2008 Stanley Cup Finals: Game Five Preview

The age old cliche holds as true today as it did when the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs erased a 3-1 deficit to beat the Detroit Red Wings in three consecutive games to win the Stanley Cup: It ain't over 'till it's over.

Or you could say, "the fourth win is the hardest to get."

No matter how you look at it, the Detroit Red Wings have everything to lose over the course of the next six days. Win one game, and claim your fourth Stanley Cup in 11 years. Lose three games in a row, a seemingly unlikely outcome, and watch your dreams fall by the wayside.

Tonight, everything that the Penguins have achieved this season means nothing. The second place Eastern Conference finish, the 17 game home unbeaten streak, the near 70 consecutive home sellouts, Malkin's MVP worthy season, the Prince of Wales Trophy: They all mean nothing.

Tonight is about one thing: winning. As of right now, there is no Game Six. There is no Game Seven. There is only now, and now will determine whether the Penguins will live to play another day, or see their season end short of their ultimate goal.

When you woke up this morning, it finally hit you. After tonight, you may not get to see your beloved Flightless Birds taking the ice again until October.

You may have to watch Lidstrom, Zetterberg, Osgood, Datsyuk, Holmstrom, and the other Wings hoist Lord Stanley's chalice while the stunned faces of Crosby, Malkin, Staal, Gonchar, Fleury, and the other Penguins look on in disgust.

There are those who have already abandoned ship. No team can beat the Red Wings three consecutive times, they say.

Then, there are those who are satisfied with what these young Penguins have accomplished thus far. Eastern Conference Champions is hardly a disappointing season.

While those two mindsets may not be entirely wrong, they are hardly entirely right.

Nothing is lost yet. Being crowned Eastern Conference Champions is not a disappointment. However, to come so close only to give up just doesn't seem fit.

Tomas Holmstrom will be back in the lineup for the Wings tonight. The Penguins surely did not miss his physical presence in front of the net in Game Four.

The Penguins have recalled defenseman Alex Goligoski from Wilkes-Barre Scranton. Kris Letang is out of the lineup again, as he is attending the funeral and associated events of his recently deceased close friend, Luc Bourdon. Darryl Sydor has stepped in for Letang, dressing the previous two games of the series on the blue line for the Pens.

The recall of Goligoski suggests that Rob Scuderi's injury that he sustained in Game Four might be more serious than we thought. Whether or not Scuderi will be in the lineup tonight remains unknown, and Goligoski might just have been called up on a "just in case" basis.

In this year of cliches, "one game at a time" never seemed more fitting.

The Penguins can't focus on the big picture. Yes, they must win the next three games in order to win the Stanley Cup. However, you have to start somewhere. That somewhere is tonight at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

In this time of desperation, there is only one man to whom Penguin fans can turn. So, we pray...

Our Father, who art in Heaven
Let our Kids win in Seven

Let's Go Pens.