Pittsburgh Penguins: Late-Night Battle with the San Jose Sharks

The Pittsburgh Penguins return from some time off tonight when they play the San Jose Sharks. This week has been good for two things, practice time and endless speculation about Sidney Crosby.

Sid will not play on this road trip though, so he will not be in the slides. The rest of the team will be looking to rebound from an exciting loss in Toronto to the Maple Leafs.

The Sharks made some news recently when their Captain, Joe Thornton, said that New York Rangers were "soft" despite losing to them. He later said that was not the right word to use.

Thornton should not find the Penguins soft, as they look to continue their hot play which saw them stay at the top of the Atlantic Division after playing a seemingly endless schedule in October.

Here are a few things to watch in tonight's game...

Marc-Andre Fleury

I used this one the other night, but since MAF did not play, I'm doing it again.

Recently, he has returned to the form that even the biggest Fleury hater would praise.

His numbers may not always be spectacular, but in the past two weeks you could argue that he has helped carry this team. It seems that he is making a habit of the big saves when needed and has all but eliminated the fluky goals that sometimes turn comfortable games into close ones.

With Flower at the top of his game, the Penguins have a chance no matter who else is in or out of the lineup. After the Pekka Rinne signing, you have to love what this guy gives us even more. His cap hit is very friendly.

When he keeps the softies out of the net, I will take him over any goalie.

Defense

As a team, the Pens were very sloppy in their own end against the Maple Leafs. They paid the price for that with a loss.

San Jose is another team they cannot fumble around their own end against. If they turn the puck over, the Sharks can make it a laugher in a hurry.

The Penguins recalled Alex Picard this morning from WB/S. Does this mean changes are imminent or is he insurance for the two-game swing out west?

If someone is sitting, it could be Ben Lovejoy. He had a jaw injury in practice the other day and has not been playing well overall.

Unknown Contributor

I think this will be one of those games where we see a goal or two from unlikely sources. Richard Park, Joe Vitale, Arron Asham, Matt Niskanen, Paul Martin...take your pick.

Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis

These guys are adding some numbers up slowly but surely. They were playing good early on, so adding some production to the mix is great.

Maybe they are fine tuning their game for the seemingly near return of the guy who I said would not make the slides.

Steve Sullivan

I told you before the Toronto game that I am not giving up on Sully. He had some good chances again, including one where he pretty much shot it right into The Monster's glove.

Sullivan is playing too well for this to go on forever. Yes, he must put points up, but he will get a goal soon. He has to. Right?