Pens over Sens in Double OT; Return to Stanley Cup Finals

It's life in a nutshell: when your moment comes, you've gotta be ready to embrace it.

Tonight, that sums up the performance of Pittsburgh's Chris Kunitz in the Penguins' 3-2 double-overtime triumph over the Ottawa Senagors in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference championship.

Dude finished a pair of nifty scoring plays, including the decider in double-overtime, to vault the defending Stanley Cup champions into a shot at keeping it in their possession.

Not a bad way to snap a 34-game scoring drought.

Kunitz put himself in the right place at the right time to be on the receiving end of two exquisite passes, first by Conor Sheary and then at the end by -- who else? -- Sidney Crosby.

Toss in a pair of clever assists from Ottawa's Erik Karlsson, and a theme emerges as to the level of skill it took to get a drop on two outstanding goaltending performances:

As offensively challenged as the Senators were all season, they did well to get this far, and it can't be stressed enough how dominantly all-encompassing Karlsson's effort was.

Case in point: it's still argued whether Ottawa's trap is a 1-3-1 or a 1-4. The reality is it's whatever the Swedish blueliner makes it to be on any given situation. His teammates react to his reads as much as they do to the puck.

One could say the flow goes with Karlsson in every sense of the word.

Pittsburgh couldn't do much about the hair, but when they picked up the pace of their passing game, they ultimately beat the trap.

Now, they'll be defending their Cup against the swift and physical Nashville Predators, who pose matchup issues similar to what the Washington Capitals did, but without the stigma.

The Penguins' injury-plagued roster, though, is about as healthily intact as it's been all season. Combine that talent with tenacity, and their clash with Smashville looks odds-on to be a long one.

The only certainty is, either way, the winners will be appropriately attired to go for the gold.