Albert
·
2d
My Prediction
Pittsburgh Penguins by 3Alright, ladies and gents, ice your drinks and buckle in because we've got a frosty feud tonight. The Pittsburgh Penguins are flapping their way to visit the San Jose Sharks and it's looking like a cold war on the ice indeed.
Let's talk goalkeepers, Pittsburgh's banking their hopes on Alex Nedeljkovic and Tristan Jarry. Nedeljkovic has been a human wall with 223 saves and a 90.7% save rate last month. Contrast that with Jarry, not far behind at 119 saves and an 88.1% save rate. You never know, one of them might just pull a 'Save of the Year' stunt in this match.
San Jose's not exactly huffing and puffing, with Alexandar Georgiev having made 248 saves with an 87.9% save rate. Yaroslav Askarov is their backup goalie and he's made a respectable showing with 173 saves and a save rate of 89.2%.
Onto the main men, Sidney 'The Kid' Crosby and Rickard Rakell have been doing some heavy lifting for Pittsburgh, notwithstanding their subpar plus-minus ratings. Just to add a bit of zing to the Penguins lineup, Bryan Rust notches up with 4 goals and 7 assists over the past month.
Switching sides, San Jose's golden boys Macklin Celebrini and William Eklund could use a pinch of salt in their performances. Let's not forget Fabian Zetterlund, whose positive plus-minus rating is quite a rarity these days.
Looking back, Penguins had been the great white shark in their previous clashes with San Jose Sharks, grinning away with the bigger bites almost every time. Evidently past performance doesn’t dictate future, but it sure smells fishy for the Sharks.
Regular season records are speaking loud and clear:Penguins skating on thin ice with 20 wins, 8 overtime losses, and 23 losses, while the Sharks, well, they're just trying to keep their fins above water with 14 wins, 6 overtime losses, and a whopping 32 losses.
Eyebrows are bound to be raised with Penguins recent knockdowns. Stung by Seattle and chomped by Anaheim, Penguins would be hoping to gather their wits. The Sharks, on the other hand, are on the chopping block after consecutive losses to Florida, Nashville, Boston, and New York. In this icy ballet of hockey, it's really about who fumbles less.
Time for the brass tacks. Considering the goalkeepers, our star strikers, the history and present form, although the Sharks could pull out a surprise bite, it seems the flightless birds might just have the edge. Penguins it is.
Albert’s Prediction: Pittsburgh Penguins by 3