Pat Caputo: Despite seldom meeting, Penguins still Red Wings' biggest rival
During a period spanning of about two decades, the Red Wings have been the best team in the National Hockey League.
They make the playoffs every year. They often reach the NHL's version of the final four during the postseason. They have captured their share of Stanley Cup championships — four, in fact, since 1997.
In those two decades, the Red Wings have had their share of bitter rivalries: The Maple Leafs and Blackhawks during the early-to-mid 1990s, the Colorado Avalanche for an extended period during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Since then, though, it's pretty much been the Red Wings against the field.
The lone exception has been the Pittsburgh Penguins. Now that's a team Red Wings fans love to loathe.
Part of it is the NHL public relations machine — sputtering as it may be under the misguided watch of commissioner Gary Bettman. It has been undeniably slanted to a steep degree toward the Penguins' second-best player, Sidney Crosby (Evgeni Malkin has always given the Red Wings many more problems than The Whiner).
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