The Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup Final for the second consecutive year with a controversial 2 to 0 win in Game 6 to take the series 4 games to 2 at Bridgestone Arena Sunday night.
The first official score in the game came with just minutes remaining in the third period when Patric Hornqvist beat the Predators’ Pekka Rinne with the game winner. The Penguins iced the game with an empty netter before the final seconds ticked off the clock.
The game was scoreless after two periods, but only because a controversial officiating call early in the first period went against the Predators, as ESPN reported:
In the opening minute of a deadlocked Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final Sunday night, the Nashville Predators appeared to open the scoring. But a quick whistle from referee Kevin Pollock blew the play dead, depriving Nashville of a prime scoring opportunity on a play that could not be challenged or overturned by video replay.
The sequence began when Predators forward Filip Forsberg sped down the left wing and fired a shot at Penguins goaltender Matt Murray 1:06 into the second period. After Murray made the initial save, the puck trickled behind him and slid through the crease. It was then that center Colton Sissons poked the puck into the net. But a referee situated in the corner facing Murray blew the whistle, likely after losing sight of the puck and assuming Murray had retained possession.
The missed opportunity was openly protested by the Predators as well as the capacity crowd at Bridgestone Arena.
The classic phrase “we wuz robbed” echoed through the Bridgestone Arena as Predator fans filed out.
If the Predators can’t score on 4 power plays, one being a 5 on 3, then they didn’t deserve the win either way!