The Sharks hope their second home Stanley Cup Final game in franchise history goes as well as their first, while the Penguins will look to give themselves a chance to clinch the series at home when the puck drops at the SAP Center in San Jose for Game 4 on Monday.
San Jose is looking to tie the series up after notching its first Stanley Cup Final win in franchise history in Game 3. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, looks to bounce back and put a 3-1 stranglehold on the series before it shifts back to Pennsylvania.
Joonas Donskoi played hero in Game 3, scoring at 12:18 of overtime to give the Sharks a 3-2 victory. It was Donskoi's sixth tally of the playoffs. The Penguins took the first two games of this series in Pittsburgh, winning Game 1, 3-2, and Game 2, 2-1, in overtime.
Justin Braun (2) and Joel Ward (7) each also found the back of the net for the Sharks in Game 3. Joe Thornton had two assists, upping his total to 17, one behind team-leader Logan Couture. Couture leads the NHL with 26 points this postseason, while Joe Pavelski -- who has yet to notch a point in the series -- leads the club with 13 goals.
Peter DeBoer put Couture, Thornton and Pavelski on the same line as the Sharks attempted to cut into their 2-0 deficit on Saturday.
"It helped us the other night sure," DeBoer said via NHL.com. "It would be similar to them moving [Sidney] Crosby, [Evgeni] Malkin and [Phil] Kessel together. You have three great players playing together. But in order to do that, that hurts you in other parts of the lineup. You have to be comfortable you can survive doing that with the other parts."
Ben Lovejoy (2) and Patric Hornqvist (8) each had a marker for the Penguins in their Game 3 loss. Phil Kessel leads Pittsburgh in goals (10) and points (19), while his linemate Nick Bonino (13) paces the club in helpers. Evgeni Malkin has yet to register a point thus far in the Stanley Cup Final.
The Penguins have led the majority of the series, with the Sharks' only lead coming on the overtime-winner from Donskoi, but Pittsburgh certainly squandered an opportunity to take a 3-0 series lead after outshooting San Jose 42-26 in Game 4.
"We had some chances," Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby said per NHL.com. "I think both teams carried the play [at] different times."
The battle between the pipes remains the same as rookie Matt Murray, who has had a great postseason, but allowed a softie in on Ward's game-tying goal Saturday, will oppose Martin Jones.
Murray yielded three goals on 26 shots in Game 3 and is 13-5 this postseason with a 2.15 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage. Jones turned aside 40 of the 42 shots he faced and is 13-8 this spring with a 2.13 GAA and a .922 save percentage.
Game Details & Live Stream
Matchup: Penguins at Sharks Stanley Cup Final Game 4
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Venue: SAP Center, San Jose, Calif.
Radio: Pittsburgh (105.9 WXDX); San Jose (KFOX 98.5);
Series: 2-1 Penguins.
Predictions: Our predictions for this series can be viewed here.
Betting Odds: The latest betting odds for this game can be found here.
Watch Online: This game can be live streamed for free here.
