The Detroit Red Wings entered the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals as the favorites over the young Pittsburgh Penguins, who were only three years into the Sidney Crosby era.
The Red Wings had defeated the Nashville Predators in six games in the Western Conference Final, swept the rival Colorado Avalanche in four games in round two, and held off a rally by the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final, winning in six games.
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Following a special ceremonial puck drop at center ice featuring Steve Yzerman and Mario Lemieux, the game was on.
While it appeared that the Red Wings had taken a 1-0 lead thanks to a goal from Nicklas Lidstrom, it was called back thanks to Tomas Holmstrom’s reputation of being a net-front presence.
However, their fellow Swede Mikael Samuelsson would eventually break the ice in the second period, beating Marc-Andre Fleury with a backhanded wraparound shot. Samuelsson struck again early in the third period, doubling Detroit’s lead with his second goal of the evening.
Detroit’s Dan Cleary tallied a shorthanded goal later in the period, followed by a late power-play goal from eventual Conn Smythe Trophy winner Henrik Zetterberg in the waning seconds.
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Goaltender Chris Osgood stopped all 19 shots that he faced for the shutout.
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