San Jose vs Pittsburgh Prediction: the Sharks Have Nothing to Lose

Prediction for the NHL San Jose Sharks vs Pittsburgh Penguins match, which will take place on February 15th. Who will turn out to be stronger? Check the team conditions! Several betting options are available.

San Jose has a weak season and does not qualify for the playoffs. So the club could start losing important players to more ambitious teams. The Sharks are still rebuilding, which can't be combined with solving big problems. Nevertheless, lately, the Californians played alright. Out of the previous six meetings, they've lost only one in regulation time to Florida - 1-4, failed a couple more times, and won another three. That's good enough for 13th place in the Western Conference standings.

Pittsburgh, by contrast, refused to rebuild in the offseason, entrusting the future to the former leaders. But they are no longer young and no longer show their best hockey. That's why the Pennsylvanians don't feel like fighting for a playoff spot. The Penguins have been highly uneven during this season, but they've started to earn points. In the previous ten games, they were scoreless only twice. Three times they failed and won five. The day before, they suffered an upset loss to Los Angeles, 0-6, sitting eighth in the Eastern Conference.

Pittsburgh has been doing quite well, going scoreless in only two of their ten matches. Curiously, both times the Penguins were defeated by teams from California: first, it was a 4-6 loss to San Jose and then 0-6 to Los Angeles. The Pennsylvanians obviously can't afford another defeat against the league underdog, so they're unstoppable now. Meanwhile, the Sharks play poorly at home, losing four of their last five home games. 

San Jose cannot make the playoffs, so they play brightly to entertain the home crowd. Those hockey players, who could be picked up for the rest of the season by more titled and ambitious teams, are trying to prove themselves. In all, 58 goals against (7.25 on average) have been scored in the Sharks' last eight home games.