Penguins, Predators overcame big injuries to reach Cup Final
No one is totally healthy this late in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, certainly not the last two teams standing.
The Pittsburgh Penguins knew they’d be without top defenceman Kris Letang for the entire playoffs because of neck surgery and winger Chris Kunitz for the start, and they lost starting goaltender Matt Murray in warmups before Game 1 in the first round.
Along the way, they dealt with injuries to defencemen Justin Schultz, Trevor Daley and Chad Ruhwedel, wingers Bryan Rust, Patric Hornqvist and Carl Hagelin and even played — and won — a game without captain Sidney Crosby.
The Nashville Predators endured the loss of rookie Kevin Fiala to a gruesome broken leg and soldiered on without forward Craig Smith before two potentially devastating injuries in the Western Conference final. Top centre Ryan Johansen needed emergency, season-ending surgery for acute compartment syndrome in his thigh.
And an undisclosed injury to captain Mike Fisher put the Preds in a tough spot. “To take those pieces out is difficult — those are big pieces,” Predators coach Peter Laviolette said. “Those are guys we’d like to have in the lineup, but they’re not available. So at that point there’s only one choice, you’re going to sink or swim.
“And you hear coaches say it so many times, well, with somebody coming out of the lineup, there’s an opportunity for somebody else.”
Pittsburgh defeated the Ottawa Senators in double overtime in Game 7 and Nashville eliminated the Anaheim Ducks in six to reach the Cup Final battered, bruised and unbowed after overcoming a bevy of injuries.
“It’s hard to win,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “This is the hardest trophy in sports, in my mind. It’s a war of attrition. “I don’t think any team has endured more injuries than this group has endured, and we continue to find ways to win.”