The Penguins tonight begin their fifth consecutive journey through the Stanley Cup playoffs, and the fan vibe is mostly positive. The 106 points are the franchise's most since 1993, goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has been terrific, and Sidney Crosby just might play.
On the other hand, Crosby's status remains iffy, and fellow superstar Evgeni Malkin is out. Unlike the past few years, the Pens aren't among the favorites to go all the way. The usual postseason optimism is somewhat tempered this time.
"Realistically, I don't think they can win the Stanley Cup this year," said Troy Kweder, 23, a longtime Penguins fan from Mt. Washington. "I think we can get through the first round without Sid. Any more than that, and they're gonna need a little more offense."
But the main thing that could work against the Penguins is the elemental fact that only one team can win the Cup, just as only one team wins the Super Bowl, NCAA Tournament, World Series and any other championship (except big-time college football).
Most fans understand this truth, although it often fails to diminish the frustration and emptiness caused by losing, even in the City of Champions. In the past 12 months, the Penguins made the playoffs, the Steelers reached the Super Bowl and the Pitt basketball team entered the NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed. All fell short, although the Steelers went as far as a team can go without winning it all.
When Montreal upset the Penguins in seven games in their conference semifinal series last season, "it was very disappointing to me," Kweder said. "There were a lot of expectations to live up to, and I knew it was a tough possibility. But we were favored in the series, and we should have won."
Pittsburgh fans have little to complain about, though. The city's history of success is too rich for that. It could be worse. It could be Cleveland, where a city's abject frustration with its teams is welded to its identity, where disappointment permeates the culture.
"It hurts to lose," said Donald Starver, a Pittsburgher who moved to Rochester, N.Y., and authors a Steelers blog. "But I wouldn't trade places with Cleveland for anything. We're spoiled, and I recognize that."
Even rooting for good teams in Pittsburgh, the only city to twice win multiple pro championships in the same calendar year (1979, 2009), does not necessarily mitigate what author Warren St. John calls "those long, hormonally depleted days" or sleepless nights that follow a crushing defeat.
In fact, it might make it worse.
Indiana University sports psychologist Edward Hirt thinks it comes down to expectations.
"If you have a history of being really successful, like the Yankees or the Steelers, that's cause to get people upset. It's interesting for fans of those teams. They're not just satisfied with good years. You have to be in contention for a championship," Hirt said.
At full strength, the Penguins have attained that level. That's what made losing to Montreal so painful. They won their third Stanley Cup the previous year and reached the finals the year before that.
"There's always a level of expectation in this city that anything that's not a championship is always a disappointment," Kweder said. "When you have the best player in the world (Crosby) and Malkin, who might be in the top five, we'll be there every year."
