This one was special. The first two games of the 2016 Stanley Cup Final were good games, but this one was special. This was a crazy game that got crazier as it went along. This was hockey at its finest (and at times at its "give-awarest."
Like a pre-law student at Stanford, the 2016 Stanley Cup Final "found itself" in the rolling hills of Northern California. And it was awesome.
Before you say the Sharks are now in great shape, you must realize this: The Penguins continued to play almost flawless hockey tonight. Going into tonight anyone who told you that the Sharks were "choking" in this series was just nuts. These Penguins played hard and checked without ceasing on every inch of the ice. There is NO room for anyone on San Jose to make a play. No option to make a fancy pass. No minute to consider a secondary receiver.
And these GOALIES! It is so easy to forget this, but these are two guys with less experience combined than almost every other starter in the NHL. They are not only making HUGE saves at HUGE Times, they are bouncing back and controlling the games.
In game three, with the building rocking as loud as any building I have been in, the Penguins got off to the start that the Sharks were dreading...and yet these Sharks once again found a way to stick around in period one and then....somewhere in the second period the Sharks finally looked like they had caught up to the Pens. The Sharks gained equilibrium in the second, and had several chances to go ahead only to get their hearts broken with a deflection with less than a minute to go...
That put the Penguins ahead going into the third period despite the fact that the Sharks had finally matched their intensity. But in the third period the Sharks pushed hard and Matt Murray made some unreal saves. The Penguins pushed hard and Jones was amazing.
In the OT the Pens came so close so many times to the dreaded stranglehold. The Sharks made some phenomenal plays as well. It was the kind of hockey that reminded me of the final overtime the Kings and Rangers played two years ago. It was exhilarating. The Penguins looked like they were getting stronger and the Sharks looked like they might be starting to feel the weight of everything.
It is obvious that you have to score first to win in OT, but when you are playing against this crazy talented Penguins you better not take your time with it. Jonas Donskoi won this game for the Sharks and it was appropriate because Jonas was all over this game.
With this win you could see the Sharks players finally exhale. As I wrote a few days ago, confidence is a funny thing. Once you have it great things happen. If the Sharks can get the first goal in game four we are looking at a six or seven game series.