On the outside looking in
PITTSBURGH — Some came sporting face paint, others waving flags and pumping their fists in the air.
But the many fans of the Pittsburgh Penguins who crowded around a huge video screen outside Mellon Arena Wednesday night brought a single wish: to see their team defeat the Detroit Red Wings and rekindle their Stanley Cup hopes.
That wish was granted when the Penguins claimed a 3-2 victory, cutting Detroit's series lead to one game.
It was an outcome some Penguins fans said they expected, even before the players hit the ice, pointing to a home ice advantage and the perceived power of their own cheering.
"Pittsburgh's definitely got a unique group of fans," said Mandi Mutnansky, a 30-year-old paramedic from Salem Township. "I think they're just more passionate and more supportive. ... I don't think you see some of this in some of the other cities."
Like others gathered on a patch of grass outside the arena before the game, Mutnansky wore a black Penguins T-shirt and claimed a longtime allegiance. "We've got all the fan support, we've got the energy of being at home," she said.
She wasn't alone in her optimism.
Stephanie Bayus drove from her hometown of Latrobe to stake out a spot on the arena's fringes well before the teams faced off at 8 p.m. She and a friend set up lawn chairs around 12:45 p.m.
"It's in my blood to be a fan," said the 26-year-old photographer.
For Bayus and other Penguins faithful who planned to watch the screen just feet from the action, the team's prospects for success in Game 3 and the rest of the Stanley Cup finals seemed almost unquestionable, despite early losses.
There's time, Bayus insisted, for the Penguins "to turn around and win."
Before Wednesday's win, the series had been woefully one-sided, with Detroit delivering two dominating and defensive-driven victories. A loss would have doomed almost any chance of the Penguins hoisting the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1992.
Jarrad Weiss, 20, of Monongahela, said that wasn't going to happen.
"They're just amazing on their home ice," he said, sitting with a friend on a blanket. "I think our fans should play a big part in their attitudes and I think when (the Penguins) have people behind them they do a lot better."
Weiss added: "I just think it's going to be a whole different series after tonight."
The crowd later swelled, and choruses of "Let's Go Pens!" erupted. Television news reports said an estimated 5,000 people gathered outside the arena by the end of the game.
Not everyone was swept up in jubilation. Penguins fans jeered 32-year-old Chris Gietzen and his friends, who had just arrived from Detroit, as they walked near the giant screen wearing Red Wings jerseys.
"We expect to win," he said. "We're in for a rough time, but that's all right."
