So I was wrong. The Sharks will not be winning this series in six games. Come to think of it, I don’t see the Sharks winning this series.

On paper the Sharks are the deeper team, the better defense, and the better overall team. And on paper doesn’t count when it comes to hockey, especially during the playoffs.

This series has come down to who has tried the hardest. Who wants it. Who will strive to earn it, do whatever it takes, make everything come together to get the wins when it matters most. And for every minute of this series that team has been the Penguins.

The Sharks won a game in OT. They’re a goal away from being swept by the Penguins. Again, desperation is a difficult thing to encounter. The Sharks had it in Game 3. They lost it after that win. They can’t afford to lose it this time. They need to capture desperation, to bottle it, because the only way they win this series now is they become purely better than the Penguins, in every aspect. From Martin Jones, who has been holding the Sharks in this series when no one else has, to the big names on this team, including Brett Burns, Joe Thornton, and Joe Pavelski, none of whom have shown up, to just 100% effort. The Sharks do have depth, but currently that’s it. And they need to work 1000x harder if they’re going to win this series. They have it in them. They just need to let it through.

The Penguins now face the difficult work they’ve faced in every series. Last series, they were the team trying to fight against elimination, and they succeeded. Against the Capitals, they were the team trying to eliminate a team desperate to stay alive, and they succeeded. They’ve been where the Sharks currently are. They’ve been where they are now. And they need to put the Sharks away.

The defense doesn’t matter. For the most part, they’ve all stepped up. The line of HBK, although it was disassembled for much of last night’s game, is still better than the Sharks have been. Sidney Crosby has his eyes finally settled on the Cup, he’s not going to let it slip.

And the question on my mind remains, where the hell are the Sharks? They’re not in this series, when they were the favorite coming in, they were better in the playoffs. They earned their way here. And yet they can’t earn a win.

Evgeni Malkin got the GWG. I’m fairly sure one of my predictions came true. Paul Martin is a defensive defenseman, his name is not one that will be called for a GWG. But still, the defense for the Sharks has been off.

Martin Jones has stood on his head before in these playoffs. He got back to back shutouts against a fairly competent St. Louis team. If the Sharks are going to come back in this series, he will need to be better than he was in even those games. He has the ability. Does he have the team around him to get him the goals needed? The Sharks have only scored 7 goals in four games. It’s not good enough.

Man, it makes you think. A team would kill for this chance. St. Louis hasn’t been here since their first two years. This is what the Blackhawks are all about. The Stars really want it. Every team in the West wants the Cup, every team in the League wants it. And the Sharks are blowing their chance. The Penguins just aren’t. That’s the difference.

Penguins win next game. The Sharks are giving us nothing. Prove me wrong. I’ll gladly admit it.