In another one-on-one chat on the ice after the Cup was won with The Trentonian, Pittsburgh hockey legend and team co-owner Mario Lemieux praised his rookie netminder for an incredible performance. “When I watch him play, I say to myself, he’s committed, he’s committed to helping us win”. Combined they had played 2,767 regular season games before reaching the Stanley Cup Final for the first time this year.
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The Penguins’ offense surged with just under four minutes to play, and Jones had to produce outstanding saves twice on Sidney Crosby – who entered the evening with just one goal in the previous nine games – and once on Conor Sheary in the span of a few seconds to keep the Sharks within one. However, without some truly unimaginable goaltending from Jones, team teal easily could have seen themselves down by three or four goals despite their pressure of Pens goalie Matt Murray.
“You always hear things about guys and obviously things are portrayed differently, but Phil’s such a good guy”, winger Bryan Rust said.
“You don’t think you do at the time, but it’s not easy to get to this point”. He, too, posted a sterling mark (18-3-4) as the Penguins scored in droves, before eventually guiding the Penguins to their third Stanley Cup.
The Sharks once again fell behind early in the final game, giving up a power-play goal, and never recovered. “It’s not easy to get here”.
The Penguins last won it in 2009, exactly seven years ago. “Everybody looks at how many points he gets, but the fact of the matter is he’s become an all-around player”. They continued to push the pace, they kept San Jose pinned in its own end of the ice, and when the Sharks did get into the offensive zone the Penguins took away shooting lanes and blocked every shot they possibly could. In the 13 games after that, the Penguins have been on the penalty kill just 25 times, allowing three goals. They scored some absolutely massive goals this postseason, with Bonino coming through in Game 1 with his late goal to give the Penguins a 3-2 win. They know 2009 was supposed to be the first of many, which is maybe why they didn’t cherish it as much as they should have.
There are many elements of Pittsburgh’s championship run that other teams will emulate – cheap goaltending, mobile defensemen, depth at forward – but establishing strong puck possession might be the most hard. “I thought they had great chemistry”.
Patric Hornqvist scored into an empty net at 18:58 on an assist from Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, who took home the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP.
While the season ended in disappointment, it also was a bit of a breakthrough for Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and the rest of a franchise that had been known for playoff collapses, most notably in 2014 when the Sharks blew a 3-0 series lead in the first round to Los Angeles. There was the coaching change – from Mike Johnston to Mike Sullivan – and Crosby under the microscope as he adapted his game to go from struggling to soaring. “I think we did a fantastic job shutting them down”.
Couture’s goal invigorated the SAP Center crowd, but not for long.
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“Matt Murray was unbelievable down the stretch, and in the playoffs he was an incredible piece for us”, he said. Their six-game triumph over the Sharks in the final capped a meteoric six-month sprint under Mike Sullivan, whose arrival in mid-December provided the wake-up call the talented but erratic roster desperately needed.
