Title opportunity is rare, so Penguins can’t waste it

The Pittsburgh Penguins have advanced to the Stanley Cup final against San Jose, and if we have learned anything from sports — especially the NHL — they need to go win it. command of this locker room as he does now; his message is still fresh, still resonating with the players. That window is usually short before players start to tune guys out.

That’s not to say Sullivan won’t be an effective, maybe even excellent, coach for the next few years, but it is to say that the fire-and-brimstone edge he has brought generally has a short shelf life.

I look at the Tampa Bay Lightning, a team that reached the Stanley Cup final last year, as another example of how hard it is to get to and stay at the top and how quickly things can change.

Last year, it stormed to the final with a roster that included something like 12 or 13 players who were 25 years old and younger. It seemed like a team that might rule the Eastern Conference for a few years; it had star power, a great goaltender and an excellent young coach.

But it missed its opportunity to win it last year and then this year lost its best player right before the playoffs and its top goaltender went down a period into the first game of the Eastern Conference final.

This is a great opportunity, there for the taking, but it’s an opportunity this group may never again have.

KEITH SRAKOCIC/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan skates with his team during practice at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry, Pa., on Saturday. The Penguins host the San Jose Sharks in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Monday.