Wings Send Penguins Waddling Back Home

The ever old expression in the Stanley Cup playoffs is that “you’re not in trouble until you lose a game at home.” So, as the youthful Pittsburgh Penguins depart Motown without a win – let alone a goal – to show for their “efforts,” they can take solace in the fact that according to this legendary proverb, the prospect of bringing Lord Stanley’s mug back to Steel City for the first time since 1992 is still attainable. However, National Hockey League history isn’t quite as sanguine.

Only the 1970-71 Montreal Canadians can proclaim that they’ve come back from a 2-0 deficit in the championship series to later prevail as Stanley Cup champions.

The experienced Wings took the lead at 6:55 of the first period, and never looked back. Defenceman Brad Stuart – who was acquired at the trading deadline for his defensive expertise rather than his goal scoring abilities – took advantage of a screened Marc-Andre Fleury as he capitalized on a slapshot from just inside the blueline, to record his first goal of the 2008 playoffs.

Tomas Holmstrom doubled Detroit’s lead mid-way through the first, as he tapped in a Henrik Zetterberg rebound into the gaping cage. With Zetterberg’s assist, he has now recorded at least a point in 12 of his last 13 games, leading the playoffs with 23 points.

Valtteri Filppula added a highlight real third period marker to provide the Wings with an insurmountable 3-0 lead. With Pens’ defenceman Kris Letang hounding him from behind, Filppula out waited and out witted Marc-Andre Fleury as he slid the puck in past the sprawling goaltender.

With the outcome all but settled, the Pens resorted to an expected ‘chippy’ style of play late in the third.