NHL Knowledge
San Jose-Pittsburgh
Penguins can win 4th Stanley Cup here; their three previous titles were all won on road. San Jose lost five of last eight games with Pittsburgh, seven of last nine series games stayed under. Seven of last 15 Shark-Penguin games went OT, four to shootout. San Jose is 1-10 on power play in series; Penguins are 2-11. Pittsburgh has a 179-120 edge in shots in first five games. Sharks are in Stanley Cup finals for first time; Penguins are in for first time since winning Cup in '09, its third Stanley Cup title. Pittsburgh won two of last three visits to San Jose; Sharks scored twice in first 2:53 of Game 5, gave up tying goals in next 2:13, held Pittsburgh scoreless rest of way. San Jose is 8-3 at home in playoffs
Playoffs tally: 1st round-- Home: 23-24, Over: 16-17-14
2nd round-- Home: 16-9, Over: 11-5-9
Conference finals-- Home 6-7, Over 7-5-1
Home: 3-2 Over: 1-4
Armadillosports.com
NHL Stanley Cup Finals Game 6 Betting Preview
By Covers.com
Pittsburgh Penguins at San Jose Sharks (A: +100, H: -110, O/U: 5.0)
Logan Couture has a knack of coming through in the clutch when the San Jose Sharks need him the most. Fresh off his fourth three-point performance of the playoffs, Couture looks to help the Sharks stretch the Stanley Cup final to its limit when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 on Sunday night.
The 27-year-old scored his first goal of the series and set up two tallies in Thursday's 4-2 win in Game 5 to increase his NHL-leading point total to 29 (nine goals, 20 assists) in 23 games. "I just don't want to go home," Couture said of his previous three-point efforts in the clinching game of each round. While San Jose's club-best sixth road win extended the Stanley Cup final, Pittsburgh was denied in its bid to secure the fourth title in franchise history - and first at home. Rookie goaltender Matt Murray permitted three goals on his first five shots to lead the Penguins' undoing in Game 5, but is 5-0 in games following a loss in the postseason.
PROBABLE GOALIES:
Penguins - Matt Murray: (W/L: 14-6, GAA: 2.14, SAVE %: .923)
Sharks - Martin Jones: (W/L: 14-9, GAA: 2.16, SAVE %: .922)
ABOUT THE PENGUINS: Evgeni Malkin has scored in consecutive contests and speedy forward Carl Hagelin also tallied on Thursday to record his fourth point (one goal, three assists) of the Stanley Cup final. Hagelin's mates on the "HBK Line" each notched an assist in Game 5 as Phil Kessel collected his team-leading 22nd point while Nick Bonino is tied with Malkin for second place at 18. Hart Trophy finalist Sidney Crosby has been held off the scoresheet in each of the last three contests after recording nine points (three goals, six assists) in his previous 12 games.
ABOUT THE SHARKS: Second-year wing Melker Karlsson received a healthy dose of praise from coach Peter DeBoer for stepping up in the postseason, most notably in the absence of an injured Tomas Hertl (lower body). "Melker's been excellent the entire playoffs, but particularly in the final. I think he's really found another level here for us," DeBoer told the San Jose Mercury-News of the 25-year-old Swede. "He's disruptive on the forecheck and with his tenacity on the puck, he's turning a lot of pucks over. If you're a skill guy like Logan (Couture) playing with him, he's going to create some turnovers with the way he forechecks and you're there to make the next play." Karlsson has collected five goals in the playoffs after recording just 10 during the regular season.
TRENDS:
* Penguins are 2-12-1 in the last 15 meetings in San Jose.
* Penguins are 7-1 in their last eight Sunday games.
* Sharks are 8-2 in their last 10 home games.
* Under is 7-1 in Penguins last eight Stanley Cup Finals games.
* Under is 5-1-1 in Sharks last seven versus Eastern Conference opponents.
CONSENSUS: The early consensus has 62 percent of bettors backing the Sharks on home ice, while 67 percent of bettors think Game 6 will be a high-scoring affair and are on the over.
PITTSBURGH (63-31-0-11, 137 pts.) at SAN JOSE (60-36-0-9, 129 pts.)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
PITTSBURGH is 6-5 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus SAN JOSE over the last 3 seasons
PITTSBURGH is 6-5-0 straight up against SAN JOSE over the last 3 seasons
7 of 11 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+2.6 Units)
PITTSBURGH vs. SAN JOSE
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Pittsburgh's last 9 games when playing on the road against San Jose
Pittsburgh is 2-12-1 SU in its last 15 games ,when playing on the road against San Jose
San Jose is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Jose's last 5 games
Pittsburgh at San Jose
Pittsburgh: 16-5 SU after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game
San Jose: 17-26 SU off a road win by 2 goals or more