Pittsburgh Penguins at Detroit Red Wings, Game 1
For the first time since 1983-84, the same two teams are in back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals as the Detroit Red Wings attempt to hang on to the Cup they won over the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games last year.
Much like last year, the Wings have home-ice advantage, and the Western Conference champs are -160 series favorites on WagerWeb.com.
The Pens will have had an extra day of rest, finishing off Carolina in a sweep on Tuesday, while Detroit beat Chicago in five games on Wednesday. And the Wings played without two of their biggest stars in the final two games against the Blackhawks.
Both top defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom, a surefire Hall of Famer, and first-line winger Pavel Datsyuk missed multiple games against Chicago.
Lidstrom sat out two games in the West Finals with a lower-body injury but is expected to play Saturday in Game 1 against the Pens, who are +130 on WagerWeb.com.
“I certainly expect Lidstrom to play,” GM Ken Holland said.”He told me he’s planning on playing Saturday.”
Datsyuk, who missed the last three games of the Chicago series, is getting better every day from a bruised foot but will be a game-day decision. Fellow winger Kris Draper (groin) is doubtful for the games Saturday and Sunday, said Holland, but could be ready next week.
Detroit and Pittsburgh split their two-game regular season series, each winning on the road. The Penguins won 7-6 in overtime in November, while the Wings blanked the Pens 3-0 in February. Most of the scoring occurred in the third period, where both teams each scored four goals. Detroit outscored Pittsburgh 2-1 and 3-1 in the first and second periods, respectively.
Pittsburgh stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, who thoroughly dominated the Hurricanes in the East Finals, had four points and two points, respectively, in the regular season games against Detroit. Datsyuk led Detroit with three goals.
Crosby and Malkin are tied for the lead among this year’s playoff scorers with 28 points each.
“Crosby and Malkin are running away with the scoring lead in the playoffs and if we let them continue to run wild, it will be hard for us to win the series,” Holland said. “You can’t stop players that good, but we can’t let them do what they did against Carolina.”
Because of TV, Detroit and Pittsburgh will play Game 2 on Sunday, becoming the first Cup finals to have back-to-back games since Montreal and Los Angeles in 1993.
By the way, in the last Stanley Cup rematch, the veteran Islanders (Wings) beat the young Oilers (Penguins) in four games in 1983 but a year later the Oilers got their revenge in five.
Remember too that last year Detroit’s Marian Hossa was a star of the Penguins before leaving in the offseason for a one-year deal with the Wings. Why? To win a Cup.
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