Let the free agent frenzy begin! Sort of. There are reports surfacing out of Russia that KHL clubs Metallurg Magnitogorsk and Bary's Astana are interested in signing Pittsburgh Penguins free agents Petr Sykora and Miroslav Satan.
Any truth to the rumors? Not if you ask their agent, Allan Walsh, who denied the reports via his twitter feed (technology ... amazing).
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.
So the rematch is set: Pittsburgh vs. Detroit. For the first time in 25 years, the same two teams will meet in back-to-back years for the right to fight for Lord Stanley's Cup, and while one of these teams is relatively similar to last year's version (with one big exception) the other is very, very different.
The NHL's new hard-line stance on message-sending and late-game fisticuffs seems to have lasted, oh, about two weeks. Late in the third period of Pittsburgh's 7-4 win on Thursday, Carolina's Ryan Bayda was involved in a line brawl of sorts that featured Bayda delivering what appeared to be a cross-check to the face of Kris Letang.
In the end, Miroslav Satan fought Patrick Eaves, Tim Gleason fought Letang, and Bayda was issued a match penalty for intent to injure. By rule, Bayda was immediately suspended from further competition pending a league review. That review has taken place, and Bayda walks away with a $2,500 fine and no suspension.
When a trip to the Stanley Cup final is on the line, players tend to step up their games and do things they might not ordinarily do. Sometimes it's something simple, something they should already be doing like blocking a shot or backchecking ... or in the case of Miroslav Satan, something as extreme as fighting.
In the closing minutes of Pittsburgh's 7-4 win in Game 2 on Thursday night, a line brawl erupted behind the Penguins' goal that included Satan, a player that was banished to the minor leagues in March and had his effort and desire called into question by some Penguins observers during the regular season, exchanging punches with Carolina's Patrick Eaves. Video after the jump.
After Marc-Andre Fleury and Cam Ward put on a goaltending clinic on Monday, prompting the discussion of whether or not they're legitimate franchise goaltenders, the two players, along with their collective defenses, seemingly took the night off on Thursday as Pittsburgh picked up a 7-4 win in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals. Just 12 minutes into the first period, the two teams had already scored as many goals as they did in Game 1, while Carolina held a 3-2 lead after the opening 20 minutes.
Evgeni Malkin recorded his first career playoff hat trick in the win for Pittsburgh, registering his fifth consecutive multiple point game.
Penguins 7, Hurricanes 4: Recap | Box Score Penguins Lead Series 2-0
Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals certainly didn't disappoint, as the Penguins and Hurricanes took part in an up-and-down track meet while both goalies put on a clinic in net. In the end, Marc-Andre Fleury was just a touch better than Cam Ward, while Phillipe Boucher's power play goal with just over eight minutes to play in regulation proved to be the game-winner in Pittsburgh's 3-2 win.
The Penguins came out smoking in the first period, overwhelming the Hurricanes with an offensive barrage that was highlighted by Miroslav Satan and Evgeni Malkin beating Ward just 80 seconds apart to stake the Penguins out to an early 2-0 lead. For Satan, it was his first goal in the NHL since March 1.
Penguins 3, Hurricanes 2: Recap | Box Score Penguins Lead Series 1-0
Well this is kind of a letdown. After watching the Penguins take on long-time rivals Philadelphia and Washington in the first two rounds of the Eastern Conference playoffs, they're now taking on the Carolina Hurricanes in the conference final. It's a match-up that offers nothing in the way of hatred, bitterness or rivalry. Hopefully the Staal brothers pull a Keith and Wayne Primeau and fight sometime in the first two games. You know, just to stir the pot a little bit.
Having said that, this is an interesting match-up when it comes to hockey and that, of course, is the most important thing. It should be an exciting series, and who knows, perhaps by the end of it both teams will end up hating each other anyway.
PITTSBURGH -- Thanks to their 5-3 win on Friday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins evened their Eastern Conference semifinal series with Washington at two games apiece, setting the stage for what is, essentially, a brand new, best-of-three series starting Saturday night in Washington.
The Penguins overcame another shaky performance by their power play, as well as the loss of defenseman Sergei Gonchar following a hit from Alex Ovechkin midway through the first period to pick up their second consecutive win in the series.
After playing just eight minutes in Pittsburgh's 3-1 win on Tuesday night, Petr Sykora is expected to find himself in a suit and tie for game 5, as the Penguins will be welcoming Miroslav Satanback to the lineup according to Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
As we've already pointed out during this series, Sykora has been nonexistent since the beginning of March, and has struggled to produce in interim head coach Dan Bylsma's system. There's also the possibility that he's been playing injured, which also might be a factor in the decision to bench him for Thursday's game.
Let the free agent frenzy begin! Sort of. There are reports surfacing out of Russia that KHL clubs Metallurg Magnitogorsk and Bary's Astana are interested in signing Pittsburgh Penguins free agents Petr Sykora and Miroslav Satan. 
The NHL's new hard-line stance on message-sending and late-game fisticuffs seems to have lasted, oh, about two weeks. Late in the third period of Pittsburgh's 7-4 win on Thursday, Carolina's Ryan Bayda was involved in a line brawl of sorts that featured Bayda delivering what appeared to be a cross-check to the face of Kris Letang. 
After Marc-Andre Fleury and Cam Ward put on a goaltending clinic on Monday, prompting the discussion of whether or not they're legitimate franchise goaltenders, the two players, along with their collective defenses, seemingly took the night off on Thursday as Pittsburgh picked up a 7-4 win in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals. Just 12 minutes into the first period, the two teams had already scored as many goals as they did in Game 1, while Carolina held a 3-2 lead after the opening 20 minutes.
Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals certainly didn't disappoint, as the Penguins and Hurricanes took part in an up-and-down track meet while both goalies put on a clinic in net. In the end, Marc-Andre Fleury was just a touch better than Cam Ward, while Phillipe Boucher's power play goal with just over eight minutes to play in regulation proved to be the game-winner in Pittsburgh's 3-2 win. 
Well this is kind of a letdown. After watching the Penguins take on long-time rivals Philadelphia and Washington in the first two rounds of the Eastern Conference playoffs, they're now taking on the Carolina Hurricanes in the conference final. It's a match-up that offers nothing in the way of hatred, bitterness or rivalry. Hopefully the Staal brothers pull a Keith and Wayne Primeau and fight sometime in the first two games. You know, just to stir the pot a little bit. 
PITTSBURGH -- Thanks to their 5-3 win on Friday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins evened their Eastern Conference semifinal series with Washington at two games apiece, setting the stage for what is, essentially, a brand new, best-of-three series starting Saturday night in Washington. 
After playing just eight minutes in Pittsburgh's 3-1 win on Tuesday night, Petr Sykora is expected to find himself in a suit and tie for game 5, as the Penguins will be welcoming Miroslav Satan back to the lineup according to Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 
