2017 Stanley Cup: Repeating Champs, the Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins Have Officially Repeated as the 2017 Stanley Cup Champions. The Exciting Series Between the Leading Pittsburgh Penguins And the Wild Card Nashville Predators Has Officially Ended With a Back-to-Back Win.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are officially the first team to win back-to-back Stanley Cups in the salary cap era. The last team to achieve this feat was the Detroit Red Wing’s back-to-back wins in 1997 and 1998.
The Penguins closed out the Stanley Cup with a 2-0 in Nashville and, despite the lack of their home crowd, celebrated their Cup the same way they would at home. The second repeat winner was captain Sidney Crosby, who walked away as the Conn Smythe Trophy winner for back-to-back Stanley Cup wins.
The Penguins’ 2017 Stanley Cup Run
The Penguins were a Stanley Cup favorite from the beginning, but the idea of a repeating champion was fleeting. Pittsburgh’s game increased in every series they faced and didn’t let their guard down at any time.
In fact, the Penguins faced their fair share of hardships through this postseason but proved that no obstacle was too much for them to navigate. Head coach Mike Sullivan assured that he had his team’s back and that he trusted them to play their game.
The Penguins’ benefitted from the expert play of Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby and the outstanding goaltending from both Matt Murray and Marc-Andre Fleury to grab the necessary wins. Despite hard competitors and setbacks, like injuries, these players were always ready to step up.
A ‘Three’-peat?
What are the odds of a third win? Who knows. With a number of trades destined to happen, the expansion draft and more, the league might look pretty different this season. Plus, it would be hard to imagine that the remaining teams of the NHL will all have a single goal in mind, aside from winning the Cup that is, and that might be defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Regardless, the Penguins have elevated the level of outstanding play and have shown NHL fans what it takes to take home the Cup in consecutive seasons. Next season will be an entirely new battle.
The Nashville Predators deserve many kudos for their postseason run. If not for facing the reigning champions, the Preds would have taken the Cup for sure. This team put up an extremely outstanding run in their postseason and will be a huge threat next season.
Next: Will Mac-Andre Fleury Be Saying Goodbye to Pittsburgh?