San Jose Sharks vs Pittsburgh Penguins Picks and Predictions January 27th 2025

San Jose Sharks vs Pittsburgh Penguins January 27th 2025

Making on a bet on this NHL game featuring the Penguins versus the Sharks? The puck drops at 10:30 ET, and you can watch it all unfold on NBCS. The game will be played at SAP Center in San Jose, CA. The Penguins are the -1.5 goal favorites in this non-conference matchup against Sharks. The over/under for the game is set at 6.5 goals.

Your Go-To Resource For Gambling Updates—Check Our Gambling News.

Pittsburgh vs. San Jose Key Information

Teams: Penguins at Sharks
Where: SAP Center San Jose
Date: Monday, January 27th
Betting Odds PIT -165 | SJ +140 O/U 6.5

The Penguins Can Win If…

Pittsburgh improved to 20-23-8 with a 3-1 road win over the Canadiens. The Penguins covered the puck line as -1.5 goal favorites, and the total of 4 goals fell short of the 6.5 line.

Sidney Crosby led the way with two goals, and Blake Lizotte added an empty-netter to seal the victory. Pittsburgh’s defense held the Canadiens scoreless until the third period.

Sidney Crosby led the way for the Penguins with two goals in their 3-1 win over the Canadiens. He opened the scoring at 4:03 in the first period and added his fifth goal of the season on a power play at 1:20 in the second period. Blake Lizotte netted his second goal of the season on an empty net with 45 seconds left in the game.

Pittsburgh took 24 shots on goal and recorded 14 giveaways. Lars Eller picked up his third assist of the season on Lizotte’s empty-netter, while Kris Letang earned his third assist and Erik Karlsson his seventh on Crosby’s power-play goal.

Defensively, the Penguins allowed just one goal to Montreal, which came at 5:32 in the third period. Alex Nedeljkovic made 25 saves, posting a 96.2% save percentage. Pittsburgh’s defense also contributed 5 takeaways and 19 hits.

Across Pittsburgh’s last three regular season games, their record sits at 1-2. In these matchups, they ended with an puck line record of 1-2 and an over-under mark of 1-1-1.
Over their last ten regular season games, the Penguins have gone 3-7 straight up. The team’s record vs the puck line was just 3-7, in addition to an over-under mark of 5-3-2.

The Sharks Can Win If…

San Jose’s 3-2 loss to the Canucks dropped them to 14-32-6 this season. The Sharks were underdogs on the puck line and the total was set at 6.5 goals, but the combined score of 5 fell short of that mark.

The Sharks took a 1-0 lead with 17:23 left in the second period, but the Canucks tied it at 5:19 in the same period. San Jose evened the score at 2-2 with just 1:17 remaining in the game, only for the Canucks to net the game-winner with 26 seconds left.

Nico Sturm netted his second goal of the season, getting the Sharks on the board in the second period. Mikael Granlund followed with his sixth goal, tying the game 2-2 with 1:17 left in the third period.

San Jose took 23 shots on goal but struggled with giveaways, committing 16. William Eklund picked up his seventh assist on Granlund’s goal, while Tyler Toffoli added his fifth assist.

Defensively, the Sharks will look to bounce back after giving up a late goal with just 26 seconds remaining in the 3rd period, resulting in a 3-2 loss to the Canucks. Mackenzie Blackwood made 25 saves with a save percentage of 89.3%. San Jose’s defense recorded 6 takeaways and 21 hits.

San Jose has put together a record of 0-3 in their last three games (regular season). Their record against the puck line in this stretch is 1-2 to go along with an over-under mark of 3-0.
Over their last ten regular season games, the Sharks have gone 1-9 straight up. The team’s record vs the puck line was just 3-7, in addition to an over-under mark of 5-5.

The Lean

When it comes to a moneyline wager, I’m going with the Sharks to defeat the Penguins while playing at home. Given the current moneyline odds at +140, I’m placing a wager on the Sharks to win outright.

If you’re looking to get a bet down on this matchup, we foresee the Sharks winning the underdog. However, if you’re not as confident in the Sharks straight-up, we’d still recommend placing a bet on them to cover the puck line.

For those assessing the over/under line set at 6.5 goals, our expectation is that this game will stay below that mark, and we suggest making a bet on the under.

Teams in 15th, 16th Place Meet When Penguins Visit Sharks

Penguins Looking to Find Offensive Spark

The Pittsburgh Penguins will try to snap out of their recent offensive slump when they visit the San Jose Sharks on Monday night in a battle of two struggling teams sitting at the bottom of their respective conferences.

Pittsburgh is 3-7-3 in its last 13 games and ranks just ahead of the Buffalo Sabres at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. The Penguins have lost three of their last five games, scoring just one goal in each of those losses.

Forward Kevin Hayes voiced the team’s frustration after their latest defeat, a 4-1 loss to the Seattle Kraken on Saturday.

“We’re giving up easy offense … and we’re not scoring on our chances,” Hayes said. “Everyone’s working hard. Everyone in this room wants to win. It’s frustrating. These last couple losses that we’ve had, we’ve felt like we’ve been playing good enough to win.”

Injuries Piling Up for Pittsburgh

The Penguins could be without Evgeni Malkin, who left Saturday’s game with a lower-body injury and is questionable for Monday.

Pittsburgh was already missing Bryan Rust (lower-body injury) and Blake Lizotte (illness), further depleting their lineup.

Despite their struggles, Sidney Crosby remains the team’s leading scorer with 52 points (14 goals, 38 assists), while Rickard Rakell has a four-game points streak with one goal and three assists.

Sharks in Freefall

The San Jose Sharks have the fewest points in the NHL (34) and are currently riding a six-game losing streak (0-6-0). Defense has been a massive problem, as opponents have scored at least six goals in each of San Jose’s last four games.

Most recently, the Florida Panthers handed them a 7-2 loss on Saturday, despite the Sharks leading 2-1 early in the first period. Florida responded with six unanswered goals to hand San Jose yet another lopsided defeat.

Jake Walman, reflecting on the loss, pointed to the team’s inability to handle adversity.

“I think they felt our push in the first (period), and we immediately found out what a Cup-contending team looks like. Their pushback was much better than ours,” Walman said.

Goaltending Woes for Both Teams

Defense and goaltending have been major issues for both squads.

Pittsburgh has allowed 189 goals, the second-most in the NHL.
San Jose has given up 195 goals, the most in the league.

For the Sharks, Alexandar Georgiev started against Florida but was pulled early in the second period after allowing four goals on 15 shots. Backup Yaroslav Askarov didn’t fare much better, giving up three goals on 17 shots.

Pittsburgh, meanwhile, will likely start Alex Nedeljkovic after Joel Blomqvist played against Seattle. Nedeljkovic has been inconsistent this season, posting an .893 save percentage and a 3.26 goals-against average in 22 games.

Today’s NHL Picks Are In! Get your game plan with NHL expert picks today.

Players to Watch

Sidney Crosby (PIT) – 52 points (14 goals, 38 assists), still driving the Penguins’ offense.
Mikael Granlund (SJ) – Leads the Sharks with 43 points (14 goals, 29 assists).
Rickard Rakell (PIT) – Four-game points streak, trying to provide secondary scoring.
Will Smith (SJ) – Five points in his last four games (two goals, three assists).
Fabian Zetterlund (SJ) – Also on a four-game points streak (two goals, two assists).

Previous Meeting & Series History

The teams last met on Nov. 16, with the Penguins winning 4-3 in a shootout at home.

Pittsburgh has dominated the recent series, going 6-1-0 in their last seven games against San Jose, including winning their last three trips to SAP Center.

What to Expect

Offensive struggles – Pittsburgh has been unable to score, while San Jose can’t stop allowing goals.
Injury concerns – Will Malkin and Rust return for the Penguins? Can San Jose’s goalies rebound from their struggles?
Desperate hockey – Both teams are looking to avoid falling even further into the basement of their conferences.

With both teams desperate for a confidence-boosting win, Monday’s matchup could be an opportunity for one to break out of its slump – but neither side has shown much ability to capitalize on those chances this season.