Penguins at Sharks
The Eastern Conference-leading Pittsburgh Penguins attempt to complete a sweep of the two-game season series as they continue their five-game road trip against the San Jose Sharks on Thursday. Pittsburgh trounced San Jose at home on Dec. 5 as Chris Kunitz scored two goals and captain Sidney Crosby collected three assists in a 5-1 triumph. The Penguins split the first two games of their trek, dropping a 5-1 decision to Chicago at Soldier Field in the final installment of the 2014 Stadium Series before posting a 3-1 victory over Nashville as defenseman Matt Niskanen tallied twice and Crosby again notched three assists.
San Jose looks to even its record on its four-game homestand, which began with a 3-2 overtime loss to Carolina on Tuesday. The Sharks held a 2-1 lead after one period on goals by Martin Havlat and Brent Burns, but the Hurricanes tied it in the second before defenseman Jay Harrison scored at 4:18 of the extra session. The Sharks are 2-0-1 in their last three at SAP Center and have the fewest regulation losses at home (four) in the Western Conference.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, ROOT (Pittsburgh), CSN California (San Jose)
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (41-16-4): Pittsburgh added depth at forward before Wednesday's trade deadline, acquiring Marcel Goc from Florida and Lee Stempniak from Calgary for draft picks. The 30-year-old Goc, who began his career with San Jose, recorded 11 goals and 12 assists in 62 games with the Panthers. Stempniak, 31, registered eight tallies and 23 points in 52 contests with the Flames.
ABOUT THE SHARKS (39-17-7): San Jose stood pat at the trade deadline, electing not to make any deals. The Sharks received their reinforcements in the forms of Raffi Torres and Logan Couture, who returned from injuries to spark the team's offense. Torres has recorded three goals and an assist in three games since coming back from a torn anterior cruciate ligament suffered during the preseason, while Couture has netted three tallies in as many contests after missing 16 with a hand injury.
OVERTIME
1. Penguins RW James Neal was kept off the scoresheet Tuesday, ending his five-game goal-scoring streak and seven-game point run.
2. Sharks captain Joe Thornton needs two points to tie Sergei Fedorov (1,179) for 47th place on the all-time list.
3. Goc is one goal away from tying his career high set in 2009-10 with Nashville.