Pittsburgh Penguins: A Look Back at a Successful Season

On September 28, 2008, Dave Molinari wrote the following in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette : "Don't get the wrong idea. History doesn't completely rule out the possibility of the Penguins winning the Stanley Cup in 2009. It just comes awfully close."

The 2009-2010 season started with commemorating the victory that many, including Molinari, called improbable, if not impossible.

The raising of the Stanley Cup banner minutes before the first game of the season was the last time a banner would be raised into the aged rafters of Mellon Arena.

It was an emotional time for players and fans, remembering the previous miracle run with the knowledge that this was the last season for Old Lady Mellon.

Hopes were especially high that the Pens could repeat and kick off the new Consol Energy Center with a second consecutive banner raise.

Those hopes were kept very alive as the Pens went 11-3 in the month of October. 

It was official: The Stanley Cup hangover was a non-factor for the Pens.

The improbable began to look possible once again.

While the 2009-2010 team looked very similar to the team that won the Cup, some changes had been made, including the loss of defensemen Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill, backup goalie Mathieu Garon, and wingers Petr Sykora and Miroslav Satan. Additions included defensemen Alex Goligoski (permanently promoted from the AHL) and Jay McKee, backup goalie Brent Johnson, and winger/grinder Mike Rupp.

From top to bottom, the Pens started their season where they left off, with goalie Marc-Andre Fleury playing strong in net, in front of a solid backup in newly acquired Johnson.

McKee jumped into his role as a defensive defenseman with his knack for blocking shots and defensive smarts. Goligoski looked as if he could eventually take Gonchar's place, not only on the power play, but as an overall defenseman who can play on both ends of the ice.

Play up top was expected with the big names that make up the center positions, but what was most impressive was the level of play from the rest of the offense.  Tyler Kennedy, Mike Rupp, Pascal Dupuis, and Craig Adams were playing beyond what I expected from them with improvements in their game that made huge differences on the ice.

But then things started to go bad.

The high-energy Penguins started to go flat as injuries began to build, along with a diminishing desire to win.

The injuries became almost a laughing matter as Martin Skoula, a seventh defenseman acquired at the end of September, became one of the top two defensemen because of the injuries sustained on the rest of the back line.

With the losses and injuries continuing to pile up, it looked as if the Pens were falling apart.

It was an unusual lull that many were not used to seeing after head coach Dan Bylsma took over the team almost a year ago. Even stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin found themselves in major slumps at the worst times for their team.

But just a month shy of the Olympic break, the Pens started to find their stride.

Players were returning after extensive injuries and were finally playing at a tempo that looked like the team was finding its beginning-of-the-season form.

Unfortunately, the progress halted with the start of the Olympic Games. Fortunately for them, that didn't matter, as everyone, save Fleury—who started the final leg of the season with some shakiness in net—came back with an edge.

Certain players, such as Pascal Dupuis, Jordan Staal, and Sidney Crosby, were stepping up their game more than ever, and it seemed like the team was ready for another long playoff run.

However, I couldn't help but notice that the fire that was so present in the team at the end of the 2008-2009 season simply wasn't there.

Some analysts pegged this problem as team injuries that didn't fully heal or overall exhaustion after making two playoff runs to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Regardless of the reason, it showed.

Despite this, the Pens ended the season with 101 points, an impressive feat for any team coming off a Stanley Cup win.

In the awards department, Crosby sealed the Rocket Richard Trophy in his final game and was nominated for the Hart and Lindsay Trophy. Staal also received a nomination for the Selke Trophy.

Again, very impressive, but it wasn't enough.

The Pens entered the playoffs confident but lost their first game to the Ottawa Senators. They rebounded by winning the next three and closing off the series in six.

It wasn't the Pens' best performance in the series, but it was enough to give them another chance at the Cup.

The Montreal Canadiens, after upsetting top-seeded Washington Capitals, had other ideas and were able to successfully trap their way past the Pens to make it to the Eastern Conference Final.

Many viewed it as a stunning defeat, but I beg to differ.

The result may not have been expected, but the Pens were not playing in a way that demonstrated a desire to win the Cup. Any time they led the series, it was by no means a definite lead.

There was something off on the team, and the only thing I can point to is the lack of desire to win that cost them the series.

To me, finding the right time to turn on the heat will be key to the Pens bouncing back in the 2010-2011 season.

They will also need to address some problems on defense. The loss of Scuderi and Gill certainly hurt the Pens.

They also need to find a way to beat the trap system. Going 0-6 against the New Jersey Devils was one of the most disappointing aspects of the Pens' season, and their inability to play against the system in the playoffs against Montreal obviously lost them the series.

Individually, no one will need a stronger season than Fleury, who had seen better days in the playoffs.

While he was a brick wall certain days, others showed that he couldn't stop a beach ball.

He received some flames for this, but he wasn't able to prove his critics wrong like he's done in recent years.

Overall, this was a great season for the team. Though fans would have rather sent off the Mellon Arena on a more positive note, rather than the embarrassing Game Seven loss to the Canadiens, this is a season I hope the Pens look back on and see how much they managed to accomplish.

They were able to remain in playoff contention while half the team was injured.

They took their series in the Eastern Conference Semifinal to seven games after playing in the Stanley Cup Finals for two consecutive seasons.

July 1st is creeping upon us, and I don't foresee any major changes coming to the team, despite what many analysts are claiming.

But who knows what General Manager Ray Shero has up his sleeve.

Shero has shown his worth in the offseason, and I don't expect him to let the organization down this upcoming season.

However, I do expect to see a turn around in both attitude and play in the Pens after this long and well-deserved summer break.