The 2016 Stanley Cup Finals are now set. These two teams last met on December 1, with Evgeni Malkin’s three-point evening powering a 3-1 Pittsburgh victory. San Jose won in 6 and Pittsburgh won in 7.
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If they establish their forecheck and keep the puck pinned in the offensive zone against the Penguins’ depleted defense, like they did against the Kings, Blues and Predators, the Sharks can cripple their attack rather easily.
Coaching: Sharks’ Peter DeBoer vs. Penguins’ Mike Sullivan. Then, in the last game of the regular season, backup Matt Murray left the contest versus the Flyers due to a nasty collision to his neck/head, thrusting third-stringer Jeff Zatkoff into the starting role for the first two games of the playoffs. The two teams that reached the Stanley Cup Final, San Jose and Pittsburgh, have so far scored an average of 3.5 and 3.2 goals per game respectively during the postseason.
Kessel may score, but this Cup will be won by Pittsburgh if the foursome of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and rookie goalie Matt Murray are able to make it happen. “It’s going to be quite the series”.
Patrick Marleau scored for the Sharks.
Joe Pavelski’s 13 goals lead all players in the playoffs. His two multi-goal games this post-season put him alongside bona fide stars like Vladimir Tarasenko and Brent Burns.
Couture (16), Thornton (15) and Burns (14) are also the top three assist producers after three rounds. Younger players like Joonas Donskoi, Chris Tierney, and Mirco Mueller have been great for the Sharks this season. This season, they split two games. The energy of the “Shark Tank” may rival that of CONSOL Energy Center, but we all know that we Pittsburgh fans are just a little bit better.
Marc-Edouard Vlasic is among the best blueliners in the National Hockey League, a shutdown guy who’s smart with the puck and adept with his stick. He had 71 goals and 217 assists in 1,179 career regular-season games, but missed this past season because of back issues. With both teams getting some much-needed rest, Monday should be a fun night in Pittsburgh.
Malkin and Crosby are easily the Penguins’ top names, but it’s the HBK Line that has broken out this spring. They routed the Toronto Maple Leafs 7-0 that night to start a stretch in which they’ve gone a ridiculous 40-18-4 (including the playoffs). Kessel (9-9-18), Bonino (3-12-15) and Hagelin (5-7-12) have combined for 17 of the Penguins’ 58 goals this playoff run and have 45 points between them.
The two-time Maurice Richard Trophy victor as the NHL’s top goal scorer can become an unrestricted free agent July 1, however he reiterated Friday that he’d like to stay with the team drafted him No. 1 overall in 2008 and came within one victory of reaching the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight year.
If Pavelski continues to pile up goals, he will be named the tournament’s MVP and will be the first to hoist the Stanley Cup. San Jose finished third in their division and with teams like Chicago, Dallas, St. Louis, and Anaheim it was hard to picture the Sharks winning the west. But the Lightning have what they believe is capable replacement in Andrei Vasilevskiy, who was arguably Tampa’s best player against the Penguins.
Murray was forced into the spotlight after the Penguins lost franchise goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to a concussion at the end of the season and the 22-year-old rookie netminder has thrived under the pressure.
Last Call: This is as close as it gets. At the 2014 Sochi Games, the USA finished fourth with Kessel scoring a team-leading five goals and eight points.
Special teams: The Sharks are slightly more effective on the power play (27% to 23.4%), and the Penguins are more effective in penalty killing (83.6% to 80.4%).
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Mired near the bottom of the Metropolitan Division in December, Rutherford brought in Sullivan, who spent a decade as a grind-it-out center and an extended period as John Tortorella’s top lieutenant in NY and Vancouver.
