No sense in reiterating the dos and do-nots of this series. Malsby did a good enough job of that yesterday in his post that dissects the final game. But here are a few additional notes that may raise an eyebrow in anticipation and/or concern.
For those of you who were keeping tabs on the AHL series between Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Washington'saffiliate the Hershey Bears, you may know just how eerily similar that run was to the parent club's. Wilkes-Barre, initially down 2-0 early in the series, won the next three in a row to ultimately take a 3-2 series lead. The series was within reach in Game 6 but Hershey stayed alive to force a game seven. (Still sound familiar?) Last night was that game seven. Unfortunately WBS fell to Hershey in a 3-0 loss, ending the Baby Pens' run to the Calder Cup.
So here we are less than 24 hrs later looking at another Game 7. Pitt, after initially losing two straight to open up the series, turned things around and won three in a row. With the series in reach during Game 6, Washington stayed alive with an overtime game-winner to force a game seven. Results on that one still pending.
There's no doubt about it - this game will be one for the ages. Five of the six games have been decided by only one goal, three of which came during overtime. Each team won its first two games on home ice and then followed that up with a win each on the road. Could it be any less predictable?
For the record, Sidney Crosby has never played in a Game 7. Never as in 'ever,' on any level of play. Notes on the Penguins' official preview suggest Sergei Gonchar will "try to play" tonight. Hard to say what that means exactly in terms of the game's roster. Obviously we'll keep ya posted.
The Penguins couldn't do it on Mellon ice and now have a Game 7 at the Verizon Center. Hopefully they don't mirror the performance of their AHL affiliate
You have to admit - that would be too ironic for comfort.