2008 Stanley Cup Finals

2008 Stanley Cup Finals
123456 Total
Pittsburgh Penguins 00314***2 2
Detroit Red Wings 43223***3 4
* – Denotes overtime period(s)
Location(s) Detroit: Joe Louis Arena (1,2,5)
Pittsburgh: Mellon Arena (3,4,6)
Coaches Pittsburgh: Michel Therrien
Detroit: Mike Babcock
Captains Pittsburgh: Sidney Crosby
Detroit: Nicklas Lidstrom
National anthems Pittsburgh: Jeff Jimerson[1]
Detroit: Karen Newman
Referees Paul Devorski (1,3,5)
Dan O'Halloran (1,3,5)
Marc Joannette (2,4,6)
Brad Watson (2,4,6)
Dates May 24 – June 4
MVP Henrik Zetterberg (Red Wings)
Series-winning goal Henrik Zetterberg (7:36, third, G6)
Networks

NBC, CBC, Versus,

RDS, NASN
Announcers (CBC) Bob Cole, Greg Millen[2]
(Versus/NBC) Mike Emrick, Eddie Olczyk
(NHL International) Dave Strader, Joe Micheletti

The 2008 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 2007–08 season, and the culmination of the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested between the Western Conference champion Detroit Red Wings and the Eastern Conference champion Pittsburgh Penguins. This was Detroit's 23rd appearance in the Final, and its first since winning the Cup in 2002. This was Pittsburgh's third appearance in the Final, and its first since winning consecutive Cup championships in 1991 and 1992. The Red Wings defeated the Penguins four games to two, and were awarded the Stanley Cup. Detroit's Henrik Zetterberg was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Most Valuable Player of the playoffs.[3]

This was Detroit's 11th Stanley Cup title and was also the first Cup Final between two United States-based NHL teams since 2003.

In the United States, Versus televised games one and two, and NBC broadcast the rest of the series. It was broadcast in Canada on CBC in English and on RDS in French. In the United Kingdom, all games were aired live on Five, and on the cable sports channel NASN. The series was also broadcast by NHL Radio via Westwood One.

Paths to the Finals

The Detroit Red Wings entered the Final after winning the Presidents' Trophy as the team that had the best record during the regular season. Led by forwards Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, and Johan Franzen, Detroit scored 55 goals in the first three rounds of the playoffs. With struggling goaltender Dominik Hasek being replaced mid-series by Chris Osgood, the Red Wings defeated their division rival Nashville Predators in the Western Conference Quarterfinals, in six games. The team swept the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Semifinal round, in which Franzen scored nine goals – besting the entire Avalanche squad, who scored eight goals in the series. The Red Wings then defeated the Dallas Stars in six games to win their fifth Clarence S. Campbell Bowl in franchise history.

The Pittsburgh Penguins entered the championship series after winning the Atlantic Division and earning the second-best regular season record in the Eastern Conference. The team was led by Sidney Crosby; missing 29 games throughout the regular season because of an ankle injury, the captain returned to lead the first three rounds of the playoffs in assists, and to tie for the lead in points heading into the Stanley Cup Final. Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury recorded three shutouts throughout the playoffs, to lead the league in that category. Evgeni Malkin and Marian Hossa each recorded nine goals and ten assists throughout the playoffs. The Penguins swept the Ottawa Senators in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, a reversal of the series of the previous season when Ottawa beat Pittsburgh 4–1. In the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Penguins defeated division rival the New York Rangers, in five games. The team won the Prince of Wales Trophy by defeating another division rival, their in-state rivals, and another fierce rival of the Rangers, the Philadelphia Flyers, also in five games.

Game summaries

The 2008 Stanley Cup Final marked the first time that the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins met in postseason play, and the first time since the 1962 Playoff Bowl (played in January 1963) that professional sports teams from Detroit and Pittsburgh met in a postseason series or game. The Red Wings and Penguins did not play each other during the 2007–08 regular season.

Game one

Pittsburgh's Gary Roberts and Detroit's Chris Chelios were both healthy scratches for game one. Prior to the game, a ceremonial faceoff featuring former Pittsburgh captain and current team chairman Mario Lemieux and former Detroit captain and team vice president at the time Steve Yzerman. Each dropped a puck to their current captains Sidney Crosby and Nicklas Lidstrom, respectively.

At 15:20 into the first period, a goal scored by Lidstrom was waved off after Tomas Holmstrom was called for goaltender interference. The remainder of the first period went scoreless, as Pittsburgh failed to capitalize on four consecutive power plays. At 13:01 into the second period, Mikael Samuelsson gave the Red Wings the unassisted game-winning goal, on a wrap-around. Just over two minutes into the third period, Samuelsson added his second unassisted goal of the game. At 17:18 into the third period, Dan Cleary scored shorthanded to give the Red Wings a 3–0 lead. Henrik Zetterberg scored on the power-play with 13 seconds remaining. Chris Osgood recorded his second shutout of the playoffs, to give the Red Wings a 4–0 victory in game one. The Red Wings outshot the Penguins 36–19.

Game one summary
Team 1 2 3 T
Pittsburgh 12 4 3 19
Detroit 11 16 9 36

Game two

In preparation for game two, head coach Michel Therrien revised Pittsburgh's lines; the revision included Gary Roberts who did not play in game one.[4] Johan Franzen, the leading goal-scorer in the playoffs, returned to the line-up for Detroit.[5]

Detroit's Brad Stuart scored the first goal of the game 6:55 into the first period, on a slap shot, with an assist from Valtteri Filppula. Tomas Holmstrom added a goal at 11:18 into the first period, to put Detroit up 2–0. Pittsburgh struggled throughout the period, failing to get a shot on goal for the game's first twelve minutes. Detroit outshot the Penguins 11–6 in the second period, but both teams failed to score. At 8:48 into the third period, Valtteri Filppula scored his first goal of the series, beating goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury with a wrist-shot. Chris Osgood recorded his second consecutive shutout, stopping all 22 shots faced.

Game two summary
Team 1 2 3 T
Pittsburgh 6 6 10 22
Detroit 12 11 11 34

Game three

Game three was held in Pittsburgh, where going into the matchup the Penguins had won sixteen consecutive home games.[6] Pittsburgh continued to shuffle their lineup by replacing defenseman Kris Letang with veteran Darryl Sydor,[7] but going back to the top line combinations from game one. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby scored the team's first goal of the series late in the first period, with an assist from Marian Hossa. The Penguins went up 2-0 after Crosby scored a second time, his second coming on the power-play, just 2:34 into the second period. Johan Franzen pulled the Red Wings within one, when he scored on the power-play at 14:48 of the second period. Adam Hall scored his second goal of the post season, when the Penguins winger scored at 7:18 of the third period, putting his team up 3-1. Mikael Samuelsson scored a second goal for the Red Wings, with assists from Brad Stuart and Valtteri Filppula. However, Pittsburgh's 3-2 lead held, giving the team their first victory of the series. Despite winning the game, Pittsburgh was outshot by the Red Wings for the third consecutive game by at least 10 shots.

Game three summary
Team 1 2 3 T
Pittsburgh 6 13 5 24
Detroit 9 9 16 34

Game four

Entering Game Four, Petr Sykora said the game was a must-win for the Penguins, "For us, basically, [game four] is a do-or-die game".[8] Jiri Hudler's game-winning goal at 2:26 of the third period broke a 1–1 tie, and the Red Wings killed off a Penguins 1:26 5-on-3 advantage midway through the final period to help preserve the victory, thanks in large part to a terrific defensive play by Henrik Zetterberg on Sidney Crosby, preventing what would have been a tap-in goal when he tied up Crosby's stick at the front of the net. Pittsburgh scored first on Marian Hossa's power play goal 2:51 into the game before Nicklas Lidstrom tied the game at 7:06 of the first period.

Game four summary
Team 1 2 3 T
Pittsburgh 9 8 6 23
Detroit 14 7 9 30

Game five

Pittsburgh's Marian Hossa scored the first goal of the game at 8:37 into the first period. Teammate Adam Hall added his second goal of the series at 14:41 of the first period, giving the Penguins a 2–0 lead. Detroit then scored three consecutive goals—by Darren Helm, Pavel Datsyuk, and Brian Rafalski—to gain the lead. After Pittsburgh pulled its goalie with less than one minute remaining in regulation, Maxime Talbot scored with 34.3 seconds remaining to tie the game and force overtime. The goal marked only the second time in NHL history that a team avoided elimination in the Final by scoring in the last minute of the third period.[9] The first two overtime periods were scoreless, and the game went into the third overtime with Detroit killing two consecutive penalties, and Pittsburgh killing one. At the 9:21 mark, Pittsburgh's Petr Sykora scored the game-winning goal on another power-play, forcing the series back to Pittsburgh for game six. The goal was assisted by defenseman Sergei Gonchar, who was playing his first shift in forty minutes as a result of an injury, and Evgeni Malkin, who got his first point of the Final. Pittsburgh became the first team in modern NHL history to have three overtime power-plays in the Final. Goaltenders Marc-Andre Fleury and Chris Osgood stopped 55 and 28 shots, respectively. The triple overtime game was the fifth-longest in Stanley Cup Final history.[10]

Game five summary
Team 1 2 3 OT1 OT2 OT3 T
Pittsburgh 7 7 4 2 8 4 32
Detroit 8 12 14 13 7 4 58

Game six

Pittsburgh's Ryan Malone was scheduled to have X-rays on June 3, after being hit in the face with the puck in game five, but was expected to play.[11]

The Red Wings took a 2–0 lead in the second period in game six en route to a 3–2 victory to clinch the Stanley Cup. Brian Rafalski scored a power play goal at 5:03 in the first period before Valtteri Filppula extended the lead with a goal at 8:07 in the second. The Penguins had an opportunity to get their first goal later in the first period, with a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:33, but could not convert. Pittsburgh finally cut the lead at 15:26 of the second period with Evgeni Malkin's power play goal. However, a third period shot by Detroit's Henrik Zetterberg squeezed through the legs of Pittsburgh goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who, after noticing he was not covering the puck, fell backwards and accidentally knocked the puck across the goal line for the Red Wings' third goal. Marian Hossa scored a power play goal (in addition to the Penguins pulling Fleury for an extra attacker and the Red Wings' Andreas Lilja having lost his stick as a result of Malone knocking it out of his hands) at 18:33 of the third period to cut the lead to 3–2, but the Penguins, despite a shot by Sidney Crosby and shot off rebound by Hossa in the final seconds, could not tie the game before time ran out. Lidstrom became the first European-born Stanley Cup captain.

The Wings' victory also saw the Triple Gold Club, made up of individuals who have won the Stanley Cup plus gold medals at the Olympics and World Championships, gain three new members. Niklas Kronwall, Mikael Samuelsson, and Zetterberg had previously won the other two components with the Sweden national team in 2006 at that year's Olympics and World Championships.

Game six summary
Team 1 2 3 T
Detroit 9 9 12 30
Pittsburgh 8 8 6 22

Television ratings

Game one of the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals had a 1.8 rating in the United States, drawing 2.3 million viewers. The rating was a 157% increase over the previous Playoff Finals opener, and a 100% rise from two years previous.[12] Game two had a 1.9 rating, drawing 2.5 million viewers. It was the highest-rated and most-watched cable telecast of the finals in six years in the United States. The rating was the highest for an NHL game on Versus and the second highest rating for a Versus broadcast ever only to Lance Armstrong's seventh straight Tour de France victory in 2005 (2.1).[13] Game three drew a 2.8 rating, representing an 87% increase over the previous year's game three. In Detroit, game three drew higher ratings (18.2) than game five of the 2008 NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the Detroit Pistons and the Boston Celtics (15.9).[14] Game four earned a 2.3 rating, up 21% over the previous year's game four. Game five drew a 4.3 rating, representing a 79% increase from the previous year's game five. It drew the highest ratings for a game five since 2002.[15] Game six had a 4.4 rating, the best performance in a game six since 2000. It was a 100% increase over game six of 2006 and was the highest rated game for NBC since they reacquired the NHL broadcasting rights in 2004.[16]

On the CBC, this was the last Stanley Cup Final that Bob Cole would serve as the play-by-play announcer for, as Jim Hughson would take over the following year.

Aftermath

The following year, both the Red Wings and Penguins met again in the Stanley Cup Finals. This time, the Penguins won the Stanley Cup.

This marks the most recent time that a Detroit-based team has won a major league championship.

Team rosters

Years indicated in boldface under the "Finals appearance" column signify that the player won the Stanley Cup in the given year.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Goaltenders
# Player Catches Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
29 Marc-Andre Fleury L 2003 Canada Sorel, Quebec first
35 Ty Conklin L 2007 United States Phoenix, Arizona second (2006)
Defensemen
# Player Shoots Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
2 Hal Gill L 2008 United States Concord, Massachusetts first
4 Rob Scuderi L 1998 United States Syosset, New York first
5 Darryl Sydor L 2007 Canada Edmonton, Alberta fifth (1993, 1999, 2000, 2004)
19 Ryan Whitney L 2002 United States Boston, Massachusetts first
44 Brooks Orpik L 2001 United States San Francisco, California first
55 Sergei Gonchar – A L 2005 Russia Chelyabinsk, U.S.S.R. second (1998)
58 Kris Letang R 2005 Canada Montreal, Quebec first
Forwards
# Player Position Shoots Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
9 Pascal Dupuis LW/RW L 2008 Canada Laval, Quebec first
10 Gary Roberts – A LW L 2007 Canada North York, Ontario second (1989)
11 Jordan Staal C L 2006 Canada Thunder Bay, Ontario first
12 Ryan Malone LW L 1999 United States Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania first
17 Petr Sykora RW L 2007 Czech Republic Pilsen, Czechoslovakia fourth (2000, 2001, 2003)
18 Marian Hossa RW L 2008 Slovakia Stara Lubovna, Czechoslovakia first
25 Maxime Talbot C/LW L 2002 Canada LeMoyne, Quebec first
27 Georges Laraque RW R 2007 Canada Montreal, Quebec second (2006)
28 Adam Hall RW/C R 2007 United States Kalamazoo, Michigan first
37 Jarkko Ruutu LW L 2006 Finland Helsinki, Finland first
38 Jeff Taffe C/LW L 2007 United States Hastings, Minnesota first (did not play)
48 Tyler Kennedy C/RW R 2004 Canada Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario first
71 Evgeni Malkin C L 2004 Russia Magnitogorsk, U.S.S.R. first
87 Sidney Crosby – C C L 2005 Canada Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia first

Detroit Red Wings

Goaltenders
# Player Catches Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
30 Chris Osgood L 2005 Canada Peace River, Alberta fourth (1995, 1997, 1998)
39 Dominik Hasek L 2006 Czech Republic Pardubice, Czechoslovakia fourth (1992, 1999, 2002)
Defensemen
# Player Shoots Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
3 Andreas Lilja L 2005 Sweden Helsingborg, Sweden first
5 Nicklas Lidstrom – C L 1989 Sweden Vasteras, Sweden fifth (1995, 1997, 1998, 2002)
14 Derek Meech L 2002 Canada Winnipeg, Manitoba —
22 Brett Lebda L 2004 United States Buffalo Grove, Illinois first
23 Brad Stuart L 2008 Canada Rocky Mountain House, Alberta first
24 Chris Chelios R 1999 United States Chicago, Illinois fifth (1986, 1989, 1992, 2002;
(did not play)
28 Brian Rafalski R 2007 United States Dearborn, Michigan fourth (2000, 2001, 2003)
55 Niklas Kronwall L 2000 Sweden Stockholm, Sweden first
Forwards
# Player Position Shoots Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
11 Daniel Cleary LW/RW L 2005 Canada Carbonear, Newfoundland first
13 Pavel Datsyuk – A C/LW L 1998 Russia Sverdlovsk, U.S.S.R. second (2002)
17 Dallas Drake RW/LW L 2007 Canada Trail, British Columbia first
18 Kirk Maltby RW/LW R 1996 Canada Guelph, Ontario fourth (1997, 1998, 2002)
20 Aaron Downey RW R 2007 Canada Shelburne, Ontario first (did not play)
25 Darren McCarty RW R 2008 Canada Burnaby, British Columbia fifth (1995, 1997, 1998, 2002)
26 Jiri Hudler RW/LW/C L 2002 Czech Republic Olomouc, Czechoslovakia first
33 Kris Draper – A C L 1993 Canada Toronto, Ontario fifth (1995, 1997, 1998, 2002)
37 Mikael Samuelsson RW R 2005 Sweden Mariefred, Sweden first
40 Henrik Zetterberg – A C L 1999 Sweden Njurunda, Sweden first
43 Darren Helm LW/C L 2005 Canada St. Andrews, Manitoba first
51 Valtteri Filppula C L 2002 Finland Vantaa, Finland first
82 Tomas Kopecky LW L 2000 Slovakia Dubnica nad Váhom, Czechoslovakia first (did not play)
93 Johan Franzen LW L 2004 Sweden Vetlanda, Sweden first
96 Tomas Holmstrom RW L 1994 Sweden Pitea, Sweden fourth (1997, 1998, 2002)

Detroit Red Wings – 2008 Stanley Cup champions

Players

  Centres
  Wingers
  Defencemen
  Goaltenders

Coaching and administrative staff:

  • Mike Ilitch Sr. (Owner/President/Governor), Marian Ilitch (Owner/Secretary-Treasurer), Christopher Ilitch (Vice President Red Wings/President-Chief Executive Officer Ilitch Holdings/Alt. Governor)
  • Denise Ilitch, Ronald Ilitch, Michael Ilitch Jr. (Minority Owners)
  • Lisa Ilitch Murray, Atanas Ilitch, Carole Ilitch (Minority Owners), Jim Devellano (Sr. Vice President/Alt. Governor)
  • Ken Holland (Executive Vice President/General Manager/Alt. Governor), Steve Yzerman (Vice President/Alt. Governor), Jim Nill (Vice President/Asst. General Manager), Ryan Martin (Director-Hockey Administration)
  • Scotty Bowman (Consultant), Mike Babcock (Head Coach), Todd McLellan (Associate Coach), Paul MacLean (Asst. Coach)
  • Jim Bedard (Goaltending Coach), Jay Woodcroft (Video Coach), Mark Howe (Director of Pro Scouting), Joe McDonnell (Director of Amateur Scouting)
  • Hakan Andersson (Director of European Scouting), Piet Van Zant (Athletic Therapist), Paul Boyer (Equipment Manager)
  • Russ Baumann (Ass't Athletic Therapist), Christopher Scoppetto (Assistant Equipment Manager)

Stanley Cup engraving

Included on team picture, but left off the Stanley Cup

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Grupp, John (May 6, 2009). "Anthem singer fires up Mellon crowd". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
  2. ↑ "Broadcasters piecing together on-air rosters". The Globe and Mail. May 21, 2008. Archived from the original on May 28, 2008. Retrieved May 21, 2008.
  3. ↑ "Detroit Red Wings win Stanley Cup". CBC. June 4, 2008. Archived from the original on June 5, 2008. Retrieved June 4, 2008.
  4. ↑ Molinari, Dave (May 26, 2008). "Moving forward: Therrien shuffles lines hoping to make a difference in game two". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on June 2, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2008.
  5. ↑ Anderson, Shelly (May 26, 2008). "Red Wings' Franzen will play tonight". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on May 27, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2008.
  6. ↑ Kreiser, John (May 27, 2008). "Penguins hope home is where the wins are". NHL.com. Retrieved May 28, 2008.
  7. ↑ Rosen, Dan (May 28, 2008). "Cup winner Sydor jumps back into Pens lineup". PittsburghPenguins.com. Archived from the original on May 29, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2008.
  8. ↑ Molinari, Dave (May 31, 2008). "Sykora: Penguins face a must-win situation tonight". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on June 10, 2008. Retrieved May 31, 2008.
  9. ↑ "Sykora delivers on his called shot". CBC. June 3, 2008. Archived from the original on June 4, 2008. Retrieved June 3, 2008.
  10. ↑ Phil Coffey (June 2, 2008). "Penguins stay alive in triple OT". NHL.com. Retrieved June 3, 2008.
  11. ↑ Molinari, Dave (June 4, 2008). "Penguins again stare at elimination tonight at Mellon Arena". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on June 7, 2008. Retrieved June 4, 2008.
  12. ↑ "American television ratings rise for Stanley Cup final opener". Yahoo!. May 28, 2008. Retrieved June 5, 2008.
  13. ↑ Vergara, Norman (May 29, 2008). "Stanley Cup game two's Ratings Outdo game one Figures". All Headline News. Archived from the original on June 13, 2008. Retrieved June 5, 2008.
  14. ↑ "Stanley Cup's game three beat NBA conference finals in Detroit ratings". SI.com. May 29, 2008. Archived from the original on June 1, 2008. Retrieved June 5, 2008.
  15. ↑ "Stanley Cup finals ratings improve again". USA Today. June 3, 2008. Retrieved June 5, 2008.
  16. ↑ Seidman, Robert (June 5, 2008). "NHL Stanley Cup Finals: Best US Game Six Ratings in EIGHT Years". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on June 8, 2008. Retrieved June 16, 2008.
  17. ↑ "Kris Draper - Special Assistant to the General Manager". Detroit Red Wings. Retrieved 2016-05-22.
  18. ↑ "Stanley Cup Final Post-Game Notes, game six". NHL.com. 2008-06-05. Retrieved 2016-05-22.
Wikinews has related news: 2008 Stanley Cup
Preceded by
Anaheim Ducks
2007		 Detroit Red Wings
Stanley Cup Champions
2008 		Succeeded by
Pittsburgh Penguins
2009
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