(UPDATED) Penguins Game 78, Future & Past; Lines, Notes & How to Watch vs. Blackhawks

CHICAGO — It was the Stanley Cup Final we never got to be very much needed. From 2009 through 2017, only three teams won the Cup: the Pittsburgh Penguins, Chicago Blackhawks, and LA Kings. Sunday, the Penguins (31-34-12) face the Blackhawks (21-45-10) at the United Center in a matchup of teams in different states of rebuilding.

The puck drops just after 6 p.m. ET.

UPDATE: Tomasino Injured; Koppanen Back In

Now, the matchup is 37-year-old Sidney Crosby and the remnants of the Penguins’ championship core against Connor Bedard and the entirely new (and rebuilding) Blackhawks. None of the Blackhawks’ championship core remains (Teuvo Teravainen was part of the 2015 team before being traded, then returned).

The Penguins are showing some swagger and spark with a pair of rookies in the lineup. Rutger McGroarty and Ville Koivunen have been the Penguins’ catalysts to playing some inspired and fun hockey. The Penguins scored four third-period goals against the Dallas Stars Saturday in a 5-3 win at American Airlines Center.

Read More: Penguins Room & Analysis: Crosby and the Rookies; One Shift Showed Everything

Sidney Crosby netted a hat trick to counter a hatty scored by Dallas forward Evgenii Dadanov. Bryan Rust and Blake Lizotte scored the other goals. Crosby’s third was his 30th goal this season. He had four points, while Rust’s goal tied his career high with 28. It was also Rust’s 200th career goal.

McGroarty earned an assist, and Koivunen played well on a line with Evgeni Malkin and the top power-play unit. Goalie Tristan Jarry’s performance outshone his numbers. Jarry stopped 20 of 23 shots, but an inordinate number of those shots were high-danger chances.

Malkin returned to the lineup for the first time since March 23.

Chicago is 0-4-1 in their last five games, losing to the Washington Capitals 5-3 on Friday. The game will be famous for Washington’s Alex Ovechkin scoring two goals to tie Wayne Gretzky for most career goals (894).

Penguins goalie Alex Nedeljkovic is likely to start.

For the flip side of the matchup, visit Chicago Hockey Now for Blackhawks coverage, and follow beat writer @GregBoysen.

Penguins Lines (UPDATED)

Rutger McGroaty-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust

Rickard Rakell-Evgeni Malkin-Ville Koivunen

Danton Heinen-Blake Lizotte-Noel Acciari

Connor Dewar-Kevin Hayes-Joona Koppanen

Defense

Matt Grzelcyk-Kris Letang

Conor Timmins-Erik Karlsson

Ryan Graves-Ryan Shea

Goalie: Alex Nedeljkovic

Blackhawks Lines

Ilya Mikheyev-Connor Bedard-Ryan Donato

Teuvo Teravainen-Frank Nazar-Tyler Bertuzzi

Landon Slaggert-Oliver Moore-Lukas Reichel

Nick Foligno-Joe Veleno-Pat Maroon

Defense

Alex Vlasic-Sam Rinzel

Wyatt Kaiser-Artyom Levshunov

Ethan Del Mastro-Connor Murphy

Goalie: TBD

Special Teams

Penguins power play: 24.8%, 9th. Penguins penalty kill: 77.6%, 21st.

Blackhawks power play: 24.4%, 10th. Blackhawks penalty kill: 80.4%, 12th.

Penguins Game Notes

The Penguins have points in three-straight visits to the United Center (2-0-1). With a point tonight, the Penguins could have their first-ever four-game point streak in Chicago.

The Penguins conclude their 14th and final set of back-to-back games. This season, Pittsburgh is 10-16-1 in back-to-backs (4-10-0 on the first night and 6-6-1 on the second night.

Sidney Crosby is statistically having one of the best seasons in NHL history by a player in their age 37 season or older, as his 86 points are the sixth most in a single season in league history. Only Gordie Howe (103), Joe Sakic (100), Johnny Buyck (93), Mario Lemieux (91), and Wayne Gretzky (90) have more than Crosby’s 86 points.

Crosby became the 11th player in NHL history to have 13 or more 30-goal seasons. Only six players have more.

Crosby is also on a league-high 12-game scoring streak.

How to Watch

TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh

Radio: 105.9 The X