San Jose Sharks fans made a ton of noise for the first-ever Stanley Cup Final contest at the Shark Tank (or SAP Center).
That noise didn’t last particularly long, however, as the Pittsburgh Penguins continue to impose their will in this series.
First, the Penguins’ depth players helped to stem some early Sharks pressure, eventually helping Conor Sheary draw a penalty. Pittsburgh didn’t score on that PP, yet Ben Lovejoy’s fluttering shot bounced off of Roman Polak and beyond Martin Jones’ reach for the 1-0 marker.
The struggles continue for Polak.
The Dillon-Polak pairing is at about 40% possession in this series so far. Ugly.
— James Mirtle (@mirtle) June 5, 2016
Polak is not enjoying the Stanley Cup Final.
— Steve Lloyd (@TSNSteveLloyd) June 5, 2016
The Pens have managed the first goal in all three games in this series so far.
Meanwhile, the Sharks just managed their first shot on goal about eight minutes into the contest.
Update: Justin Braun forced overtime with a goal in Game 2 and found the net once again for the Sharks to make it 1-1, a big confidence-booster for San Jose.
Matt Murray didn’t even really see the puck, inspiring this excellent reference to an old MTV cartoon.
Joe Thornton grabbed an assist, his first point of the 2016 Stanley Cup Final.
Moments later, Jones made a huge save on Phil Kessel, who was all alone.
Not sure how you leave Kessel all alone for a blue-line clear breakaway but one huge save there by Jones
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) June 5, 2016
File that if this ends up being another tight game.
.@sanjosesharks tie 1-1! #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/tptuL3WnSo
— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) June 5, 2016