FanHouse Craig Patrick

The Pittsburgh Penguins ended a 17-year Stanley Cup drought on Friday night with a 2-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings, giving the franchise its third championship. While current general manager Ray Shero will get his name on the cup for overseeing the hockey operations the past three seasons, former general manager Craig Patrick also had a hand in putting this team together.

After the jump, a player-by-player look at how the 2008-09 Penguins were built over the years.

It wasn't even 30 seconds into Eric Staal's post game interview on VERSUS Thursday night when we received our first reference to the fact that he and his brother, Jordan Staal, were about to face off in the Eastern Conference Finals. Get used to it, because you're going to hear about it ... a lot. To get you ready for the Staal family reunion, head on over to Puck Huffers to get your set of rules for the official Staal Brothers Drinking Game.

Over/under on number of references in the series: 200

This is just one of the many random story lines you're sure to hear about as the Penguins and Hurricanes fight for a trip to the Stanley Cup Final. Here are some of the others.

The Clash once posed the question: Should I stay or should I go now? We take a look at the big names surrounding the NHL trade deadline and whether they'll be staying in place or going to finish the season in another city.

On Monday, we talked about the possibility of Tampa Bay trading forward Martin St. Louis. On Tuesday, another Lightning player is the topic as we turn our attention to 41-year-old winger Mark Recchi. He's hardly the player he once was, and has played for four different teams over the previous four years.

A couple of weeks ago, TSN hockey analyst Gord Miller came to the conclusion that in order for the Pittsburgh Penguins to remain competitive in the NHL, they would have to deal the league's leading scorer, Evgeni Malkin, for a first-line winger, a No. 2 center, and "hopefully" a pick or a prospect. It was a laughable proposal.

On Sunday night, Rob Rossi, Penguins beat writer for the Tribune-Review, appeared on a weekly Pittsburgh talk show and suggested the team would be wise to put Sidney Crosby on the trade block this offseason. I guess this is what happens when you go from being two wins away from hoisting the Stanley Cup to being the No. 10 team in the Eastern Conference in a matter of one season.

Former NHL super-pest and universally despised agitator (unless he played for your team) Claude Lemieux has finally completed his highly anticipated comeback and is now a member of the Sharks -- the China Sharks. That's right, Lemieux, he of the 379 goals and 20 seasons in the National Hockey League, is now a member of the China Sharks of the Asia Hockey League.

So it's not New Jersey or Colorado, but, hey, it's hockey and the 43-year old forward even recorded an assist this past Sunday against powerhouse Anyang Halla. I imagine those games have all the passion and tenacity of a Red Wings-Avalanche tilt from the 90's!

Lemieux has been hinting at a comeback for a couple of months now, and had been working out in Phoenix with members of the Coyotes back in September. As recently as a month ago, Lemieux was quoted in Larry Brooks' weekly column at the New York Post as saying he would be signed within two weeks.

"I've been talking to a few NHL teams who have a serious interest in me and who I feel really good about playing for," Lemieux told Slap Shots by phone from his training base of Prescott Valley, Ariz. "By my thinking, I'll be signed to an AHL contract in no later than two weeks by the NHL team that wants me. "They'll come to watch me, and if they like what they see, I'll be back."