The Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks are playing live on Saturday night from Soldier Field for the NHL Outdoor Series and two of the best teams in the league are going up against each other and Jonathan Toews and Sidney Crosby are facing off for the first time and each are Stanley Cup and gold medal champions as well as captains and the game starts just after 8 pm ET.
The weather was expected to be an issue and may have delayed some of the game at the start, but the NHL was expecting it and prepared and now the two teams face off. The Penguins come into the game ranked fourth in the league in goals per game and they are the best team in the east and are first in the Metro division and have once again been dominant and this is a potential Stanley Cup matchup later down the line and the NHL would love that.
The Penguins come into the game after losing in a shootout to the Montreal Canadiens and they now play the Chicago Blackhawks before a road matchup with the Nashville Predators. The two teams have the same amount of points on the season and the Penguins have five more wins and both have been excellent this season, with the Hawks coming off of the Stanley Cup win last year against the Bruins. The Penguins are a tough opponent and they come into the day ranked in the top 10 in many of the top categories in the league, including goals against as well as first in power play percentage and second in penalty kill percentage.
The Blackhawks are first in the central division and they are looking to win another championship and they also are battling with the Blues in the west and they come in first in the league in goals per game. The Blackhawks come into the game after a loss to the Rangers on the road at the Garden and they next play against the Colorado Avalanche at home and they are third in power play percentage this season. The team is 13th in goals against and Soldier Field is the setting and this is the last outdoor game and the NHL put a bunch of them in so that they could make up for no All-Star game and they all have been great successes and now the Blackhawks have one of the best ones, as it is snowing at Soldier Field and frigid.
Patrick Kane, Toews and everyone else now gets to face off against Crosby and the Penguins and this could be a great Stanley Cup matchup in the future.
