Erik Gudbranson didn't want to be "that guy," the
one who whooped it up after the Pittsburgh Penguins locked down a playoff spot
for the 13th straight year with a win over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night.
The veteran defenseman knows seasons in Pittsburgh are
judged solely on whether they end with a mid-June parade through downtown, and
that securing one of the 16 spots in the Stanley Cup tournament is just one
small step in the process. He's well aware many of the guys that sit next to
him on the bench have never known what it's like to trade in their hockey
sticks for golf clubs in early April.
So Gudbranson — acquired in a
trade deadline deal with Vancouver — played it cool. At least
until he got home. Only while on the phone talking to his mom did he celebrate
reaching the playoffs for just the third time in his eight-year career.
It was much the same for forward Nick Bjugstad, who reached
the post-season just once during six seasons in Florida.
Brought over along with forward Jared McCann in a deal with
Florida on Feb. 1, Bjugstad played a critical role in the Penguins emerging
from an early funk to extend a playoff run that started in 2007, the
second-longest active streak in North American professional sports behind the
NBA's San Antonio Spurs, who are at 22 years and counting.
PENGUINS LOOKED IN
TROUBLE EARLY IN THE SEASON
A position that looked iffy at times over the past six
months. Pittsburgh found itself tied for last in the Eastern Conference in
mid-November, endured significant injuries to centre Evgeni Malkin, defensemen
Kris Letang, Olli Maatta and Justin Schultz along with goaltender Matt Murray
and saw forward Phil
Kessel and Patric Hornqvist — both key parts of the core that
led the franchise to back-to-back championships in 2016 and 2017 — go through
extended scoring droughts.
Yet there they were on Thursday night, broadly smiling in
the postgame handshake line after assuring themselves of a chance to play
beyond Saturday's regular-season finale against the New York Rangers. Even
captain Sidney Crosby, who has his name etched on the Stanley Cup three times,
took a moment to drink it in.
One of the reasons Crosby joined in an optional practice on
Friday. The Eastern Conference is so jammed heading into the 82nd game that the
Penguins could wind up as high as second in the Metropolitan Division behind
Washington or finish as the top wild card. They could start on home ice against
the New York Islanders or find themselves on the road against rival Washington
in the opening round.
The stakes are high, but as Bjugstad pointed out, they've been
high for months. So don't expect the players to waste time Saturday night
glancing up at the scoreboard to get an early lead on their first playoff
destination. It's not exactly productive and ultimately they don't really care.
They're in. For now, that's enough.
PENGUINS RECENTLY
ADDED GRIT
Not that Pittsburgh really had a choice. The Penguins are
11-4-2 since March 1, allowing more than three goals just four times in that
span by playing the kind of sound defense in their end that was hard to come by
during the first five months of the season. The additions of Bjugstad, McCann
and Gudbranson provided a welcome addition of fresh legs and a dash of grit.
The Penguins head to the playoffs with something akin to
momentum and a chip of sorts on their shoulders. For long stretches they hardly
looked like the team that's been among the perennial Stanley Cup favorites for
more than a decade.
Yet here they are anyway, just like always. If anything, the
early troubles Pittsburgh endured and ultimately overcame could make the
Penguins a tough out when the conference quarterfinals start next week.
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