Penguins vs. Lightning: The Biggest Takeaways from Pittsburgh's Series Win

The Eastern Conference Final between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning had more plot twists than a Stephen King novel. Injuries, brilliant performances by impact players, tremendous moments by obscure role players—and a win for the Penguins in a highly anticipated Game 7.

The Tampa Bay Lightning were trying to get to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in history and the second year in a row. The team had significant injury issues, playing without Ben Bishop, Anton Stralman and Steven Stamkos for some or all of the series.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were in the finals two years in a row (2008 and 2009) but haven't been back since winning it all in 2009. The club has had its share of injuries—notably to Trevor Daley—but overcame them with a strong forward group and massive minutes from Kris Letang.

The series offered fans an abundance of great plays and seven compelling games. Two evenly matched teams took things right down to the wire, and now Pittsburgh moves on, while Tampa Bay goes home.

Here is a look at what we found out in the last 10 days and some questions for both teams moving forward.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Tireless Kris Letang

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

The Penguins have an all-world forward group, but the defense had some issues before the injury to Daley. Fortunately for Pittsburgh, brilliant two-way talent Kris Letang is healthy and capable of playing half the game.

Letang played almost 28 minutes a night during the series against Tampa Bay and has averaged nearly 29 minutes during the entire playoffs.

His time on ice ranks among the league leaders in the postseason and is No. 1 among defensemen still playing this spring.

It is a testament to Letang's value that he is playing heavy minutes at even strength and on both special teams units.

Perhaps the best way to describe his importance is to compare him to the other right-handed defenders on the Penguins. Letang's 28 minutes and 46 seconds a game towers over the averages of Ben Lovejoy (16:57) minutes Justin Schultz (13:03).

As valuable as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are, with the injury to Daley and the overall lack of depth on defense, Letang is probably the most important player on the team at this time.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Jonathan Drouin, Rising Star

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

If you wrote the script for Jonathan Drouin's career, chances are no one would believe it. A frustrated young man asked for a trade near the end of January—Michael Traikos of the National Post had the story— and was looking at an early career crossroads.

Since then, Drouin returned to the organization, forced his way into the lineup and emerged as a bona fide impact player during this spring's playoffs.

During the series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, he scored four goals and moved the offense forward effectively.

Drouin's brilliant individual efforts this spring gave Tampa Bay life time after time. His goal in Game 7 got the team back on even terms, and he remained dangerous all night.

His overall performance during the postseason saw him approach point-per-game status and bodes well for his future. The Lightning may have been tempted to grant his trade wish in mid-winter, but at this point, he is a major part of the future of hockey in Tampa Bay.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Great Production from Depth Players

Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

The hero of Game 7 for the Penguins was Brian Rust, who scored both goals in a 2-1 win. His contribution—massive as it was—reflected the heroics by role players on the Pittsburgh roster.

It all started when goalie Matt Murray seemingly came out of nowhere to settle the position. His outstanding play allowed Pittsburgh to wheel offensively and covered up mistakes made by a patched-up blue line that suffered injuries throughout the spring.

Brian Dumoulin is in his first full season of NHL action and has been forced into a feature role. He averaged nearly 19 minutes a game during the regular season but is taking on more duties—almost 21 minutes and tougher competition—on a team headed for the Stanley Cup Final.

The Penguins have two of the best players in the game, and giving credit where it's due, both Crosby and Malkin skated miles in the series.

With that said, Murray, Rust, Dumoulin and the cast of no-names who stepped up in this series made a major difference.

Tampa Bay Lightning: What If the Team Had Been Healthy?

Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

The disappointment for the Tampa Bay Lightning—fans, team and management—has to be overwhelming. In reality, the team played extremely well when considering how many important roster players were injured for some or most of the series.

Starting goalie Ben Bishop played 12 minutes of the entire series, Anton Stralman missed a game and took a couple more to get into playoff-level shape. Steven Stamkos played in the final game but was not effective.

It's easy to make excuses, and by this point in the NHL playoffs, every team has a mountain of injuries. What is different about the Lightning's injuries is the importance of each player to the team. It is basically impossible to lose a No. 1 goalie, top-pairing defender and impact sniper, and perform at a level that reflects the same quality.

Those injuries robbed Tampa Bay of a full shot at the title.

If those three men had been able to play every game of the series, the results of the Eastern Conference Final may have been different.

Pittsburgh Penguins: The Turning Point

Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

In a moment that properly reflected a very close series between two evenly matched teams, the winning goal in Game 7 was scored on a play that featured all-out effort, hard work over skill and a little luck.

Lightning sniper Jonathan Drouin scored at 9:36 of the second period on a dandy play. He came across the middle of the ice in the high slot, waited out the defender and sent a stunning shot high into the Pittsburgh net.

For Tampa Bay, which had trailed in the game for about eight minutes, getting back to even offered it an opportunity to reset and push for the next goal.

Thirty seconds later, the scoring for the evening was completed on what was basically a nothing play.

Penguins defender Ben Lovejoy was at the right point with the puck and attempted to get a shot through to the net. It missed badly, but the puck bounced dangerously near the crease. Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy could not get a handle on the puck and did not get into the classic defensive posture for a goalie on the play.

Rust did what any good forward would do in that situation—shovel at the puck and hope it goes in. When the referee pointed to the net indicating a goal, the series was over for all intents and purposes.

A grand series with two evenly matched teams ended with a win for the stronger team in Game 7.