Sports Betting Blog

By: Cindy Ferguson

Who do they think they are? The Pittsburgh Penguins are, to the surprise of most spectators and commentators, pushing and shoving the Detroit Red Wings on the road to the Stanley Cup. The Wings, last year’s Stanley Cup champions and generally the favored pick for this year’s silver trophy, are now approaching a Game 7 with a team many had expected to be eliminated in Game 6.

After an obscenely embarrassing 5-0 Game 5 shutout, the Pittsburgh Penguins resurged in Game 6 and scrambled for a rough and dirty victory. But, to use an oft-overused albeit easily understood tautology, a win is a win. And the Detroit Red Wings no longer appear to be simply biding their time for the Stanley Cup.

The Penguins were reinvigorated at the Mellon Arena, their home stadium. After a scoreless first period, Pittsburgh’s Jordan Staal gave the Penguins a lead in the first minute of the second. Six minutes into the third, Tyler Kennedy gave the Penguins their second point.

Kris Draper began to even the score, giving Detroit its only point in the game and making his first goal in the playoffs. His teammates struggled to close the game with another point, and the third period was marked by a flurry on the ice.

But the combined (and much improved) effort of Pittsburgh goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and Rob Scuderi maintained the Penguins’ lead. Scuderi threw himself on the ice to stop a low slot shot from Johan Franzen, blocking the puck first with his leg pad then with his boot.

The Penguins managed a 2-1 victory without either of their luminaries, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, scoring a point for the second consecutive game. Pittsburgh has been reproved for lacking depth, but Game 6 might force us to give more credence to the rest of its linemen.

Game 6 evened out the series, with each team winning all its home games. Now they will face each other one last time in a very unpredictable winner-take-all game.

The Red Wings have a one advantage that, thus far, seems to have been key in this playoff series: home-ice advantage. The final game will be in the Wings’ home territory, a benefit that may extend beyond the rah-rahs of a supportive audience.

“I think there’s a few shifts every period where the road team has to get that change and they can’t maybe sustain that pressure on the other team like they’re able to at home,” Detroit blueliner Brian Rafalski explained. “The road team has to try and get their players out, get more of a matchup and it creates a little bit of offense for that team.”

Beyond that, the Red Wings have a clear advantage in experience; Detroit is a dynastic club filled with veteran players. They also have a depth that the Penguins seem to be lacking; with key players missing from much of the playoff season due to injury, the Wings have still been able to surge to the top. And if star winger Marian Hossa – who must be overwhelmed by the irony of facing a team he thought unlikely to win the Stanley Cup – is able to get his game back and join teammates Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk, the Penguins will be facing two deadly Wings lines. Not to mention, of course, netminder Chris Osgood, who has put on an extraordinary if understated performance throughout the playoffs.

The Penguins, however, are not entering the final game without an arsenal of their own. They have an advantage in special teams that thus far hasn’t played out in the series, but may become important in Game 7. The Penguins are 4-for-13 in power plays, while the Wings are 4-for-21. It would be a huge boon if Pittsburgh’s Sergei Gonchar can generate a power play in Game 7.

Nor is Pittsburgh lacking in star-power. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin bring some serious talent to the team. Granted, they have been mired in a slump in which neither scored in the past two games, but if they start generating points, the Wings might find themselves in trouble.

Most importantly, the Penguins need a strong performance from goaltender Fleury, who struggled in three of the games this series. He is capable of giving a sharp performance, and if he manages one in Game 7, the Penguins’ chances of bringing home the cup are significantly improved.

In short: Detroit appears to be a more solid team, but if the Penguins can bring all their players through – if – they have a real shot at the Cup.

It’s déjà-vu for the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins. The teams faced each other last year in the Stanley Cup finals, and this year, they are doing it again. The series promises to be different from last year’s, though; the Penguins don’t look as if they’re going to accept any more schooling from the veteran Detroit team.

The Red Wings managed to grab an easy 2-0 lead in last year’s finals before the Penguins were able to regain their feet, leaving Pittsburgh scrambling to catch up. Their rematch this year harkens back to the 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers-New York Islanders series in the Stanley Cup finals. In 1983, the youthful but talented Oilers, headed by Wayne Gretzky, were trumped by the experienced Islanders. The next year, however, the Oilers returned to the postseason – and to the final playoffs against their older rivals – a hardened and wizened team. They soundly defeated New York, and the next years would belong to Gretzky and his Edmonton team.

The parallels are obvious.

The Pittsburgh Penguins: a young team boasting incredible talent, coming back after last season’s loss. The Detroit Red Wings: veteran players, defending champions but playing a weakened team.

The series may be a long one, but if history proves any guide, the Penguins may be geared for a Stanley Cup win.

Both teams have had strong seasons. They have each swept one series – the Wings taking the Blue Jackets and the Penguins the Carolina Canes. Each has faced strong adversaries. Each has prevailed over both injuries and a 7-game series.

Each lays claim to solid netminding. The Wings’ Chris Osgood and the Penguins’ Marc-Andre Fleury have earned their positions as last goalies standing. Osgood made 30 saves in Game 5, entering the game with a 2.14 goal saving average, second in the league, while Fleury has repeatedly proven himself able to recover from bad goals.

But Detroit is missing key players in its lineup while the Penguins are proving themselves this season’s offensive juggernauts.

The Wings players missing from Detroit’s pivotal Game 5 against the Chicago Blackhawks included Hart trophy nominee Pavel Datsyuk, six-time Norris trophy winner Nicklas Lidstrom, Tomas Kopecky, and Kris Draper, while Jonathan Ericsson scratched after undergoing an emergency appendectomy.

The players have only a few short days to heal for Game 1 of the series on Saturday.

The Penguins, on the other hand, are bringing the season’s top offensive players in the forms of Sidney Crosby and Evgenie Malkin. Both have matured since last year’s finals and, since Game 2 against the Washington Capitals, have been able to unite their attacks. These two have a combined point total of 56 – 28 each – with Crosby making 2 goals and 5 assists in the last series, and Malkin making 6 goals, 3 assists.

Nor is the rest of the Penguins lineup lacking. With strong, fast forwards like Tyler Kennedy, Chris Kunitz, Jordan Staal, and Maxime Talbot, Pittsburgh may very well wear out the Wings’ four remaining defensemen (Brett Lebda, Niklas Kronwall, Brian Rafalski, and Brad Stuart).

The Wings may have depth – players such as Johan Franzen (who is at the fore of the team with 10 goals), Daniel Cleary, Valtteri Filppula, and Darren Helm have made important contributions – but without Lidstrom, the Wings might find themselves overwhelmed.

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