Stanley Cup Champions the Year After

Sidney Crosby & Co. finished fourth in the Eastern Conference, but received what appeared to be a break when a series of early upsets left them with No. 8 seed Montreal in the second round. Their run toward a third-straight Cup final ended with a 5-2 Game 7 loss in which the upstart Habs jumped out to a four-goal lead. Crosby and Evgeni Malkin scored only one goal apiece during the series.