Detroit Red Wings: 11th Heaven After Dispatching Penguins for Stanley Cup

Sidney Crosby shot the puck from the right side, and as it bounced off Chris Osgood, Marian Hossa was there for the rebound, looking to repeat Max Talbot’s Game Five heroics. A sprawling Osgood jabbed at the puck as Hossa’s shot streaked across the crease and out.

Seconds later, Osgood raised his arms in victory and was mobbed by his teammates. The Stanley Cup is back in Detroit, and the Red Wings are champions again. 

The Red Wings won their 11th Stanley Cup with a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins, taking the best of seven series four games to two.

Give credit to the Wings—they came out and they got it done. There was no excess disappointment after Game Five’s 4-3 loss, no allowing Pittsburgh back in the series with a win at home to force Game Seven.

The Wings proved the Pens aren't safe in the Igloo, winning two games there when the Pens were undefeated in the postseason before this series.    

This is not the veteran-laden All-Star team of 2002 that could easily trounce anyone anywhere. Instead, a mix of young and old has brought glory to Detroit.

Instead of Steve Yzerman at the helm, it’s Nicklas Lidstrom, the first European captain to win a Cup. Instead of Brendan Shanahan and Sergei Federov, it’s Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, and Johan Franzen.

This Cup marks the beginning of a new era of Red Wings: guys who’ve struggled through disappointing campaigns prior to this, and veterans such as Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby, eager for a taste of the success they enjoyed in winning three previous titles. This title is for them.

This is for the team’s superstars, guys like Zetterberg who scored a goal and had an assist en route to winning the Conn Smythe Trophy and his first Cup. Who can forget his block on a Crosby shot during that five on three in Game Four?

There's Lidstrom, the quiet captain, who took over for Yzerman as the leader and continues to be the best defenseman in the game and will probably win a sixth Norris Trophy later this month. 

There’s Datsyuk, who had 21 points in this year's campaign and, along with Zetterberg and Tomas Holmstrom, makes up one of the most dangerous lines in the league and was excellent in containing Crosby’s line throughout the series.

What about Franzen, who single-handedly took apart Colorado in Round Two, missed five games against Dallas, and came back for the Finals, finishing with three points for the series? This guy would have challenged Zetterberg for the Conn Smythe if not for missing most of Round Three.

It’s also for the new guys and the first-time winners. Guys like Dallas Drake, who’s already been through Detroit once and has now won a Stanley Cup. How fitting to see Lidstrom hand him the Cup first.

Drake then passed it to Dan Cleary, a gritty guy who becomes the first Newfoundlander to bring home a Cup.

How about guys like Brian Rafalski and Brad Stuart, who were acquired for defensive prowess and played top-notch defense while providing a goal here and there (Rafalski had a goal in Game Six and four points in the series)?

How about guys like Valtteri Filppula, who scored in the clincher? How about Nicklas Kronwall, who actually got to play a full, injury-free playoffs?

This Cup marks redemption for some players—none more than Osgood. After taking the Wings all the way in 1998, he was let go a few years later, and then found his way back to Detroit in 2005.

He sat on the bench for two games in the playoffs before replacing Dominik Hasek and going 14-4 on his way to earning another ring. At 35, he proved he’s still an able goalie and can lead a team, silencing critics who questioned his effectiveness and ability to win.

Though Zetterberg is very deserving, Osgood was the next best choice for the Conn Smythe.

And how about Darren McCarty? The hero of Game Four of the ‘97 Finals has been trying to turn his life around since battling alcohol and gambling problems. He was brought back late this season and showed that he could still play, much to fans’ delight. Now he’ll get his name etched on the Cup for a fourth time.

Let’s not forget head coach Mike Babcock. In 2003, he took the Anaheim Ducks to the Finals and lost in Game Seven to the New Jersey Devils. While his team hit the locker room, he stayed on the bench, watching the celebration, wishing that it were his team out there.

For all his regular season success, Babcock failed to reach the Finals his first three years, and has now gotten over the hump at a time when his now former Pistons counterpart Flip Saunders was fired for that same reason.

Now he’s a champion on the ice and not on the bench.

Some Penguins looked downtrodden after the game and slumped against the boards. It always hurts to lose, but they gave everything they had and who knows—if not for Hossa’s missed shot, this series would have ended Saturday at the Joe, maybe with the Pens as champions.

The Pens rallied for a goal from Evgeni Malkin in the second period and almost tied the game on Hossa's shot. They knew their time was almost up, but they didn't go down without a fight.

You can’t fault them for the effort they gave throughout the series. Marc-Andre Fleury, solid all series, made 27 saves in the loss and kept the Penguins alive in key situations throughout the series.

His 55-save performance in Game Five will live in Pittsburgh lore for years to come. He showed that he’s one of the NHL’s best young goalies and will no doubt backstop Pittsburgh to more success.  

And what of the Penguins’ young core of Crosby, Malkin, Jordan Staal, Fleury, and others? Sure, they’re young and inexperienced in the playoffs, but what a hell of a run they had!

They went 12-2 in the first three playoff rounds and took the Wings to six games; nothing shameful about that. Crosby winning his first Cup would have been a nice ending to the Pens season, but like a lot of great stars, he must lose first. The Cup will come.

At 20 years old, he’s already got a scoring title, an MVP trophy, and a conference championship. A Cup is the only thing missing from his résumé. He provided great leadership as captain and tied for the league lead in playoff points, with 27.

While Malkin was nowhere to be found on the stat sheet most of the series, he had three points in the last two games, including a goal and an assist in Game Six. He made mistakes in the series, but he gained a lot of experience out of it.

Have no doubts—Pittsburgh will be back. With their young core intact they’ll be more experienced, hungrier for a title, and probably a bit feistier.   

But for now, rejoice Detroit.

Lord Stanley is back in Hockeytown.