Pittsburgh Penguins Repeat as Stanley Cup Champions
The Pittsburgh Penguins have become the first repeat NHL champions in two decades after eking out a narrow win on in Nashville on Sunday night.
In a game that was a defensive struggle that was tied at zero until late into the third period, the Penguins managed to finally get a puck past Predators goalie Pekka Rinne as time ran down.
The game was essentially over after Penguins winger Patric Hornqvist scored on Rinne with 1 minute and 35 seconds left to go. It was as though the air was completely sucked out of Bridgestone Arena as the dream of a Stanley Cup championship in #Smashville was on life support. It would soon be extinguished.
The Penguins added an empty netter and then collected the hardware, establishing themselves as one of the great teams of the salary cap era.
Three's a charm. #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/F5Sba3aY0r
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) June 12, 2017
Penguins goaltender Matt Murray rebounded from two terrible games to post consecutive shutouts to close out the series. Superstar center Sidney Crosby also came up big, winning his second straight Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
Give it to the Predators. Despite being riddled with injuries, they fought hard until the bitter end but came up a bit short against a potent and experienced team. They did themselves proud and will be a force to be reckoned with again next year.
While there was no joy in Nashville last night, the fans were given one heck of a treat as their team mounted an unexpected run at a title despite having the worst record of all playoff teams.
It was the Penguins fifth overall Stanley Cup and the third since 2009. They are the first team to win back-to-back titles since the mighty Detroit Red Wings did it in 1997 and 1998.
The BEST feeling in the world. pic.twitter.com/pbRjgMQ3LK
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) June 12, 2017
There is no reason to expect any serious drop off for the Penguins next year as they will try to add a third consecutive Stanley Cup to their trophy case.
The Pittsburgh @Penguins are your 2017 #StanleyCup Champions! pic.twitter.com/XQsFs83RAl
— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) June 12, 2017
The offseason now begins.
There upcoming expansion draft for the Las Vegas Golden Knights will take place on June 21 and be followed by the annual NHL draft which will take place on June 23–24 at the United Center in Chicago.
The 2017 NHL season will begin in October.
