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		<description>RUWT? News for Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Detroit Red Wings 5/31/2009</description>
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		<pubDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 15:18:09 GMT</pubDate>
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				<title><![CDATA[Red Wings beat Penguins 3-1 in Game 1 of finals]]></title>
				<description><![CDATA[By LARRY LAGE
AP Sports Writer

DETROIT(AP) -- The Detroit Red Wings gave Marc-Andre Fleury
flashbacks.

And, they weren't good.

Johan Franzen scored the go-ahead goal late in the second period
and Chris Osgood made 31 saves, helping the defending champions
beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1 Saturday night in Game 1 of the
Stanley Cup finals.

Franzen and Brad Stuart had goals that bounced off Fleury, who
sat on a shot that trickled in for Detroit's series-clinching
goal last year.

Replays of that moment had to haunt Fleury in the series opener.

Stuart simply dumped the puck behind Fleury and was rewarded
with a fortunate carom that sent the puck off Fleury's right
skate and across the goal line in the first period.

"It's kind of tough," Fleury said. "Guy shoots and it misses the
net, and it comes back pretty quick."

Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby didn't have such luck when his
third-period shot went off Osgood, a post and landed in the
middle of the goalie's back as lay on the ice.

"I knew it was there, but I'm not that flexible," Osgood said.
"I was kind of hoping for the best."

Crosby was dumbfounded.

"I've never seen that before," he said.

The Stanley Cup finals opener was full of reminders about last
year.

Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were slowed down and Detroit scored
some fortunate goals.

"I don't think there are going to be a whole lot of skill
plays," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said.

Detroit rookie Justin Abdelkader did come up with an impressive
play.

He scored his first playoff goal by leaping to grab his own
rebound, putting the puck on the ice and flipping it past
Fleury.

"That was huge for us to get that insurance goal," Lidstrom
said.

Game 2 is Sunday night in Detroit.

"It's good," Pittsburgh's Maxime Talbot said. "We don't have to
think long about it."

The NHL and its TV partners likely were happy with the first
Stanley Cup finals rematch since the Edmonton Oilers and New
York Islanders met again in 1984.

The action, especially in the first period, matched the hype.

"When you've been here before, you know what to expect so you're
ready to start on time," Babcock said.

End-to-end action, big hits such as Crosby's left shoulder
sending Henrik Zetterberg to the ice, scoring opportunities and
a 1-1 score had to hold nontraditional viewers giving hockey a
chance.

The Penguins didn't need good fortune to tie it.

Malkin baited Stuart into trying to clear a puck off the boards
and took advantage of the turnover with a slap shot that Osgood
couldn't control, leading to Ruslan Fedotenko's backhander off
the rebound.

Pittsburgh had a breakaway and two power plays in the first half
of the second period, and had nothing to show for it.

Osgood got part of his glove on Malkin's wrist shot on the
breakaway, and Detroit's penalty killers limited the Penguins to
two shots on their first power play and none on their second.

"The goalie is the most important player every night," Babcock
said. "It's hockey."

Osgood had to make a pair of saves two-thirds of the way through
the second, denying Miroslav Satan on a shot just outside of the
crease after Malkin set him up beautifully and turning away
Crosby's backhander after a spectacular spin move.

Crosby and Malkin are running away with the postseason scoring
race, but they know Detroit is different than any team they
played in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

"We expect it to be tight, and that's the way it is," Crosby
said. "I thought we generated some good scoring chances. We just
have to find a way to get a few more. We had a couple that
didn't go in, and maybe that was the difference."

Detroit went ahead 2-1 in the final minute of the second period,
scoring again off the boards and Fleury.

Rafalski shot bounced off the boards, Franzen got to the loose
puck and flipped a backhander over and off Fleury and into the
net.

It was Franzen's his team-leading 11th goal of the playoffs and
24th in the postseason since the start of last year's Stanley
Cup run.

The Red Wings are shooting to be the first to repeat since they
won back-to-back titles in 1997 and '98, but their opposing
coach says they've got work to do.

"This is a race to four," Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma said.
"They've got one on us."

Notes: Detroit was without Pavel Datsyuk, an MVP finalist
along with Malkin, a fellow Russian, because of a foot injury,
but welcomed the return of Lidstrom and Jonathan Ericsson. ...
Fleury finished with 27 saves. ... Game 1 winner has won 54 of
69 finals series since 1939. ... Detroit is an NHL-best 9-1 at
home this postseason.]]></description>
				<category><![CDATA[nhl]]></category>
				<link>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/nhl/news/100153-Red-Wings-beat-Penguins-3-1-in-Game-1-of-finals</link>
				<guid>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/nhl/news/100153-Red-Wings-beat-Penguins-3-1-in-Game-1-of-finals</guid>
				<pubDate>Sun, 31 May 2009 09:01:21 GMT</pubDate>
			</item>
		
			<item>
				<title><![CDATA[Penguins-Red Wings Preview]]></title>
				<description><![CDATA[By IRA PODELL
AP Hockey Writer

Pittsburgh At Detroit, Game One, 8:00 p.m. EDT

DETROIT (AP) --  Don't be fooled by the scraggly semblance of a
beard that strains to cover chunks of Sidney Crosby's
21-year-old face.

He's most definitely still Sid the Kid, but with a tough loss to
the Detroit Red Wings in the Stanley Cup finals under his belt,
the young Pittsburgh Penguins captain has the experience that
could make a difference in the rematch.

"There's no surprises this year," Crosby said Friday. "We know
what to expect. Even a simple thing like today, coming in we
know what to expect."

For the first time since 1983 and 1984 when the New York
Islanders and Edmonton Oilers split a pair of titles, the NHL
championship is a rematch. The Penguins hope to equal the
Oilers' feat of losing in the final round against a dynasty team
and wresting away the Cup the following year.

It hasn't been done since.

"We know our opponent," Crosby said. "Last year that wasn't the
case. There shouldn't be any anticipation, really. We know what
to do. We've got to go out there and do it."

Edmonton's win in 1984 ended the Islanders' reign of four
straight titles and started the Oilers' run of five
championships in seven years.

The Red Wings, who have won four titles in 11 seasons, are built
on a foundation of older stalwarts such as captain Nicklas
Lidstrom, Tomas Holmstrom, Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby. They are
bolstered by relative newcomers Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik
Zetterberg, their top two regular-season scorers.

Detroit won in six games last year and is looking to become the
first NHL team with back-to-back championships since the Red
Wings did in 1997 and 1998 with several of these players.

"It's fun when you look back at some of the pictures when we
tried growing beards and still had a little of the baby fat
going," said Maltby, a four-time Cup winner. "Now the roles are
reversed and we're the older guys.

"To be able to get here for a fifth time is something I never
would've dreamed of."

The series starts Saturday night in Detroit with Game 2 shoved
in on Sunday. It is the first time finals games will be played
on consecutive days since 1955. And to think, a few days earlier
the talk was how the NHL foolishly planned to have eight days
off between the conference finals and the championship round.

The banged-up, older Red Wings expect to have Lidstrom back on
the blue line Saturday after he was forced to sit out the last
two games of the conference finals against Chicago because of an
undisclosed lower-body injury.

Draper, sidelined for all but four games during this postseason,
should also return along with defenseman Jonathan Ericsson -
just a few days removed from surgery following a bout with
appendicitis.

Datsyuk is still the biggest question mark. He practiced Friday
morning, but will be a game-time decision. The Red Wings could
have used more time off, but now face the prospect of playing
four games in six nights and five in eight.

"We have two of the greatest teams in the world, star
power-wise," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "I don't think
we need 14 days off, but there's a reason the NFL who, in my
opinion is the biggest promotional horse maybe besides NASCAR,
takes two weeks off before the Super Bowl. It's called to hype
it up.

"We had a ton of time. I mean, I could have went bear hunting
every series in between games. The bottom line is we're here,
we're ecstatic to be here, and we're excited to be playing the
games wherever they're scheduled and whenever they're
scheduled."

At least Detroit will be starting a series at home for the 20th
consecutive time, a streak that began in 2001.

Marian Hossa was acquired by Pittsburgh at last year's trade
deadline to be the scoring winger alongside Crosby. Soon after
the Penguins fell short against the Red Wings, Hossa
surprisingly signed a one-year deal with Detroit for less money
than he could have made with the Penguins.

The Red Wings provided a prime chance to win an elusive
championship. Both the Penguins and Hossa said it was strictly a
business decision and that no hard feelings exist.

Time will tell.

"Of course the winning situation was one thing, but another
reason why I chose this team was because of the group, (Chris
Chelios), and Nick, and Draper and Maltby," Hossa said. "The
experience can help me in the future. Learn something new from
those guys, why they're winning so well and why they're going so
well during the years.

"So it was not about the best chance to win, because Pittsburgh
had an unbelievable team. That's why it was so difficult. It
came down to two choices. I could be a good scout because I
picked the two best teams right now."

The Penguins have surged since February when coach Michel
Therrien, who took them to the finals last year, was fired.
Pittsburgh was in 10th place in the Eastern Conference and in
danger of missing the playoffs.

Dan Bylsma, who played under Babcock in 2003 when Anaheim
reached the Cup finals, was promoted from the AHL to head coach
and led an 18-3-4 finish that vaulted the Penguins to the No. 4
seed.

Crosby and fellow superstar Evgeni Malkin are tied for the NHL
playoff lead with 28 points. Crosby is on top with 14 goals, and
Malkin is right behind him with 12.

"You dream your whole life about being in that position and you
work so hard, and right at that moment you never know if you're
going to get another chance," Crosby said of the finals loss.
"We feel pretty fortunate to get a second chance here."]]></description>
				<category><![CDATA[nhl]]></category>
				<link>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/nhl/news/99933-Penguins-Red-Wings-Preview</link>
				<guid>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/nhl/news/99933-Penguins-Red-Wings-Preview</guid>
				<pubDate>Fri, 29 May 2009 23:49:20 GMT</pubDate>
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