Game 56- San Jose Sharks @ Penguins

Things have gotten a whole lot tougher for the Pittsburgh Penguins, even as they sat idle on Wednesday night. The Florida Panthers came back from a three goal deficit in the third period to defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs in overtime on home ice, catapulting themselves three points ahead of the Penguins for the eight and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. Even worse, the Cats have two games in hand on the Penguins as the teams get ready for the stretch drive.

The Penguins will need to rebound from a tough home loss to the formidable Detroit Red Wings, but it surely won't come easy, as the Sharks are the NHL's best team, coming off a 5-2 pounding of the East-leading Boston Bruins in Beantown. The game was among the most intense of the season, and the Pens can only hope that the Sharks are a bit worn down from it all.

Also working in the Penguins' favor, backup goalie Brian Boucher is expected to get the call for San Jose, while perennial Vezina Trophy candidate Evgeni Nabokov rides the pine, resting up after the hard-fought win against the Bruins.

The Sharks boast a full compliment of top six forwards headlined by one of the game's best playmakers in Joe Thornton and a few sniping wingers in Devin Setoguchi and Patrick Marleau.

The defense is rather scary as well, boasting rocks like Dan Boyle and Rob Blake, coupled with exciting young puck movers Christian Ehrhoff and Marc-Edouard Vlasic.

The Sharks a consummately professional organization that does nothing but win.

Mike Zigomanis, Sergei Gonchar, and Ruslan Fedotenko are out for Pittsburgh.

If Michel Therrien was smart, Miroslav Satan would be scratched for this game. We'll just all have to wait and see if it finally happens, but it couldn't be much longer.

The Sharks will be without Brad Lukowich, Jeremy Roenick, Torrey Mitchell, and Jody Shelley.

If the Pens are to win this one, Marc-Andre Fleury is going to have to stand on his head and form somewhat of an impentrable brick wall around his net. Also, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are going to have to have big nights, or this could get very ugly very quickly.

Fleury and Boucher, obviously, will be the netminders for the 7:38 game.

Penguins-

Dupuis-Crosby-Kennedy
Cooke-Malkin-Sykora
Caputi-Staal-Minard
Talbot-Thomas-Godard

Orpik-Whitney
Eaton-Letang
Gill-Scuderi

Fleury

Sharks-

Marleau-Thornton-Setoguchi
Michalek-Pavelski-Clowe
Grier-Goc-Cheechoo
McGinn-Plihal-C. Lemieux

Boyle-Vlasic
Blake-Ehrhoff
Murray-Semenov

Boucher

GO PENS!