Who Will Be Ready To Close Out The Series After Game 5?

As the Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens ready for a huge game 5 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series tonight at Mellon Arena (7:00 PM EST, VERSUS) one thing is undoubtedly certan.

After tonight, one team will be poised to close out this series in six games.

Who that team is and who's in the best position to do that, however, remains anything but.

In a tennis-like back-and-forth feel, it would appear that this series currently favors the Habs.

After all, nobody expected them to defeat the league-leading Washington Capitals in the first round, and certainly, nobody expected them to have things even with the Penguins after 4 games.

But Les Habitants are playing good team defense, scoring opportune goals, and getting very solid goaltending from Jaroslav Halak.

Meanwhile, the Penguins are being outscored 5-on-5 in this series and, despite dominating significant stretches of play in this series, haven't done better than draw even with the Habs where it matters most -- winning.

Beyond those small details, Montreal is coming off a big game 4 win behind their home crowd, so they have momentum going on the road -- where they've played well, and the Penguins, at Mellon Arena, have not been nearly as intimidating.

Moreover, the Canadiens have done a good job limiting the production of both of the Penguins' top players, centers Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, both of whom are still -- incredibly -- looking for their first even strength point of this series.

But all that aside, the confidence of at least one person in the Penguins isn't shaken.

Who's that, you say?

Me.

The Penguins have gone through a lot the last several seasons and are not easily rattled. They are used to being in tight series'. And winning them when things look bleak.

Pittsburgh also has an extremely strong resolve. They know what to do when challenges arise, and don't blink in the face of them.

Becoming the first road team in almost 40 years to win a game 7 on the road in any sport will do that to a group.

Tonight's game undoubtedly has significant implications on the rest of the series, and will go a long way to determining whether Montreal pulls off another immense playoff upset this year, or is just another example of the character we have all seen regularly in Pittsburgh when the chips are down.

I, for one, am going to be in the building tonight, looking forward to seeing the Boys of Winter do what they do best.

Play like the champions they are.

Recap tomorrow.

Let's Go Pens!


NOTES:

It is believed that RW Bill Guerin will return to the lineup tonight after missing games 3 and 4 of the series with what is believed to be an infected elbow. It's also possible that forward Mike Rupp, who missed game 4 with a 'non-hockey-related' injury, may also return. If one or both get back in the lineup tonight, look for forwards Ruslan Fedotenko and/or -- perhaps -- even Alexei Ponikarovsky to go to the press box. If Poni is a healthy scratch, it would be a starting, but not entirely unjustifiable, tumble for GM Ray Shero's marquee trade deadline aquisition, who has only 3 goals since joining the team in March and hasn't performed even close to capably while playing alongside one of the league's best centers in Malkin.