The Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup.
Take it all in, replay it in your mind, enjoy it and appreciate it many times over until they start training camp.
Celebrate it because if we've learned anything from 2008-09 and the past 20 years, it isn't likely to be repeated again next year.
Winning one Stanley Cup is extremely hard. It's probably the toughest trophy to capture in sports because of the grind and because of all the variables that come into play.
A repeat hasn't happened since the 1996-98 Detroit Red Wings did it, and along the way there have been a lot of teams that looked set up to win a second title but fell short.
That includes the 2009-10 Penguins, who were loaded with youthful skill players, star power and an exciting coach.
And it didn't happen for that group for seven seasons and after almost a complete makeover of the organization, coaching staff and roster.
Last year, Tampa Bay lost in the final but was loaded with youth and star power. It looked like it would own the Eastern Conference for a few years, but one year later they sat and watched the Penguins play for the Stanley Cup.
The Blackhawks won three Stanley Cups since the Penguins won their previous one, but none was back-to-back. The Kings won two in that time but not in consecutive seasons.
This is not to say the Penguins can't repeat as champions. They certainly can, but just because they have a lot of young players around their stars doesn't automatically that mean they will win it all.
It doesn't happen that way in sports, and particularly not this sport.
Picking the Penguins to win it all next year would be foolish considering it has only happened twice since 1990 and not at all since 2000.
Certainly the Penguins look to be in great shape. They only have three free agents of note _ Ben Lovejoy, Matt Cullen and Jeff Zatkoff _ and the only tough decision will be what to do with Marc-Andre Fleury.
There are eight key contributors who are 24 or younger, and the core of stars is still in its late 20s. That means the team is actually still relatively young.
But as we have found out in the past, so much has to go right for a team to win a championship. We witnessed that this year.
The coaching change came at the right time of the season and was the right fit, but next year, there won't be that kind of mid-year spark as Mike Sullivan will be the coach from the start of the season.
Every button Sullivan pushed seemed to work, from personnel moves to line switches to his goaltender decisions. It was just that kind of season.
The Penguins also were incredibly lucky with regards to injuries when you consider they had every key member available throughout the playoffs, until Trevor Daley got hurt.
Personnel decisions, line combinations and health all are part of winning a title.
That's why there's always a bit of a luck to every championship. That's not to say teams don't earn championships _ they do _ but there are some things that have to happen that are beyond what happens on the ice.
This is a championship that fans should really appreciate because it has been such a long time coming. They should relish their favorite team being at the top of the hill and the best in the world.
We sometimes lose sight of that in this town because championships for the local teams seem to come around fairly often.
Pittsburgh's three pro sports teams have won 12 championships since 1970, but six of them came from 1971 to 1980. That means we've only seen six championships in the 36 seasons since.
It is hard, hard work to win a championship, but in the NHL, it has become almost impossible to repeat as champions. So, go to the parade Wednesday and savor this one for a long time because there is no guarantee of another coming any time soon.
About the Author