Wings finish Stars; Pens will become 19th different runner-up

On Monday night, the Red Wings finally finished off Dallas with a 4-1 victory to take the series four games to two. They advance to the Stanley Cup finals against Pittsburgh.

Make no mistake. I'm rooting for the Pens. I went so far as to order some Pens gear from the NHL shop. As a secondary team, I like the Pens anyway, and I didn't mind jumping on the bandwagon by buying a couple of t-shirts.

This guy, this girl, these guys, and this guy are among the millions of Penguins fans who are about to burst with excitement and nervousness. I will be standing behind them and I will be rooting hard for the Pens.

However, I think the Red Wings are just too damn good.

That's my inexpert analysis.

Also, there's this game the hockey gods are playing with us. Pittsburgh has been to the Stanley Cup finals twice before and won both times. But the hockey gods have this game they've been playing with us since 1989. Take a look at this list of Stanley Cup runners-up:

• 1989 Montréal Canadiens
  
• 1990 Boston Bruins
  
• 1991 Minnesota NorthStars
  
• 1992 Chicago Blackhawks
  
• 1993 Los Angeles Kings
  
• 1994 Vancouver Canucks
  
• 1995 Detroit Red Wings
  
• 1996 Florida Panthers
  
• 1997 Philadelphia Flyers
  
• 1998 Washington Capitals
  
• 1999 Buffalo Sabres
  
• 2000 Dallas Stars
  
• 2001 New Jersey Devils
  
• 2002 Carolina Hurricanes
  
• 2003 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
  
• 2004 Calgary Flames
  
• 2005 no cup
  
• 2006 Edmonton Oilers
  
• 2007 Ottawa Senators
  
• 2008
  

That's a list of 18 different teams. No team is on there twice. The NorthStars and the Stars are "sort of" the same team. Different ownership, different fans, blah blah blah.

I wrote about this last June 7, and even offered this bit of advice:

"Pittsburgh fans, prepare yourselves for heartbreak."

For the Wings, check out this gal, this guy, and these guys.

I may or may not make a more detailed post about the whys and hows, but for now I'll predict the Wings in six. Just to be clear, though, I'm rooting for the Pens.

Buckle up!