With the Stanley Cup Final tied at 2 and up for grabs, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators are two victories away from hoisting the Stanley Cup.
The defending champion Penguins are slumping after spurts of big-time offense lifted them to a 2-0 lead. And the Predators, seeded last among this year's 16 playoff teams, is riding high after two straight routs in front of a roaring home crowd.
Now, with the action back in Pittsburgh on Thursday night, here are three things to watch in Game 5:
Evgeni Malkin vs. Nashville's dominant blue line
If the Pittsburgh Penguins want to re-take the series lead, they are going to need a whole lot more consistency from the stars who power their dazzling offense.
That starts with Sidney Crosby, whose breakaway score in Game 4 was surrounded by more long stretches of blown opportunities from the Pens' attack. Perhaps more prominently, it centers on Malkin, who has 26 points in the postseason but only two in his past five games and none since Game 2 of the Final.
The Predators have had answers for Malkin, shutting him down inside and outside the Pens' zone. And if Nashville's edgy defensemen are able to keep prying at No. 71 and his cohorts, the Final may very well not make it back to PPG Paints Arena after Game 5.
Will Pekka Rinne mirror Games 1-2 or Games 3-4?
After two games, it would have been reasonable to suggest Rinne had lost the rights to a potential Conn Smythe Trophy. He was a liability in net after a roaring postseason to that point, and even though teammates stuck by his side, it might not have upset some fans to see Peter Laviolette make a speculated goalie change heading into Game 3.
It's a good thing he didn't, because anyone who watched the Preds even the series should know Rinne probably is the biggest reason why.
Now, with a series lead up for grabs, the question is which Rinne shows up. The smart money is on something in between, especially with Pittsburgh returning home on Thursday. By any measure, all eyes will be on Rinne against the streaky Pens offense.
Push from the unsung heroes of Nashville's offense
Colton Sissons, Mattias Ekholm and Frederick Gaudreau obviously aren't as recognizable as Crosby, Malkin or any of Pittsburgh's other scoring studs. But they overshadowed the Pens' star power in the past two games to shift focus onto Nashville's depth.
Gaudreau headlines this group of unsung heroes, having bested Matt Murray and Pittsburgh's underperforming offense and blue line the past two games.
The absence of Ryan Johansen hasn't hit the Preds as hard as Pittsburgh may have hoped, and that'll be something to watch as the series returns to Steel City. Everyone from Mike Fisher to Filip Forsberg got involved in Nashville's last game, and the Pens' strength once again will be tested by Laviolette's banged-up but resilient bunch.
