DET vs PIT
Posted on June 5, 2008 02:20 AM | Permalink
PITTSBURGH – Sweden is home to so many of life's little pleasures: The smorgasbord, for one thing. And Ingrid Bergman. And the final destination of one of the main characters in one of history's greatest novels, Catch-22.
And, for the next few months, it's going to be the frequent home of the Stanley Cup.
There is no doubt at least one headline out there today in the world's newspapers that will have the title "How Swede It Is for the Red Wings," and can you blame any editor out there who falls into such punnery?
With six of the top nine playoff scorers on the Detroit Red Wings being Swedish players, maybe the theme song for the new Stanley Cup champions should have been The Winner Takes it All by one of Sweden's lesser gifts to the world, ABBA.
The captain of the Red Wings, the man who became the first European-born NHL team captain to lift the Stanley Cup, is Swede Nick Lidstrom. The Conn Smythe winner as MVP of the playoffs is Swede Henrik Zetterberg. The arguable next-best Conn Smythe choice was Swede Johan Franzen.
The Red Wings' fourth Stanley Cup in the last 11 years, taken Wednesday night in a 3-2 victory over the valiant Pittsburgh Penguins, was a wakeup call to the rest of the NHL in at least one aspect: if you don't have a big scouting staff in places like Stockholm, by God, it's time to get one.
"I think Sweden has always had a good hockey tradition," Lidstrom said after winning Cup No. 4 in a Red Wings sweater. "But I think in the last 10 years or so, it's become even stronger."
The Red Wings obviously got that memo ahead of a lot of other teams. European chief scout Hakan Andersson is based in Stockholm, and he got a $150,000 a year raise recently from the Red Wings, thanks to such scouting finds as Zetterberg, Franzen, Mikael Samuelsson and Niklas Kronwall.
Oh, and guess where the next big Wings prospect is from? Yes, Swedish defenceman Jonathan Ericsson is considered a blue-chip prospect already, and almost certainly will be among the Red Wings' top six next season.
For the Wings, how Swede it will continue to be.
Series observations
- It started off slow, but this year's final turned out to be a very good series. It can't be considered a classic, though, partly because Penguins stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were not other-worldly. Crosby was great at times – Game 3 in particular – but the fact is that was the only game in which he scored a goal. The player billed as the next Gretzky showed he isn't there yet. But then, even the Great One lost a final series before winning four Cups. It will be a shock if Sid the Kid never wins one, because he at least showed he has the heart and determination to be a champion.
- Malkin – what can you say? It was a bad series for him. Only at the very, very end did he start to look like Evgeni Malkin, and by then, of course, it was too late. The Red Wings swarmed him and Crosby effectively throughout the series, allowing just one even-strength goal between the two players. Malkin has great hands, but doesn't have the kind of breakaway speed of a Crosby, and seems to get down on himself when things aren't going right.
- Zetterberg showed himself to be a great player. He was as good defensively as he was offensively in the series, probably more so in the former. His penalty-killing job on the Penguins' 5-on-3 advantage in Game 4 will be a lasting memory of the series.
- Where was Jarko Ruutu in this series? The feisty Finn, usually so effective at getting guys off their games mentally, was a total non-factor in the series in that department.
- Gary Roberts was a liability to the Penguins in the final three games of the series. He did some good things in Game 3 and helped the Penguins in that one, but otherwise his play was poor. He was behind the play much of the time (especially on Detroit's second goal in Game 6), and he took a dumb high-sticking penalty on Andreas Lilja right after Pittsburgh got its only goal in the final game. That stopped the team's momentum in its tracks for a few minutes.
- Devils GM Lou Lamoriello should get his name on the Stanley Cup for a fourth time, for allowing Brian Rafalski to sign with the Red Wings.
- Marc-Andre Fleury was great in Game 5, and appears to be a star for the future. But the hard truth is, he wasn't very good in Game 6. He allowed a huge rebound to Mikael Samuelsson, then a soft backhad goal to Valtteri Filppula that gave the Wings a 2-0 lead. Then, he allowed Zetterberg's slap shot to trickle through his pads adn didn't have the awareness to know where the puck was on the third goal. He pushed the puck into his own net, and that was the difference in the game. Rafalski's goal that gave Detroit a 1-0 lead also was a bit of a softie.
- Ryan Malone showed he was a gamer by playing with a face that looked like it had a meat cleaver taken to it, but he wasn't very good in the series either for Pittsburgh. Neither were other young Penguins forwards Jordan Staal, Tyler Kennedy and Pascal Dupuis.
Comments
Let's slap a nice Volvo rim to replace the current Red Wings Logo. It'll be Sick!!!
Congratz to the Champs!
Posted by: Chris Ottawa | June 5, 2008 09:29 AM
Canada is a great hockey nation but is not the only hockey nation. The contributions of NHL players from europe and beyond shows that "our" game has become global. We should be proud of Canada's introduction of hockey and take pride in fact that other nations have adopted the game and developed highly skilled players and some intersting style of play. Congratulations to the Red Wings and the Penguins.
Posted by: Mark McLeod | June 5, 2008 10:16 AM
Just a word of congrats to Dan Cleary. Even though I'm from the north, I feel like Newfoundland/Labrador is my home due to the fact that I work with many people from the east coast and have heard many great things and stories about the ROCK. It was a great series, even though I was cheering for the Pens. But I can not get over the poor sportsmanship of the Pens fans by booing Detroit, etc. I guess when it comes to the finer points of hockey, us Canadians will cheer on any team whether they be from the States, Canada or Finland, etc. Congrats to all NHL hockey players who played in this years playoffs.
Posted by: Derek Elias | June 5, 2008 11:39 AM
i have to say the game on monday night was insane, i really liked it. But the game last night, that sucked. I am a big edmonton oilers fan. But i cheered for the pens. I was very disappointed when detroit won. It sucked!!!!! But you know what? Oilers are going to win next year!
Posted by: G.M. | June 5, 2008 12:39 PM
I like this blog. Somebody should put the author's name to it.
I disagree, though, that Gary Roberts was a liability. He helped jumpstart the Penguins back into the series.
Posted by: Rich Turner Hamilton | June 5, 2008 01:22 PM
You can only imagine how thrilled I am as a Detroit Fan to see the cup raised above the heads of such a great *team* I predicted this series would be a good one because of the star power, but I never for a moment doubted that Detroit's legendary work ethic and ability to combine star play with tight teamwork would win the day. The Pittsburgh line-up is filled with bright young talent that will be a major threat in years to come once they put this behind them and develop together as a *team* with stars. Congrats to both teams...but more so to my beloved Red Wings ;)
Posted by: Fancy C. Poitras | June 5, 2008 01:36 PM
Really enjoyed Kelly and Craig's insightful comments during the series.I would like to add a big cheer for the way the CBC made the rap up so personal. It was really enjoyable to see the players as people and the people behind them who helped make their lives so successful.It sure beats the "usual" drab commentry that follows the end of a series.The better team won. That's it.
Posted by: ross rowntree Winnipeg | June 5, 2008 01:53 PM
I had to watch the game on NBC in the US - no CBC available here - Canadians are so luck you do not have to watch Pierre ---- acting like a " jack in the box " with his comments during the peiods while he is located between the benches. He is so loud and so Pro Detroit it was obnoxious to us Pittsburgh fans. Twice he got very verbal with Mike Millbury for even daring to say goods things about the Pens.
Next year we can only hope for something better!
JM
Posted by: JM | June 5, 2008 04:27 PM
Congratulations Detroit Red Wings and Chris Osgood. Congratulations Pittsburgh Penguins and Marc Andre-Fleury.
The Red Wings played outstanding hockey throughout the series and their experience, speed,and unselfish play was on display. The Penguins also, played well but their inexperience proved to be their undoing. Give them more seasoning and players and they will excel.
The Red Wings demonstrated why more and more players need to develop the passing and stick handling skills needed to carry the puck into the zone instead of the usual dump and chase maneuver.
The Wings played good defense, forechecked and backchecked and owned the neutral zone. They deserved to win this championship.
The other item that needs to be re-examined in professional hockey is the over reliance by goalies of the butterfly technique. If you review all six games you will will see that almost every goal was given up because the goalie butterflied at the wrong time or almost exclusively. Butterfly is useful when players are shooting at the bottom of the net, but not as useful when they are shooting at the top shelf, which most players today are able to do.
I was also impressed with the number or times players passed and shot on their backhand. A lot more teaching needs to be done to make these backhand tools more effective and accurate.
Once again, congratulations Detroit Red Wings.
Posted by: Paul Clark | June 5, 2008 07:00 PM
Congrats to the Wings on their 4th Cup in 11 years. I'd like to see the Conn Smythe Trophy renamed the Herb Carnegie Trophy
Posted by: Chuck | June 5, 2008 07:06 PM
I have to say I was VERY impressed with the disciplined play on both ends of the ice of the Red Wings. They were not only offensively talented, but tough and relentless.
Pittsburgh is probably the most exciting team to watch in the league right now. Besides Hossa, neither team will likely lose anyone to free agency. I wouldn't be a bit surprised to see both teams in the final in 2009.
Posted by: Room 725 Alberta | June 5, 2008 10:08 PM
After NBC quickly signed off I found your post game show to be quite fantastic right to the very end. "GREAT JOB" to everyone involved in this production! Will be watching more on CBC from now on! GO WINGS!
A YOOPER Red Wing fan.
Posted by: Mike Pietila | June 5, 2008 10:53 PM
For anyone out there who thinks the Red Wing won the cup on their own merit, skill, and team defense and not clutch & grab hockey, tune into the NHL Network and watch one of the replays of the 2006 finals between Edmonton and Carolina. Watch two teams play the game in the style it was meant to be played. Watch two teams, both w/ incredible speed and mobility, fly up and down the ice w/out being slowed in the neutral zone. Watch two teams battle in front of each others net w/out players sprawled all over the ice. Watch two teams move the puck, move their legs and hustle. And someone try to tell me that Detroit won the series w/out the use of obstruction. Detroits obstruction (or "team defense") on players away from the puck is the worst I've seen in many years. It's hard for any team to play (w/ speed and sustained pressure) when your opponet is the equivalent of fly paper.
Posted by: theman101 PHX | June 5, 2008 11:05 PM
Congrats to both the Pittsburgh Penguins and the DERTROIT RED WINGS on great sesaons. Sid the Kid will get his time, but not now. I being a RED WING fan have to say we finally got a couple of guys to hit on the blue line...(Stu and Krons)that pair was +13 and +14. Its been awhile (over ten years), since we seen a bunch of checks like the ones that Kronwall delivered....(a young Vladimar in the works)..just think we have Meech, Erickson and Quincy in the system ready to go..
Awesome season RED WINGS....I look forward to tossing more Octopi next playoffs or any road game I attend next year...
PS: Pittsburgh Penguins enjoy the golf course...
Posted by: BOB MAGUIRE | June 5, 2008 11:22 PM
Congradulations to the Red Wings. The best team in the nhl currently and in the recent decade. All those who said pittsburg will win: it was a long shot possibilty since they were playing the wings. had they been playing some one else they might have had a better chance. Nonetheless one can hope the pens have learnt that sid the kid or malkin will not win them the cup. they need to play a team game. they didnt do that and irrespective of anything teams from the west are always better than teams from the east. the pens would have had a problem against any team from the west becuase their offensive production hinged on malkin and crosby. no secondary production. once u shut those two down like detroit did, it was always game over.
That said Congradulations to the pens for making it a 6 game series. it could have easily ended 4-0 instead of 4-2 and congrdulations to the redwings for taking it all.
Posted by: whc534 toronto | June 6, 2008 03:45 PM
this is the best hockey series since detroit defeated carolina! im not a Red Wings fan, just a hockey fan, in saying that let me tell you this: i KNOW my hockey, the Detroit Red Wings have built a dynasty here that will be in the fight for a long time. my prediction is that they will also win the cup in 09 and 2010! they will only get younger, better, and faster. look out canada....the montreal canadians will no longer be the top team!
Posted by: ajaxmunroe | June 7, 2008 01:57 AM