Pittsburgh Penguins Headed to the Stanley Cup Finals

Photo Credit: Matt Kincaid/Getty Images

In a Game 7 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Pittsburgh Penguins are headed back to the Stanley Cup Finals for the fifth time in franchise history.  The Penguins most recently won the Cup in 2009. By winning the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pens also were awarded the Prince of Wales Trophy. The trophy, which many players do not touch out of superstition, was hoisted by captain Sidney Crosby. Crosby’s reason for doing so was that when he did not touch it in 2008, they did not win. In 2009, however, he touched it and won the Stanley Cup that year.

Scoring only happened in the second period; neither team was able to score in the first nor third period. Pittsburgh’s Bryan Rust was the lone scorer of both of the goals which brought his team to their victory. Jonathan Drouin of the Lightning was the only goal scorer for Tampa Bay, who returned to the Lightning after being suspended by the team earlier in the season. Statistically, the Penguins had the edge in faceoff wins and shots on goal, which no doubt helped in their win. Rookie goalie Matt Murray made 16 saves on the Lightning to hold them to a 2-1 lead.

The Penguins will take on the San Jose Sharks in the Stanley Cup Finals. Being from different conferences and postseason history, there is limited experience between the two teams. The Penguins roster boasts many players who have been to the Finals and have won the Cup which will give them a slight advantage over the San Jose Sharks, who, as a franchise, have never reached the Finals before this year. It will definitely be an interesting series between the two teams.

Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals will take place in Pittsburgh on May 30th on NBCSN at 8PM EST. Media Day will be the day before on May 29th.