No matter what happens in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final tomorrow night in Detroit, the game will earn a niche in Penguins history.

At the very least, it will go down as the third game the franchise has played in the month of June, and the first later than June 1.

The Penguins were part of the first NHL game contested in June, when they clinched their second Stanley Cup championship with a 6-5 victory at Chicago Stadium June 1, 1992.

Precisely four years later, they absorbed a 3-1 loss to Florida in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final here. Panthers center Tom Fitzgerald -- now the Penguins' director of player development -- scored the series-clinching goal by beating goalie Tom Barrasso with a shot from somewhere near Centre Avenue to break a 1-1 tie early in the third period.

Twenty years ago, hockey in June was confined to recreation leagues, and more than a few Penguins haven't participated a game that mattered during this month.

"I don't think I've ever played in June," left winger Ryan Malone said. "But I've always wanted to."

A number of Malone's teammates have played past May. Defenseman Rob Scuderi was part of a group that did it in 2004, when the Penguins' American Hockey League affiliate in Wilkes-Barre faced Milwaukee in the Calder Cup final.

"It's a ton of fun [to be playing now]," Scuderi said. "We all enjoy it. Playoffs are the most fun time of year."

Armstrong chats with Shero

Former Penguins right winger Colby Armstrong, who worked as an analyst for a Canadian network in Games 3 and 4, spent part of his old team's game-day skate sitting with general manager Ray Shero, the man who traded him to Atlanta in the deal that brought Marian Hossa and Pascal Dupuis to the Penguins.

"We talked about old times, talked about the trade, talked about the series, talked about some of the guys, talked about everything," Armstrong said. "It was good to chat with him."

He added that they discussed the trade briefly -- "He got his feelings across," Armstrong said -- and reiterated that he has no hard feelings about it.

"I got along good with everyone when I was here, and it's the same way still," he said. "I know it's part of the game, part of the business. Those things happen."

Sydor re-adjusts quickly

Darryl Sydor spent the first 16 games of the Penguins' playoff run in street clothes, but made a solid contribution in his 2008 postseason debut in Game 3, logging 13 minutes, 31 seconds of ice time and giving the defense corps an infusion of stability and leadership.

"We like his composure," coach Michel Therrien said yesterday. "He's really positive in the dressing room. He's really positive on the bench. There's no doubt that this time of the year we need experience like Darryl Sydor [provides]."

Sydor, who replaced rookie Kris Letang, said he needed "only a couple of shifts" to get into the game, despite not having played since March 31. That is testimony to the time and effort he invested in his job when he wasn't dressing.

"You have to keep a certain frame of mind, and I tried to stay positive and think I was going to get called upon," he said.

Sydor acknowledged that no workout could duplicate what he went through in Game 3 -- "I felt it a little bit the next day, " he said. "You don't get into those physical battles in practice" -- but added that "I feel like I'm part of [the series] now."

Dealing with Franzen

Detroit forward Johan Franzen, who returned in Game 2 after missing six games because of what the team called "concussion-like symptoms," is 6 feet 3, 220 pounds, which means neutralizing him is quite a challenge for opposing defensemen.

Especially when, in the post-lockout NHL, the time-tested ways of getting a rival forward away from the crease are frowned upon.

"In the old NHL, coaches said, 'Just cross-check the guy in the back until he moves out of your way,' " Scuderi said. "But, with the way it is now, you almost have to play it like basketball, for position.

"You have to post up, almost butt your way into him. With his size, it doesn't make it any easier."

That goes a long way toward explaining why Franzen had 13 goals in 13 games before last night.