Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 4.38

www.afootinthecrease.com

Through the first three games of the Stanley Cup Finals, things went exactly as they did last year in the first meeting between the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins and exactly according to plan for the Red Wings. Take the first two games at home, look for a split in Pittsburgh and then return home to the Joe Louis Arena to hoist a fourth Stanley Cup in twelve years with a neat and tidy five game performance. However, in 2009 the Penguins had different ideas. Instead, Pittsburgh rebounded with a pair of wins on home ice to tie the series and set up what should be a thrilling best of three for the Stanley Cup.

For the Wings to win, they are going to have to get a legitimate offensive contribution from their big guns. Players like Darren Helm, Dan Cleary, Brad Stuart and Justin Abdelkader have shouldered the load but it’s now time for Hendrick Zetterberg, Johan Franzen and public enemy number one in Pittsburgh Marian Hossa to step up and take over a game the way Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have done on countless occasions thus far. Pavel Datsyuk appears to be nearing a return and his mere presence in the lineup will benefit the Red Wings, if for nothing else than to give them another option to match up against Crosby and Malkin.

If the Red Wings top players cannot step up the way they are capable of, the Penguins have a great chance to walk away with the Stanley Cup. Crosby and especially Malkin right now are playing the way everybody plays in their dreams. For their sake, hopefully they don’t wake up for two more games. All of a sudden in game four, Jordan Staal stepped to the fore to present a new threat for the Wings to consider.

The Red Wings won the first two games in large part on the contributions of their foot soldiers. The Penguins may yet win the Stanley Cup on the strength of their stars. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.