Stanley Cup Final Scoreboard Watch: Puck Luck

I hope I’m not the only one who felt like Jon Snow from HBO’s “Game Of Thrones” after Thursday’s Game 5, because the first few minutes of that game let me know that I truly know nothing. It was a crazy game that proved the Sharks still have a puncher’s chance to topple the Penguins in this one, but both teams still have a lot of fight and determination in them. But did San Jose turn a corner the other night, or did they just get lucky and delay the inevitable?

LAST GAME’S RECAP

I hope you were ready for Game 5 to start on time, because holy crap did it ever. San Jose came out swinging, and went up 2-0 by the time 3:00 had run off the clock. Pittsburgh responded to tie the game up, with 4 goals total being scored over the first 5 minutes of game time (5:06 if you want to be nit-picky). Another Sharks goal late in the first would seal the deal for the away team, as the next goal scored would be Joe Pavelski getting the empty-netter to insure the win late in the third. While all the goal scoring was done early, the big plays lingered throughout the game as both goalies (Martin Jones in particular) stood on their heads trying to keep their teams in the game.

TONIGHT’S ACTION

Pittsburgh Penguins at San Jose Sharks (Game 6), 8:00PM EDT – NBC

Yes, the Sharks were able to come away with a big win Thursday night. But, they can’t afford to try repeating that performance if they hope to send this series back to Pittsburgh for Game 7. Jones ended up making 44 saves on the night to give his team the win, compared with only 18 for Pittsburgh’s Matt Murray. Score effects should somewhat account for that, but the Sharks got some serious puck luck while the Pens absolutely refused to be shut down over the course of the game. If San Jose can’t figure out how to control the game and limit Pittsburgh’s chances, they may have only delayed the inevitable.

Why You Care Enough To Watch: You’re going to watch because, apparently, I have a tendency to be wrong when the games are big. I thought the last game would fall in the Penguins’ favor – and I suppose it did to a degree, just not with the final score. I’m predicting the sad thing for this game that I did last time, the Penguins will come out with energy and pep and drive and solidly put this beyond San Jose’s capabilities. If I’m wrong and don’t end up throwing that NYE at my tv and bargaining with myself that “yeah, it’s worth it for Phil Kessel to get a Cup win”, then I will openly accept your taunts and ridicule in the comments below. At least, until Game 7.

#9

Who wins tonight’s game?