So, how about the Pens?

['33' 0]

I am sure Betty will do whatever he can to give Sid the cup.... we just have to be that much better.

Pulling for excuses already? I thought Detroit fans would have been better than Philly fans. I thought wrong.

[Valas19 50]

I dunno but I was over at the pens board and they sure are a cocky bunch....... I know as Wings fans we are a bit cocky but we have every reason to be. Just look at our track record

And I quote Kid Rock when I say, "They say I'm cocky and I say "what?" It ain't braggin' motherf**ker if you back it up!"

[pghkid 0]

Pulling for excuses already? I thought Detroit fans would have been better than Philly fans. I thought wrong.

haha...thats not fair to these guys. nobody is as bad as the flyers fans. they been pretty good so far.

[Datsyerberger 279]

Hm.. tough matchups to call in this one.

First, let's look at the "biggest" players. We all know who they are, I think.

Osgood vs. Fleury: Both are giving some great netminding right now, similar stats (I daresay the Flyers padded Fleury's a little but regardless), both are looking very confident. I'm giving Ozzie an advantage for having "been there" before, but Fleury a slight momentum advantage for being up 8-0 at home in the playoffs, and for coming in off a shutout victory. This one looks really even.

Lidstrom vs Gonchar: Gonchar is a damned good D-man.. but, er, this one's a bit lopsided. Advantage Wings.

Datsyuk/Zetterberg vs Crosby/Malkin: Scoring is pretty much dead even, I think most Pens fans are going to argue Crosby/Malkin as having a slight advantage here and I wouldn't argue with them over that, but if you look at it statistically, it couldn't be much more even. However, the two Selke finalists come away with a clear advantage in the defensive department. Very likely the two best two-way forwards in the league, and seeing they're also within the top 6 in points for the league, they're quite arguably the two best forwards in the league. Dats and Z also get props for more experience, and more discipline. Additionally, Zets is quite good in the faceoff circle whereas Geno leaves something to be desired. Regardless, taking Crosby or Malkin lightly would be idiotic. All 4 of these players are extremely dangerous, but I'm giving an advantage to the Wings here. Not a huge one, but a noticeable one.

However, 4 players per team hardly make a hockey game. Let's examine more. I'm going to assume Franzen is back.

Forward matchups

Primary scoring: Eh, this one is pretty much even. Calling it too much either way is likely to make someone look like a fool.

Secondary scoring: Franzen has the POTENTIAL to even this up a bit, but given the Wings reliance on one man for this whereas the Pens have potent scoring throughout their 2nd line and into their 3rd, I'm giving this one to the Pens. Wings aren't lacking, but it's what the Pens specialize in.

Defense/checking, top 2 forward lines: Wings have a clear advantage in the first line. This drops down a bit in the matchup of the 2nd pairs, but the Wings still hold a clear advantage here.

Defense/checking, bottom 2 forward lines: This one swings about as clearly in the Wings favor as scoring in the bottom 2 lines swings towards the Pens.

Defensive matchups

This all around swings pretty soundly towards the wings, both in offensive skill and defensive skill. That's not to say the Pens fare poorly here, but the Wings have a killer blue line. I think this is where the Pens are going to find the most difficult difference to overcome. Both teams' D seems to have good cohesion.

Special teams

PP: With their assortment of great forwards and a coupla good offensive D-men, I think the Pens take a pretty good advantage here. Wings first PP line is arguably better than either of the Pens PP lines, but the Wings second PP line often leaves something to be desired.

PK: I'm giving this one to the Wings, I'm going to be edgy and say the Pens got some stat padding here. Wings killed 27/30 vs the Stars, who had a beefy PP. Do not I'm not discounting the Pens PK, however.

Overall special teams: I think Pens comes out with an advantage here, due to their fearsome PP. This may be the toughest matchup for the Wings.. they're really going to have to minimize their box time.

Overall matchups

Team Offense: This one is hard to pin down, largely due to Franzen's recent absence. All in all, I'd give a decent advantage to the Pens.. if they can keep pace with Detroit's puck possession.

Team Defense: This one swings pretty favorably towards the Wings, and I don't think too many are going to argue that point. The Wings have both a stronger blue line and better defensive forwards, both in their top 6 and their 3rd/4th lines.

Goaltending: Seemingly even. It's very hard to say what kind of effect this is going to have on the series. Both 'tenders have the ability to steal games/the series, and both also have the potential to crack under the pressure. This is without a doubt the most difficult dynamic in this matchup.

Mental: The Wings get an obvious boost in experience, the Pens, meanwhile, from the stamina of youth. Both seem very driven, yet both can and have taken shifts off when they shouldn't. Let's hope they're both wise enough at this point not to do so. We'll see which team has the stronger killer instinct.

Conclusion: Wings overall take an advantage, as the sum of their defensive advantage is greater than the sum of the Pen's /possible/ offensive advantage. However, this is also dependent on the Wings remembering that part of great D is getting the puck out of your own zone and creating momentum and scoring chances off of these plays, and using it to keep puck possession. It will be curious to see how the Pens try to handle that possession strategy.

I'm not calling anything, as there's no real precedent for a matchup here to go by. I will say that I think the Wings have the greater potential and should be the favorites, but with that greater potential comes a greater potential to f*** up.

Here's to a great SCF.

[Nero 20]

crosby missed 32 regular season games. we still won the hardest division in hockey.

pens against the west 8-1-1 this year

Detroit is 46-19-7 against the West this year, and 8-2-0 against the East. See, I can pointlessly insert statistics into my post as well. I see a bunch of Penguin fans touting "lol don't underestimate pittsburgh and crysbaby" while clearly underestimating Detroit at the same time. Way to be a hypocrite Hockey is played on ice not a web discussion forum. See you on Saturday.

Let's go Red Wings

Edited May 20, 2008 by Nero

[lomekian 201]

The great thing is that for teh first time in as long as i can remember is that its the best of East & West and two potentially very evenly matched teams with vry little experience of playing each other. I'd call in Wings in 7, but only because dats and zetts are both scoring a lot away from the Joe at the moment, and that could be key. SO many questions and intangeables, but as with many, I think the outcome is largely dependent on the Mule returning or not. Of course any injuries over the series completley changes he dynamic. I think if Franzen comes back we will be so defensively strong the pens could be strangled into making mistakes and playing into Detroit's transition game - much as with the conference finals, the first goal in each game is big.....

[OsGOD 3]

Pulling for excuses already? I thought Detroit fans would have been better than Philly fans. I thought wrong.

I gave up taking shots every time I heard Crosby's name (ass kissed) mentioned... 35 shots of tequila in the first 50 seconds of any game is enough to make ANYONE sick

[ThreeRiversFan 0]

Zetterberg/Datsyuk-Crosby/Malkin seems to be a constant comparison....as a wash....

Does anyone realize that Crosby and Malkin DO NOT play on the same line???

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Zetterberg/Datsyuk-Crosby/Malkin seems to be a constant comparison....as a wash....

Does anyone realize that Crosby and Malkin DO NOT play on the same line???

who's this Crosby guy everyone keeps talking about? I've never heard of him.

Honestly it's hard to know how these teams will match up since they've not played each other in any significant way. Should be a great series though.

A lot of Cup finals seem to come down to a team on a Cinderella-like run losing to a team that's faced some adversity and has gotten close to the Cup before (like losing to the eventual champs in the conference finals last season). Here's hoping this finals follows suit.

['33' 0]

I gave up taking shots every time I heard Crosby's name (ass kissed) mentioned... 35 shots of tequila in the first 50 seconds of any game is enough to make ANYONE sick

On a VS telecast? You must have been smoking rock before the game. That's stuffs bad for ya, son.

[Glubki 17]

Zetterberg/Datsyuk-Crosby/Malkin seems to be a constant comparison....as a wash....

Does anyone realize that Crosby and Malkin DO NOT play on the same line???

What makes you think our second line will be playing against your second line? The Pen's two top lines will be hard to match but I wouldn't be surprised to see our top line go head to head with the Crosby line while the Draper line battles with Malkin or even the top line depending how the matchups pan out. The Wings will probably juggle lines to contain Malkin - especially at home.

This will free up our second line....

Are you forgetting that Draper's name is on 3 cups and that he is a former Selke winner???

Edited May 20, 2008 by Glubki

[BewareThePenguin 1]

I dunno but I was over at the pens board and they sure are a cocky bunch....... I know as Wings fans we are a bit cocky but we have every reason to be. Just look at our track record

This is a cocky bunch here to say the least, so you match up well with the Pens' boards.

The key to this series is simple -- how the Penguins' underrated defense holds up against the Wings' formidable attack. We already know Detroit has a defense -- but how do they fare against an attack the likes they haven't seen yet. Should be fun to find out on both ends.

[ThreeRiversFan 0]

What makes you think our second line will be playing against your second line? The Pen's two top lines will be hard to match but I wouldn't be surprised to see our top line go head to head with the Crosby line while the Draper line battles with Malkin or even the top line depending how the matchups pan out. The Wings will probably juggle lines to contain Malkin - especially at home.

This will free up our second line....

Are you forgetting that Draper's name is on 3 cups and that he is a former Selke winner???

Nope..I havent forgotten....have you forgotten that he was 10 years younger then?

[Superman54 91]

not sure how much you ACTUALLY watched the pens this season, but as someone who has watched nearly EVERY game, i assure you NEITHER crosby or malkin throw hissy fits when hit or held off the scoreboard....... crosby had 39 penalty minutes this season to malkins 78.......... does not sound like to much sin bin time to me

HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAVE U BEEN WATCHING THEPLAYOFFS! IN FACT, HAVE U BEEN WATCHIN YOUR TEAM!!!!

[NHLrules? 32]

Every team the wings play come from "The toughest conference in hockey"

How did you conference do against the west? The Central?

[Detroit # 1 Fan 2,204]

The Pens went 8-1-1 against the West, cool. You didnt play the Wings and we won the Western Conference. How does that make you feel?

I'm gonna love seeing Malkin get of his game, which will happen. Crosby wont because he's got a lions heart, but I just dont think he can do it by himself.

[Glubki 17]

Nope..I havent forgotten....have you forgotten that he was 10 years younger then?

Only 4 years since he won the Selke.... Let me guess - Roberts will be unstoppable but Draper and the rest of our vets are too old to compete?

The best way for Detroit to defend against Crosby or Malkin is to keep the puck low in their ofensive zone and cycle it - All four of our forward lines excel at this - as long as our top two defensive pairings are on the ice against your top two lines we will do alright.

I think this is going to be a great series and I'm not foolish enough to make predictions although I do forsee each game having as many as 5-6 goals combined...

[NHLrules? 32]

To beat Crosby and MAlkin all we have to do is knock them around a bit.

MAke them skate with their heads up.

I also agree from what I have seen from Pitt this year, they are horrible at cycling the puck.

[ThreeRiversFan 0]

To beat Crosby and MAlkin all we have to do is knock them around a bit.

MAke them skate with their heads up.

I also agree from what I have seen from Pitt this year, they are horrible at cycling the puck.

Then obviously you havent watched many Pens games

['33' 0]

To beat Crosby and MAlkin all we have to do is knock them around a bit.

MAke them skate with their heads up.

I also agree from what I have seen from Pitt this year, they are horrible at cycling the puck.

[NHLrules? 32]

Most of their playoff games.

[reggiedunlop 0]

The Pens went 8-1-1 against the West, cool. You didnt play the Wings and we won the Western Conference. How does that make you feel?

I'm gonna love seeing Malkin get of his game, which will happen. Crosby wont because he's got a lions heart, but I just dont think he can do it by himself.

by himself?????? at least watch the pens before making assertions ha ha.......... EIGHT different pens with game winning goals this post season....... its all about depth baby.........

will be fun to watch

[Cern 0]

Seems to me the key to solving Pittsburgh's scoring depth is making Crosby's life miserable. His numbers are indicating that he can only dole out the assists. Cover a goal-scorer and you can shut him down. Cover a playmaker (with Detroit's league-topping defense, I should add) and the entire line he's sharing the ice with collapses like a house or cards.

[poxer 0]

I like how every Pens fan here keeps repeating that the Pens went 8-1-1, like it matters. Apparently they don't know the difference between Playoff hockey and regular season.

Wings Defense is a whole lot better than the Penguins. Don't get me wrong, Pens have a great Defense. It's just that the Wings are better at it. "But-But! Pens have the best GAA in the playoffs!!"... Get of that pony already. You played against a s***ty Ottawa team. Rangers blew. Yes they have a great goalie, but since when did they score? Have you seen their goals for? And Philly lost two great Ds.

I'm not predicting a sweep, as nice as it would be just to shut up some of the Pens fans that I keep hearing around me. You know, the bandwagon fans. Not calling you guys them, but I have a bunch of friends that happen to be pens fans now. But I will say who ever wins the series will win it in 5-6. Which is the Wings.

PS - Lets not forget about Zetterberg and Datsyuk. Selke finalists. And Draper who won it.