Penguins capture franchise's 4th Stanley Cup title

SAN JOSE, Calif. — When the Penguins' plane touches down in Allegheny County on Monday, an old friend will be on board.

Perhaps fans will remember him from his three previous visits to the City of Champions.

People call him Stanley.

Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang scored, and Matt Murray made 18 saves as the Penguins defeated the San Jose Sharks, 3-1, on Sunday night to close out the Stanley Cup Final in six games and claim the fourth championship in franchise history.

“I can't be more proud of them, the way we've come together as a team,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “That's all I can think about when guys were celebrating and raising the trophy, was how this group of players has come together over the last four months to become one really good hockey team.”

Letang's winning goal, which came 7 minutes, 46 seconds into the second period, was a fitting conclusion to a postseason run that saw the 29-year-old defenseman star as a 30-minute-a-night workhorse.

“Seven years without it, I'll enjoy this one,” Letang said. “It's a hard accomplishment to do.”

Murray, a 22-year-old rookie, improved to 6-0 in games immediately following a loss in the postseason.

“I just tried to compete and have fun with it,” Murray said. “Man, I'll remember this day for the rest of my entire life. What a day.”

Patric Hornqvist hit an empty net with 1:02 left, touching off the first nervous signs of celebration on the Penguins bench. When the clock struck zero a few moments later, the party began in earnest with a joyous pile of players atop Murray's crease.

“We get such great support from the fans in Pittsburgh, and we're going to have a party for them in a couple of days,” co-owner Mario Lemieux said.

The storybook finish to the series might have come in Game 5 on Thursday night, when tens of thousands of fans lined the sun-splashed streets outside Consol Energy Center hoping to celebrate a victory. The party was delayed by three days and moved 2,600 miles when the Sharks scored three early goals to win that game and extend the series.

It's safe to assume fans will get over that disappointment, if they haven't already, when they see a 35-pound silver trophy rolling down Grant Street some day this week. Fans will flock to the parade route, having fallen back in love with a team that was, quite frankly, easy to like.

The stars who had become fixtures over the past decade or so suddenly became more relatable, having fallen on hard times since last winning a championship in 2009.

The newcomers were a hoot. Phil Kessel had a Jeff Spicoli-style appeal. Nick Bonino sported a spiffy Amish-style playoff beard. Matt Cullen had a distinct dad vibe in the locker room. The rookies brought an obvious dose of aw-shucks youthful enthusiasm.

“We started off the season obviously slow, and we turned a corner,” Kessel said. “Sully came in, and we found our identity and we found the way we have to play. Everyone bought in, and everyone played for each other. It came down to every single guy. Every single guy contributed something to the team, and we got it done.”

They also had a style of play that was easy to watch. They used speed, not mind-numbing shot blocking or obstruction, to get ahead. They always were focused, never petulant, religiously following the “Just Play” motto printed on their postseason T-shirts.

“It's nice. It's not easy getting here,” captain Sidney Crosby said. “We stuck together, got better and kept fighting. It's nice to win the last game of the year.”

They were also a team that believed in democracy, with contributions coming from a variety of sources all postseason.

Dumoulin, for instance, didn't score in 79 games in the regular season or the first two rounds of the playoffs but contributed a goal apiece in the Eastern Conference finals and the Stanley Cup Final. His Final goal was a critical one, giving the Penguins a 1-0 lead about eight minutes into Game 6.

With the second power-play unit taking the first shift of a power play, Dumoulin took a pass from Justin Schultz at the left point, pump faked once and shot past the attempted block of Melker Karlsson and the attempted tip of Nick Bonino and into the net.

“I'll take that all day,” Dumoulin said. “I'll take going scoreless in the regular season to score in a game like that. I couldn't be happier for the group of guys here. I'm blessed.”

Sharks goalie Martin Jones kept his team within a goal despite subsequent Penguins flurries, and Logan Couture tied the score on a wrister from the left wing early in the second period.

Letang answered 79 seconds later with a thrilling round trip through the offensive zone, starting at the left point and ending at the bottom of the right faceoff circle with a pass from Crosby on his tape for a shot and a goal.

The Penguins protected their lead throughout a tense third period, allowing only two shots and ending a two-month playoff run with a smothering defensive performance.

In the first round of the playoffs, the Penguins exorcised the playoff demons of the previous two springs, knocking off the New York Rangers in five games.

In the second round, they announced their presence on the national stage with authority, dispatching the Presidents' Trophy winners from Washington in six games.

In the third round, they survived their most significant scare, staving off elimination in Game 6 and taking a tense Game 7 from a dangerous Tampa Bay team.

In the Final, the Sharks proved to be no match for a Penguins team that learned its identity — fast and resilient — shortly after Sullivan took over as coach in December and stuck to it until the glorious end.

Jonathan Bombulie is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jbombulie@tribweb.com or via Twitter at @BombulieTrib.