Congrats, Stanley Cup Champs Penguins!!
Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2016 11:13 am
http://www.si.com/nhl/2016/06/13/pittsb ... hil-kessel
SAN JOSE, Calif. – The odor of cheap beer and uncorked champagne barreled down the hall, stronger and stronger as the party raged. It originated inside the visitors locker room at SAP Center, an accouterment to the cheers coming from within, and followed the black rubber mat toward the door in the corner of the ice, where the Pittsburgh Penguins had entered several hours before and only recently exited as the 2016 Stanley Cup champions. “Smells like victory,” came one voice. After a 3-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks, no other explanation was necessary.
But where to begin with these Penguins? The head coach who assumed control on Dec. 12, summoned from the minors to rescue a team facing its nadir, now toppling the franchise with which his NHL career started? The captain who added the Conn Smythe trophy to his overflowing arsenal, seven years to the day after leading Pittsburgh to the title at age 21? The first teammate who took the grail from him, the one with the broken ankle and ailing mother, or the second, the one whose career ended due to blood clots? The rookie goaltender? The redeemed sniper? The general manager who took so much heat last season, now remembering how he wound up here?
“For a couple weeks I was thinking I was just going to take it easy and play a lot of golf, until I got a phone call from Pittsburgh,” said Jim Rutherford, whose unemployment after leaving the Carolina Hurricanes in 2014 didn’t last long. “I wouldn’t have gone many places. I just felt that with the core players in Pittsburgh, this was a chance to win another Cup, and as it turned out I was right.”
Pick any of them. They were all rendered breathless, limited to words like “special,” “unbelievable” and “my god.” Even in the early moments of the celebration, as family members filed onto the ice and Penguins faithful banged on the glass, the actual events of Game 6 were fading from memory. Defenseman Brian Dumoulin’s first-period goal fired from near the blue line, the fifth time in the series that Pittsburgh struck first. Partner Kris Letang’s rampaging shift midway through the second frame, ending with Sidney Crosby’s nifty wraparound pass that hit Letang for the eventual game-winner. The 18 saves made by rookie netminder Matt Murray. The two penalties easily snuffed against San Jose’s mighty power play. The empty-netter potted by Patric Hornqvist with 62 seconds left, turning the visiting bench into a human fireworks display.
“I think I jumped so high I almost went over the boards there by accident,” defenseman Ian Cole said. “You’re trying to stay concentrated, dialed in as best you can, but you can taste it.”
As the final seconds ticked away and the Penguins dog-piled onto Murray, San Jose watched with misty eyes and somber stares. It was the franchise’s first Cup Final in 25 years of existence, and even as Pittsburgh’s gloves and sticks flew into the air, the sellout crowd was still chanting in approval of the effort. “Let’s go Sharks! Let’s go Sharks! Let’s go Sharks!”
“On our end, I’m very proud of our group,” coach Pete DeBoer said later. “I thought our guys emptied the tank, gave us everything they possibly could. We weren’t as good as them during this two-week period.”
This part is inarguable. With both sides missing key pieces—first-pair defenseman Trevor Daley for Pittsburgh and top-line winger Tomas Hertl for San Jose—the Penguins controlled the series. They out-shot San Jose by 67 total and 11.2 per game, the biggest margin since they beat Detroit in 2009. They came within a brick-wall effort from Martin Jones of closing out in Game 5, which would’ve brought the first home-soil title to Pittsburgh since 1960. They blocked shots until they were beyond bruised. And their unheralded defense limited the Sharks’ Joes (Thornton and Pavelski) to four combined points, themselves contributing points on 12 of Pittsburgh’s 15 goals.
Phil Kessel can finally say he's a Stanley Cup champion
It wasn’t an easy road, but Phil Kessel can now call himself a Stanley Cup champion.
SAN JOSE, Calif. – The odor of cheap beer and uncorked champagne barreled down the hall, stronger and stronger as the party raged. It originated inside the visitors locker room at SAP Center, an accouterment to the cheers coming from within, and followed the black rubber mat toward the door in the corner of the ice, where the Pittsburgh Penguins had entered several hours before and only recently exited as the 2016 Stanley Cup champions. “Smells like victory,” came one voice. After a 3-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks, no other explanation was necessary.
But where to begin with these Penguins? The head coach who assumed control on Dec. 12, summoned from the minors to rescue a team facing its nadir, now toppling the franchise with which his NHL career started? The captain who added the Conn Smythe trophy to his overflowing arsenal, seven years to the day after leading Pittsburgh to the title at age 21? The first teammate who took the grail from him, the one with the broken ankle and ailing mother, or the second, the one whose career ended due to blood clots? The rookie goaltender? The redeemed sniper? The general manager who took so much heat last season, now remembering how he wound up here?
“For a couple weeks I was thinking I was just going to take it easy and play a lot of golf, until I got a phone call from Pittsburgh,” said Jim Rutherford, whose unemployment after leaving the Carolina Hurricanes in 2014 didn’t last long. “I wouldn’t have gone many places. I just felt that with the core players in Pittsburgh, this was a chance to win another Cup, and as it turned out I was right.”
Pick any of them. They were all rendered breathless, limited to words like “special,” “unbelievable” and “my god.” Even in the early moments of the celebration, as family members filed onto the ice and Penguins faithful banged on the glass, the actual events of Game 6 were fading from memory. Defenseman Brian Dumoulin’s first-period goal fired from near the blue line, the fifth time in the series that Pittsburgh struck first. Partner Kris Letang’s rampaging shift midway through the second frame, ending with Sidney Crosby’s nifty wraparound pass that hit Letang for the eventual game-winner. The 18 saves made by rookie netminder Matt Murray. The two penalties easily snuffed against San Jose’s mighty power play. The empty-netter potted by Patric Hornqvist with 62 seconds left, turning the visiting bench into a human fireworks display.
“I think I jumped so high I almost went over the boards there by accident,” defenseman Ian Cole said. “You’re trying to stay concentrated, dialed in as best you can, but you can taste it.”
As the final seconds ticked away and the Penguins dog-piled onto Murray, San Jose watched with misty eyes and somber stares. It was the franchise’s first Cup Final in 25 years of existence, and even as Pittsburgh’s gloves and sticks flew into the air, the sellout crowd was still chanting in approval of the effort. “Let’s go Sharks! Let’s go Sharks! Let’s go Sharks!”
“On our end, I’m very proud of our group,” coach Pete DeBoer said later. “I thought our guys emptied the tank, gave us everything they possibly could. We weren’t as good as them during this two-week period.”
This part is inarguable. With both sides missing key pieces—first-pair defenseman Trevor Daley for Pittsburgh and top-line winger Tomas Hertl for San Jose—the Penguins controlled the series. They out-shot San Jose by 67 total and 11.2 per game, the biggest margin since they beat Detroit in 2009. They came within a brick-wall effort from Martin Jones of closing out in Game 5, which would’ve brought the first home-soil title to Pittsburgh since 1960. They blocked shots until they were beyond bruised. And their unheralded defense limited the Sharks’ Joes (Thornton and Pavelski) to four combined points, themselves contributing points on 12 of Pittsburgh’s 15 goals.
Phil Kessel can finally say he's a Stanley Cup champion
It wasn’t an easy road, but Phil Kessel can now call himself a Stanley Cup champion.