Pens trying not to look to the future

By ERIC KNOPSNYDER
The Tribune-Democrat

PHILADELPHIA May 15, 2008 12:16 am

— The hockey world may be buzzing about a potential Stanley Cup finals matchup pitting Pittsburgh against the Detroit Red Wings, but the Penguins swear they haven’t even thought about it.
“No,” Penguins forward Max Talbot said after his team’s practice at the Wachovia Center on Wednesday, where Pittsburgh took a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals series a night earlier. “We’ve got to think about Game 4 first. We’ve got to play the Flyers (tonight) and that’s what we focus on.”
The Red Wings hold a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference finals after the Stars kept the series going at home on Wednesday night. Pittsburgh and Detroit have clearly been the two best teams in the NHL’s postseason, as the Penguins have gone 11-1 while the Wings are 11-3.
Of course, one of the reasons that the Penguins have been so successful is because they haven’t squandered many opportunities by looking ahead. They swept Ottawa in the first round and took a 3-0 lead before dropping Game 4 against the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
“We just focus on each game at a time,” Penguins forward Marian Hossa said. “We’re in a great situation. The last step is the toughest. We’d like to close it as soon as we can, but it won’t be easy, definitely, because it’s hard to play in this building.”
The Penguins didn’t have too much of a problem on Tuesday night. Quick goals by Hossa and Ryan Whitney kept the notorious Philadelphia fans from really getting into the game and the Penguins’ stingy defense kept the Flyers from finding the net. Philadelphia had just eight shots through the first 40 minutes and finished with 18.
That’s in large part because Michel Therrien has gotten the Penguins star players to buy into his defensive-minded system, which allows them to use their speed to create turnovers and offensive opportunities.
“It takes time,” said Therrien, who is in his third season as the team’s coach. “It doesn’t come naturally, especially with skilled players. But they buy into it. This is why they understand, and they play well defensively. They stick to the plan the way we try to play our system. Well, they’re going to get rewards.”
Sidney Crosby, who leads the postseason in scoring with 19 points in 12 games, said that the Penguins’ adherence to Therrien’s system is the reason they have the allowed a league-low 1.83 goals per game.
“We have that belief, and I think that’s the most important thing,” Crosby said. “There are some times where you can go out there and you know you’re doing something right, but you’re not sure if it’s going to work, but that’s not the case with us. We really believe in what we’re going to do and we’re going to have success in what we do.”
With a desperate Flyers team trying to avoid a sweep, Hossa knows there is still plenty of work left to be done. But he also knows how close he is to the Stanley Cup finals after struggling at times in the postseason with Ottawa and Atlanta.
“What a feeling,” he said. “We’re not there yet, but we’re in position to get there. You always dream when you’re a little kid to be in this situation. We’re one game away from being in the finals. It’s going to be a hard step, but we’re in good position and we know what we have to do to be successful.”