Predators vs. Penguins, Game 5

Rinne was lifted after allowing three goals on nine shots, while his replacement Juuse Saros surrendered three on 15 shots.

With time winding down in the first period, P.K. Subban wrestled Crosby to the ground and grabbed hold of his leg, preventing Crosby from getting up.

Perhaps it sparked Crosby's star teammates Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel, who had fielded some criticism after not scoring a point in Games 3 or 4. There will be plenty of story lines going into Game 6 in Nashville, but it all comes down to this: the Stanley Cup is Pittsburgh's to lose.

The Predators are in a 3-2 hole with Game 6 coming up Sunday night in Nashville. His team's grasp on a second straight Stanley Cup tenuous at best heading into Game 5 against Nashville on Thursday, Crosby did more than send a message.

Regardless of Sunday's outcome, Game Six of the Stanley Cup Final will mark the final contest in Bridgestone Arena until autumn. They knew they would be starting on the road in every series, and the Predators responded by winning the opener of their first three series. “Theres a lot of things we can do better as a team.

Conor Sheary made it 4-0 when he was set up beautifully by a no-look pass from Sidney Crosby. "And all of a sudden look at Crosby with a left-handed throw and about 40 seconds later it's a 5-0 game".

The Predators are 5-5 away from Nashville this postseason.

Malkin said Kessel would score, and the right winger did it 8:02 into the period. In fact, according to Luszczyszyn, only 27 of 32 teams that have been outshot by an average of four or more shots has gone on to win the Stanley Cup. Sheary took a pretty feed from Crosby and sent it by Saros 1:19 into the second to push Pittsburgh's lead to four. "Then you give up the first goal".

Special teams also came through in this game. That's a big reason why the Predators had 123 shots to the Penguins' 91. Pittsburgh's Jake Guentzel did it in the first two games of this series and Roy Conacher did it for Boston in Games 3, 4 and 5 against Toronto in 1939. Defensively, the Pittsburgh Penguins are allowing 2.8 goals per game and are killing 79.8 percent of their power play chances.

The Penguins have again gotten to Nashville goaltender Pekka Rinne.

An eventful night, which saw Matt Murray earn his third career playoff shutout, also included a water bottle mistakenly pitched on the ice by Crosby and some wrestling behind the goal with P.K. Subban.

"That was a huge game", Rinne said.

Midway through the first period of Game 5, the Penguins have six shots to the Predators' four. Nashville was going to go into the locker room only down 2-0.

Bryan Rust scored 6:43 into the first period, beating Pekka Rinne on a backhander while driving toward the net.

"That was awesome", Schultz said of Hainsey's second career playoff goal.

If Ellis is unavailable, that forces major problems for Nashville's defensive depth, which is the team's biggest strength. After the third goal went by him to end the period, his night was over.

Moments earlier, a Predators fan had thrown a catfish on to the ice.

If Ellis can not play, the Predators would have to rely on either Matt Irwin or Yannick Weber for more minutes.

The Predators say their watch party at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville was sold out nearly an hour before puck drop, with thousands of fans inside.

Crosby said Subban lost his stick and proceeded to do "some UFC move on my foot" while holding him down on the ice. He has taken 17 shots in the final, including seven in Game 2. Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan isn't concerned about Murray.

Colin Wilson is expected to play for the Predators after missing the first three games of the series. This move was done not as an indictment on Rinne, but to try to jumpstart the Predators. Rinne only looks like an National Hockey League goalie when he's in the Bridgestone Arena, as he's been getting blasted in Pittsburgh.

"Two-out-of-three now. It's pedal down".

The Predators are 9-1 at home in the playoffs, a place they will need to be a haven once again if they want to extend their improbable Cup run back to Pittsburgh. When limited to one goal during the 2016 postseason, they won the following game. "If you've got a team that has momentum and a team that's got desperation, for me anyway, the scarier team is the one that's got desperation", he said. They still have home ice. We play 20-something games in the playoffs, I don't think we've had one bad game before (Thursday) night so far, and.it's going to happen. We get to play at home and its just a one-game mentality.

The Predators outscored the Penguins 9-1 in the past two games.