As the Nashville Predators trail the Pittsburgh Penguins three games to two in the first Stanley Cup Final in franchise history - and the first for many of their star players - they need only look across the ice for inspiration.
Pens will recall 09 SCF. Lost gm 5 5-0 at Det to go down 3-2 in series. Then won gms 6 & 7 by 2-1 scores to win Cup. This series isn't over.
— Dave Strader (@TheVoiceDS) June 9, 2017
Eight years later, the Penguins are looking to win back-to-back Cups and cement a modern-day dynasty as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin lead the core in search of a third ring, while the Predators are looking for answers after a 6-0 loss in Game 5.
That's not the only thing the 2008-09 Penguins have in common with this 2016-17 Nashville team. Here's why a Predators comeback would seem awfully familiar to their opponents.
The Rebellion becomes the Empire
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
Crosby, Malkin, and Co. were the underdogs in the rematch of the 2008 final, which they'd lost to the Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings were attempting to enhance their already impressive dynasty and the legacies of players including Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Tomas Holmstrom, Nicklas Lidstrom, Brian Rafalski, and Chris Chelios.
That 2009 Detroit team had won a combined 42 Stanley Cups, while the '09 Penguins had won just five between them. This iteration of the Penguins, though, has 28 total titles, and the Predators' Stanley Cup Final roster doesn't include a single player whose name is already etched into the trophy.
A hard road
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
Like the '09 Penguins, the Predators would also have to win a potential Game 7 on the road in order to earn the title.
Here's a look at the game-by-game results of the '09 final:
| Game | Host | Victor | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detroit | Red Wings | 3-1 |
| 2 | Detroit | Red Wings | 3-1 |
| 3 | Pittsburgh | Penguins | 4-2 |
| 4 | Pittsburgh | Penguins | 4-2 |
| 5 | Detroit | Red Wings | 5-0 |
| 6 | Pittsburgh | Penguins | 2-1 |
| 7 | Detroit | Penguins | 2-1 |
And here's how the 2017 final is playing out:
| Game | Host | Victor | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pittsburgh | Penguins | 5-3 |
| 2 | Pittsburgh | Penguins | 4-1 |
| 3 | Nashville | Predators | 5-1 |
| 4 | Nashville | Predators | 4-1 |
| 5 | Pittsburgh | Penguins | 6-0 |
| 6 | Nashville | ? | ? |
| 7 | Pittsburgh | ? | ? |
Like the Predators in 2017, the '09 Penguins outshot the Red Wings in their Game 1 and 2 losses, fueling hope of future road success.
A new age
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
The way the Predators are constructed could allow them to follow in the Penguins' footsteps and become a perennial NHL powerhouse.
Pittsburgh had already secured Crosby, Malkin, Kris Letang, and Marc-Andre Fleury long-term at the time of its 2009 Cup win. Nashville defenders P.K. Subban, Roman Josi, and Mattias Ekholm, as well as forwards Filip Forsberg and Calle Jarnkrok, are all locked up through at least the 2019-20 season on very team-friendly contracts, and the Predators have plenty of salary-cap space remaining.
That should allow general manager David Poile to complement this core with the pieces it needs to get back to the final - and if the Predators beat Pittsburgh in this first trip to start a dominant run, the Penguins can't claim they don't know how Nashville did it.
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