It is going to be a long road to hoe starting tonight as the Pittsburgh Penguins begin their defense of the Stanley Cup against the New York Rangers. But after the banners are raised and the recognition ends it is back to work.

To win the Cup again will take a lot of effort. This is a Penguins team with a lot of players who have played a lot of hockey over the past two seasons. They have the experience and they have got the talent. But they also have a big bullseye on their backs as everyone will be looking to prove that they are better than the Stanley Cup Champions. Teams like the Flyers, the Capitals and the Hurricanes will all be looking to avenge play off losses each time they square off against the Penguins. I leave the Red Wings out of that category because the two will meet just once in a non-conference match up that will neither make or break either team’s season.

The names have been inscribed on the cup and what is done is done. Tonight it is back to business and that business is to dance once again with Lord Stanley.

Good luck Pens! Let’s make the last season in the old Igloo a memorable one!

“Tradition” states that the only trophy one dares touch once the Stanley Cup playoffs begin is Lord Stanley’s Cup itself. To do anything else is said to anger the hockey gods by embracing a lesser achievement and that said gods will be more than happy to allow you to settle for less than the grand prize of hockey if that is the way you want to be.

Last night after the Penguins scored an empty net goal to ice the Eastern Conference Championship, I stood up and declared to my buddy who I was watching the game with that Sidney should skate over to the Prince of Wales Trophy after the game and skate around the ice proudly with it in defiance of “tradition”. Of course I also jokingly suggested that he spike it on the ice and proclaim aloud, “WHO’S NEXT?” Imagine my pleasure when somehow my thoughts were magically read by His Sidness and he defied the gods themselves to try and smite him. He and the team also sent a clear challenge to whomever may win the Western Conference Finals (which will probably be Detroit); do you have the balls to touch the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl?

Essentially the Penguins have challenged the manhood of the Western Conference Champs who are still to be determined. Perhaps they have even spotted them a few goals by granting the favor of the hockey gods upon either Detroit or Chicago should they stick with the “tradition.” We will have to wait and see.

Last night, the Penguins defeated the Carolina Hurricanes in a clean sweep of the Eastern Conference Finals and the record is intact – no team has ever come back from a 4-0 deficit in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The game started like many this spring with the Penguins opposition scoring early on a soft goal. At 1:26 of the first, Staal (10) scored on a wrap around that squeezed under Marc-Andre Fleury’s pad. It gave Carolina fans hope but that was all they had to cheer about as the Penguins rolled the rest of the way with only minor speed bumps put up by a feisty, yet tired, Carolina team.

Fedotenko (6) scored at 8:21 off a Boucher shot pass to the far post that caught Ward way out of the net, a theme for the entire game. Then with 1:29 left in the period, Max Tablot (4) scored off a fluttering pass that Ward half swiped at, bounced off the top of his glove, over his head and landed softly in the net. BLAMO – 2-1 Pens.

Then in the second, Crosby and Guerin stuck. In a reversal of a previous goal where Guerin fed Crosby at the far post in front of ward, it was Guerin’s turn. Guerin popped a puck out of the Pens zone which Crosby picked up. Crosby skated down the wall and had a 1-1 in font of Ward with Guerin following behind him and Kunitz trailing the play in the middle of the ice. Guerin turned on the jets and swept to the far post as Crosby pulled up at the circle to Ward’s right. Crosby flowed the puck over and Ward was not able to move post to post fast enough to stop the dagger from being placed in their hopes for a comeback. Guerin’s goal was his seventh of these playoffs.

Adams (3) added an empty net goal in the final two minutes and it was over and the brooms came out.

Pittsburgh only managed 24 shots on net against Ward which is a far cry from the 40+ they have been putting up. Fleury faced a total of 31 shots including 16 in the second period constantly flashing leather and kicking out a pad to stop pucks fired by the Hurricanes.

Now with the question of who will represent the East settled, the question of who will represent the West remains. And if Detroit has the wherewithal to end the hopes of the Blackhawks tonight will the NHL courageously move the Finals up to this weekend as my sources in the NHL tell me they are considering?

Here we are, just a short time faceoff in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals and the Hurricanes are Dead Men Skating. They hope to get a reprieve from the governor at the 11th hour on an appeal for a little more life.

Whether or not such will be the case remains to be seen.

As a Penguins fan I have mixed feelings about this series so far. On one hand I love the fact that the Penguins are up 3-0 and have turned Cam Ward into Swiss cheese and made Carolina fans really and honestly consider if the empty net is not a better option considering that it has only allowed 2 goals so far compared to Ward’s 14. On the other hand the series, while each game has had bouts of excitement beyond seeing how many goals Evgeni and His Sidness can score, they have been pretty lopsided and boring. Then there is the problem that I really don’t want to spend another $200 on tickets to watch another shooting gallery win if the Penguins slump tonight and send this game into a Friday night showdown in Pittsburgh. I would rather save that money for the Stanley Cup Final tickets sitting in my little binder on the kitchen counter. But I can always sell my Game 5 tickets I suppose.

So here are tonight’s BIG questions to be answered:

1) Will Cam Ward plug all those holes the Penguins have been finding in his pads?
2) Will Sidney Crosby be the victim of a tragic hit and run by some crazed Carolina fan screaming, “Go Canes!”?
3) Will it finally be revealed that under Malkin’s apparent human looking exterior really lies a cybernetic exoskeleton?
4) Will Jordan get to give his older brother Erik a noogie while in the hand shake line?
5) Is anyone foolish enough to take the “under” for tonight’s game on goals scored?
6) On that same subject, what exactly is the over/under for tonight’s game? 15?
7) How many Carolina fans have sold their tickets to Penguins fans and how many black or baby blue jerseys will be in the stands?
Will Bill Cower show up with his horn again?
9) Will we really have to wait over a week for the Finals to start pending the outcome of this series and the Detroit series? (note: the league has already hinted that it is moving up the start date of the finals to this weekend if both Pittsburgh and Detroit end it in their next games)
10) Exactly how many times will the Staal’s sod farm be referenced during the game?

Game two of the Eastern Conference Finals started out much the same way Game one did; with both teams throwing pucks at each other. The difference this time around is that during the first twenty minutes of play the Penguins could not keep the Hurricanes out from in front of the net and despite his best efforts, Fleury could not provide another one man show and shut down Carolina.

The game started out well enough for Pittsburgh as the offense was in full flight again. Just 1:51 in Crosby (13) scored after being fed through the crease by Chris Kunitz picking up right where the team left off in game one. About a minute later however Carolina tied it up with Larose (4) scoring on Fleury. At 8:15 of the first Malkin (8) added a second goal off of a Tyler Kennedy rebound for the Penguins to give them the lead again. 0:25 later Jokinen (7) beat Fleury to tie up the game again. Then at 12:10 of the first things got bad for the Penguins. That’s when Seidenberg (1) scored his first goal of the playoffs to give the Hurricanes their first lead in the series.

After the Seidenberg goal however the Penguins seemed to figure out things defensively and clamped down.

In the second period the Penguins got back on track and all but challenged the Hurricanes to get into a shooting match with them. About three minutes in Crosby chipped a puck up to Malkin who then chipped a puck up to Maxime Talbot in stride. Talbot (3) then pulled into the Carolina zone and fired a puck from Cam Ward’s right that beat him cleanly to tie the game. Fisticuffs broke out midway through the second with Malkin and LaRose each getting roughing calls. For Malkin the call was not that bad. He was just coming off an extended shift and needed the rest … I joke. But seriously, the scrum seemed to ignite Malkin who played with a passion and intensity that Carolina would regret ever igniting later. With eight seconds remaining in the period the Penguins regained the lead on Kunitz (1) first goal of the playoffs.

Eaves (1) pulled the Hurricanes even at 2:35 of the third seeming to give Carolina new life. But then the Evgeni Malkin show began and when it was over, Sidney Crosby had to be wondering if he was about to be demoted to the second line for Game 3. First Malkin jumped on the ice just after the eight minute mark of the period and raced into the Carolina zone. Kunitz tossed a puck on net and the rebound came to Malkin’s stick. He slammed the puck home for a 5-4 lead. Four minutes later, Malkin scored his tenth unassisted coasting out to Ward’s left. He won a faceoff, raced into the corner then around the net, turned and on his back hand roofed a puck that beat the Carolina net minder to give the Penguins the all important two goal lead and bringing truth to the saying that it is best to let sleeping dogs (or in this case Russians) lie.

Mister (Tyler) Kennedy (3) added an empty net goal at 18:11 to seal the deal. But Carolina was not done yet. If you ask my opinion, the Hurricanes had been head hunting all game in response to pretend outrage over two borderline but legal hits in game one against Rutuu and Cole. 0:30 after the Kennedy goal, the Canes got nasty as Gleason, Eaves and Bayda found Penguins to dance with including Satan and Letang. Satan was up to the task and looked like he had been a scrapper all his career. Bayda received a rare match penalty for intent to injure and for his role in the altercation that showed the frustration of the Carolina squad.

After struggling in the first period both Fleury and the Penguins defense clamped down. After allowed 3 goals on 14 shots in the first, the Penguins allowed just 1 goal on 14 shots the rest of the way. Now it is time for Game 3 in Carolina and they had better hope that Hurricane Geno has blown over by Saturday night if the Canes have any hope of gaining any sort of foothold in this series and not get blown away by the wind.

For the Penguins part, they continued the high pressure offense that Washington was barely able to hold off while stretching the previous series to seven games. If they keep it up, this series, and Hurricane season, could be over in very short order.

It is undeniable no matter what the fans of Marc-Andre Fleury say; the Penguins netminder has been solid but not spectacular this playoff season. Sure, he has shown flashes of brilliance but he has repeatedly let in soft goal after soft goal and relied on the defense to limit scoring opportunities. Well, last night Fleury stepped up his game – finally.

While Cam Ward was busy robbing the Penguins at one end of the ice and keeping the Hurricanes alive in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Fleury was putting on a clinic at the other end as well. And when the dust settled after 20 minutes of play it was Fleury who stood tall stopping all 12 shots he face while Cam Ward, the man you have to beat to beat the Canes, was only 7 of 9. Goals by Satan (1) and Malkin (7) put the Penguins up heading into the locker room.

Satan’s goal looked almost like it had been drawn up on the chalk board with Bylsma telling the much maligned winger to purposefully take a penalty then telling the Penguins to kill it flawlessly allowing then to spring Miroslav on a breakaway attempt as the penalty expired. He completely undressed Ward to give the Penguins the lead.

LaRose would finally solve Fleury halfway through the second to cut the lead to one goal but Boucher (1) extended that lead to 3-2 midway through the third. Only a late goal by Corvo and the Canes due to a silly penalty by Brooks Orpik for elbowing made the game close.

Most of the game was fast paced and up and down the ice with both teams having their chances but time and again it was Carolina that appeared outmatched in both speed and grit. Although they did have some golden opportunities that were wasted and put good pressure on Fleury at times, the defense of the Penguins smothered rebounded, cleared pucks and blocked shots. And let’s be honest, the Hurricanes were lucky to come out of the first period down only 2-0. By my count the Penguins misfired and missed the net on some half dozen or so shots that were by Ward and wide of the net before his hands even moved. They must have missed on some dozen shots altogether in the frame.

The Penguins also, once again also did an excellent job staying out of the penalty box in Game 1. A holding call against Satan (right before his opening goal) and the late call against Orpik were all that they got called for.

Now it is time to rest … and rest. Game 2 does not take place until Thursday night in Pittsburgh so there will be lots of time for both teams and the media to dissect Game 1 ad nauseum.

Perhaps it was a fitting end to a tight series after all, a series in which each team held the lead at some point during the previous six games but a series that, let’s face it, was only headed to Game 7 because of one man. And no, that man’s name is not Alexander Ovechkin. Without Simeon Varlamov the Capitals would never have been in this situation with a chance at literally stealing a series from the Pittsburgh Penguins after being over matched night in and night out, period after period.

I joke about Alexander Ovechkin being overrated. There is no denying that Ovechkin has one of the best shots in hockey.

There have been a lot of predictions about how Game 7 would shake out. Would the lack of experience among the Penguins in such an elimination game be a factor? Would the Capitals make another comeback and win yet another deciding game like they did in Round 1? How many goals would Crosby and Ovechkin score and who would be the secondary scorer that would be the hero? Could Fleury elevate his game after a lack luster series? Could Varlamov steal yet another win? Would Gonchar be back in the lineup? All these questions started to be answered at the drop of the puck.

No. No. Two, one and Geurin. Yes. No. YES!

The first period started out back and forth. Then it happened. Ovechkin behind the Penguins defense got the outlet and bared down on Marc-Andre Fleury. Ovechkin dragged the puck across in front of the net and flipped it towards the goal. But Fleury flashed leather and every Washington fan behind the net was half way out of their seat before they realized that there was no goal on the play.

That is when the Penguins took control.

Morrison took a slashing penalty to put the Penguins on the power play. Gonchar prowled at the blue line with puck on stick. Wristing it towards the net the puck bounced out to the skate of Crosby. He kicked it to his stick and swatted it into the net.

1-0 Penguins.

Off the face off, the Penguins won control and stormed into the Capitals end again. Just eight seconds later it was Craig Adams that put the puck through the wickets of Varlamov.

2-0 Penguins.

Then came the second period. 0:28 in Crosby lead the rush and pushed the puck to the high slot and the stick of Billy Guerin.

3-0 Penguins.

About a minute and a half later Letang ripped a puck that got stuck in the net behind Varlamov.

4-0 Penguins.

That was all for Varlamov at that point as the Penguins finally got to the rookie and chased him from the net. In came Jose Theodore.

At 11:37 of the second Jordan Staal showed that it did not matter on this night who was in goal for Washington. He scrummed for a puck in front of the net in traffic and BOOM …

5-0 Penguins.

In the waining moments of the second Fleury misplayed a puck behind the net, Ovechkin picked it off the wall and wrapped it into an empty net.

Yawn … 5-1 Penguins.

Enter the third period. After a double minor for high sticking where Laich took the lumber to Crosby’s face, Crosby walked in late on the first of the two and beat Theodore for his second of the game.

6-1 Penguins.

Laich would add another goal a few minutes later to make it 6-2 but somewhere between being down 3-0 and 4-0 the Capitals just lost all will to win.

The Penguins played excellent in front of Fleury who was not test all that much. They allowed only 5 shots in the first, 7 shots in the second and 9 shots in the third. 21 shots is not enough to beat the Penguins.

I have been saying this for the last week since getting a look at Varlamov in the first two games. He’s good. But he is not good enough to steal a series against a team like the Penguins. He tried valiantly though.

Now the wait to see who wins the Boston Carolina series begins. I’ll be watching tomorrow night eagerly.