Bubbling with star attractions
DETROIT - When he was right-hand man to Nashville general manager David Poile, Ray Shero speculated that free-spending Detroit GM Ken Holland and the Red Wings would come crashing down in the salary cap era.
Shero was wrong.
"They'd be at $70 million and we'd be at $20 million in payroll," Shero, now the Pittsburgh GM, recalled yesterday. "We'd always say, 'Once they straighten this labor thing out, we're going to get those guys.' Well, they've done a great job, come back, and new labor agreement or not, Kenny shows what a great job he does. They're a top team again, and I think that's a testament to the job he does, the staff he has, and the coaching of Mike Babcock. All around, it's a great organization which most teams are trying to model themselves after."
The Stanley Cup finals, which kick off tonight at Joe Louis Arena, pits the established juggernaut - 17 straight playoff appearances, title in 2002, 10-time champion - against Pittsburgh, a club that has completed an abrupt about-face from a 58-point 2005-06 season to march through the Eastern Conference finals, losing only two of 14 games.
Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg against Sergei Gonchar and Marc-Andre Fleury. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin against Nicklas Lidstrom and Chris Osgood. Hockeytown against the Steel City.
Bring it on.
"I think Malkin's a good player," said Babcock. "I think [Jordan] Staal is a good player. I think [Ryan] Malone is a good player. [Petr] Sykora's a good player. [Marian] Hossa's a great player. They've got a lot of players. It's going to be fun."
The Penguins won back-to-back Cups in 1991 and 1992 in the glory days of Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr. But this decade, the Penguins finished last in the Atlantic Division four straight seasons. Because of their struggles, the Penguins received high draft picks: the first overall selections in 2003 (via trade) and 2005, and the No. 2 picks in 2004 and 2006.
The Penguins selected Fleury (2003) and Crosby (2005) with their No. 1 picks, and nabbed Malkin (2004) and Staal (2006) with their second selections. Crosby, Malkin, and Staal are the team's three top centers, while Fleury has developed into a top-notch netminder who will make a play for a big contract when he becomes a restricted free agent at season's end. In total, the Penguins have 13 former first-round picks.
So in that sense, Shero (hired May 25, 2006, after interviewing for the job that Peter Chiarelli eventually landed in Boston) arrived in Pittsburgh with a roster stuffed with talent. Crosby is considered the best player in the league, Malkin is an MVP finalist this season, the 19-year-old Staal is developing into a two-way threat, and Fleury has 12 wins, a 2.33 goals-against average, and a .921 save percentage in the postseason.
But Shero rounded out his roster with moves that have strengthened the Penguins. In the offseason, he signed free agent goalie Ty Conklin, who kept the Penguins rolling when Fleury had a sprained ankle. He acquired Hal Gill from Toronto for a second-round pick in 2008 and a fifth-round selection in 2009. And Shero made a thunderous trade with Atlanta at the Feb. 26 deadline, shipping Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, prospect Angelo Esposito, and a first-round pick in 2008 for Hossa and Pascal Dupuis, who have become Crosby's linemates on Pittsburgh's No. 1 line.
"It's going to be a challenge for us," Shero said of keeping the core together in the offseason. "But it's a good challenge based on having very good talent here. It's something we've prepared for. At the end of the season, we'll start making decisions internally and start talking to players and see where they fit in. Hopefully, guys will want to stay. We've got a great thing going and we're set up for the long term."
The Wings have assembled their roster from the depths of the draft. Detroit has just three former first-round picks and only selected one of them (Niklas Kronwall in 2000).
Detroit has made its mark in the later rounds. In 1994, the Red Wings picked Tomas Holmstrom in the 10th round (No. 257). In 1998, they drafted Datsyuk in the sixth round with the 171st pick. In 1999, they used their seventh-round pick (No. 210) to claim Zetterberg. Those players are on Detroit's top line.
While the Wings look to the skilled threesome to spark the offense and shut down opposing guns - Datsyuk and Zetterberg are finalists for the Selke Trophy as best defensive forward - they've got grinders who can do the dirty work. Johan Franzen (12 postseason goals) and Jiri Hudler (13 points in 16 postseason games) have contributed offensively, while character players Kris Draper, Dan Cleary, and Dallas Drake can be counted on for two-way hockey. Franzen, who has concussion-like symptoms, will not play tonight.
On the back end, the Wings have the best defenseman in the game in Lidstrom, complemented by the puck-moving Brian Rafalski and the hard-hitting second pairing of Kronwall and Brad Stuart. In goal, Osgood, who claimed the No. 1 job in the first round after Dominik Hasek flamed out against Nashville, owns two rings.
"Both teams, right now, believe in themselves," Babcock said. "They've each won their side. We both believe we're going to win. One of us is going to be disappointed. One of us is going to be elated."
