Stanley Cup Final: 3 things the potential repeat champion Penguins are not
With a second straight title in reach, here are a few things that do not apply to the Pens
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2 min read
The Pittsburgh Penguins are many things, and they are called even more.
The debate will rage on about whether they've always been the superior team in this postseason's Stanley Cup Final, their second in as many years. And, of course, whether Sidney Crosby's behavior in the spotlight has been warranted.
But there are a few things the potential repeat champion Penguins are not ...
1. Pushovers when the chips are down
No matter how many times the Pens have been beaten up or pushed to the brink of elimination, they have responded.
This dates to before the Final, when Pittsburgh rallied from big outings by the Washington Capitals and Ottawa Senators, both of whom unloaded physicality on the Pens. And it has extended into the title bout with the Nashville Predators, with Mike Sullivan's streaky, albeit high-speed, unit rebounding from a torrid two-game slide in Music City to absolutely embarrass the Preds in a Game 5 blowout.
If there is one thing the Pens are not, it's a team that can be counted out. With or without stints of underwhelming play from Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and the club's deep offensive group, Pittsburgh is a safe bet to give its all when the stakes are highest. More often than not, the stars like Crosby and Malkin help drive that, too.
2. Lacking in offensive firepower
Speaking of Crosby and Malkin, it's no secret that the Pens boast the postseason's most explosive offense. The team's numbers haven't always mirrored that fact in the Final, but when they have, they've proven Pittsburgh is, by far, the most dazzling of this season's playoff contenders.
Saying the Pens own an inconsistent offense is another thing. Nashville's reputed defensemen, with help from some big home-ice starts for Pekka Rinne, have successfully thwarted Pittsburgh's rash of offensive talent on more than one occasion. Just look at the Pens' inability to get pucks past Rinne at Bridgestone Arena -- and the near-40-minute stretch early in the series when the defending champs couldn't muster a single shot on goal.
But when the Pens are on, they are on. Extra emphasis on "on." Game 5 was a prime example of their ability to capitalize on Rinne slip-ups, find space with elite passing and then pile goals on top of goals in incredible fashion.
3. A classless championship contender
No matter how you slice it, Crosby's Game 5 was not a good look from purely a behavioral perspective.
Arguments will rage on that No. 87 has been taking but not dishing out penalty contact for years -- and that he had every right to repeatedly shove P.K. Subban's head into the ice early in the Pens' 6-0 rout. But his actions still weren't going to win him any fans outside of Pittsburgh, even if the whole debacle with Subban -- and his overlooked toss of a water bottle onto the ice in the same game -- was perhaps more an indictment on the NHL's officiating.
Taking a broader perspective, though, it would be a little over the top to call the Penguins any less classy than, say, the very team they are facing for a title. Sure, they fit nicely into the "villain" role in a series with a small-market underdog, and it's easier to pick on Crosby when big-time popularity is coupled with prime-time scuffles like Game 5's Subban incident, but their penalties have hardly been any less brazen than those of Nashville.
