It’s been said time and time again and last night proved it to be true. Nothing can truly match the intensity of the Stanley Cup finals.
One of the most anticipated finals to date – the veteran-driven Detroit Red Wings facing off against the young gun Pens – has proven to live up to the hype (however, it’s not like it is particularly hard to top the past hype of, say, a Carolina Hurricanes cup run, but I digress). In fact it is even reminding older fans of Gretzky and Messier’s first team, the Edmonton Oilers, having to pay the piper, which in this instance took the form of the New York Islanders, before winning five cups in seven years.
With that said, the series has historical significance.
A breif few minutes in Game 4 became the shift of Brooks Orpik’s life. The Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman hit everything in sight. Game 5 became Marc Andre-Fleurry’s coming out party, as he single-handedly kept the Pens in the game from the third period into the overtime.
Chris Osgood, the Red Wing’s stand-in for the formerly great Dominik “The Dominator” Hasek, played the Pittsburgh to two scoreless games. Johan Franzen came back from what I’ll call a concussion, and continued to make an impact, all the while taking shots to his head.
Furthermore, this series is great for the game. It has two relevant hockey markets going at it. No more Down South expansion franchises going at it all the while boring the combined populaces of the US and Canada (sorry Sun Belt hockey fans).
In my mind, this cup series marks a turning point for the sport of hockey. The series has everything, and it is going to turn some heads. People will start paying attention and the game will grow.
