Detroit Red Wings goaltender Dominik Hasek announced his retirement – in 2002. It seemed premature at the time; Detroit had just won the Stanley Cup, and fans in Hockeytown chanted for “one more year” during the victory parade.

Here we are six years down the road. Hasek’s season ended with another Stanley Cup, the second of his storied career. But the Czech native wasn’t the hero this time. Chris Osgood took over in Game 4 of the first round and never wavered, leaving Hasek to cheer on his Detroit teammates from the bench. The writing was on the wall for Hasek at age 43.

The Red Wings expect to have Osgood in goal for the 2008-09 season, backed up by prospect Jimmy Howard. At age 35, Osgood’s turn to hand over the torch is drawing close. But a few more successful years wearing the Winged Wheel might be enough for him to reunite with Hasek in the Hall of Fame.

It took them six games to do it and it would have been way cooler had they won it at The Joe, but on Wednesday night the Detroit Red Wings stunned a Penguins crowd to finally put an end to the NHL season by winning the 2008 Stanley Cup (by a score of 3-2). This is Detroit’s fourth National Hockey League Cup win in 11 years. They’ve also won the President’s trophy six times and the Clarence Campbell Bowl (as the Western Conference champions) five times.

With the win, Nicklaus Lidstrom became the first European-born and trained captain of an NHL team to hoist the Stanley Cup, while Henrik Zetterberg became only the second European player to win the Conn Smythe trophy as the playoffs MVP. Lidstrom was the first in 2002.

And so Hockeytown, USA lives on. Any guess as to what the odds are on Detroit to win the 2009 Stanley Cup? Pretty good, I would imagine.

Chris Chelios has been a healthy scratch in the Stanley Cup finals. Is he done?

Michael Wilbon really tore a strip off the Pittsburgh Penguins Tuesday afternoon. “Score a goal!” Wilbon demanded in his best angry hockey parent voice on Pardon The Interruption, after the Pens failed to light the red lamp against the Red Wings in Detroit.

The Penguins did play the role of a young and nervous team in losing the first two games of the Stanley Cup final. But chalking it up to inexperience is a bit of a red herring. There are more disadvantages with being a 20-year-old hockey player than lack of wisdom. Lack of physical maturity is a more tangible concern, and yet there comes a point in every player’s life when age becomes more of a burden than a benefit. Yes, even for Chris Chelios.

From a value-based handicapping perspective, experience is an important but overrated factor in winning a hockey game. Home-ice advantage should prove more critical in the end to Detroit’s chances of returning the Cup to Hockeytown.

Beware of the mighty “Mule”, Penguins fans; Detroit Red Wings top goal scorer Johan Franzen has been cleared by the team’s doctors to practice with the guys on Friday. Although he probably won’t lace up for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins, he’ll likely get the green light for Game 2 if all goes well.

“Based upon the news we got today, we are hopeful to see him sometime during the series, but he’s doubtful for Game 1,” general manager Ken Holland told reporters.

Franzen missed the last five games of the Red Wings’ series against the Dallas Stars due to “concussion-like symptoms” but has maintained his top spot on the NHL’s playoff goals list (12). So you can see why everyone in Detroit is anxious to get him suited up and back in the lineup.

“He’s ready,” Coach Mike Babcock said. “He’s tipping pucks to the back of the net, he’s flying around at a hundred miles an hour. He’s ready to go, we’ve just got to get the OK.”

Sportsbooks have the Detroit Red Wings favored (slightly) to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins and win the Stanley Cup.

With the second half of the regular season under way here then is a preview of which teams will be separating themselves from the rest of the pack:

1. Detroit: Having already set a franchise record for points in the first half of the season the Red Wings are strong Stanley Cup contenders.
2. Pittsburgh: Crosby and Conklin continue to work wonders with their team.
3. Calgary: Iginla continues to show why he should win this years MVP.
4. San Jose: Boring to watch, but tough to beat.
5. Philadelphia: Are the Broad Street Bullies back?
6. Ottawa: On par with last season’s run.
7. New Jersey: Contenders but they need to pick up their pace.
8. Vancouver: Luongo continues to inspire this team towards the finish line.
9. Montreal: No regulation losses since Christmas.
10. Nashville: Strong play against teams in the superior Western Conference.

Yes, it’s awfully early in the year to be calling the NHL champions. But we do this for a reason: to praise the Detroit Red Wings as clearly, overwhelmingly, the best team in the league this season.

Every once in a while, you get a team that has it all: goaltending, scoring, team defense, youthful energy, veteran savvy, depth and smart coaching. Detroit has these things in spades. The Red Wings were at the top of the league standings at press time at 31-8-3, going 22-20 against the spread and avoiding the chalk monsters at 12.36 units in the black – third-best in the NHL behind upstarts Boston and Columbus.

The Red Wings have a goal differential of plus-1.38. Ottawa, the best team in the Eastern Conference and a favorite to return to the Stanley Cup finals, is far behind in second at plus-0.83. And this dominant performance by Detroit is coming out of the superior Western Conference. Game over.