With a convincing 4-1 win, the Pittsburgh Penguins eliminated the Carolina Hurricanes and advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals.
The Penguins move on to face the Western Conference champion Detroit Red Wings in a rematch of last year’s Stanley Cup Finals.
The Red Wings rather easily dispatched of the Penguins last year, but the team is now a year older and wiser.
Detroit will have one thing on their side in that they will have the home ice advantage thanks to a superior regular season record.
Sunday, May 31, 2009 at 9:36 am by steve
The Pittsburgh Penguins have used strong third periods in Games 1 and 2 to take a 2-0series lead on the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Both games have been high-scoring affairs, which isn’t at all surprising given the open-ice style of hockey played by the offensively explosive Penguins.
After having a mostly quiet series against the Washington Capitals in the previous round, Evgeni Malkin has exploded here in the final round before the Stanley Cup.
Malkin really burst out in Game 2, taking the game completely over in the third period en route to a hat trick.
The series now shifts back to Carolina for Game 3, which has to be considered a must-win situation for the desperate Hurricanes.
Sunday, May 24, 2009 at 12:26 pm by Chaitanya
The Pittsburgh Penguins made it look all too easy in eliminating the Capitals in Game 7, 6-2.
Pittsburgh was able to win the game in a hostile environment on the road in such impressive fashion, which has to be a scary thought for their opponent in the next round.
Pittsburgh scored two goals near the end of the first period to take control of the game and then pretty much put it out of reach with two more goals in the first two minutes of the second period.
Sidney Crosby was absolutely sensational all series long. He has an uncanny ability to sit in front of the net and wait for rebound opportunities to come his way.
He knows exactly what to do with those rebound opportunities, almost always finding a way to stuff the puck into the net.
Sunday, May 17, 2009 at 11:02 am by Chaitanya
The Pittsburgh Penguins had been in this situation before against the Washington Capitals, facing a 2-0 series deficit in the playoffs only to rally back to advance to the next round.
The series isn’t over yet, but the Penguins rallied back from a 2-0 series deficit with two straight wins at home, leaving it tied at 2-2 heading into a pivotal Game 5 in Washington.
The Penguins have done an excellent job taking advantage of mistakes by the Washington defenseman in their own zone to tally some rather easy goals.
It also hasn’t hurt that they have had the home ice advantange and a raucous crowd behind them the past two games, a difficult environment for opposing teams to come away with a win.
It’s essentially down to a three-game series, but the Penguins will have to win at least one game on the road if they are to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Saturday, May 9, 2009 at 11:09 am by Chaitanya
The Pittsburgh Penguins moved on to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a victory over the rival Philadelphia Flyers in Game 6.
The Penguins failed to eliminate the Flyers at home in Game 5, making things more difficult for themselves.
It meant a trip to Philadelphia and a game in front of a hostile crowd, but the Penguins rallied from a three goal deficit to get the win.
They now will take on the Washington Capitals in the second round, which is a series no one will want to miss.
It will feature Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby going head-to-head in the NHL’s top rivalry.
Sunday, May 3, 2009 at 12:21 pm by Chaitanya
