Stanley Cup Hockey Championship

DETROIT -- No crowd will ever sing the praises of the winning team's general manager, as the fans in Joe Louis Arena chanted "Oz-ie" Monday in tribute to goaltender Chris Osgood's second consecutive shutout in the Stanley Cup final. If ever a general manager deserved public accolades it's Detroit's Ken Holland, who put together a team that takes its dedication to defense as seriously as its dedication to one another.

DETROIT -- It's not enough that the Detroit Red Wings have shut out the Pittsburgh Penguins twice, held them without a shot on goal for the first 12 minutes Monday and are making a mockery of a Stanley Cup finals that was supposed to win over millions of hockey neophytes. The Red Wings, 3-0 victors at Joe Louis Arena and owners of a 2-0 series lead, believe they can raise their game. That's not what the Penguins needed to hear as they try to avoid utter embarrassment Wednesday at Pittsburgh.

PITTSBURGH -- You're the Pittsburgh Penguins. You've been shut out by the Detroit Red Wings in the first two games of the Stanley Cup finals. Your top scorer this season, Evgeni Malkin, has been invisible. Worse, he's playing as if he's allergic to being hit. The most noteworthy contribution from Gary Roberts, inserted into your Game 2 lineup for his leadership, was a reprehensible left hook to the head of Detroit's Johan Franzen, who had sat out the previous six games because of a concussion.

DETROIT -- Dave Lewis seems destined to be a forerunner of hockey history, to do his work and depart -- not by choice -- just before the mountain is climbed, the flag planted and the party started. Otherwise, he might have been the man coaching the Red Wings tonight at Joe Louis Arena, with the Stanley Cup in the house, the city abuzz and no octopus safe from being heaved onto the ice in Detroit fans' traditional and unique ritual.

DETROIT -- Pittsburgh Penguins General Manager Ray Shero took a moment to ponder the question. Had his team come of age Monday with the 4-3, triple-overtime victory that sent the Stanley Cup finals back to Pittsburgh on Wednesday for a sixth game, a performance built on resilience and pluck and the unflappable goaltending of Marc-Andre Fleury? "I know the manager did," he said, smiling.

DETROIT -- Red Wings Coach Mike Babcock didn't say anything to his players after they squandered a chance to claim the Stanley Cup on Monday night at Joe Louis Arena. "I don't talk after we win and I don't talk after we lose," he said. "So I don't have to think of something to say." He could have said how surprised he was to see his veteran team so nervous and lose, 4-3, in triple overtime, sending the finals back to Pittsburgh for Game 6 on Wednesday.

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins' season was ticking away. Champagne was being delivered to the Detroit Red Wings' locker room at Joe Louis Arena and the Stanley Cup had been polished to a blinding shine. In the first defining moment for a young team, Maxime Talbot -- on the ice in place of goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, brought the Penguins even with 34.3 seconds left in the third period by scoring a tenacious, second-effort goal.

For every Ferrari, there are hundreds more Ford F-150s on the road. Just as for every thoroughbred, there are many more dependable plow horses dotting the landscape. In hockey, it's no different. For every dazzling playmaker in the NHL, there are many more players who don't fill up the official scoresheet but excel at doing the dirty work -- their true value only measured within the tight battles that make up the Stanley Cup playoffs. Meet Travis Moen of the Ducks.