Penguins return home as betting favourites for Game 5

It was that, unlike the previous two games, it wasn’t just a one-man show. In Game 3, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were held without a shot on goal in the same playoff game for the first time in their careers.

The Nashville Predators’ top two defensive pairings are among the best in the National Hockey League.

The Penguins road trip can be summed up here: “Smahsville” certainly lived up to the hype, the Penguins really miss Kris Letang and Pekka Rinne is hot again. For his part, the 23-year-old Murray admitted he wouldn’t spill the beans even if he was in on the secret, telling the team’s website Wednesday that “Even if I knew, I wouldn’t tell you”. But once the game started, the ice belonged to the Penguins. When they got behind us, they were able to do some damage off of that. Still, it would be surprising if the Penguins turned back to veteran Marc-Andre Fleury now. I think we can learn from that … it’s impossible not to think about.

The Good – There’s a new member of the “Hockey” family… and his name is Frederick Gaudreau… The Penguins now have a 3-2 series lead.

Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne dives across the crease to thwart a scoring attempt by Pittsburgh Penguins’ Jake Guentzel during Monday’s Game 4 of the NHL Stanley Cup final in Nashville, Tennessee. “I watch pretty much every single hockey game”. The crowd is loud and it’s nasty.

Prior to the game, a Predators fan tossed a catfish on to the ice.

“I enjoy it. We have a good group of kids and they don’t feel like kids anymore after what they went through and what they did past year with Guentzel being the exception”, Cullen said. “I came here well-prepared and we just didn’t have it tonight”. They are so supportive of our group.

Calle Jarnkrok, Viktor Arvidsson and Filip Forsberg also scored for Nashville, which improved to 9-1 at home and roared back after dropping the first two games of the series on the road. For that to happen, players like Crosby (one goal and three assists), Malkin (two goals) and Kessel (one assist) will have to be the game’s best players.

Matt Murray also was stellar in net for a 24-save shutout, the third time in Cup history a rookie goalie blanked his opponent. They know that their own fan base will help that cause. “That is what’s good”. As the pair got tangled up behind the net, Crosby pushed Subban’s head into the ice, which garnered a pair of matching minors for both sides. He’s got good instincts. We thought we played a real competitive game in Game 2.Then again, Gaudreau’s two goals the past two games equaled the two the Penguins entire team produced during their time in Tennessee, forgettable as it turned out to be.

Saros relieved Rinne to start the second, but Pittsburgh upped its lead to 4-0 just 1:19 into the period on Sheary’s goal from Crosby. A couple lapses, one in each game, making all the difference for a star-studded Penguins team that’s as opportunistic as anyone in the league. In Game 1, they scored three times in the last five minutes of the first period en route to a 5-3 victory. “The pieces are coming together, and I don’t think anyone on this team isn’t feeling comfortable in the way we’re playing right now”. Just play the same. We generated a lot of chances. I am glad the power play was a little bit better. “Score more for sure”.

“We have a short summer, but it is a fun summer”. Which kind of makes you wonder why he didn’t just come out and say it in the first place. “We believe if we continue to try to do the right things out there, we’ll score”.