pens' came up empty in Las Vegas. It matters little, though. As Malkin said at the ceremony, he and the Penguins got the trophy that matters the most.

It was nice, however, to see head coach Dan Bylsma and Max Talbot carry the Cup out to the stage during the ceremony. That was a very nice -- and deserved -- moment in the spotlight for those two.

Okay. Free Agency. That's supposed to be where I'm going with this.

The Penguins will have several unrestricted free agents if not signed before July 1, the most notable of whom are:

Bill Guerin
Petr Sykora
Ruslan Fedotenko
Miroslav Satan
Craig Adams
Mike Zigomanis
Rob Scuderi
Hal Gill
Philippe Boucher

By all indications, the Penguins will probably end up severing ties with Sykora, Satan, Boucher and, perhaps -- depending on what happens with Scuderi -- Gill.

Satan is as sure of a goner as there is in the group. Boucher would be next, unless he takes a drastic pay cut, and even then, I think the Penguins might only be interested in keeping him if both Scuderi and Gill leave. Boucher's biggest problem -- aside from his annual 2.5 million dollar salary -- is that Alex Goligoski will have a lineup spot next season after signing his recent 3 year deal.

The Penguins will kick the tire with Craig Adams because he was a useful 4th line forward for them this past Cup run, but they are likely to try and keep Mike Zigomanis instead. There is mutual interest between Zigo and the Penguins, and Zigo should come pretty cheap.

The Penguins might also kick the tire with Sykora, but after his drastic fall off the map in the last 20 games of the season, they are unlikely to do so with any urgency. Sykora was even quoted (translated) in an article in a foreign publication recently as saying it may be in both his best interest and the Penguins' best interest that he moves on.

Sykora has been a mostly reliable contributor for the Penguins, so he will probably find someone else to sign with, given that he still scored near 25 goals this season for the 2nd year in a row. If he is unable to land elsewhere in the NHL, he can surely find a spot in the Kontinental Hockey League. It just doesn't look like he fits in with the Penguins anymore, however. Halfway through this past season, I would have never imagined me saying that. But under HCDB, Sykora doesn't seem to have as meaningful of a role. Skating isn't his strength. In short, he just doesn't fit into the team's new aggressive system all that well. And obviously, the team won the Cup without getting any real contribution from him, so they've shown they can move forward without #17 patrolling Geno's RW any longer.

Bill Guerin and Ruslan Fedotenko are the guys the Penguins will probably talk to the most leading up to July 1.

There was a rumor going around that the Penguins had already offered Fedotenko a 3-year deal worth 7.2 million, but that rumor is false. The Penguins have not offered Rusty a contract yet. And if they do, they would prefer it to be a 2-year deal. Either way, they'd probably look to keep the Tank's salary from last season -- 2.5 million -- about the same. I think the bigger questions with Fedotenko are the term of the deal (he would prefer 3 years, which Pens' GM Ray Shero is usually reluctant to give out) and whether he feels he can get more on the open market.

Time will tell if Fedotenko stays. Even though he had an average regular season, he was true to form in the playoffs -- upping his game when it mattered most consistent with his track record. That alone makes him valuable.

As far as Guerin is concerned, there's obviously a meaningful emotional attachment between him and the Penguins at this point. He still thinks he can play for 1 or 2 more seasons. I think it would certainly be worth trying him for 1 more season, but I'm skeptical about 2 more. Guerin was a good player for Pittsburgh since being picked up at the deadline but at his age, a team has to be careful how long you take on a contract like his.

I've heard varying things about the amount of money Guerin will seek. Most sources seem to indicate Guerin understands he'll probably have to take a fair pay cut from the 4.5 million he was paid this past season -- maybe to somewhere in the 2 to 2.5 million range. One source indicated that he wasn't taking a paycut like that "for anybody", but I don't believe that to be true.

Again, time will tell, but of all the Penguins free agents besides Zigomanis, I think Guerin is the most likely to stay. At least at this point.

The big wild card of free agency for the Penguins is Scuderi. And, I suppose, to a lesser extent, Gill, but again, he's only in this category because his fate is probably linked to Scuderi's.

The Penguins would, undoubtedly, love to have Scuderi back. He's the most reliable defensive defenseman they have and has really blossomed the last few seasons. While fellow blueliner Brooks Orpik has played more games than any other current Penguin, including Scuderi, Scuds has actually been with the organization longer, having been drafted in 1998. His career at Boston College and then several seasons in Wilkes Barre kept him from joining the Boys of Winter until about 6 to 7 seasons later.

The problem Pittsburgh has is that Scuderi has played so well -- especially in the post-season -- that he might have priced himself right out of Pittsburgh's range.

The Penguins would gladly keep #4 for around 2 million (and perhaps up to 2.5 million) per season. On the open market, however, Scuderi is likely to get 3 or 3.5 and, potentially by a terribly overpaying team, 4 million per season. The Toronto Maple Leafs signed former Colorado Avalanche free agent defender Jeff Finger to a 3.5 million dollar deal before last season and Finger was nothing more than an average NHL defenseman. If Finger could get that much, Scuderi certainly can, and I'm sure his agent is using that as ammunition. Regardless, the Penguins won't be able to afford any of those figures which is why I think that, if we get to July 1 and Scuderi hasn't been re-signed, he's as good as gone.

And I think that to be true despite the fact that Orpik tested the free agent waters on July 1 last year before re-signing with Pittsburgh. Make no mistake -- that case was the exception rather than the rule.

For Scuds, it's likely to come down to how much of a discount he's willing to take to stay with a team that is likely to be an annual contender, as opposed to taking a lot more money to go to, say, his hometown, and play with a rebuidling club like the New York Islanders who may not see the playoffs for the next 4 to 5 seasons.

Expect Orpik to talk with Scuderi (if he hasn't already) about why he decided to stay with Pittsburgh and forego additional money to do so.

Interestingly, it doesn't seem as if Shero has approached Scuderi or his agent yet. That could be a sign that the Penguins don't expect to be able to keep him. Again, time will tell.

As I said earlier, the only way I see Gill potentially coming back is if Scuderi leaves. I'd be shocked if he were signed before July 1.

As we get closer to July 1 (i.e., next week), I'll talk a bit about where the Penguins' are with their own free agents at that point, and talk about some of the players the Penguins may want to target in free agency themselves. I don't expect them to make any big splashes because of what they are up against with the salary cap, but there certainly will end up being a player or two they do add.

More later this week in advance of this weekend's NHL draft in Montreal. I'll talk about some of hte players I think the Penguins may be looking hard at --- as well as those they should be looking hard at. They don't have it easy picking 30th, but the bright side is that, when you pick 30th, that means only one thing.

You're the Stanley Cup Champions.

Who can complain about that?

March Of The Penguins

As the 2009 Pittsburgh Penguins still bask in the glow of being the first team in a quarter-century to lose in the Stanley Cup Final one year and come all the way back to claim the championship in the following season, there remain so many fresh memories of their amazing march to the Stanley Cup.

And make no mistake -- it was an incredible journey.

I mean, think about it. In mid-February, with the Penguins sitting in 10th place, there was legitimate concern in Penguin Nation about whether or not The Boys of Winter would even make the post-season.

At that point, the team had languished through 2 months of substandard hockey and gave everyone reason to think they'd just be the next entry on the list of teams that made a run to the Stanley Cup Final only to suffer a significant hangover during the next go-round.

To think that, once Dan Bylsma was hired, the team would go on an 18-3-4 run down the stretch, including a franchise-record 5-0 road trip that really galvanized the team's fortitude and confidence.

To think that they would rise all the way up to 4th place in the conference and claim home ice advantage in the 1st round.

To think that they would later become the first team to ever come back to win 2 playoff series' in one playoff season after going down 2-0 on the road in each.

It's been a remarkable ride this season boys and girls and, while I endeavor to still post a season-ending individual list of player grades, there's just too much to enjoy about the Penguins' Stanley Cup win to even get to that right now.

Here is a list of my favorite post-season moments that, like Katie Price lately, I just can't seem to get out of my head:

* The remarkable toe save Marc-Andre Fleury made on Flyers' center Jeff Carter in game 2 of the Pens' first round clash against Philadelphia, which put Bill Guerin in a position to win the game in extra time on an almost unheard of 5-on-3 power play overtime goal;

* Max Talbot making the first of a number of key post-season memories when he first picked a fight with Flyer tough-guy -- and former Penguin -- Daniel Carcillo to try and spark his team from a 3-0 deficit on the road in game 6, and then, even after losing the fight, put his finger to his mouth to hush a raucous Philadelphia crowd. Of course, he was just foreshadowing the Penguins' unanswered 5-goal run later in the game to send the Flyers to the golf course;

* The performance by Sidney Crosby throughout the entire 2nd round series victory over Washington, where #87 picked up his game and matched the league's best scorer, Alexander Ovechkin, goal-for-goal to help his team ultimately burst the bubble on Capitals' rookie netminder Simeon Varlamov by chasing him to the bench during a 6-2 victory on the road in game 7;

* Evgeni Malkin's hat trick against Carolina in game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals when he completed the tri-fecta by scoring what I believe was the goal of the post-season on a spin around, no-look, top shelf, short side backhander past a stuned Hurricanes' former Cup and Conn Smythe winning sieve named Cam Ward, completing a set play Bylsma simply called, "The Geno";

* Sergei Gonchar's huge game winning goal in game 3 against the Red Wings, which kept Detroit from putting a suffocating 3-0 stranglehold on the Stanley Cup Finals and only began the Penguins' rise up a mountain nobody thought they could climb;

* Jordan Staal's monster short-handed tally against Detroit in game 4, tying the score at 2 and sending the Penguins' on a rush of 3 goals in 5 minutes to overwhelm the Red Wings and tie the series;

* Staal's opening goal in the final home game of the season at a rowdy Mellon Arena -- game 6 -- which sent a message to the Red Wings that they weren't going to walk away with Cup on Igloo ice so easily for the 2nd year in a row, despite having walked all over the Penguins to the tune of a 5-0 game 5 triumph;

* Max Talbot dropping to his knees and pumping his fists after his 2nd goal on Red Wings' netminder Chris Osgood in the 2nd period of game 7, when Penguin believers started to see how real the possibility was that they might win the Cup -- and when Detroit faithful started to see how real the possibility was that their mighty machine might not win it;

* Marc-Andre Fleury making the "Secret Service Save" on one of the greatest defenseman in the history of hockey, Red Wings' D Nicklas Lidstrom, with 1 second left in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, sliding across the crease with 2 pushes of his left skate and lunging to stop his shot with his body like a U.S. Secret Service member would take a bullet for the President, and preserving the franchise's 3rd Stanley Cup Championship;

* Seeing Sid carry that Cup after 2 months of grueling hockey and completing a rise to the top of the hockey world nobody -- this writer included -- would have forseen a mere 4 months prior.

There's so much for me as a fan to be reflective on after winning the Cup -- I can only imagine what's it's like for the players.

And, as you think about it, you look back and realize everything that went into the team winning, including the contributions of those who are no longer with the franchise.

Like former GM Craig Patrick doing things like trading up to draft Fleury, signing Gonchar to a long-term contract coming out of the lockout, and hiring Michel Therein to turn around the culture of a team that needed an infusion of character and discipline. Like current GM Ray Shero bringing in respected veterans like Gary Roberts and Mark Recchi to help teach the team how to win.

Joe Starkey from the Pittsburgh Tribune Review did a great piece on this a few days ago, which can be found here:

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/penguins/s_630435.html

There's just so much that went into winning this Championship.

It's no wonder that 10 days later I'm still gushing over it.

I am, however, going to try to start getting past the Cup talk -- not so much because I want to, but simply because there are too many other things going on that need addressed. To do that, I'll offer tomorrow a bit of a free agent update for the Penguins at this stage, before focusing on the NHL draft for the remainder of the week and weekend.

A Few More Magical Moments

The Stanley Cup Aftermath

One week later and I still can't get over it.

The Penguins won The Stanley Cup again.

So often through the course of the day, my mind wanders back to game 7 ... the series ... the seemingly improbable chain of events which led to the Penguins' championship. Not because they were incapable of winning. Just because of how surreal of an experience it all becomes when it's actually happening.

Since I've been on vacation the last week, I haven't had the opportunity to post in detail about the game, the series and its aftermath, so that's what I'm going to do here. Before that, however, here are a few final pieces of note I want to share for those interested in more good reading about the Penguins' championship win:

http://www.tsn.ca/blogs/bob_mckenzie/?id=281728

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/penguins/s_629555.html

With those articles out of the way, let's work backwards and get to a few notable things which have happened in the aftermath of the Penguins' Cup title.

By now, I'm sure most have heard about the congratulatory call Penguins' HCDB (Head Coach Dan Bylsma) got from President Barrack Obama the other day. Good stuff there. I don't recall any past practice of a sitting U.S. President calling the head coach of the team that wins the Stanley Cup to congratulate him, but perhaps I've missed that over the years since the Penguins haven't been the team winning that beautiful trophy. Or perhaps Obama just wanted to reach out and make another connection to the city he is notably fond of, after having made a similar congratulatory call to Pittsburgh Steelers' owner Dan Rooney after the Steelers won the Super Bowl in February.

Obama also invited the Penguins' team to the White House in the fall. Can't wait to see that happen.

I read just a few days ago about how sickened the Washington Capitals and their coach were at the Penguins' Cup triumph. Word is that, in the 20 or so minutes after the game, Caps' head coach Bruce Boudreau got about a half dozen texts from his players talking about how upset they were and how they couldn't bear to watch. Boudreau admitted he felt the same as that group of players -- a group that included Alexander Ovechkin and Mike Green.

All I can say is -- F' em. Washington was beaten by the better team in that series.

Another great story that surfaced following game 7 was the inspirational text messages from Mario Lemieux after game 5 and before the deciding contest.

Some of you may have read about this in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette already, but for those who missed it, Lemieux apparently met the players as they came off the ice following their game five beating at the hands of the Red Wings and offered his support. He then immediately met with Blysma to send the same message -- basically, "we'll be okay". Bylsma was so uplifted by Lemieux's calming presence, he told Pens' GM Ray Shero about it on the flight back to Pittsburgh after the game.

An impressed Shero then texted Lemieux to thank him. Lemieux immediately responded:

"We are a family and in this together. We don't need anyone that is only with us WIN or TIE. I really think this is our year. Let's forget about tonight ... it happens. We will win Tuesday and win the Cup Friday."

Shero showed the response to Blysma. Bylsma asked if he could forward that message to all the players.

Lemieux agreed.

Of course, after that message arrived, a motivated Pittsburgh team put forth an immensely focused effort to bounce back and win game 6, 2-1.

Then, on the morning of game 7, Lemieux asked Blysma if he could send one more text to the team. Bylsma agreed. It said:

"This is the chance of a lifetime to realize your childhood dream to win a Stanley Cup. Play without fear and you will be successful. See you at center ice."

We all know what happened that night.

I'll tell you ... that story inspires ME. And I'm just a fan.

Great work there by the Penguins' owner and legend, #66. It was great to see him lift the Cup over his head again, wasn't it?

On the ice, I still can't get over the work the Penguins did to come back and win the series. They were just fabulous in the final 2 games.

They were especially good defensively. In game 6, they only allowed 26 Detroit shots. In game 7, with their season on the line, the Red Wings were only able to put up 24 shots.

This from a team that regularly posts 35+ shots per game. The Penguins did a great job limiting Detroit when it mattered most. In the last 2 games, they only got goals from the likes of Kris Draper and rookie defenseman Jonathan Ericsson. No Henrik Zetterberg. No Pavel Datsyuk. No Nicklas Lidstrom. No Johan Franzen. And certainly No Marion Hossa.

Again, just great work there.

Pittsburgh also did a great job in game 7 creating turnovers and being physical. Detroit had 25 giveaways in game 7; the Penguins had only 14. Meanwhile, the Penguins had a whopping 44 hits in that final contest.

In short, the Penguins stuck to their game plan. They were aggressive. They were physical. They skated. They just played their game.

And it paid off in a championship.

Let's give further credit where it's due.

Marc-Andre Fleury was outstanding in the final 2 games. This guy was ripped in many media outlets for a game 5 performance that was unfairly laid at his feet. I was somewhat critical of Fleury myself. He could have been better on a few (but not all) of the goals against in game 5, but more importantly, his overall play in the series had been lacking somewhat. He was real good in game 4, but the long and short of it for Fleury after game 5 was simple:

He was capable of so much more.

We had seen Fleury steal several games in the playoffs up to that point, but none in the final round.

Well, games 6 and 7 had Fleury's imprint all over them.

Fleury played some of his best hockey in those 2 contests when it meant the most. If that won't get critics off his back, I'm not sure what will.

Let's also give some credit to the Penguins' depth players because without them, the Penguins' wouldn't still be reveling in the franchise's 3rd championship.

While Evgeni Malkin had a good series against Detroit, Sidney Crosby was put on lockdown by the Red Wings, finishing the series with only 3 points. Neither he nor Malkin scored in the final 3 games. Yet, the Penguins -- almost incredibly -- still won 2 of those contests to take the Cup.

Mainly this had to do with guys like Jordan Staal, Tyler Kennedy, Rob Scuderi and one other guy.

What's his name?

Oh yeah.

The Gamer, as the guys have come to label him.

Max Talbot.

While Staal, Kennedy and Scuderi were huge for the Penguins in those last 2 games, nobody was bigger than the game 7 hero who scored both goals, Mad Max.

I still think back to how big his goals were. His first goal gave the Penguins an all important lead.

When he scored his top shelf 2nd goal for a 2-0 Pens' lead, I almost lost my mind. I couldn't believe he was coming through for the Boys like that.

I'll never forget Talbot going down to his knees and pumping his fists after that second goal.

Talbot really is a "Superstar". I guess those A&L Motors commercials were true after all.

(On a side note, think Max is getting in that girl's pants now? Ha).

Anyway, in the championship round, Talbot scored 4 goals (more than any other player in the final) and added 2 assists. He finished the post-season with 8 goals, 2 more than the guy who wore #18 in Detroit.

We remember him, right?

The guy who left our team after last season's loss in the Final just to play for the enemy because he thought they had a better chance to win the Cup?

How gratifying it was to see him on the wrong end of the handshake line again this year.

If there's any justice in this world -- boy, that was it.

F- Hossa.

The fact is, Hossa had a bad playoff. He had only 6 goals, and all of those came in only 3 of the Red Wings' 23 playoff games. More importantly, when the games were the largest, he came up lame. Hossa had only 3 assists in the final and was mostly invisible in each game. Obviously he was affected by the pressure surrounding him in that series, but it's a bed Hossa made for himself.

With the Penguins' victory, HCDB became only the 2nd coach to be hired in mid-season and lead his team to the Holy Grail, and I think he was the latest to do it -- having been hired in mid-February.

It's just amazing to see what Blysma did with the team after he took over. I know there isn't a single fan who ever would have imagined him leading the Penguins to the Stanley Cup.

Speaking of leading Pittsburgh to the Silver Chalice, let me talk about Geno for a second or two.

Malkin, the winner of the 2009 Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, was outstanding in this year's post-season, after coming up a little lame in the playoffs for the Penguins' when it mattered most the last few playoff seasons.

Malkin was consistent throughout the playoffs. He posted 9 points in each round and had the most points in one post-season (36) since Wayne Gretzky had 40 sixteen years ago.

Malkin also was the youngest player to ever win the Conn Smythe. And the first russian-born player to do so.

While Sidney Crosby led all post-season goal scorers with 15, Malkin clearly was deserving of that award.

Speaking of Crosby, many people will end up forgetting the job the Penguins did without him in game 7 after he took that hit from Red Wings' LW Johan Franzen on the near boards early in the 2nd period. He was so banged up after the hit that, despite taking injections and painkillers, he could only take one shift the remainder of the game and was completely ineffective out there in doing so.

Our Captain -- the guy with perhaps the greatest drivetrain in the league, despite what Detroit coach Mike Babcock says about Zetterberg -- had to sit and watch his teammates do the job for him in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.

Really, though, it was only more justice.

Crosby has done so much for the Penguins. It was only fitting that the other guys lifted him up and helped finish the job for him.

I will never forget the feeling I had when Crosby finally lifted that Cup.

Seeing him carry that thing, and then hand it off to veteran guys like Bill Guerin (who last carried the Cup 14 years ago) and Sergei Gonchar (who had never won it and, in fact, had been outsted at Detroit's hands on 2 prior occasions) was something I can't put into words.

It had to be especially sweet for Gonchar who -- it was revealed in the days after the victory -- had been playing with a torn MCL thanks to the knee-on-knee hit laid on him by Ovechkin in game 4 of the 2nd round against Washington.

Even seeing the young guys like Jordan Staal and Tyler Kennedy get excited carrying that Cup was fabulous.

I don't want to say it was a once in lifetime event because the Penguins are well positioned to compete for the Cup in future years, but ...........

In my 26 years of following this game, I know how hard the Cup is to win, and how special it is when you do carry it. It's the hardest trophy to win in all of sports, and that's one of the things that makes it the best. You have to put forth an immense and unparalelled effort to lift that 35 pounds of silver and nickel above your head.

Only the most deserving team gets to do it.

The Penguins were definitely that team this year.

Where they rose from and where they finished is one special story.

More in the coming days, including a few more photos and some other team news as we approach the draft in 6 days, and free agency about 6 days after that.

I'll end this the same way I started.

I still can't get over it.

The Penguins won the Stanley Cup.

Penguins Sign Alex Goligoski To 3-Year Deal

It's my every intention to write more about the 2009 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins but until I get back from vacation next week, I'm a bit hit or miss here. I'm getting things up when I can but otherwise, it's mainly just staying on top of the Penguins' news.

And there is news in Penguin-land.

Pittsburgh signed free agent defenseman Alex Goligoski to a 3-year, 5.5 million dollar deal yesterday.

GoGo had 20 points in only 45 games this past season, playing mostly when defenseman Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney were missing time with injuries. Once those guys returned, the Penguins' sent Goligoski back to the Baby Penguins mainly becasue they didn't have roster space for him at that point.

As Pens' GM Ray Shero said at that time, "we know he can play at this level".

And play at "this" level is exactly what Goligoski is likely to do next season, since the deal he signed is a one-way contract. He will almost certainly hold down one of the top 6 spots. The only question will be who the Penguins are going to be forced to let go -- unrestricted free agent Rob Scuderi or unrestricted free agent Hal Gill. Unforunately, one or both of those defensemen will depart this off-season.

Gosh I hope it's not Scuderi.

Anyway, with this deal, the Penguins lock up one of their very young players who has the potential to be a big offensive weapon for them on the backline. Goligoski will have to work on ihs play in his own end, but chances are that will improve over time.

More on the Stanley Cup Final in the coming days.

The Penguins And The Stanley Cup: A Photo Montage

Parade of Champions Set for Today

The party continues in Pittsburgh with the 2009 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins.

After beating the Detroit Red Wings 4 games to 3 with a thrilling 2-1 victory in game 7 on Friday night, the Penguins returned home to Pittsburgh and celebrated all weekend long, first taking the Cup to a few nightspots in the city on Saturday night, then to PNC Park for the Pittsburgh Pirates game on Sunday.

Today, the parade goes down at high noon where more people than I can count are sure to take over the downtown area.

Meanwhile, in the immediate aftermath of the Penguins' cup victory, it was revealed that defenseman Sergei Gonchar had been playing with a torn MCL ligament since the knee-on-knee hit he sustained at the hands of Washington Capitals star Alexander Ovechkin in game 4 of their second round series last month.

Defenseman Kris Letang was also said to be suffering from a meaningful shoulder injury, but the exact scope and extent of that has not been revealed.

Here are a few pieces of great reading from the last few days on the Penguins' monumental triumph, the Red Wings' dispair, and how the future looks for the Boys of Winter:

http://www.freep.com/article/20090612/COL22/90612087/1053/SPORTS05/Talbot+s+heroics+make+defeat+even+more+bitter+for+Wings

http://www.freep.com/article/20090612/COL01/90612091/1053/SPORTS05/Pitty+party++Hockeyfrowns+all+around+as+Cup+heads+to+Stanleyburgh

http://www.freep.com/article/20090614/COL08/906140437/1053/SPORTS05/Loss+will+haunt+Wings+but+make+them+hungrier

http://www.freep.com/article/20090614/COL01/906140479/1053/SPORTS05/Well-dressed++clean-shaven+no+way+to+end+it

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Playoffs/2009/06/13/9789896-ap.html

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Playoffs/Pittsburgh/2009/06/14/9796546-ap.html

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Playoffs/Pittsburgh/2009/06/14/9793886-sun.html

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Playoffs/2009/06/12/9783501-cp.html

With that, I'm signing off for now. I should have more in the coming days, including a small Stanley Cup Champions photo gallery, documenting some of the better pictures capturing the Penguins title victory and aftermath.

Stanley Cup Champions baby!

3 days later, it still isn't old.

PENGUINS WIN THE STANLEY CUP!!!!!!!!!!

The Pittsburgh Penguins are the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions.

With a 2-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings in game 7 at Joe Louis Arena, the Penguins captured the franchise's 3rd Cup.

Max Talbot scored both goals for Pittsburgh in the 2nd period and they held up behind 23 saves from goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury -- including a 10-bell save with 1 second left on Red Wings' defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom -- for the victory.

Evgeni Malkin captured the Conn Smythe trophy as playoff MVP, leading the post-season in scoring with 36 points.

The Penguins overcame a left leg injury to their captain, Sidney Crosby, in the second period, on a hit by Johan Franzen. He missed the rest of the period and, after returning for the 3rd period, only took one more shift. He was obviously favoring his injury and didn't hit the ice again for the reaminder of the game.

The Penguins' effort and determination was just fantastic these last few games.

The fact is, the Penguins deserved to win this series. They were the better team.

And, even though the Penguin players won't say it, they have to take pleasure in knowing that their win left 'The Traitor' with egg on his face, sitting on the Red Wings bench at the end of the game, once again without the Stanley Cup.

F-HOSSA.

With this series victory, the Penguins are only the 3rd team in the history of the National Hockey League to win a game 7 on the road.

Want another statistic? Pittsburgh is only the 2nd team in the history of the game to come back to win the Stanley Cup after losing the first two games on the road. They beat the Red Wings 4 of the last 5 games.

Another? They are the first team in the history of the NHL to do that TWICE in the same post-season, after doing the same thing to the Washington Capitals in round 2.

And, for one last note, they are the first professional sports franchise to win a game 7 on the road in the NBA, NHL, or MLB in 30 years, since -- of all teams -- the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates won the World Series in Baltimore.

I can't say enough about how proud I am of the Penguins.

Words don't describe it.

They were phenomenal.

And now, finally, deservingly, they get rewarded for it.

They get to have their names put on the most hallowed trophy in all of sports -- the Stanley Cup.

CHAMPIONS BABY!!

There's so much to digest with this win and I'll have more up here in the coming days, but it may not come as quickly, because I will be on vacation all of next week.

But rest assured, everyone in Penguin land should be basking in this for weeks and months.

I know I will be.

I believed.

The Penguins are the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions.

B - E - L - I - E - V - E

It comes down to this.


Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

One game.


One Trophy.


60 minutes to destiny.

You know, I've been following the Pittsburgh Penguins for 26 seasons, since I was 9 years old.

In my lifetime, I've watched thousands and thousands of hockey games on my television cheering for them.

Attended hundreds of games in person at the Igloo and gone on the road to see the Boys of Winter dozens of other times, too.


In all that time, I have never seen a game as important as the one that will be played tonight at Joe Louis Arena.


I will have never poured out as much heart and emotion as I'm sure to spill this evening.


I know I'll be profoundly affected by the result when everything is over.


I just don't know how or which way.


There really can't be any more game analysis at this point. About the biggest tactical mysteries surrounding game 7 are whether Red Wings coach Mike Babcock will again play Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk together, and whether Penguins coach Dan Bylsma will go back to playing 7 defensemen or reinsert Miroslav Satan into the lineup in the absence of Petr Sykora, who will miss tonight's game with a foot injury.


(Contrary to what I said yesterday, the foot apparently IS broken -- which means the report I read about the x-ray being negative was obviously false).


Otherwise, this series has been discussed ad nauseum. From the home/road storyline, to the Marion Hossa storyline, to the veteran vs. youth dynamic. It's all been covered.

At this point, it's even hard to find good articles about the game tonight -- one of the most incredible moments in sports. Here's about all I could come up with:


http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/michael_farber/06/10/Penguins.RedWings/index.html?eref=sixtra_newsletter061009


http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Playoffs/2009/06/11/9769171-cp.html


http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/columnist/allen/2009-06-11-finals-analysis_N.htm


So, at this point, I'm just left to watch.


To see how it unfolds.


To find out if Sidney Crosby will be the youngest Captain to ever lead his team to a Stanley Cup.


To see if the Penguins can buck so many of the odds and win as the underdog on the road in a championship game 7 tonight.


To watch the most important game in the history of the Pittsburgh Penguins franchise.


And in my lifetime so far.


Oh, and to do one more thing:

LET'S GO PENS!

Stanley Cup Final Game 7 Melting Pot

With an extra day before the pinnacle of this entire hockey season for the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Detroit Red Wings in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, there's much to talk about.

Going into this series -- and, of course, before last year's Final as well -- the Detroit Red Wings were the team with the experience. They were the team with the veterans. They were the team who had been there before.

Well, it looks like the Red Wings are finally in new territory.

While Mike Babcock has coached in a game 7 in his career -- in 2003, while an Assistant with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks -- Detroit only has one player to ever play in a game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Brian Rafalski is that player. He was on the New Jersey Devils when they beat Babcock's Ducks that year.

Nobody else has that experience. Not Kris Draper. Not Nicklas Lidstrom. Nobody else.

Meanwhile, on the Penguins' end, they have several players who have experience in a game 7 of the Finals.

Let's start with the birds' head coach, Dan Bylsma, who played on Babcock's Anaheim team in 2003.

Then there is his teammate, Petr Sykora, who also played in that game.

Sykora, by the way, who was in the lineup in game 6 for the first time since game 2 of the Penguins' Eastern Conference Semifinal against the Washington Capitals, is likely to miss game 7 with a foot injury he sustained while gamely blocking a big shot in the 2nd period of Pittsburghs' 2-1 victory Tuesday night.

X-rays were negative on Sykora, but he left Mellon Arena in crutches yesterday and had his foot in some sort of cast/walking boot contraption, and when asked if he would be ready for game 7, he said, "I don't think so".

Besides Bylsma and Sykora, Craig Adams also played in game 7, in 2006 while with the Cup-winning Carolina Hurricanes.

Then, of course, there's Ruslan Fedotenko, who not only played in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning, he scored both goals for them in a 2-1 victory.

So, as the Penguins prepare for game 7, it is they -- and not the Red Wings -- who have a little more to draw on. And they'll probably need it since, by most accounts, the odds are against the Penguins going into Detroit tomorrow night.

Of the 14 previous Stanley Cup Final series to have required a 7th game, only 2 of those series have seen the road team come out victorious. The last time it happened was in 1971 when the Montreal Canadiens did it.

That '71 Canadiens' squad -- as regular readers of this piece may recall -- were the only one of the 3 teams who have come back from losing the first 2 games of a Cup Final to win a series to have done it after losing the first 2 on the road.

In a bit of an ironic twist to all of that, the Penguins do have a few statistics going for them.

First of all, they have won each of their playoff series' this season on the road. First, it was a stirring 5-3 victory in game 6 in their opening round Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series against the hated Philadelphia Flyers after coming back from being down 3-0 in the game.

Then it was a 6-2 stomping of the aforementioned Capitals in game 7 of round 2 at the Verizon Center.

Next it was completion of a game 4 sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes at the RBC Center in Raleigh, NC.

The Penguins have more road victories by any team this post-season -- 6. The next closest team has 4. Detroit is one of those squads.

In addition to those statistics, the Penguins are 4-0 on the road in game 7 in their history. They've won 3 series' on the road against the Washington Capitals, including this year, and also prevailed over the Buffalo Sabres in the 2nd round in 2001 on a goal against one of the game's greatest netminders, Dominik Hasek, by -- of all people -- defenseman Darius Kasparaitis.

In overtime, no less.

I remember after that game someone made the crack that Kasparaitis doesn't even score in practice.

Great quote there. Like the one after game 6 Tuesday when Pens' defenseman Rob Scuderi cracked after blocking 3 shots from Red Wings forward Johan Franzen in the crease in the closing seconds that he was more of a stand-up netminder than a butterfly goalie.

Anyway, while none of the Penguins' previous game 7 road victories occurred in the Cup Final, the Penguins at least have that undefeated string going for them.

Speaking of having something going, one of the big questions going into this game 7 will be whether Marion Hossa will finally do that in the series-deciding contest.

Hossa, a 40-goal scorer in the regular season, has been pretty much a non-factor in the Stanley Cup Final. The fact that he jumped the Penguins' ship after last season to play with the Red Wings -- a team he felt had a "better chance to win the Stanley Cup" -- puts Hossa's awful performance to-date more under the microscope than it otherwise would be.

TSN Canada hockey analyst Ray Ferraro laid it on Hossa hard yesterday, saying "I can't remember a player coming up smaller in a big series".

NBC Analyst Mike Milbury -- asked during the 2nd intermission of game 6 what message he would give to the Red Wings if he were their coach -- said he would have called out Hossa and told him to stop letting everyone else carry the mail.

Tough words there for sure.

I must say, I've taken pleasure in seeing Hossa do just about nothing in the Final so far.

But there is one game to go.

If Hossa comes up large in game 7 Friday night, that's all everyone will remember, and it would be a cruel irony for Penguin fans indeed.

Although not as cruel as if the Penguins beat the Red Wings and forced Hossa to watch them carry the Stanley Cup in his team's building for the 2nd season in a row.

If that happens, I'd pay thousands just to be next to Hossa in the handshake line.

On the Pittsburgh side, they have a few players that they'd like to get going, too.

How about their Captain for starters?

Sidney Crosby has only 1 goal and 2 assists in this entire series, and no points in his last 2 games. He's obviously dealing with a load of focus on him from some of the Red Wings best players, but after his teammates led Pittsburgh to a game 6 victory, he has another opportunity -- one final opportunity -- to deliver and lead his team to the franchise's 3rd straight Stanley Cup.

I've said it before in these playoffs -- you have to believe this is the type of situation that Crosby was made for. His will and determination are second to none. Certainly, he hasn't put up the points in this series like he did in the previous 3, but when the chips are down, I'll take my chances with him.

Game 7 is also a chance for the other guy who has been pointless in the last 2 games to step up and lead the Penguins to the promised land.

That would be Evgeni Malkin.

If Malkin comes up roses in game 7 and the Penguins win the Stanley Cup, there's a good chance he'll take home the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. He's already clinched the post-season scoring title.

Malkin was great in the first 4 games of this series. The Penguins need him going again.

But perhaps more than anything else, the Penguins need to again do what I said they needed to do before game 7 of their 2nd round series against the Capitals.

They can't get too high. They can't get too emotional. They can't get caught up in the gravity of the moment or the fact that their lives are about to be forever changed for playing in a game 7 of a Stanley Cup Final.

They have to play their game. Do what they do. Not try to do too much.

It's important for the Penguins to dictate play to the Red Wings in game 7. Both of these teams play the same style and the team that is most successsful dictating the majority of the play will win. It's been that way all series and isn't going to change now. And the Penguins have done well when they dictate. In fact, a fair argument could be made that, while the series is even in games, the Penguins have been the better team.

The Penguins probably outplayed Detroit a bit in both games 1 and 2, but came away with 2 losses due to some unfortunate bounces off the back boards (that went in for Detroit) and posts (that didn't go in for Pittsburgh).

In games 3 and 4, Detroit got some of its game back, but the Penguins probably still controlled more play than Detroit did, especially in game 3. Obviously, the Penguins got the better goaltending in those games and went on scoring splurges that Detroit couldn't match.

Game 5 was really the only contest that the Red Wings had a clear one-up on Pittsburgh, and that was mainly one period (the 2nd frame) when the Penguins unraveled and lost their heads, The rest of that game was pretty even.

I don't think anyone would say the Penguins weren't the better team in game 6.

So, for all of that, the Penguins could already have won their final "Race to Four" of the season.

As it is, they have to settle for game 7. And if they keep doing what they're doing -- and get strong goaltending from their netminder, Marc-Andre Fleury -- they have as good a chance to win as Detroit does, despite the fact that they are an 0-fer in this series at Joe Louis Arena so far.

Not many observers think the Penguins can go on the road in game 7 and win. They will be the clear underdog going into the contest and, as I have said in the past, that can work to their benefit. There's a lot of pressure on the home team in a game 7. Certainly, a large majority of home teams have come through in the Stanley Cup Finals in the past, as I indicated earlier, but there are loads of examples of road teams being successful in game 7 because they have an "us against the world" mentality.

You go on the road. You do the simple things. You stick to your game.

While I don't believe the Red Wings will be easily frustrated if the Penguins do that and do it well, you never know because, again, this is new territory for almost all of them.

Regardless, dreams will be made on Friday.

Legends will be born.

And pictures will be taken.

Personally, I hope the Penguins get the one with their whole team in it.

Gameday post -- complete with the Filet-O-Fish -- tomorrow.

Let's Go Pens.

SEVENTH HEAVEN: Pens' Beat Detroit, 2-1, In Game 6 To Tie Series, Force 60 Minute Winner-Take-All Game 7 For The Greatest Trophy In All Of Sports

After more than 2,500 National Hockey League regular season and playoff games, the 2008/2009 season can be distilled down to a mere microcosm.

60 minutes.

A mere moment in time.

A mere splash on the landscape portrait of a career.

A game 7 in the Stanley Cup Finals.

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings will settle the question of who deserves to carry the greatest trophy in all of sports on Friday night in game 7 in Detroit, thanks to the Penguins' 2-1 game 6 victory last night in Mellon Arena that tied the Finals at 3-3.

Over the next 3 days, you'll hear a lot of statistics about game 7's, history, odds, and more.

For example, the game 7 in this series will represent the 15th time in NHL history that its championship series will have gone the distance, and the 5th time in this decade.

But there will be plenty of time for that.

For the time being, let's focus on the heart, will and determination the Boys of Winter showed with their season on the line last night.

The Penguins came out of the blocks in game 6 on fire, and controlled play for most of the first 40 minutes. In fact, they outshot the Red Wings 12-3 in the first period, and at about the 30 or so minute mark, they were outshooting Detroit 22-9.

But those numbers aren't to diminish the way Pittsburgh's goaltender, Marc-Andre Fleury, looked at the outset of the contest.

Fleury, criticized in many quarters -- including somewhat by this writer -- for his inconsistent play in this series, and in game 5, looked especially sharp early because, while the Red Wings only had 3 shots in the opening frame, all were strong scoring chances, including 2 by Detroit's best player in this series so far, Henrik Zetterberg, who Fleury stoned point blank when the game was still 0-0.

Fleury helped Pittsburgh capitalize on the momentum they had gathered by their physical and determined play all over the rest of the ice when Penguins' center Jordan Staal openend the scoring less than a minute into the 2nd frame.

Staal chipped a puck by Detroit defenseman Brett Lebda on the far boards, leading to a 2-on-1 with LW Matt Cooke against the Red Wings' other blueliner, Jonathan Ericsson.

When Ericsson went down to block the passing lane, Staal shot the puck high on Osgood, who made the inital save by left the rebound sitting in front of him. Staal wasted no time pouncing on it and burying it behind the Detroit goaltender to give Pittsburgh a 1-0 lead.

The Penguins held that lead for the remainder of the 2nd period thanks to a little puck luck when Zetterberg made a fabulous quick deke and shoot move with just 2 minutes left in the frame. Undettered by the checking and stick of Pittsburgh defenseman Hal Gill, Zetterberg clanged one off the iron to Fleury's right.

And unlike last year when a similar puck when off the post, off Fleury's backside and in, this one hit the pipe so square that it came back through Fleury's legs (and not to the waiting stick of linemate Pavel Datsyuk either) quickly before his backside even hit the ice this time.

The Pens' also had great chances in the frame too -- especially late -- which both LW Ruslan Fedtoenko and C Evgeni Malkin could not get by Osgood.

So, with the 1-0 lead into the final period, Pittsburgh's 3rd line -- easily Pittsburgh's best unit all night -- struck again 5 minutes in.

Fedotenko pinched a puck deep in Detroit's zone to keep it in the corner, where RW Max Talbot corralled it. Talbot, covered initally by Ericsson, suddenly drew Red Wings' all-world blueliner Nicklas Lidstrom to him as well.

Mistake.

Talbot capitalized on that odd-number situation by backhanding the puck behind the net to a waiting Tyler Kennedy who walked out toward the goal, somehow got Detroit' backchecking forward Mikael Samuelsson to veer off him to Osgood's right, then corraled the puck after losing it briefly and having it bounce off Osgood's stick and quickly shot it under Osgood's left arm and inside the far post to give the Penguins a huge 2-0 lead.

At this point, Detroit was starting to turn the play a little, and they got back in the game about 3 mintues later when veteran Kris Draper picked up a rebound in the slot that Fleury couldn't see because there were 4 players in front of him. Draper backhanded the biscuit into a mostly vacant net to keep the Red Wings close.

Detroit would get no closer, however, although not without 2 tense moments in the final minutes of the game.

With just under 2 minutes to go and the Penguins controlling the puck in Detroit's zone, the Red Wings tried to clear the puck past the blueline, where Pittsburgh defenseman Brooks Orpik was waiting.

Orpik hesitated a split second in deciding whether he should look to whack the puck back in or be safe and back off.

He chose to try and keep the puck in.

Orpik had enough room to do this, and he did get the puck up a little, but of all people, Datsyuk knocked it down, quickly corraled it and looked up to see teammate Dan Cleary having sped just a bit behind an already chasing Orpik and looking for the lead pass.

Datsyuk fed a perfect disc/flip pass to Cleary, who took the puck in stride in on a breakaway from 80 feet with Orpik steaming behind him.

Cleary bore in on Fleury, took a slash from Orpik, deked to the backhand and .....

FLEURY SAYS NO!!!

Cleary had his attempt swallowed up by a patient Marc-Andre Fleury to preserve the lead.

Orpik got away with his slash. Most other times this year, that would have been called. I suspect the officials were so caught up in the drama of the circumstances, they weren't even paying attention to something like that. Sure, if Orpik would have hauled him down, I'm certain it would have been called. But they seeminly neglected the slash without hesitation.

Perhaps it was fitting, since the zebras had -- again -- let so much go during the game. AND since they already whistled the Penguins for 2 third period penalties, which Pittsburgh's penalty killers valiantly shut down. In some ways it was justifiable.

Although not by the letter of the rules.

As if more drama was necessary, the Red Wings were pressing in the last 20 seconds and somehow managed to get the puck in the slot and crease. Fleury was out of position somewhat after hugging the post to stop a bad angle attempt and then the mad scramble was on.

Detroit forward Johan Franzen whacked at the puck several times but defenseman Rob "The Piece" Scuderi went down and blocked at least three of his attempts with his stick, shin guard and skate while everyone crashed the crease to try and basically push the pile -- if not the puck -- into Fleury's cage.

From the above-the-net replay, it looked like Scuderi may have been close to putting his hand on the puck in the blue paint, which would have been a penalty shot for Detroit, but the replays were not conclusive on that.

Then again, even if they were, I think the league tossed out that rule for the Finals this year, since Zetterberg basically did the same thing -- TWICE -- in games 1 and 2 and didn't get called for it either time.

Regardless, the puck stayed out. The Penguins and Fleury held on the goal line stand, setting up one of the more dramatic situations in sports --- a game 7 for the Championship.

http://www.freep.com/article/20090609/COL01/90609108/1053/SPORTS05/Pens+fight+off+elimination++force+Game+7+at+the+Joe

Fleury was just tremendous in game 6. He and the Penguins 3rd line basically won the game for the Penguins. Crosby and Malkin (and basically everyone else) came up empty, and it was the first time the Penguins have won a playoff game without a point from either of those two players.

After both were also scoreless in Detroit's game 5 shutout win over Pittsburgh, could that be a portent for the Penguins that #'s 87 and 71 are ready to break out and bring the Cup home to Pittsburgh with career-defining performances on Friday night???

We can only hope.

Either way, the contest that evening in Detroit will be the stuff dreams are made of.

How many kids play hockey when they are little and dream of scoring the winning goal in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final?

I know I did.

And thousands, if not millions of other children do the same thing in the United States, Canada and all over the World.

Whatever happens Friday night will be magical.

A one-of-a-kind -- maybe a one-in-a-lifetime -- experience for so many of the players and followers of these two teams and the sport in general.

A game where anything and everything can happen.

Stars can win it.

Grinders and role players can be the difference.

An unexpected bounce can decide it.

That's what game 7 is all about.

More previewing the game tomorrow.

Did someone say Filet-O-Fish?

Let's Go Pens!

I Don't Ever Want To Be In This Photograph Again ...

Those were the words of Pittsburgh Penguins' Captain Sidney Crosby, in a spot commerical the NHL prepared after last season's defeat in the Stanley Cup Final, where Crosby steps out of a still picture taken at the Pens' bench in the aftermath of the final game 6 buzzer.

Tonight, down 3-2 to the Detroit Red Wings for the 2nd straight season, Crosby and his teammates face another must win in the 2009 Stanley Cup championship round.

The alternative?

A re-take.

After another game 6 loss, in the same location.

And at the wicked hands of the same team.

Here's hoping that the Penguins don't host the Red Wings' Stanley Cup celebration for the second straight year because, frankly, I don't know that I can swallow that again.

A lot of thoughts are ruminating around the noggin this morning, not the least of which is how the Penguins are going to step up and bounce back in game 6 tonight at the venerable Igloo to force a 7th game in this series.

To do that, it's going to be up to the Captain to lead the way and make sure there isn't another one of those photographs.

Crosby simply needs to have the best game of his career tonight. There's no sugarcoating it. I'd say that whether or not he was a general non-factor for most of this series, which is exactly what he has been. But the fact that he hasn't been able to contribute thusfar like he can -- and like the Penguins need him to -- exacerbates the urgency for him.

His superstar cohort, Evgeni Malkin, was the one that was absent for much of the Stanley Cup Final this year. You can't say that about #71 this season. He's made his presence known in just about every game, while Crosby has been MIA in the way Geno was in 2008.

I'm not trying to be critical of Sid. As I have said earlier in this series, Detroit coach Mike Babcock has basically assigned three players -- including 2 of the best on his team and in this game, Henrik Zetterberg and Nicklas Lidstrom (and Brian Rafalski) -- to shut Crosby down. They've done that pretty well, but at the expense of contributing offensively, which obviously hurts Detroit's cause. And that speaks volumes to the type of threat Crosby is.

But in games like this, when all the chips are down, the best players find a way. Crosby has to channel his emotion, his will to win, and his fear of being in that photograph again onto the ice tonight into goals and points for his club.

The other guy the Penguins desperately need to perform at the top of his game for as long as this series continues is their goaltender.

Joe Starkey of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review wrote about this yesterday. He said that Fleury wasn't the reason the Penguins are down 3-2 to Detroit at this point. He said that Fleury wasn't the problem. But he then said that Fleury could be the reason why they win. He said Fleury could be part of the solution.

I agree in part with Joe. He definitely can be part of the solution. He CAN be the reason why they win the Stanley Cup.

But I'm not sure he's completely without fault in putting the Penguins in the position they are currently in.

Make no mistake. Marc-Andre Fleury has had a good playoff so far -- obviously good enough to help get Pittsburgh to where they are -- but not a great one, and I say that without hesitation. Throughout the Penguins' entire playoff run, which spans 23 games now, I can think of 4 contests in which I believe Fleury was truly the difference: Games 2 and 4 against the Philadelphia Flyers, and games 1 and 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes.

That's not good enough. The playoffs are the time when goaltenders need to steal games. Fleury hasn't done that nearly enough this post-season, and his statistics reflect as much. He certainly hasn't played at the level of netminding that Tom Barrasso gave Pittsburgh the last time they won Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992. Barrasso could easily have won the Conn Smythe Trophy both of those seasons.

Even if the Penguins win the Cup, Fleury isn't Conn Smythe worthy.

But he can validate his status in the league as a Cup Winner -- a la Cam Ward in Carolina -- with 2 more victories. I mean, let's face it. If Fleury wants to be recognized as one of the top goaltenders in the National Hockey League, this is the time to show it. This is the time to step up and slam the door. He's certainly capable of it. He CAN steal games. But the best playoff goalies in the history of this game, from Patrick Roy on down the line, do it when it matters most.

There are few greater opportunities to show that than the one facing Fleury right now.

Like Crosby, Fleury has to have his best game of the season tonight.

From a coaching standpoint, there was some talk circulating yesterday that coach Dan Bylsma might make a few lineup changes. Mainly, this speculation surrounded whether RW Petr Sykora might get back in the lineup in place of either RW Miro Satan or C Craig Adams, both of which haven't really had any meaningful impact in this Stanley Cup Final so far.

There also was an interesting rotation at times among the Penguins' defense pairings at practice yesterday. Hal Gill took some turns out of the top-6 rotation paired with Alex Goligoski. Philippe Boucher took his place and skated with Mark Eaton, while Rob Scuderi skated with Kris Letang.

Personally, I doubt there will be any changes on the backline. Bylsma might put Sykora in the lineup, but I'm not sure why. After this much time off, it's hard to imagine him being that effective. At this point, whether you play him or play Satan, it's probably a wash. Maybe you try it just for a different look, but otherwise, you can't expect any real impact there.

If there's one tactical change I might make if I were Bylsma, it would be to double shift Crosby and Malkin more often -- like he did when he dressed seven defenseman all of the last round and in games 1 and 2 of this series.

You don't have to actually dress 7 defenseman to do that. If you want to double shift them, you can still do that by dressing 12 forwards. It just means that you staple Pascal Dupuis or Adams to the bench more often. With 2 days between games and the little extra rest that comes with that, not to mention with what's at stake, there's no reason not to give Sid and Geno extra ice time.

At home, it will be easier to try and get Crosby away from Zetterberg -- who will probably have Pavel Datsyuk on his wing again tonight -- but if you double shift him or Malkin, you're at least increasing the chances of having them on the ice opposite other Red Wing players, regardless of how much Detroit coach Mike Babcock tries to match the lines. In other words, it might allow Bylsma to get the matchups he wants without trying to force them all game.

One other storyline being thrust back into the spotlight somewhat tonight is the fact that The Traitor is on the verge of validating his decision to abandon his Penguin teammates in the off-season to play for the enemy because he thought they'd have a better chance of winning the Cup.

The thought of that alone is enough to make me vomit.

Violently.

35 million times -- once for each dollar he turned down from Pittsburgh to sign a deal worth less money to play for the hated Red Wings.

Marion Hossa's words in the off-season stung me and Penguin fans all over the world. The last thing any of us really want to face is the possibility that Hossa was right.

And let's be frank --- I don't want to see him carry that Cup at all. Not tonight. Not Friday night. While the Penguins' season is on the line tonight, it will be on the line all the same in a game 7 if they prevail this evening. Which means that all of the players under the gun for the Penguins -- including some I haven't mentioned, like key support players Bill Guerin, Chris Kunitz and Ruslan Fedotenko -- have to be at their best for 2 straight games.

That's what it's going to take.

There are, at most, 2 games left in the season.

The Penguins must win both.

I believe.

Which leads me to a MoJo story. Nothing new for some Penguin fans, really, but something I don't think I've ever mentioned in this space.

Back in February, right around the time Dan Bylsma was hired and the Penguins turned around their game this year, McDonalds started a silly commerical for their Filet-O-Fish sandwich, with 2 guys who didn't say a word in the entire commerical and a catchy jingle sung by a mounted fish on the wall.

Because that commercial got a lot of play during Penguin games -- and because it started when it did -- many Penguin fans, myself included, started to attach some MoJo to it and how the Penguins were playing. I have it reflected in a simple picture, that I'll post here and close with:

Recap tomorrow .................... setting the table for game 7. LET'S GO PENS!

MOTOWN MELTDOWN: Red Wings Power Play Puts No-Discipline Penguins On Brink With 5-0 Game 5 Loss

Going into game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins last night at Joe Louis Arena, the game tally was an even 2 games a piece.

After game 5, the composure tally is also now even, although the series scoreboard is not.

The Detroit Red Wings were the veteran team playing with the composure and poise of a defending Stanley Cup champion in game 5 last night, while the Penguins lost their grip on being a disciplined club in control in the 2nd period.

And, by extension, lost their posture in the series.

At least for now.

The Red Wings rode 3 power play goals (tying an NHL record) to a 4-goal 2nd period outburst in embarassing the Penguins, 5-0, to take a 3-2 series lead after game 5 last night.

Game 6 is Tuesday night in Pittsbugh (8 PM EST).

The Penguins started off game 5 last night well enough and had a solid opening 10 minutes (save for a poorly executed power play). After that, things went downhill, beginning later in the first period when Dan Cleary took a pass from Pavel Datsyuk -- who returned from nursing his fractured foot for the last 7 games -- and beat Pens' netminder Marc-Andre Fleury by flipping an unexpected shot by him from 45 feet.

That was a bit of an indication of how the night would go for Fleury, who probably would (or should) have liked to get that one back the moment it sailed by him.

That was pretty much how the first period finished, with Pittsburgh down 1-0, but very much in the game.

That all changed faster than you could say "lack of discipline" in the 2nd period -- a frame the Penguins, looking back, would have done just as well to not show up for at all.

Detroit capitalized on a Penguins' line change just a few minutes into the frame when Red Wings' goaltender Chris Osgood passed the puck up the boards 120 feet to RW Marion Hossa, who ducked into the zone and found a streaking Valterri Filppula in the slot ahead of a chasing Penguins' defense.

Filppula deked to the backhand and, while Fleury stayed with him very well, Filpulla somehow managed to sneak the puck between #29's legs to give Detroit a 2-0 lead.

Minutes later, while on the power play, Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall --down behind the Penguins' goal line of all places -- took a pass, then took advantage of the path right to the slot which the Penguins' defense decided to make for him, before beating an overcommitting Fleury high to give the Red Wings a 3-0 lead.

Then the wheels really fell off for Pittsburgh, and they were the team who showed the same frustration that the Red Wings showed in game 4 in Pittsburgh.

The Penguins took several needless penalties and, with the precision of a surgeon, the Red Wings wasted no time making them pay.

Defenseman Brian Rafalski capitalized first, beating an easily screened Fleury with a wrist shot from the point to make it 4-0. Fleury was trying to look around Red Wings' LW Tomas Holmstrom on one side at the same time Rafalski wristed the puck to the opposite side of the net.

Then, Henrik Zetterberg took a cross ice pass before wheeling uncontested one step into the circle and beating Fleury high to the glove side for another power play marker to make it 5-0.

Fleury was pulled after that in favor of backup Mathieu Garon to give him a chance to refocus for game 6, but other than that -- and aside from several other undisciplined penalties by the Penguins, including a bit of a slash Penguins RW Max Talbot laid on the injured left foot of Datsyuk that's going to be talked a bit about but really was no big deal -- the game ended with the in-control Red Wings again one win away from claiming the Stanley Cup heading into game 6 in Pittsburgh on Tuesday night.

A lot is going to be made of Pavel Datsyuk's return in this one, but I'm not sure how much of a big deal it was. For example, ESPN analyst Barry Melrose couldn't stop gushing about his man-crush on Datsyuk and what he means to Detroit after the game, but while Datsyuk had 2 helpers and was plus 2, I don't believe he did anything too special out there. Many other players could have made the passes he did. If anything, he was an emotional lift for the rest of his team, but otherwise, I don't think he had an overwhelming impact.

Much will also be made of the veteran Red Wings, and how they bounced back to show the "young" Penguins that they have a lot to learn.

Credit Detroit if you want, but the real story of the game was the Penguins' unraveling themselves in the 2nd period. And frankly, it was hardly different than what Detroit did game 4.

It was just the Penguins' turn.

And in truth, there may be a silver lining in that for Pittsburgh. This may be an optimistic take, but the reality is that the Penguins only played one bad period last night -- the 2nd one. It easily was enough to cost them the game, but they did more to shoot themselves in the foot than anything else. Detroit took advantage of that, of course -- as any team at this level should -- but it remains true that Pittsburgh did as much to hand themselves the loss last night than Detroit did to deliver it to them.

Pens' coach Dan Blysma won't have a hard time selling his team on the fact that they simply lost their game last night -- nor should he. The players will know that. Things collapsed for them in the 2nd period last night, then the boys showed frustration. Understandable. They just have to get back to their game. They know they didn't play Penguins' hockey last night, and know they are capable of much more.

I'd almost rather go down the way the Penguins did last night then lose a tough, 2-1 double overtime contest. This one is easier for the Penguins to toss out like yesterday's newspaper -- which is exactly what they should do.

And I think they will.

I certainly don't think Fleury is going to come out and allow 5 goals on 21 shots again, like he did last night.

Nor do I think Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are going to finish game 6 with a combined 2 shots between them, like they did in game 5.

Of course, the Penguins are going to need big contributions from other players besides those 3, but with their season on the line in game 6, I'm sure all will come up with better performances.

Of the last 19 times a Stanley Cup Final has been tied after 4 games, the game 5 winner has gone on to win the Cup 11 times in game 6. On five occassions has the game 5 loser prevailed and taken home the Silver Chalice in 7 contests.

I count on Pittsburgh to bounce back in is own raucous barn in game 6, then leave everything on the ice as the no-pressure road club in a winner-take-all game 7 in Detroit Friday night.

B - E - L - I - E - V - E ! ! !

Let's Go Pens'

More tomorrow.