PHOTO BY SCOTT VANKOUGHNETT
Detroit, MI — Well it comes down to this.
Game seven for all the marbles and the right to lift Lord Stanley’s cup high above your head as NHL champions.
Any way you put it, any cliché you use, does not give you the entire magnitude of how important this game is to all the players sitting in their respective dressing rooms.
This is the first game seven of the finals since 2006, when the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Edmonton Oilers 3-1 to capture their first Stanley cup.
Even with so much on the line, the players seemed to be very loose and extremely candid in talking about their preparation for tonight’s game.
“As we progress closer to game time, you’re going to be thinking more,” said Detroit’s Kirk Maltby, who’s one of four players looking for their fifth ring in 12 years. “It’s hard to put your thoughts somewhere else, but you prepare the same way as you do for this as you do for game 36 of the regular season.”
Pittsburgh kept the home ice advantage going in this final, winning 2-1 Tuesday night to force this one game playoff.
Penguins forward Ruslan Fedetenko, who scored the winning goal in game seven of the 2004 final when he was with Tampa Bay, feels that the pressure is on Detroit to perform at home.
“In this series, home ice advantage has been so crucial,” he said. “In this situation right now, we come in here and there’s a lot of pressure on the home team to win. We have to create some opportunities by playing our game, crashing the net, and hopefully get the win.”
When asked his personal feelings on the game, Fedetenko was ecstatic at the chance for a second cup.
“It’s unbelievable,” he said. “It ended up being game seven of the finals. You can’t ask for anything better.”
Maltby agreed with Fedetenko, and knows that this game will be something every player will remember.
“It’s going to be fun,” he said. “But before you know it, it’s going to be over, so you just have to grasp it, take everything in, and enjoy it.”
Follow along with Scott’s live game blog HERE
Pre-Game Storylines…
GAME 7 IN THE STANLEY CUP FINAL
The Red Wings and Penguins will contest the 15th Game 7 in a Stanley Cup Final. The home team has posted a 12-2 record in the 14 previous games. The Red Wings are hosting their first Game 7 of a Stanley Cup Final since 1955.
HOME CLUBS 6-0 IN STANLEY CUP FINAL
Home clubs are 6-0 in the Stanley Cup Final for the fifth time since the best-of-seven format began in 1939. The home club went on to win Game 7 on three of the four previous occasions (Detroit Red Wings in 1955, Montreal Canadiens in 1965 and New Jersey Devils in 2003).
The only club to win Game 7 on the road in the Stanley Cup Final after the home team won the first six games was the 1971 Montreal Canadiens, who defeated the Chicago Blackhawks.
CONN SMYTHE TROPHY
The winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded ‘to the most valuable player for his team in the playoffs,’ is selected by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association at the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Final. The trophy was first awarded in 1965.
Five players have won the Conn Smythe Trophy with teams that lost the Stanley Cup Final, G Roger Crozier (Detroit, 1966), G Glenn Hall (St. Louis, 1968), RW Reg Leach (Philadelphia, 1976), G Ron Hextall (Philadelphia, 1987) and G J.S. Giguere (Anaheim, 2003).
Five players have won the Conn Smythe Trophy multiple times, led by G Patrick Roy with three (1986, 1993, 2001). Two-time winners are G Bernie Parent (1974, 1975), C Wayne Gretzky (1985, 1988), C Mario Lemieux (1991, 1992) and D Bobby Orr (1970, 1972).
Two current Red Wings have won the Conn Smythe Trophy, D Nicklas Lidstrom (2002) and C Henrik Zetterberg (2008).
VETERANS IN QUEST OF FIRST STANLEY CUP
Five players who have played at least 750 NHL games are vying for their first Stanley Cup. Penguins forward Miroslav Satan is a veteran of 1,012 regular-season and 72 playoff games in 13 seasons, defenseman Sergei Gonchar has appeared in 929 regular-season and 104 playoff games in 14 seasons, defenseman Hal Gill has played in 851 regular-season and 79 playoff games in 11 seasons and defenseman Philippe Boucher has played 748 regular-season and 65 playoff games in 16 seasons. Red Wings forward Marian Hossa has played in 775 regular-season and 97 playoff games over 11 NHL seasons.
Topics: Detroit Red Wings, Game Seven, Kirk Maltby, Pittsburgh Penguins, Ruslan Fedetenko, Stanley Cup finals
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