In game six of the Finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Zetterberg scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal and was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP. His 13 playoff goals tied with teammate Johan Franzén for the Red Wings record for most in a single postseason. At the end of the season, Zetterberg was also up for the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward, but finished as a runner-up to Datsyuk. In the final year of his contract in 2008–09, Zetterberg agreed to a 12-year, $73 million contract extension with the Red Wings on 28 January 2009. The deal is the longest and most lucrative in franchise history. Zetterberg recorded 11 goals and 13 assists for the Red Wings during the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs that saw them reach Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, only to lose to their 2008 opponent the Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite a slow start to the 2009-10 NHL Season, Zetterberg's play quickly improved, and he recorded the fourth hat trick of his career on 14 November against the Anaheim Ducks, scoring three goals in the third period of Detroit's 7–4 victory. He scored seven goals during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, which saw Detroit bow out in the second round against San Jose. Zetterberg posted 80 points in 80 games in the 2010–11 NHL season. However, the Red Wings were eliminated in the 2nd round of the Playoffs, again to San Jose. In the 2011-12 NHL season, Zetterberg played on the 2nd line alongside Valtteri Filppula and Jiří Hudler. Both teammates had career seasons playing on the line centered by Zetterberg. Filppula scored a career high 66 points while Hudler had a 50-point season (25 goals, 25 assists). The Red Wings fell 4–1 to the Nashville Predators in the first round of the Playoffs, their earliest playoff exit since 2006. Zetterberg signed with EV Zug in Switzerland during the 2012—2013 NHL season lockout. On 15 January 2013, Zetterberg was named captain of the Red Wings, succeeding Lidström who had retired. Despite missing 13 games due to chronic back problems, he scored over 40 points through the first part of the 2013–14 NHL season. However, he sustained another back injury during the 2014 Winter Olympics and underwent surgery, causing him to miss an estimated two months of the season while the Red Wings pursued a berth in the NHL playoffs for the 23rd straight year.