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Stanley Cup Playoffs: Pittsburgh and Nashville Gave us a Thriller

By Matt Duscharme

Jun 11, 2017; Nashville, TN, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) hoists the Stanley Cup after defeating the Nashville Predators in game six of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 11, 2017; Nashville, TN, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) hoists the Stanley Cup after defeating the Nashville Predators in game six of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports /
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Stanley Cup Playoffs: It’s Official, The Pittsburgh Penguins are the 2016-17 Stanley Cup Champions. And the First Team to Go Back to Back Since Detroit.

The Nashville and Pittsburgh series in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs was phenomenal, Pekka Rinne was brilliant even though he had to be replaced a few times by backup Juuse Saros. But the same thing happened with Pittsburgh when Marc-Andre Fleury had a disaster of a game and Matthew Murray took over.

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Another bit of awesomeness was the fact Nashville got the better of a more skilled Pittsburgh team throughout much of the series, but that Pens team just had way too much depth and offensive grit to let it go to waste.

Another part that surprised me personally was the fact Sidney Crosby won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Playoff MVP, now don’t get me wrong he’s an amazing player and was clutch when need be. But if it wasn’t for Rinne giving the performances of a lifetime I don’t think they would have made it as far as they did, he deserved it more.

But back to Pittsburgh, they’re the first team to win back-to-back Stanley Cup’s since Detroit did it in 1996-97 and 1997-98. That’s over 15 years, which is quite impressive. Another impressive feat is with his third Stanley Cup ring, Crosby has now passed Mario Lemieux for most by a Penguin, making him the new forever face of the franchise. Which isn’t too surprising since he’s won everything under the sun minus a Memorial Cup.

[Via

NHL.com

]

Either way Pittsburgh has a lot to celebrate about and so does Nashville. They were the lowest ranked seed in the playoffs, played their hearts out and made it to the cup final forcing a game six. That whole city was buzzing and more excited than some other markets will ever be. And that’s just the beginning, just think about what they could do next year.

If they add the right pieces for next season, Nashville has a very solid chance of winning it all, Rinne just needs to stand on his head once again.

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