The Pittsburgh Penguins finally get their revenge as they came back from an 0-2 series defecit to finish the seasons as the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions. Prior to this final game, the home teams dominated, usually by a large margin, but the Penguins gave their all this game and took an early 2-0 lead, thanks to Max Talbot. During the middle of the second, the Penguins also lost their also Sydney Crosby to injury, making their task to secure the trophy even more difficult.

The Redwings battled back with fury in the third, scoring an early goal and out-shooting the Pens 7-1. This game came down to the wire, as Detroit flurried shot after shot in hopes of sending the game into overtime. Too bad for them it was too little, too late.

Another disappointing year for the Sharks who ended the NHL regular season with the best record, only to lose in the first round to the 8th seeded Anaheim Ducks. The Sharks have never won the Stanley Cup and many people believed (including me) that this was the year they were going to go the distance. Too bad they lost by a wide margin in only 6 games.

The remaining teams that seem to be playing the best hockey are the Boston Bruins, Detroit Redwings, and the Vancouver Canucks. My money (after losing most of it on the Sharks) would be on the Redwings, a team with vast playoff experience that knows what it takes to win it all.

With Stanley Cup playoffs just 5 days away, these 5 teams have dominated the season with the stellar performances, and sheer determination:

1. San Jose Sharks – 117 points
2. Boston Bruins – 114
3. Detroit Redwings – 112
4. Washington Capitols – 108
5. New Jersey Devils – 104

Predictions for the 2009 Stanley Cup winner? I’m going to have to go with the Sharks on this one. They have been close the past several years, making the quarter finals, only to fall short against the Redwings. I think this is their year, one they have been waiting for a long time, especially since they have never won it all before (more fuel for the fire).

*I must also note that I am a San Jose native – go sharks!

On Tuesday night, the top two teams in the NHL battled each other out in a fight for recognition of being the best team, thus far. Things started out well for the Bruins, as they led the Sharks 2-1 for the first two periods, but things began to turn around when Patrick Marleau scored the equalizer in the beginning of the third period, where two more goals ensued, one of them scored by Sharks captain Joe Thorton.