Pittsburgh Penguins Talk: Keys to the Stanley Cup Finals
Rich Newpol
I hope I am wrong, but I think this will be the toughest series for the Pens by far. There are two big hurdles to ovecome:
First, the Pens high speed style is best countered with high speed style. In all playoff matchups, the faster teams always gave the Pens the most trouble. I think the main reason the Pens outlasted the Sens is because they are not particularly fast. The Preds are the fastest team the Pens will encounter.
The other problem is fatigue. I can see the life slowly draining from these Pens as the playoffs progress. Through sheer will they have been able to rise to the occasion when needed. The Pens are battered – Hornqvist couldn’t even dress for game 7 against the Sens. Nashville has the hungry fresh look the Pens had last year. The Pens will have to be strong defensively, while rolling all four lines to conserve energy. That might manage a stalemate, so then the Pens will have to be opportunistic and get a timely goal to prevail.
A tough prospect – but it’s not supposed to be easy, so Let’s Go Pens!
Shane Lunnen
It’s unbelievable what the Penguins have done to get to their second consecutive Stanley Cup final. They battled through all the injuries to win the Eastern Conference again. On the other side is the Nashville Predators. Not many thought they would make it here, but after they swept the Chicago Blackhawks, more started to believe. They definitely earned their way to this point and are a great story for their first Stanley Cup final appearance.
The biggest strength of the Predators is their defense. Their top four defensemen are probably the best in the league. Leading all defensemen in points in the West is Ryan Ellis with 11 points. P.K. Subban and Roman Josi are right behind him with 10 points each. And don’t forget about Mattia Ekholm who has eight of his own points.
It’s not just that this group can score, they are very sound defensively. The biggest key to this series will be the Penguins top two lines with Crosby and Malkin going against the Predators top defensemen. Even if the Pens can find ways around the Predator defense, they will still have to deal with the playoff’s top goaltender in Pekka Rinne. He has posted a 1.70 goals against average and a .941 save percentage these playoffs with 2 shutouts.
This will be a really tough series for both teams. Expect it to go long, maybe even the distance. Hopefully the boys in black and gold will be hoisting the Cup at the end of it.
Melissa Nelson
Figure out Rinne
Figuring out how to beat Pekka Rinne is going to be key. His play so far is a main part of why Nashville has made it to their first ever Stanley Cup Final. The Penguins have a history of doing well against really skilled goaltenders—such as Sergei Bobrovsky, Braden Holtby, and Craig Anderson this year alone. One of the main reasons the Penguins have been able to beat such elite goaltenders is that under head coach Mike Sullivan, the Penguins have been much better at generating traffic and getting dirty goals.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Expose Nashville’s Lack of Scoring Depth
Nashville has questionable depth of scoring at the moment due to injuries to captain Mike Fisher, Ryan Johansen, and Kevin Fiala. It’s worth mentioning that Johansen and Fiala will not be returning this year. In the absence of these players, the Predators got scoring from young, depth forwards; the Penguins must figure out a way to shut them down.
Block Shots
The Penguins’ defense has been called into question with their numerous injuries, particularly the absence of Kris Letang. In order to match up against Nashville’s high-scoring defensemen, the Pens will have to continue blocking a lot of shots, as they have against offensively deep teams like the Washington Capitals.
Emotion and Experience
Don’t forget the emotional and experience factors as well. For the Penguins, some of their veterans—notably, ECF game 7 hero Chris Kunitz and 40-year-old Matt “Dad” Cullen—may never get the chance to win another Cup. Also, the Predators—unlike the Penguins—lack Stanley Cup Final experience. As the 2008 Penguins learned, lack of experience can be an important factor.
Matthew Rodrigopulle
The Penguins have a real shot at repeating this year. The Predators are looking great and have surprised many thse playoffs, but I still don’t think they can take on the Penguins.
Throughout the season, we’ve faced many obstacles, especially through injuries, and yet we’ve shown that we can be one of the most dominant teams in the league no matter what. This adversity is the first key. We need to keep our confident play up.
Next: Three Keys to a Game One Victory
Our offence has struggled at times these playoffs. This definitely can use some work. Last year we had the miracle that was the HBK line. This year we may not have something as spectacular as that, but our lines are still clicking. We just need to find consistency in our offence right off the bat.
We also need our stars to come up big. Jake Guentzel and Evgeni Malkin have been playing great. They need to keep that up. Sidney Crosby and Phil Kessel are playing great too, but I bet they have a lot more in them. We need them all to be playing like they’re also competing for the Conn Smythe trophy.