Combine the Detroit Red Wings roster into one human being, and it would be the 2,000-year-old man. Their roster constitutes some 861 years of life and 13,404 games of NHL regular-season endurance. It includes the second-oldest man to play in the league, Chris Chelios.

These relic Red Wings have two guys older than the Penguins' ancient Gary Roberts in Chelios, 46, and Dominik Hasek, 43.

Strange thing about Detroit tonight in Game 5 being on the precipice of a fourth Stanley Cup championship in 11 seasons, excluding the lockout: As elegantly phrased by captain and defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom about winning titles: "It never gets old."

Even if the Red Wings do.

Lidstrom is the fourth-eldest player on their roster, at a spry 38, with five other teammates close behind at 35 years and up. Not to suggest that fictional Dorian Gray can be found in their team picture, but age alone isn't the critical factor tonight when this Stanley Cup final returns to Joe Louis Arena. Otherwise, by virtue of age alone, the Penguins' youthful legs should prevail in this series, if not dominate, right?

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Rather, it's life-on-ice experience that's the key. And the Red Wings have been everywhere, done everything. Championship-tinged games such as tonight, with the Stanley Cup in the house?

"There's no need for nerves," said left winger Kirk Maltby, one of a half-dozen Detroit regulars who go so far back as the 1997 Red Wings Cup title, the team's first of three in a six-year span. "It's just go out for Game 5 and play the only way we know we can play."

They know the Red Wings' way. They know the postseason rigors when April turns to May, May turns to June.

Defenseman Darryl Sydor leads the Penguins with two Cup rings and 153 playoff games. But he's a mere postseason babe by comparison to the Red Wings.

Lidstrom has three Cup rings and 212 playoff games, center Kris Draper three and 192, right winger Darren McCarty three and 174, Maltby three and 147 ... Chelios, who dates back to wooden sticks, owns two rings and an NHL-record 260 playoff games, and he has been a healthy scratch this series. These relic Red Wings don't need him.

Same with Hasek and his 119 playoff games, replaced by Osgood with his two rings and 104 playoff games. Marc-Andre Fleury's 23 Penguins playoff games roughly equals one protracted spring for each.

Scratches McCarty, likely to be replaced in the lineup tonight if Tomas Holmstrom's hamstring seems hale enough, and Chelios and Hasek bring the Detroit team totals to 24 Cup rings and 1,749 playoff games. Consider that a twice-as-high mountain of a contrast to the sum total of four rings -- Sydor's two, Petr Sykora plus Gary Roberts one apiece -- and the sub-900 postseason games owned by the entire Penguins' playing roster.

Such acquired wisdom and maturity shows, too.

"With this club we have, we're experienced," Detroit center Dan Cleary said. "Nobody's looking around."

No Red Wings looked around when the Penguins grabbed a 1-0, first-period lead in Game 4 Saturday night and energized Mellon Arena, where they hadn't lost in 17 games dating back to February. "Right away, I could sense on the bench there was no panic," Cleary added. "We responded after the first goal" with a Lidstrom laser shot to tie it barely four minutes later.

No Red Wings looked around when the Penguins had a minute and a half of a two-man advantage midway through the final period and a puck heading toward Sidney Crosby at the seemingly open back-door to Osgood's net, where Henrik Zetterberg stopped him and the rest of that 5-on-3 almost single-handedly. "Guys know what we have to do," Cleary continued. "We've been in this position before."

Thousands of times, cumulatively speaking.

Look at it this way: Both have played twice in Game 5s in the three preceding series, with the Penguins winning both at home and Detroit splitting, but most of the young Penguins' core had never before won at such a postseason juncture. The Red Wings have won 33 of 68 in franchise history and four of eight in their past 10 playoff series alone.

They know.

"We haven't done anything yet," cautioned McCarty. "We've put ourselves in the position to win the Cup on home ice. We've played with home-ice advantage the whole time. Everything sort of works it's way ..."

A way well familiar for these Red Wings.