Tonight on NBCSN, it’s the San Jose Sharks hosting the L.A. Kings starting at 10 p.m. ET. Following are some game notes, as compiled by the NHL on NBC research team:
• With a win tonight, the Kings will become the fourth team in NHL history to overcome an 0-3 series deficit to win a series, and the third of those teams to win Game 7 on the road. Two current Kings were on the most recent comeback club, the 2010 Flyers: Mike Richards (who assisted on Simon Gagne’s series-winning goal) and Jeff Carter (who missed the series after undergoing foot surgery).
• The Sharks were in a similar situation in the 2011 Western Conference Semis vs. Detroit, when they won Games 1-3, lost Games 4-6 and faced a deciding Game 7 at the “Shark Tank.” San Jose prevailed, 3-2, advancing to the conference final (where they lost to Vancouver in five games). Eight players from that roster remain, including the winning goaltender that day, Antti Niemi, and four of the five skaters who registered points: Logan Couture, Patrick Marleau, Dan Boyle and Joe Thornton.
• This is the sixth time in Stanley Cup playoff history that two teams will meet in Game 7 in consecutive postseasons. In four of the previous five instances, the same team clinched both series.
• Kings forward Justin Williams has played in four Game 7s for three different teams in his 13-year NHL career, and he has scored a goal in all of them: for PHI vs. TOR in 2003, for CAR vs. BUF and EDM in 2006, and for LA vs. SJ in 2013 (two goals). Williams is the only player in NHL history to score goals in each of his first four Game 7s. Only one other player, Jeff Friesen, scored goals in four consecutive Game 7s at any point in his career: for SJ vs. STL in 2000, for NJ vs. OTT and ANA in 2003 and for ANA vs. CGY in 2006. Elias Sports Bureau
• Through six games, the Kings-Sharks series has featured 42 goals (most of any series), 562 hits (most) and 298 penalty minutes (second-most, behind Anaheim-Dallas – 327). It has also featured the most blow-out victories of any series: five of the six games have been won by three or more goals. This in contrast to last season’s seven-game series, when five games were decided by one goal.
• Since the beginning of the 2012-13 season, the Sharks have the NHL’s best regular-season home record, in terms of points (102 pts., 46-9-10 record). They had won seven straight home playoff games until Jonathan Quick and the Kings shut them out 3-0 in Game 5.
• In Game 5, Quick picked up only his second win in his last 12 appearances (regular season or playoffs) at San Jose. Since the beginning of the 2011-12 season, he is 2-6-3 (one no-decision) against the Sharks on the road, with a 2.73 GAA, .912 save percentage and two shutouts.