The Pittsburgh Penguins continue their West Coast trip tonight when they face off against the San Jose Sharks at 10 p.m. ET at the SAP Center. This is their first of two matchups this season between the clubs.
The Penguins are 25-14-6 with 56 points and are sixth in the Eastern Conference. They are coming off a 5-2 loss to the LA Kings this past Saturday, which makes them 8-2-0 in their last 10 games.
While the names like Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Phil Kessel will always be synonymous with the Penguins’ success, Pittsburgh fans should be heaping praise on goaltender Casey DeSmith.
He started the season as Matt Murray’s backup but after a lower-body injury and some inconsistent play from Murray, DeSmith has been their regular goalie for the last two months. In 27 games, DeSmith is 12-8-4 with a 2.53 GAA, a .921 save percentage and has two shutouts.
It earned him a three-year contract extension, which he signed this past Friday. The new deal begins in 2019-20 and has an average annual value of $1.25 million.
The Eastern Conference is pretty wide open between seed Nos. 2-through-8. There is only a five-point difference that separates seven teams, which means every game is a must-win for the Penguins during the second half of the season.
The Sharks have been playing some really good hockey as of late. They are 27-13-7 with 61 points on the season and are currently second in the Western Conference. Like the East, things are tightly packed out West. There are only six points that separate the No. 1 seed to the No. 5 seed, so anything can happen between now and the end of the regular season.
San Jose is 8-1-1 in their last 10 games and are currently on a six-game winning streak. They are in the final game of a two-game homestand before going on the road for four straight.
The Sharks recently pulled off a deal of their own, re-signing forward Marcus Sorensen to a two-year contract extension late Monday night. The 26-year old is in his third year with the Sharks and has a career-high eight goals, seven assists, and 15 points in 47 games.
The Sharks trail Calgary for the top seed in the West by just three points but, like I mentioned earlier, anything can happen between now and April.
Tonight’s contest between Pittsburgh and San Jose will be featured on ESPN+. Will the Penguins be able to snap the Sharks six-game winning streak? Tune in to find out!
Scroll down for a free trial on us and how to catch all the action:
Penguins vs. Sharks 1/15/19 free live stream, ESPN+ viewing information
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 15
Time: 10 p.m. ET
TV: AT&T SportsNet (Pittsburgh broadcast), NBC Sports California (San Jose broadcast)
Live Stream: ESPN+ free trial
