Sharks vs. Penguins: Game 2 Score and Reaction from 2016 Stanley Cup Final

As was the case for much of the 2016 Stanley Cup Final opener, the Pittsburgh Penguins' speed overwhelmed the San Jose Sharks in Wednesday's Game 2, leading to a 2-1 overtime victory for the hosts at Consol Energy Center.   

With the score tied at one apiece through 60 minutes of action, free hockey was afoot in Pittsburgh but came to an abrupt halt when Conor Sheary ripped the game-winner just 2:35 into overtime, via the NHL on NBC:

Sam Vecenie of CBS Sports applauded Penguins star Sidney Crosby for winning the faceoff to set up Sheary's decisive goal:

TribLive.com's Salena Zito had a fitting reaction to Pittsburgh's triumph:

The Penguins now have a commanding 2-0 lead in the series, thanks largely to a relentless style of play and an inspiring effort the physical, more methodical Sharks couldn't match for most of the night.

That is, until the prospect of a second straight loss seemed to set in for the road team.

The Sharks found another gear in the final five minutes, culminating in a magnificent slap shot from Justin Braun that glanced off the post and beat Penguins goaltender Matt Murray with 4:05 left in regulation:

How's this for a pun-inspired reaction from San Jose's social media?

Braun was in position for the late equalizer as a result of exceptional play by Sharks goalie Martin Jones, setting up an extra period of action.

Entering overtime, the teams combined to ring seven shots off the iron, per SportsLine's Todd Fuhrman, with four for San Jose and three for Pittsburgh. Both sides remained deadlocked and off the scoreboard until approximately halfway through the second.

Penguins forward Phil Kessel, after numerous losing years in Toronto, had his breakthrough on the Stanley Cup Final stage, with his 10th goal of the postseason coming with 11:40 left in the second period.

Game 1 hero Nick Bonino was partially responsible for one of the easier goals of Kessel's career. Bonino scored the winner in Pittsburgh's previous 3-2 victory and put a move on Jones to pull him to the short side of the net, allowing Kessel to light the lamp off the deflection:

Fans could surely sense the enthusiasm beaming from superstar Steelers receiver Antonio Brown as he tweeted his jubilant reaction:

The Penguins' forechecking was problematic for the Sharks, and it was only a matter of time before the sequence that led to Kessel's goal occurred.

NHL Public Relations highlighted just how strong Kessel's line has been following the go-ahead goal:

Kessel nearly had another goal, clanging a shot off the post in the third that would've given his side some needed insurance:

Pittsburgh also displayed exemplary discipline despite playing with such reckless abandon, recording zero penalties until Ian Cole's two-minute interference with 1:11 left in the second period.

Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette adequately summarized how San Jose failed to capitalize on the man advantage:

Entering the final 20 minutes, San Jose had been outshot 23-11 and was in desperate need of tactical adjustments to dig out of a one-goal hole.

Tom Gulitti of NHL.com felt the visitors could benefit from taking a page out of the Penguins' playbook:

Although the Sharks rattled off the first three shots on goal in the final period and ultimately tied the score, their surge was short-lived. Instead of being lulled to sleep by the relative inactivity in his general vicinity, Murray stayed alert and managed to turn aside 21 of 22 shots.

NHL.com's Pete Jensen felt the Sharks played a bit better than the series score suggests:

However, per Sports Illustrated, only five teams have overcome a 2-0 deficit in the Stanley Cup Final. Especially taking into account the fact that the Sharks are making their Final debut, history does not bode well for them.

San Jose can't even take much solace in the series shifting back to the SAP Center for Game 3 on Saturday. Head coach Peter DeBoer's club posted a meager 18-20-3 record at home during the regular season.

Having failed to steal a victory on the road, which is where the Sharks were at their best this season, they will have to dig deep to avoid a Stanley Cup sweep.

Postgame Reaction

Sheary said of his goal, per the Penguins' official Twitter feed: "It's pretty surreal. It's just an exciting moment. More importantly, we're up 2-0."

The 23-year-old spoke about how Crosby's leadership has helped him acclimate to such high-stakes situations as a rookie.

"[Sid] told me I was playing with him for a reason," said Sheary, per the NHL's official Twitter feed.

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan praised Crosby too, saying: "Sid has been a horse out there. He is a threat every time he is on the ice. He plays the right way up and down the ice."

Crosby said the play that led to Sheary's winning goal was devised on the ice in the moment, per Sportsnet's Chris Johnston. Crosby told Kris Letang, who also assisted, not to one-time the puck, which led to the pass to Sheary.

But Crosby also downplayed the situation, saying, per Johnston, "I call 25 faceoff (plays) a night, so I got 24 wrong."

San Jose forward Logan Couture was rather soured by Crosby's game-altering faceoff win, per Craig Custance of ESPN The Magazine:

DeBoer didn't seem to be hitting the panic button, saying of the Sharks' outlook, per Pittsburgh Magazine's Mike Prisuta: "We'll hold off on the funeral. A lot of hockey left to play."

Regarding Jones—who had 28 saves—the coach added, per the NHL's official Twitter feed: "The problem is, if you're not scoring, any mistake could cost you the game. Jones has been outstanding."