The three biggest keys to the Penguins winning the Stanley Cup

There are a number of big things that should ideally happen if the Pens are to drink from Lord Stanley’s mug this spring, like the power play consistently clicking, Crosby and  Malkin scoring more, avoiding dumb penalties and getting a bit more luck than their opponents. But if they take care of the main three below, these other ones should eventually fall into place, and we could very well see another Cup coming to Pittsburgh as a result.

Ferocious Forecheck: Coming in with speed and power will get you the puck more often than not and a key to the Pens' success all spring has been their ability to do this consistently. The Crosbys, Kessels and Malkins will bury enough of the pucks they get. Keep getting them the pucks and the goals will come. Do not let up. 

No Matt Mulligans: Matt Murray must keep playing his technically sound, even-keeled game. It's the only kind of goaltending that wins Stanley Cups. And the brutal reality is that we're at a point in the playoffs where Mulligans are not permitted. The reassuring thing here is that the Pens have a former Stanley Cup winner as a backup. 

No 'D'-fects: Some of the younger D-men like Olli Maata and Brian Dumoulin have to avoid sloppy clearances in their own zone that land on opponents' sticks. They haven't always succeeded at that in these playoffs. It is the single biggest cause for concern for the Penguins and their fans. Overall, though, they've played beyond their years, but they must play about a year older the rest of the way. Let Letang score from the back end. Let the superstars be super up front. Just get that puck out of your zone, boys - again and again. 

1991 Wales Final Game 3: Pens 4, Bruins 1

The Penguins channeled their frustration stemming from a Game Two overtime loss into a passionate but focused effort that resulted in a 4-1 win, bringing them back into the Wales Conference Final and cutting Boston’s series lead to two games to one.

Ulfamania was a Penguin Pest all night long.

With the Pens leading 2-0 halfway through the second period, Boston’s Ray Bourque got one back when he converted a Cam Neely pass, firing a hard shot behind Tom Barrasso. Their celebration didn’t last long, though, as low-scoring defenseman Grant Jennings answered right back 16 seconds later, putting a Mario Lemieux rebound in the back of the Boston net, sending the sellout Igloo crowd into delirium. Lemieux added one himself before the period was out, and Tom Barrasso stopped all 12 Bruins shots in the third to ice the victory.

“We’re back in the series,” said Boston native Kevin Stevens, the Pens left winger who had boldly predicted a Penguins series win after the Game Two loss. “And we’re confident we can win the series. The other night was frustrating because we played well enough to win. But I know this team believes in itself.”

Aside from the result, a hot topic of conversation after the game was Ulf Samuelsson’s knee-on-knee hit on Neely in the second period. The collision left the Bruins steaming. “I thought it was a real cheap shot on Cam,” said Boston defenseman Garry Galley, “the way he stepped up and really went for that (knee) area.”

Ultimately, though, Bruins coach Mike Milbury had to admit that his team had been outmatched on this night. “Tonight they were too much for us and we didn’t have the answers.”

Check out highlights of this game here

• Samuelsson hit on Neely is at very beginning 
• Spectacular Mario Lemieux goal at 0:52
• Interviews follow later.

1991 Wales Final Game 2: Bruins 5, Pens 4 (OT)

The Penguins entered the third period trailing 3-2 but goals less than two minutes apart midway through the period by Mark Recchi and Mario Lemieux gave Pittsburgh their first lead of the night. With only 3:11 left, however, Craig Janney converted a pass from Vladimir Ruzicka during a 5-on-3 man advantage to send it to overtime.

It was Ruzicka’s fourth assist of the night. But “Rosie” wasn’t done yet. At 8:14 of the extra period he found himself alone with the puck in the Penguins crease and fired it over a fallen Tom Barrasso to give the Bruins the win and a 2-0 series lead.

"I'll say it right now, we'll beat them."

In the dressing room, the Penguins weren’t disheartened. If anything, the loss hardened their resolve to take the series back.

“We all have our highs and our lows, and right now the Bruins are living a high,” defenseman Gordie Roberts told Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Press. “But hopefully we’ll bring them back down to earth the next game.”

Left wing Kevin Stevens went even further, issuing his famous guarantee.

“We’re confident we can beat this team,” he said. “And we will beat this team...We’ll beat this team. I’ll say it right now, we’ll beat them.”

Stevens and the rest of the Penguins would have to start making that promise a reality in Game 3 back in Pittsburgh two nights later.

You can see highlights of this game here.

1991 Wales Final Game 1: Bruins 6, Pens 3

Sloppy turnovers cost the Penguins in Game One at Boston Garden, their first semi-final game since 1970. The Pens were as close as 4-3 in the third period but goals by Dave Christian and Ray Bourque put the game out of reach.

Defenseman Gordie Roberts sounded a note of optimism after the game, however.

“You can’t give Boston’s key players a chance to make big plays. But we’ll get better as the series goes on. We’ll get used to this building.”

It was a building that had not been kind to the Penguins historically. Heading into the game, they sported a woeful 7-42-6 record, regular season and playoff games combined.

What would develop into an rather intense coaches war throughout the series got rolling right off the bat. Pens bench boss Badger Bob Johnson was none too pleased with the Bruins’ delay tactics aimed at – in Johnson’s view – allowing star defenseman Bourque to get sufficient rest between whistles.

“They want Bourque out there all the time,” he said. “They’re talking to the referee, sending six guys out all the time. Watch ‘em. When Bourque gets tired they have a delay. The job of the referee is to keep the game moving.” 

1991 Patrick Final Game 5: Pens 4, Caps 1

The Pens jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a Joey Mullen goal at 15:38 of the first period but had to kill off a Washington 5-on-3 advantage for 1:34 at the beginning of the second. That they did, and shortly after it had ended, Ron Francis put the Pens up 2-0 – a hard blow for the Caps to take.

 

Dave Tippett got one back for the Capitals before the second period ended, but Jaromir Jagr provided some much-needed insurance at 7:53 when he scored on a highlight-reel rush from centre ice. Mark Recchi added an empty-netter and the party was on.

 

The Penguins had won two playoff series for the first time in their history and would now advance to the Wales Conference Final.

 

“We’ve really put things together and made a tremendous turnaround from last year. And we’ve got a chance to go far,” said goalie Tom Barrasso, who turned in another brick-wall performance, stopping 33 of 34 Washington shots.

 

The Penguins were half-way to the Stanley Cup.

 

“We’ve climbed two mountains already,” said coach Bob Johnson. “But we’ve got two more mountains to climb.”

1991 Patrick Final Game 4: Pens 3, Caps 1

Through the first five months of the Penguins’ 1990-91 regular season, the “Option Line” of John Cullen, Kevin Stevens and Mark Recchi provided a huge offensive spark that helped the team win its first division championship. The line had clearly clicked, but when Cullen was traded to the Hartford Whalers in March, it had lost its centreman.

 

Fortunately for the Penguins, they had a pretty fair replacement as they finished the season and moved into the playoffs: a guy named Mario Lemieux.

 

The Pens superstar captain returned at the end of January after sitting out the entire season to that point with back problems. After the Hartford trade, Number 66 frequently moved into the spot vacated by Cullen, often with magical results.

 

Case in point: Game 4 of the Patrick Division Final against the Washington Capitals, in which the three linemates combined for seven points in a 3-1 victory that gave the Pens a 3-1 stranglehold on the series.

 

Tom Barrasso turned in a superlative performance, stopping 38 of the 39 Capital shots. Washington outshot the Pens overall, 39-19.

 

“Barrasso played extremely well. He was the difference,” said Caps defenseman Rod Langway. “They kept the puck on the outside and let Barrasso see it.”

1991 Patrick Final Game 3: Pens 3, Caps 1

With three of their regular defensemen out of the lineup – Paul Coffey with a broken jaw, Ulf Samuelsson with a broken hand and away in Sweden to visit his ailing father, and Peter Taglianetti hobbled with a bruised ankle – the Penguins turned to a trio of backup blueliners to hold down the fort. 

Gordie Roberts, Paul Stanton and Jim Paek, making his career playoff debut, played a simple yet solid game and allowed the club to come out with a 3-1 win and a 2-1 lead in their Patrick Division Final series against the Washington Capitals. 

Tom Barrasso returned to the Penguin net, and goals from Mario Lemieux, Kevin Stevens and Bryan Trottier gave Pittsburgh a well-earned playoff road victory.

“Losing three players like that, we needed good goaltending and we needed good backchecking. I think the team rallied around that,” said coach Bob Johnson.

Coffey suffers broken jaw, April 17 1991

The Penguins' 1991 playoff run took a big hit when Paul Coffey suffered a broken jaw in Game 1 of the Patrick Division Final vs. the Washington Capitals. He joined two other starting Pens D-men on the sidelines:

1991 Patrick Final Game 2: Pens 7, Caps 6

The Pens came out on the winning side of a good old-fashioned early 90s shootout, thanks to Kevin Stevens’ bullet-like wrist shot that bulged the twine behind Mike Liut at 8:10 of overtime.

 

Stevens had received a perfect tape-to-tape pass from Ron Francis before firing home the winner. “I was just going to the net,” said the power forward. “I knew Ronnie was coming to me. I just banged it in.”

The Penguins had blown a 5-3 lead in the third period and needed a tying goal from Randy Gilhen with just over five minutes left on a delayed Washington penalty to send it to OT. Ulf Samuelsson left the game after two periods after apparently reinjuring his broken right hand. Frank Pietrangelo was again in the Penguins net in place of injured starter Tom Barrasso.

1991 Patrick Division Final tied 1-1

1991 Patrick Final, Game 1: Caps 4, Pens 2

Mario Lemieux and Ulf Samuelsson return to the lineup but it isn’t enough to stop the hard-working Capitals from grabbing a 1-0 series lead and home ice advantage.

“I thought momentum from [the Game 7 win over New Jersey] would carry over,” said a disappointed coach Bob Johnson, “but they’re a well-rested team and they won a lot of loose pucks.”

The Capitals had knocked off the New York Rangers in six games to reach the Patrick Division Final, overcoming a 2-1 deficit.

The Pens led 2-1 heading into the third but allowed Kevin Hatcher to tie it 1:37 and another defenseman, Al Iafrate, to pot the winner at 15:31. An empty-netter sealed it.

“They outworked us. They wanted it more than us,” said winger Bob Errey.

(Interesting piece of Pens trivia: the official scorer for the game was Bernie Boileau, brother of former Penguins coach Marc Boileau. He was part of the Montreal off-ice officiating crew that was working the game.)

1991 Patrick Semi-Final, Game 7: Pens 4, Devils 0

Paul Coffey's return provided an emotional lift
for the Penguins in game 7.

The Penguins finally put it all together against New Jersey in Game 7 of their Patrick Division semi-final series and dominate the Devils from the opening faceoff to the final whistle. Paul Coffey is a surprise starter after getting clearance from the doctors on his injured eye, which had been high-sticked earlier in the series. 

The Pens led 2-0 after one and rode another fine performance from backup goalie Frank Pietrangelo to move on to the second round and a date with the Washington Capitals. And they did it without captain Mario Lemieux for the final 40 minutes, who had to leave with back spasms.

 

“It shows a lot of heart, a lot of character, the way we came back,” winger Phil Bourque told the Pittsburgh Press in the post-game locker room. “It’s probably uncharacteristic of the Penguins in the past, but this is a whole different team.”

1991 Patrick Semi-Final, Game 6: Pens 4, Devils 3

With starting goalie Tom Barrasso unable to go after injuring his shoulder in Game 5 of their 1991 Patrick Division semi-final series, the Penguins turned to backup Frank Pietrangelo in a game that saw their season on the brink. Down three games to two, Pittsburgh would have to win in enemy territory to send it back to the Steel City for a decisive Game 7…or get their golf clubs shined up for a long summer.

 

Pietrangelo’s first NHL playoff game got off to a shaky start when a pass from behind his net by Devils winger John MacLean caromed off defenseman Larry Murphy’s skate and into his net at 3:29 of the first. Fortunately for the Pens, Mario Lemieux was clearly on his game this night, controlling the play whenever he stepped on to the ice. The Penguins kept their composure and tied the game on a Kevin Stevens snap shot at 10:49. Stevens then added a power play marker to give the Penguins the lead.

 

And then…it happened: “The Save.”

 

With the Devils pressing, Peter Stastny was ready to fire home what surely looked liked the tying goal, with the puck on his stick and half an empty net at which to shoot. Well, almost empty. There was Pietrangelo’s glove stretched out to cover a minute part of the gaping cage, and that’s just where Stastny put it.

 

The Devils had their sticks in the air. The Meadowlands crowd was already cheering. But there was no goal to celebrate, thanks to the backup’s incredible grab, still widely recognized as the greatest save in Penguins history.

 

“He hit my glove. It’s not a matter of a skill save, it’s a lucky save,” said a humble Pietrangelo later. He added, though, that “lucky or not, a save like that is a big lift for the team.”

 

From there, the Penguins built a 4-1 lead and held on for a gutsy 4-3 win. The Devils looked to have tied it late when Laurie Boschman directed the puck into the Pens net. The replay showed it went off his skate and then his stick, which would have been a legal goal. However, referee Bill McCreary had ruled it was directed in by Boschman’s skate and waved it off.

 

It was back to Pittsburgh for a winner-take-all Game 7.

1991 Patrick Semi-Final, Game 5: Devils 4, Pens 2

After a listless first two periods, the Penguins woke up in the third. Ron Francis scored his first playoff goal as a Pen and set up another within 2:47 to pull Pittsburgh even. They kept coming, only to be repelled by goalie Chris Terreri on a number of quality chances. When Randy Hillier was called for a questionable hold at 11:15, Claude Lemieux capitalized by tipping Kirk Muller’s pass into the Penguin cage. Doug Brown added an empty-netter to push the Pens to the brink.

Coach Bob Johnson maintained his usual optimistic outlook, however. “You can lose three games and still win the series. We’ve lost our three,” stated the Badger.

The players fed on their coach’s upbeat attitude, appearing to be focused on the task of going to New Jersey and starting to climb out of the hole they’d dug for themselves. “It doesn’t even have to be a pretty one,” said defenseman Larry Murphy about the upcoming Game Six. “We’ve just got to go in there and find a way.”

1991 Patrick Semi-Final Game 4: Devils 4, Pens 1

The Penguins lose the game and one of their best players on a night to forget at the Meadowlands. After the Devils had outhustled and outhit the Penguins for the first 44 minutes and built a 2-0 lead, Viacheslav Fetisov high-sticked Pens high-scoring D-man Paul Coffey, striking "the Doctor" in the left eye, causing him to temporarily lose his vision, according to Penguins trainer Skip Thayer.

After a visit to a real doctor, Coffey had regained some vision - albeit blurred - and was released. Fetisov was handed a five-minute major and a game misconduct. On the ensuing power play, Mario Lemieux's howitzer of a shot got the Pens back in the game.

But this night was the Devils', as John MacLean and that other Lemieux, Claude, scored later in the third to secure the victory and send the best-of-7 series back to Pittsburgh tied 2-2.

"I don't think we played a 60-minute game by any means," said Pens winger Bob Errey. "I hoped we learned our lesson. I hope we can find the right combinations to do the job at home."

1991 Patrick Semi-Final Game 3: Pens 4, Devils 3

Mark Recchi notches a goal in the final minute that surprises everyone and gives the Penguins a 4-3 win and a 2-1 series lead over the New Jersey Devils in their first round Patrick Division Semi-Final series. Winger Phil Bourque flipped the puck high into the corner of the Devils zone, where defenseman Eric Weinrich tried to grab it. Weinrich would have made a terrible outfielder because he muffed the grab and instead sent the puck to the slot, where Recchi was waiting.

"Larry Murphy did that once earlier this year and Johnny Cullen scored a goal on the play the same way, so we just call it the 'Murph Flip,'" Bourque told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "You never know what can happen on a play like that."

The Pens got a nice boost when sniper Joey Mullen returned to the lineup after neck surgery in January. Wearing a somewhat comical collar, he wasted no time doing what he did best, potting the Pens' third goal in the final frame. "I'm definitely rusty, but the goal gave me a big lift," he said.

1991 Patrick Semi-Final Gm 2: Pens 5, Devils 4

The Penguins overcome three one-goal deficits against the determined Devils and even the series on a spectacular goal by rookie Jaromir Jagr 8:52 into overtime. With his team being outshot 7-1 in the extra frame, Jagr came down the right wing in the Devils zone, cut in front of the net and held the puck with his long reach long enough to get goalie Chris Terreri to go down, before flipping the puck over him into the yawning cage. Game over, 5-4 Pens.

 

“For 19 years old, he sure showed a lot of patience with the puck,” commented Pens goalie Tom Barrasso. “Not too many guys could duplicate that play in that situation.”

 

The overtime almost didn’t take place. A shot from Brendan Shanahan from 25 feet out with 1:05 left in the third beat Barrasso – but not his best friend the goalpost. It was off to overtime and Jagr’s eventual heroics, which you can see here.

1991 Patrick Semi-Final - Gm 1: Devils 3, Pens 1

After a tight first period that saw neither team score, Mario Lemieux put the Pens in the lead midway through the second with a power play marker. Peter Stastny answered back for the Devils and the teams went to the locker room after two still tied. The third was all New Jersey, as Stastny and Laurie Boschman scored less than a minute apart early on.

"We better open our eyes," said Pens defenseman Paul Coffey in a quiet post-game dressing room. "We're playing a good hockey club. It's not like there were 15 or 20 points separating us this year. We better be ready to play (Game 2)."

Pat Boutette's first hat trick nets Pens first win

Pat Boutette

Pat Boutette broke in with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1975 and after four seasons was traded to Hartford. It was with the Whalers that the classy forward began making his mark as a highly dependable, if not somewhat under-the-radar, point-getter.

Boutette averaged nearly a point a game in a season and a half for the Whale. In the summer of 1981 he went to Pittsburgh with Kevin McClelland as compensation for the Whalers' signing of goalie Greg Millen.

He didn't miss a beat after joining the Penguins, scoring 74 points in 1981-82 and adding a goal and three assists in the Pens' thrilling five-game near upset of the Islanders in the first round of the playoffs. 

Boutette then suffered through the two leanest seasons in Penguins history as the team tumbled to the bottom of the NHL standings in 1983 and 1984. There were still some shining moments for Boutette, however, including his first career hat trick on October 12, 1982. 

With the Pens trailing the Vancouver Canucks by a goal with less than two minutes to play, Doug Shedden tied it with a slap shot. With the crowd of 6,566 going delirious, the Penguins kept coming. With 1:04 left, Boutette, who had scored two goals in the second period, deflected a Greg Hotham slap shot past goalie Richard Brodeur. He had his first hat trick and the Penguins had their first win of the season.

Early in the 1984-85 season, with his production tailing off, the Pens dealt Boutette back to Hartford for the rights to defenseman Ville Siren, who became a regular on the Pittsburgh blue line in the 80s. Unlike the Leafs, the Pens seemed to know when to part ways with Boutette; he had but 33 games left in him with the Whalers and a few more with their farm team before calling it a career.

Joe Mullen's class act comeback

Mario Lemieux had a few pretty impressive comebacks throughout his career, but another Penguin Hall of Famer had one of his own early in the 1991 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Joe Mullen was in his first season with the Pens in 1990-91, coming over in a trade for a second round pick with the Calgary Flames in the offseason. From the start, Mullen proceeded to do what he did best – score goals. He’d bagged 17 of them in the first 34 games, but a herniated disc in his neck halted his torrid pace and eventually sent him to the sidelines for surgery.

There was no guarantee he’d be back that season – or ever.

“There wasn’t a whole lot of players who came back from that, so I was very unsure if my career was over or not,” he said in an interview years later.

But come back he did, and in fine style. The Penguins headed into Game 3 of their first round series against the New Jersey Devils tied at one game apiece. With the game tied at two early in the third, Mullen rifled a slap shot past Chris Terreri, helping the Pens to a 4-3 win.

Mullen, who was fitted with a large white collar for additional protection, would light the lamp seven more times that spring and add nine assists as the Penguins made their run to their first Stanley Cup. Joe would score his 500^th career goal in a Pens uniform in 1997 and be inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000.

Joe Mullen: a true gentleman who brought tons of class – and goals – to the Penguin organization.

“Other” Cam Newton tended goal for the Penguins

Cam Newton, Pittsburgh Penguin

The Penguins had their own Cam Newton back in the early 70s, and although he wasn’t a superstar in his sport like the Carolina Panther quarterback of the same name, he also wasn’t known for his poutiness after losing a big game.

And, being a Penguin netminder in the early 70s, he did lose a few.

Newton tended goal for the Toronto Marlboros in 1967 when they won the Memorial Cup, symbol of junior hockey supremacy in Canada. He was drafted by the Pens in 1970 and made his NHL debut on March 23, 1971.

Facing him that night was none other than Gordie Howe, then in his final season with the Detroit Red Wings. Newton kept Mr. Hockey off the scoresheet while his teammates exploded for eight goals, making his night a happy one. On the strength of a Duane Rupp hat trick, the Pens halted an eight-game winless streak with an 8-2 rout.

Newton had a shutout going until, with less than five minutes to go, he got tangled up with a teammate and left his net wide open, into which Detroit’s Tom Webster depositing the rubber. “Things were going my way and I got a little anxious,” he said about the play after the game, adding somewhat cockily, “Don’t forget, I haven’t been around this league for 25 years.”

Newton would play here and there for the Pens the rest of the year and the following season, usually getting the call from the minors to fill in when starters Les Binkley or Jim Rutherford were hurt. His performances were often more shaky than Penguin management would have liked. In his first game of the 1971-72 season in Los Angeles, he gave up four first-period goals in a six and-a-half minute stretch, sinking the Pens' hopes and sending them to a 5-2 loss.

The rival World Hockey Association was snapping up NHL players at the time and Newton made the jump before the 1973-74 season, signing with the Chicago Cougars. He retired from pro hockey in 1977.

Since then, it seems Cam Newton has all but disappeared. Toronto hockey writer Howard Berger recently tried to track him down but no one knew where he was. Read Howard’s fascinating account of his elusive search for the “other” Cam Newton – Pittsburgh Penguin netminder.