NHL Analyst Mike Rupp: Malkin Is Going To Blow Up In This Series
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – The Stanley Cup Final begins tonight in Pittsburgh.
With that in mind, former Penguins player Mike Rupp stopped by "Pittsburgh Today Live" to weigh in on the series.
Rupp, an NHL Network analyst, who is part of "NHL Tonight," feels Evgeni Malkin is going to have a big series against the San Jose Sharks.
"Evgeni Malkin, to me, is going to blow up in this series. He's a competitor. I always get asked, 'Who's better, Crosby or Malkin?'" Rupp said. "Sid's the best player in the world and he makes everybody around him better. But, if you want the puck on one player's stick, I want it on 71's stick. Evgeni Malkin is an absolute beast and I look for him to be that in this series."
Rupp won a Stanley Cup with the New Jersey Devils in 2003. As a result, he knows what it takes to win this time of year. But, he said it all comes down to how the players view this opportunity.
"If you're gonna look at like, 'Oh my gosh, we're here.' And if you're going to look at what you could possibly lose, I think that's where a lot of nerves come into play. Maybe you're afraid to make that mistake," Rupp said. "The teams and the players that look at it as an opportunity like, 'Were finally here, we've put this together and we're four wins from winning the Stanley Cup,' I think those are the guys that are fearless in those moments."
Rupp talked about how Max Talbot was one of those fearless players when he scored two goals against Detroit in Game 7 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Final. Is there another Talbot-type on the current roster?
"I think you saw one in Game 7 of the Eastern Final with Bryan Rust. This team is very deep, they have players who can do it on all different levels. I think Phil Kessel is having a Conn Smythe-type playoffs," Rupp said.
As a former player, Rupp is well-versed in the superstitious nature of hockey players – especially this time of year. During his time in Pittsburgh, he witnessed one particular superstition with Crosby and his jersey.
According to Rupp, Crosby would go up to another player and ask for help securing the fight strap of his jersey. Paul Martin had just been signed by the team and became Crosby's target on the first day of the regular season.
"He went walking over to Paul Martin in game one of the regular season and the players were like, 'Pauly don't do it!' Because if you do it and Sid goes out and scores and they win, you're now married to this idea all year long and you've got to help Sid put his jersey on," Rupp said. "Every game, the same time on the clock, Sid would sit there and watch the clock. When it hits that second, he walks over to Paul, Paul would help him with his jersey and it's just funny now because Paul is on the San Jose Sharks and he's not helping him with anything right now, I'll tell you that!"
Another superstition during the playoffs is what to do with the conference championship trophies. In 2008, Crosby did not touch the Prince of Wales Trophy and the Penguins went on to lose in the Stanley Cup Final. The next season, Crosby picked it up and the Pens went on to win the Stanley Cup.
This time around, Rupp was convinced Crosby would touch the trophy because he had done it before.
"I think the premise of it is you don't touch the conference trophy because that's not what we're here for. We're here for the Stanley Cup, so guys don't touch it in the past. But, it's funny when you watch it because like we saw, Sidney Crosby touched it," Rupp said.
Will the superstitions pay off? Time will tell. The puck drops on Game 1 tonight at 8 p.m.
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