Gill, Scuderi, Adams talk 2009 Game 7 memories and celebration

Heading into AT&T SportsNet's re-airing of Game 7 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night, three former players from that championship squad got together to reminisce about the triumph. Defensive pair Hal Gill and Rob Scuderi and forward Craig Adams (while sipping beers) chatted about some of their favorite memories, highlights and moments.

* Even though Gill, Scuderi and Adams all played in Game 7 (and it was the biggest game of their lives!) their memories were surprisingly fuzzy.
"I was amazed at how I don't remember almost anything," Adams laughed. "I only remember one or two things from the whole game. You watch it a couple times and that becomes your memory. There were whole 10-minute chunks where I was like, 'I don't remember any of that.'"
But they did remember the big takeaways.
"We've got (Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin), and (Max) Talbot goes out there and scores two goals in Game 7. Go figure, right?" Gill said.
"Yeah, good for him. Thank God," Scuderi smirked.
* One thing they all remember however, was the final frantic 6.5 seconds of the game.
"It went out to (Nicklas) Lidstrom. That was my side," Adams said. "I was like, 'Oh boy. At least it's only Lidstrom.'"
"After (Fleury) made the save the puck bounced right to me. I was just playing air hockey with it back-and-forth in between my hands. I was like, 'I'll just keep this puck right here and Lidstrom isn't going to get it.' It was definitely one or two seconds after the buzzer went that I looked up and went 'I think it's over.'
Scuderi also played through the final whistle.
"I think I had (Tomas) Holmstrom tied up for two or three seconds past the buzzer," Scuderi joked. "Finally, I saw enough guys celebrating. I was like, 'We're going to get too many men on the ice.' It was clear we had won at that point and you could let loose. It was an exciting series down to the last second."
* Gill still remembers being behind the net alone while the rest of the team celebrated. It wasn't until Chris Kunitz jumped on him from behind that he had company. But there was a moment that really stood out to him.
"I sat on the back of the net with a bottle of champagne. Complete exhaustion. My knee was killing me. And I'm just drinking a bottle of champagne. That's when it hit me that this actually just happened."
For others, the moment hit at different times.
"I don't think it sunk in until four, five days later at least," Scuderi said.
"There's nothing better than drinking champagne in your hockey gear. There's nothing better than that," Adams added. "The dressing room celebration was awesome."
* But what topped the dressing room celebration was the party that took place when the team landed at 3 a.m. and went to Mario Lemiuex's house.
"My wife came over and said maybe we should go," Gill recalled. "And I said, 'I will never ever leave this. No, I'm not leaving Mario's house with the Cup at the pool. I'm just never leaving.' I probably drank so much that I reverted back to sober. I remember that vividly. I never want to leave this moment, ever. Just sitting there after we won the Cup, it was over, I could relax, we had the Cup, I was at Mario's house, all is good."
* And, of course, they never forgot the support they received along the way.
"I was lucky enough to be there almost seven years," Adams said of Pittsburgh. "(The fans) are truly on your side, good and bad. They were unbelievable during that run and the whole time we were there. I don't think you can ask for a better fanbase than the Pens fans."
"Always thank you for the support and energy," Scuderi said. " It's something that may not be talked about all the time, but it's there and you appreciate it. You just hope that your effort is appreciated. The people there did it in spades.
"Making my family and I feel at home even though it technically wasn't where we grew up is something that I'll always be grateful for."
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