It All Comes Down to This

For hockey fans, there is nothing more exciting than a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Unless, of course, you happen to have a rooting interest in one of the teams taking part, in which case, it goes from being exciting to being the most aggravating, nerve-wracking, hand-eating two-and-a-half hours in sports ... and that's if it ends in regulation. Let's not even think about the insanity that is sudden death overtime.

On Wednesday, the Penguins and Capitals will be taking part in what will surely be one of the most anticipated Game 7s in recent history, as they close out what has been a series for the ages. Somebody is moving on, and somebody is going home.

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Although it seems impossible, this series has more than lived up to the hype leading into it, as five of the six games have been decided by one goal, including three overtime games. In the end, this has be to commissioner Gary Bettman's dream come true, as the series has not only featured the two most prominent names in the sport, Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Washington's Alex Ovechkin, but it's also featured them elevating their play, seemingly matching one another step-for-step, point-by-point. Honestly, Bettman couldn't have scripted it better than this.

For the past four years people have been trying to build Crosby vs. Ovechkin into the NHL's version of Magic vs. Bird, despite the fact the two weren't really rivals and had never faced off in the postseason. Now that they have, they haven't disappointed, even if they're rarely on the ice at the same time.

In the six games, the two superstars have combined for 13 goals, also figuring in on 24 of the 39 goals scored in the series. In Game 2, the series' signature moment, each player recorded a hat trick in Washington's 4-3 win.

Of course, it's easy to lose sight of the fact that this matchup isn't just about Crosby and Ovechkin. Coming into this series, Evgeni Malkin was the leading scorer in the postseason, after winning the Art Ross Trophy as the regular season scoring champion. After struggling in the first two games, Malkin put forth a dominant individual performance in Game 3, and was credited with the game-winner in overtime during Pittsburgh's 4-3 win in game 5.

Before this series began, it wouldn't have been considered a stretch to give the goaltending advantage to Pittsburgh, seeing as how Marc-Andre Fleury helped lead the Penguins to within two wins of the Stanley Cup a year ago, while Simeon Varlamov was a relatively unknown, untested goaltender with only six games of postseason experience, all of which came against a team (the Rangers) that wasn't exactly setting the world on fire with its offense. Thus far, the 21-year-old Varlamov has actually outplayed Fleury, while also helping steal Game 1 with what will go down as, perhaps, the best save of the postseason. While Fleury came in as the more experienced netminder, he enters Wednesday's game lacking experience in a Game 7. Varlamov, of course, started, and won, Game 7 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series against New York.

Aside from Varlamov, second-year center Nicklas Backstrom has also made a sizable impact, currently riding a nine-game point streak, including eight in this series.

There's still no word official word on Sergei Gonchar's status for Wednesday, as he's likely to be a game-time decision after practicing for a second straight day. Gonchar's status just adds to the intrigue, as he was injured early in Game 4 on a controversial hit by Ovechkin.

What should we expect tonight? Seth Rorabaugh of Empty-Netters puts it best when he tells us to expect the unexpected. In a series that has featured game-winning goals bouncing in off of defenders, star players doing what they do best, brutal physicality, and even a little bit of controversy (on and off the ice), just about anything could transpire Wednesday night. This is, after all, the rebirth of a classic playoff rivalry that has featured threats, Yanni, allegations of illegal sticks, analysts stealing information out of locker rooms, and perhaps even a Willis Reed-like moment.

Anything is possible at this point.