[Lefty Noob]

So the Stanley Cup Finals are set. It will be the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Detroit Red Wings. Who will win?

[blueandwhite]

here's the schedule:
Sat May 24, 2008
Penguins Red Wings
8:00 PM ET
VERSUS (HD),CBC (HD),RDS (HD)
Mon May 26, 2008
Penguins Red Wings
8:00 PM ET
VERSUS (HD),CBC (HD),RDS (HD)
Wed May 28, 2008
Red Wings Penguins
8:00 PM ET
CBC (HD),NBC (HD),RDS (HD)
Sat May 31, 2008
Red Wings Penguins
8:00 PM ET
CBC (HD),NBC (HD),RDS (HD)
Mon Jun 2, 2008
Penguins Red Wings
8:00 PM ET
CBC (HD),NBC (HD),RDS (HD)
Wed Jun 4, 2008
Red Wings Penguins
8:00 PM ET
CBC (HD),NBC (HD),RDS (HD)
Sat Jun 7, 2008
Penguins Red Wings
8:00 PM ET
CBC (HD),NBC (HD),RDS (HD)

[blueandwhite]

That said - I don't know. Detroit has mowed down every opponent with little or no trouble. Pittsburgh has had to fight at times but their record of wins is phenomenal too.
This is going to be great - it should be. Is anyone too worn out?
I doubt it. Both get rests before it all starts up.
Here's the test: Osgood vs. Fleury.

[Phils20]

It's a tough call for who is going to win this one. I think it should be a great series, and we will see what this Young Pens team really has facing some seasoned vets.

The goalie match up is an interesting one. I would give the edge to Detroit though. IF things aren't working for Osgood, you have Hasek to turn to. That is a great option.

I'm probably going to miss game one, but I'll see the rest!

[blueandwhite]

The Star offers up a comparison of captains this morn:
Lidstrom is 38, has played 208 career playoff games, is Plus 9 this playoffs and has 2 goals and 8 assists.
Crosby is 20, has played 19 career playoff games, has a Plus 6 this playoffs and has 4 goals and 19 assists.
Of course, what does any of this mean, really? It's th age and the career playoff games comparison that makes my chin drop - talk about opposites.
The paper also says Therrien's biggest problem to solve is, who plays against the Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Holmstrom line?
Scuderi and Gill look good defensively.
Franzen is not in for Game 1, they are saying, but he will be back - Babcock just isn't saying when.
They call Franzen The Mule. he's still out with "concussion-like symptoms".
He's got 12 goals so far.
On the other side of the line - Hossa has 9 goals in his 14 playoff games - he scored 13 in his other 55 previous career games.

[Lefty Noob]

Detroit fires the first volley and wins Game 1, 4-0.
Mikael Samuelsson had two goals, the Pens managed just 19 shots and Lefty is not happy this morning.

Samuelsson, Red Wings beat Penguins in Cup opener - NHL - Yahoo! Sports

[blueandwhite]

I can't paste the image in, every time I do it it fails but the Fleury tripping onto the ice image is a bad start to the game.
Check out youtube if you want to see it, search for 'Fleury trips'.
Giving Osgood a shutout is one of the worst things the Pens could have done to start this series.
Red Wings shut Crosby down, malkin made some stupid mistakes, where were the veterans? Fleury was good with the onslaught of shots on him, but pens needed to get off more shots than they did because this is Detroit - you get 19 shots, you lose.

[Lefty Noob]

All good points, blue. We couldn't shoot, couldn't even skate (Fleury) and basically looked like a bunch of lost little kids out there.

[Lefty Noob]

Game 2 is tonight, 8:00pm on Versus.
Here's hoping Pittsburgh comes out an plays a little hockey this time around.

[azrael492]

Originally Posted by Lefty Noob

Game 2 is tonight, 8:00pm on Versus.
Here's hoping Pittsburgh comes out an plays a little hockey this time around.

I think I am going to catch this game. I don't really watch a lot of hockey...none this year, but I am excited about this series. I want to see Pittsburgh win it.

[Finding_Neo]

Yeah I had a bad feeling about the game already and it was confirmed the second fleury tripped. I hope we can tie the series tonight! I think just one win in detroit will do it for the Pens.

[Lefty Noob]

Detroit Red Wings 3
Pittsburgh Penguins 0

Lefty doesn't want to talk about it.

Okay, maybe just a little. Detroit, again, just overpowered the Penguins in every facet of the game. They outshot the Pens 34-22, Osgood pitched his second straight shutout, and Malkin has 0 -- ZERO! -- shots on goal. Hossa managed just one, Malone had none, Crosby had 6 but couldn't find the net. Maybe he should stop shooting and start passing more? So far I believe he leads the team in SOG but has nothing to show for it.

This series looks to be headed for a sweep unless the Pens do something fast!
NHL - Pittsburgh Penguins/Detroit Red Wings Box Score Monday May 26, 2008 - Yahoo! Sports

[blueandwhite]

That was brought up - malkin too regarding the passing - he enters the Red Wing zone and 3 red wings shut him down because they know he won't pass.
Malkin had something like 10 shots in the last 5 games and 50 shots in the 10 games before that - so the Flyers and Detroit figured it out.
Crosby looks just majorly pissed at all this.

[Lefty Noob]

Pens finally got into the win column yesterday, beating the Wings 3-2.
Crosby had two goals and Fleury had 32 saves (he hasn't lost in 19 starts at home).
Better. Much better. Now let's even things up on Saturday.

NHL - Detroit Red Wings/Pittsburgh Penguins Box Score Wednesday May 28, 2008 - Yahoo! Sports

[blueandwhite]

very nice- more controlled, crowd's cheering for them, they have some confidence now after scoring not just 1 or 2 goals but 3.
A Crosby malkin and hossa line rocks and finally Detroit looks not so perfect.
nail biting finish.