Penguins snare Stanley Cup, unseat Red Wings

DETROIT – The Pittsburgh Penguins overcame the loss of captain Sidney Crosby to beat the defending champion Detroit Red Wings, 2-1, in Game 7 and win the Stanley Cup for the third time on Friday.

Instead of the Red Wings becoming the NHL’s first repeat champion since winning titles in 1997 and 1998, this turned into a Penguins party. The last time Pittsburgh won the Cup, in 1991 and ‘92, it was captained by owner Mario Lemieux.

Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury was stellar in making 23 saves – none bigger than the one he made with one second left as he dived across the crease and knocked away a shot by Niklas Lidstrom.

“I knew there wasn’t much time left,” Fleury said. “The rebound was wide. I just decided to get my body out there and it hit me in the ribs so it was good.”

He erased the memories of a 5-0 loss in Game 5 at Joe Louis Arena that put the Penguins on the brink of elimination. Pittsburgh returned home and gutted out a 2-1 win, behind Fleury’s 25 saves, on Tuesday that forced a seventh game in Detroit.

This was Pittsburgh’s second championship in four months, following the Steelers’ Super Bowl victory in February.

The Penguins turned the tables on the Red Wings and captured the cup on enemy ice, just as Detroit did in Pittsburgh last year. The Penguins are the first to win the title the year after losing in the finals since Edmonton did it 25 years ago against the New York Islanders – the last finals rematch before this one.

Evgeni Malkin, who led the playoffs with 36 points, earned the Conn Smythe Trophy as the postseason MVP. He assisted on the first of Max Talbot’s pair of second-period goals.

Crosby, just four years after being the No. 1 selection in the draft, became the youngest captain of an NHL champion at 21 years old. He played just one shift after leaving the ice during the second period after taking a hard hit along the boards from Johan Franzen.

“It’s unbelievable. It’s the stuff you dream of as a kid. It’s reality now,” Crosby said. “We worked so hard. It’s amazing to see how far we’ve come, and couldn’t feel any better.”

Jonathan Ericsson made it more interesting and tense when he cut the Red Wings’ deficit to 2-1 with 6:07 remaining. His shot from inside the blue line sailed past Fleury’s glove and sent the fans into a frenzy. (AP)