Penguins Beat Red Wings in 7 to Win 2009 Stanley Cup

The Pittsburgh Penguins have beaten the Detroit Red Wings in Game 7 by the score of 2-1 to win their third Stanley Cup in franchise history. Little known Max Talbot scored the two goals in the final game to seal it. Evgeni Malkin, who led the playoffs with 36 points, earned the Conn Smythe Trophy as postseason MVP. The Penguins denied the Red Wings of repeating as Stanley Cup Champions and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury was a big part in making that happen.

The 2009 Stanley Cup Finals was not the first finals in recent memory to go to a pivotal Game 7. The 2001, 2003, 2004, and 2006 finals all went seven games and all four of those series were won by the home team. The Penguins became the first road team to win Game 7 since Montreal did it in 1971. The Penguins became the third team to win Game 7 on the road in 15 Cup Finals. History was definitely not on Pittsburgh's side but they became 5-0 all-time on the road in Game 7's.

The 2009 Stanley Cup Finals closely resembled that of the 2008 finals that saw these two teams playing against each other. Just like in last year's Finals, the Red Wings of 2009 quickly came out to a 2-0 series lead, taking both games on home ice. Detroit won both games by the score of 3-1. And like last year's finals, the Pens rebounded in Game 3 to win 4-2 and cut the series lead in half. In the 2008 finals, the Red Wings won the important Game 4 to take a commanding 3-1 series lead. This year, the Pens defended home ice with another 4-2 victory, with goals from Malkin and Crosby. The series headed back to Detroit for Game 5 with the series tied at two games each. The Red Wings got a big boost on both offense and defense when star player Pavel Datsyuk returned to the lineup for Game 5 after missing seven playoff games with an injury. Detroit won Game 5 by a blowout, 5-0. The Wings had a chance to close out the Penguins in Game 6 but Pittsburg scored two goals early and held on barely to win the game 2-1 and force a Game 7 in Detroit.

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was not a big factor in this year's Stanley Cup Final, only scoring 1 goals and assisting on 2 goals. In Crosby's first Stanley Cup Finals appearance last year, he made a bigger impact with 2 goals and 4 assists. The best player for the Penguins these Finals have been Crosby's sidekick Evgeni Malkin, who scored 2 goals and had 6 assists. Both were celebrating their first Stanley Cup.

This Stanley Cup Final series met most of the high expectations and went the seven game distance. Every home team won their game except for Game 7.