The long, grueling NHL season has come down to two teams as the Western Conference champion Sharks and Eastern Conference-winning Penguins prepare to face-off in the 2016 Stanley Cup Final with Game 1 slated for Memorial Day on Monday in Pittsburgh.
San Jose is in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in franchise history and ousted the Blues in six games to win their first Western Conference Final in four tries.
Pittsburgh is in the Cup Final for the fifth time after ousting the Lightning in a thrilling seven-game series in the Eastern Conference Final. The Penguins won the Stanley Cup in 1991 and 1992, lost it in 2008 to the Red Wings and then got redemption against Detroit by hoisting the greatest trophy in sports in 2009 -- the last time it made it to Round 4.
It's been a road of redemption for the Sharks as they exorcised demons by handing the Kings a five-game series loss in Round 1 and then defeated the Predators in a do-or-die Game 7 in Round 2 before toppling the Blues.
The Penguins took out the Rangers in five games in the opening round then eliminated the Presidents' Trophy-winning Capitals in six games in Round 2 before knocking out the Lightning.
Here is our preview and some predictions for the 2016 Stanley Cup Final. CLICK START at the top right of this page to view our slideshow.
[Western Conference Champion Pacific No. 3] San Jose Sharks (46-30-6, 98 points regular season, 12-6 playoffs) vs. [Eastern Conference Champion Metropolitan No. 2] Pittsburgh Penguins (48-26-8, 104 points, 12-6)
Round 3 Reflection: Last time out, we picked the Sharks to win in 7 and the Penguins in 6. San Jose won in 6 and Pittsburgh won in 7.
Season Series: Tied 1-1. The Sharks defeated the Penguins, 3-1, in Pittsburgh on Nov. 21, while the Penguins toppled the Sharks, 5-1, in San Jose on Dec. 1.
Special Teams (Playoffs): Sharks: 27.0 percent power play (2nd), 80.4 percent penalty kill (7th); Penguins: 23.4 percent power play (6th), 83.6 percent penalty kill (5th).
Projected Goalie Matchup: Sharks: Martin Jones (12-6, 2.12 goals-against average, .919 save percentage); Matt Murray (11-4, 2.21 GAA, .924 save percentage).
Series Overview: This should be a tremendous series between two star-studded, well-rounded teams as the Sharks look for their first Stanley Cup in their 25-year history and the Penguins seek their fourth Cup and first in seven years.
There are plenty of marquee veterans on each side as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin eye their second Cup and Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau, who have combined for a total of 2,778 regular season games between them, will get their first ever crack at the biggest trophy in their sport.
This series, however, also goes beyond just these big-name players.
Joe Pavelski and Logan Couture have cemented themselves in Sharks playoff lore through the first three rounds. Couture leads the NHL with 24 postseason points thus far, while Pavelski has a league-leading 13 goals in 18 games and 22 points. Two-way defenseman Brent Burns, meanwhile, is third in the NHL with 20 points.
Couture (16), Thornton (15) and Burns (14) are also the top three assist producers after three rounds. San Jose boasts some tremendous depth as Joel Ward has six goals and Tomas Hertl, Joonas Donskoi and Chris Tierney have five apiece. Ward scored two goals in both Game 5 and Game 6 for the Sharks against the Blues, including the series game-winner.
Ward is just one of the great offseason moves that put the Sharks over the hump, which includes the addition of Jones in net and Paul Martin on the blue line. Martin is the perfect complement to Burns and is a versatile player who kills penalties and can be used on the man advantage.
The Penguins blue line is anchored by Kris Letang, who averages a team leading 28:46 time on ice in the playoffs and has 10 points off of two goals and eight assists while rating a plus-4. After overcoming the speedy Lightning, Letang, Olli Maatta and the rest of the Pittsburgh blue line faces another fast team in the Sharks.
Malkin and Crosby are easily the Penguins' top names, but it's the HBK Line that has broken out this spring. Carl Hagelin, Nick Bonino and Phil Kessel have found the type of chemistry to fuel the Penguins down the stretch. Kessel is third in the NHL with a club-best nine goals and has 18 points to lead the Penguins.
Hagelin has used his speed to set up his linemates throughout the playoffs, while Bonino is fourth in the league with 12 assists through three rounds. 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.
Crosby has been no slouch either, scoring three game-winning goals against the Lightning -- including the Game 2 overtime winner to tie the series -- to up his numbers to 6-9--15. Malkin also has 15 points off of four tallies and 11 helpers.
Like the Sharks, the Penguins boast a deep lineup as rookie Bryan Rust scored both goals in the Game 7 clincher to sink the Lightning to give him five goals for the playoffs, while eight players have double-digit points.
The goaltending matchup is one of the most compelling storylines of the series as Jones looks to continue to prove he's a true No. 1 goalie by winning the Cup in his first season as a starter, while Murray hopes to cap off his unbelievable run through the playoffs as a rookie with a championship.
Out of all the playoff goalies this spring, Jones, 26, is third in GAA and has three shutouts, while Murray, 21, is fourth in GAA and third in save percentage.
Jones has already defeated his former mentor in Jonathan Quick in Round 1 before taking out all-world goalie Pekka Rinne in Round 2 and then the two-headed monster of Brian Elliott and Jake Allen last round.
Murray held his own against former Vezina Trophy winner Henrik Lundqvist, eliminated this year's Vezina Trophy favorite Braden Holtby and then outdueled Andrei Vasilevskiy, who took over for the Lightning after Ben Bishop got hurt in Game 1.
Though he was benched in favor of Marc-Andre Fleury in Game 5 against the Lightning, Murray remained poised, turning aside all but three of the 47 shots he faced in Games 6 and 7.
Last Call: This is as close as it gets. The Penguins have been the hottest team in the NHL from March on, while the Sharks have shown a resiliency and ability to overcome their demons, entering this round red-hot. San Jose is first in goals-for per game (3.50) in the playoffs, while the Penguins are second (3.22), so goaltending will be a huge factor in this series. This one should come down to the wire and truly could go either way, but the Sharks appear to be a team of destiny.
The Pick: Sharks in 7.
