Stanley Cup Finals Preview

The battle for the Stanley Cup begins tonight when the Detroit Red Wings will host the Pittsburgh Penguins in game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals. What should be both an exciting and interesting series, this is a perfect final for the NHL. Over the years, Gary Bettman has tried to sell the NHL to America but to no avail. However, with the new face of the NHL (Sidney Crosby) battling for the Cup in "Hockey Town" (Detroit), this matchup is expected to draw huge ratings in the US. Whether casual fans flip through the channels and stumble upon the series, or die-hard hockey fans are watching, this matchup is exactly what the NHL wants; two fast-paced, offensively potent teams with speed and scoring. If there was any final to sell to Americans, this would undoubtedly be the best one.

This series will also highlight a central theme; the youth of the Pittsburgh Penguins against the experience of the Detroit Red Wings. It can be thought that the Penguins journey thus far has been an easy one, going 12-2 in these playoffs and not facing much adversity. Their 'Big Three' in Crosby, Malkin and Hossa have carried the Penguins offense while their blueline has exceeded expectations, anchored by Sergei Gonchar. In goal, the questions surrounding Marc-Andre Fleury's experience were answered and has resulted in Fleury's coming out party. The Penguins steamrolled through Ottawa, New York and Philadelphia and now will face a team that has plenty of Stanley Cup experience. You could say that the Detroit Red Wings motto coming into this series is 'been there, done that' while the Penguins look to answer with youth and urgency.
Being in a salary-cap era, this could be the Penguins best chance to raise the cup. Signing Marian Hossa, Ryan Malone, and other key players is highly unlikey as GM Ray Shero will have his hands tied resigning Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal. It is 'go big or go home' for Pittsburgh, as this could be their last Stanley Cup finals appearance for a few years.

In Detroit, the Red Wings claimed the West championship by going 12-4 and setting a franchise record at one point with nine consecutive victories this postseason. With roughly have the roster having previously played on Cup championship teams, the Red Wings are deep in veteran talent and have the poise to execute in pressure situations. Led by Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datysuk and Niklas Lidstrom, Detroit has all the makings of a championship team; scoring, a much better blueline than that of the Penguins, exceptional goaltending with experience, and the 'experience' factor. From the backup goalie all the way to the GM job, the Red Wings have more experience in every position. One question surrounding the Red Wings is the health of playoff goal-scoring leader Johan Franzen who has been out of action for a while with concussion-like symptoms. The Red Wings secondary scoring has dried up since his absence, placing more pressure on Zetterberg and Datysuk to deliver.

All in all, this should be a great finals featuring two exciting teams. Will the urgency and youth of the Penguins prevail over the experience and poise of the veterans on Detroit, or will the old adage 'there is no substitute for experience', prove to be true?

'The error of youth is to believe that intelligence is a substitute for experience, while the error of age is to believe experience is a substitute for intelligence'

Pick: Red Wings in 7.