The Pittsburgh Penguins will have an opportunity to end the Stanley Cup Final on Sunday and claim the NHL's first repeat title since the Detroit Red Wings won back-to-back championships in 1997-98.
And quite a few players will have an opportunity to make their case for this year's Conn Smythe Trophy.
Entering the Penguins' series with the Nashville Predators, Music City hero Pekka Rinne might have been the closest thing to a lock for annual playoff MVP honors. But a lot has changed since the two sides dropped the puck on the Final.
With Game 6 on the horizon and a potential repeat title within reach for the Penguins, here are some of the top candidates to claim the Conn Smythe:
Sidney Crosby
Say what you will about his noted scuffles with P.K. Subban, which are perhaps best classified as products of an inconsistently officiated NHL culture, but Crosby has headlined Pittsburgh's best offensive outings in the most clutch of situations. Aside from the smoothness of his high-speed maneuvers on ice, he has been productive even amid a few quiet stretches during the Pens' power-play drought.
His 27 postseason points trail only teammate Evgeni Malkin, he hasn't had a minus outing in roughly a month and he has logged seven points through five games of the Stanley Cup Final.
Evgeni Malkin
Like Crosby, he hasn't been immune to some quiet nights. But those quiet nights have been sandwiched between big ones for the longtime center. Somehow, he trails young scoring sensation and Pens teammate Jake Guentzel by just three goals (10) this postseason, and his 28 points lead all players. He has the same scoring rate as Crosby and, much like No. 87, has been a catalyst for Pittsburgh during the team's most-needed offensive outpourings.
Jake Guentzel
He has records on his side. Guentzel has not been nearly as reliable as Crosby or other veterans at the forefront of the Pens' deep offense, but for the role he has played, he has done more than enough to warrant the spotlight in the playoffs. One of four Pittsburgh players ranked in the top five for most points scored this postseason, he has a league-leading 13 postseason goals to his credit, having reached historic franchise heights and tied a decades-old NHL record for playoff points by a rookie.
Pekka Rinne
What an interesting choice he would be considering the peaks and valleys of his Stanley Cup Final alone. The most logical of Nashville possibilities thanks to the shutdown outings he had leading up to the championship series, the veteran goalie outdid even Preds fans' expectations early in the playoffs before standing on his head in two straight home wins against Pittsburgh.
His goals-against-average marks took a hit with forgettable duds at PPG Paints Arena, but he still leads the NHL with 14 playoff wins.
Roman Josi
Digging into Nashville's defense, which drove the Preds to a historic Final appearance thanks to blue-line scoring and plenty of physicality, Josi has been among the leading standouts from that side of the ice. Charged with slowing the Pens' elite forwards in the championship series, he enters the tail end of the Final averaging a team-leading 26 minutes of action and has logged four points in five games against Pittsburgh.
Filip Forsberg
He has been far too quiet in the Final, entering Game 6 with just a single point to his name after a score-happy regular season and start to the playoffs. But a couple of goals in the closing game or two would quickly correct his chances, especially since the left winger still ranks as the postseason's third-best scorer (nine goals) and owns the league's top plus-minus mark (+15) over the course of the playoffs.
