The Pittsburgh Penguins were on a mission as the Stanley Cup playoffs started in April.
However, that mission was not necessarily to win a second consecutive Stanley Cup. It was a mission of survival. Just before the first game of their opening series against the Columbus Blue Jackets, goalie Matt Murray suffered a lower-body injury in the warm-ups, and he was replaced by veteran Marc-Andre Fleury.
Prior to the playoffs, star defenseman Kris Letang underwent neck surgery and was lost for for the entire postseason. The Penguins also had a slew of other injuries throughout their run that could have stopped them at any time.