Stanley Cup Final - Game 6: Red Wings - 3, Penguins - 2

So this is how it ends. It's over. After 102 games played, the Pittsburgh Penguins fell two wins short of hockey's holy grail. Congratulations to the Detroit Red Wings. They deserved the Stanley Cup. They were the best team in the NHL this year. They were so good, it was infuriating how they systemically picked teams apart. They deserved this night. But you know what? The Penguins proved that they were the 2nd best team in the NHL. I am so proud of these guys. I am so proud of this team. They never quit. They never gave up. They fought with everything they had until the final horn. They were just an inch away from tying this up. That's just how the Penguins are. This season was absolutely magical. It was the greatest season I have ever been a part of. There were so many stories, so many incredible moments. I will look at them in detail on a later day. It's just hard to right now. It was especially upsetting to see the Stanley Cup brought out on the ice of the Mellon Arena and handed to another team. That was to be our Cup, our dream, our destiny. We came so far, fought so hard, reached so close... and yet came up so short. It's hard not to be disappointed. At the start of the series, when all the analysts were making their predictions. Something common that was said was that the Penguins will win the Stanley Cup. They would win many. But not this year. They were not ready. It was said that before they could win, they had to lose. And so they have. But in losing, they have shown so much. This was an incredibly young team with so much skill and talent, but they were untested. We got to see this young team grow up. This group of boys became men in front of our eyes. They gained experience that cannot be obtained in any other fashion. If they were not ready before, they are now. Let Detroit enjoy its last hurrah. Our day will come and it will come soon.

Thank you so much, Penguins. I am so proud of you.