Sharks vs. Penguins: Keys to Victory in Game 3 of NHL Playoff Series

The San Jose Sharks are looking to flip the script as they return to the familiar confines of the SAP Center for Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday.

The Sharks come home after two losses to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The margin of victory in each game was just one goal, but the Penguins dominated play in both games and look poised to earn their first Stanley Cup in seven years if they can continue their speedy, aggressive style of play.

For the shell-shocked Sharks, two days off and a change of scenery should give them a chance to regroup and mount a fresh attack, though they may have to do so without first-line left wing Tomas Hertl. One of San Jose's most dangerous scoring threats through the first two games of the series, Hertl did not participate in practice Friday, according to A.J. Perez of USA Today. 

Coach Peter DeBoer didn't commit to whether Hertl would be available at game time, which comes at 8 p.m. ET, with television coverage on NBCSN in the U.S. and CBC in Canada.

Here are the keys to victory for both teams.

San Jose Sharks: Tap into Home-Ice Advantage

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The Sharks will make history Saturday night when they host their first Stanley Cup Final game in the history of their franchise.

Over the last 25 years, the Shark Tank has developed a raucous reputation as a rink that's notoriously difficult for visiting opposition.

The Sharks weren't great on home ice in the regular season this year, posting an 18-20-3 record for the eighth-worst home record in the NHL, but they have been a solid 7-2 in the playoffs so far.

The Sharks need an emotional boost to get back into this series. The vocal support of their rabid local fanbase could be just the ticket.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Don't Get Overconfident

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After winning their first two games in such convincing fashion, the Penguins must guard against the belief that they'll have an easy ride the rest of the way.

Sure, Chris Peters of CBS Sports reports that only five of 49 teams in history that have fallen into a 2-0 hole in the Stanley Cup Final have rallied to win the whole thing, but a Game 3 loss in front of the fans at SAP Center would quickly shift the momentum.

Penguins defenseman Kris Letang says his team knows better than to be overconfident. "I don't think we take anything for granted," he said, per Eric Gillmore of NHL.com. "[The Sharks] have been an unbelievable team all year, and they're going to respond. They're going to come hard at us in their building. We just have to answer by playing a smart game and play the right way, play the way we're capable of."

Through the first two games of the series, the Penguins were able to pressure the Sharks from beginning to end. They'll need to maintain the same approach if they hope to achieve a similar result in Game 3.

San Jose Sharks: Find the Faceoff Edge

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Sharks center Logan Couture made headlines after Game 2 when he accused Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby of cheating on faceoffs.

He clarified his remarks to the Associated Press, via CBC, on Friday, including his teammate Joe Thornton and himself among the NHL's faceoff tricksters. "Everyone cheats on faceoffs," Couture admitted. "I cheat, Jumbo cheats. That's how you try to win draws. He's one of the best at it. He wins a lot of faceoffs."

Couture's comment may not mean much, but it does expose a weakness in San Jose's game. After ranking seventh in the league with a 50.7 percent faceoff success rate during the regular season, the Sharks have dropped to a playoff-worst 46.7 percent in the postseason and are just 45.9 percent on draws against the Penguins so far: 29-of-62 in Game 1 and 33-of-73 in Game 2. 

The Penguins rely almost exclusively on their four centers to take draws—Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Nick Bonino and Matt Cullen. Along with Couture, both Thornton and Joe Pavelski are natural centers on San Jose's top line, and both take draws. Bottom-six centers Chris Tierney and Nick Spaling also have faceoff duties, as well as winger Joel Ward on occasion.

It was Ward who lost the draw to Crosby that led to the Game 2 overtime winner. With home-ice advantage, Sharks coach Peter DeBoer will have the opportunity to try to work the faceoff matchups in his team's favor in Game 3. 

Pittsburgh Penguins: Matt Murray Keeps His Cool

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Though he's in just his second professional season and his first at the NHL level, rookie goaltender Matt Murray has shown steely consistency through the playoffs. He appears unfazed by the level of scrutiny he has faced so far.

Murray needs to keep that attitude for two more wins and not think too much about Mike Zeisberger's National Post article that compares him to one of hockey's goaltending icons, Ken Dryden, who led the Montreal Canadiens to a Stanley Cup immediately after leaving college in 1971.

"You can score a goal on Matt and it doesn’t bother him," Penguins senior adviser for hockey operations Eddie Johnston told Zeisberger. "Good, bad, whatever, no matter what kind of goal they score on him, he just focuses on the next play. Like Kenny (Dryden), doesn’t get rattled. That’s one of the big things he has going for him right now."

Murray told the assembled media that it made him "pretty uncomfortable" to hear the comparison to Dryden during an off-day news conference in San Jose on Friday, per the Penguins website. The native of Thunder Bay, Ontario, also acknowledged that this trip is the first time in his life he has ever traveled to California.

The Pacific heat will be on Murray like never before Saturday night. He'll need to keep channeling Dryden's unflappable nature in order to deliver a win for his team.

San Jose Sharks: Generate Chances

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As the old saying goes, if you don't shoot, you can't score. The Sharks haven't been able to generate enough shots to win in the first two games of the Final.

In Game 1 last Monday, Pittsburgh dominated San Jose 41-26 on the shot clock. The Sharks cut the margin to 30-22 in Game 2.

The glimmer of hope for Sharks fans? San Jose did outshoot Pittsburgh 9-6 in the third period of Game 2 and 2-1 in overtime. The Sharks skated well enough with the Penguins to tie the game after being outplayed in the first 40 minutes, though Conor Sheary's overtime winner ultimately did them in.

The home team will need to build off that momentum Saturday in order to assert control over the play—and perhaps even take the lead—for the first time in the series.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Lean on the HBK Line

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The Sharks have been solid on home ice during the playoffs, but the Penguins have been darn good on the road too.

Heading into its first game in San Jose, Pittsburgh boasts a 5-3 road record in these playoffs. The Pens were 2-0 at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers in Round 1, 1-2 at Verizon Center against the Washington Capitals in Round 2 and 2-1 against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena in the Eastern Conference Final.

Though different players have fueled Pittsburgh's offense on different nights, the HBK line has been especially effective away from Consol Energy Center, chipping in a team-best seven goals and 20 points in those five road wins, according to Dan Rosen of NHL.com.

HBK line center Nick Bonino already made his mark on the Final with his game-winning goal in Game 1. If he can work more familiar magic with Phil Kessel and Carl Hagelin on Saturday, all three players should find themselves one win away from their first opportunity to skate with the Stanley Cup.