Sharks stave off elimination, top Penguins 4-2 in Game 5

“I thought we got big games from some other people, too”.

With almost 19,000 jammed inside Consol Energy Center, and probably twice that jammed into two downtown Pittsburgh viewing locations, the confident Penguins were poised to be the first major sports team to clinch a title in the city since the 1960 Pirates.

Perhaps those signs will reappear Sunday night (8 ET) when Game 6 will be played in San Jose, the Penguins’ series lead now whittled to 3-2. In the big picture, he has a very real shot at capturing the Conn Smythe Trophy given to the playoff MVP. Game 5 was, in most respects, a significant step back for San Jose. “We played them pretty well at SAP”. Home teams that sweep the first two games of a series have gone on to win the Cup 92 per cent of the time (33 of 36) since the best-of-seven format was introduced in 1939. What’s next game 6 on Sunday night in San Jose.

“You’re in the Stanley Cup finals”, said Burns before the game, stroking his wild untamed beard.

Evgeni Malkin and Carl Hagelin scored for Pittsburgh but the 22-year-old Murray, whose postseason play helped fuel Pittsburgh’s return to the final after a seven-year break, faltered early and his high-profile teammates struggled to the puck by Jones.

San Jose had the second-best record during the regular season (35-6-2) when they scored first, 10-3 in the playoffs. They applied during the second round, when Jones set the previous franchise mark with 37 stops in Game 2 against Nashville, and then during the Sharks’ overtime win over Pittsburgh in Game 3 at home.

But he did. He knocked away Sidney Crosby’s slap shot for his 40th save, which unfolded on a nifty lob play that sprung Pittsburgh’s captain into open ice.

“We knew they were desperate team, they were going to come hard, and I don’t we think we were ready for it”, Maatta said.

Pittsburgh outshot San Jose 46-22, but it was the Sharks that emerged behind Jones, who boasts a.933 save percentage in the final.

“Yeah, that was unbelievable”, Sharks defenceman Justin Braun said. “He doesn’t go after guys, he doesn’t lose his cool. He’s popping us on the pads, saying we’re doing a good job when usually it’s him bailing us out”.

The Sharks had one more goal in them later in the first period, on yet another play where the puck went deep. The goals were separated by 1:49. Before Martin Jones started playing out of his mind, the Sharks and Pens combined for five first-period goals and it seemed like every time you looked up somebody was deflecting a shot past a goalie. He was strong on the puck, won almost every board’s battle he was in and showed on several occasions why he is the best player of this generation.

Sharks goalie Martin Jones made that lead stand up the rest of the way, as he made 44 saves. Karlsson wristed a shot under Murray’s glove at 14:47 off Couture’s perfectly placed backhand pass.

Corsica’s expected goals number is included here to show what the team “should have” been scoring. They trail in the series 3-2. This is a region that loves its sports and its many championship teams-Steelers, Pirates, Penguins-but by fate had not seen any of those teams win a title inside the city limits since 1960 when Bill Mazeroski of the Pirates hit a home run to win the World Series.

Couture has nine goals and 20 assists so far in the playoffs, giving him six more points than teammates Burns and Joe Pavelski, who are tied for second in scoring in the National Hockey League this postseason.