2016 Stanley Cup Finals facts for kids

The 2016 Stanley Cup Finals was the exciting championship series for the 2015-16 NHL season. It was the 123rd time the Stanley Cup trophy was presented. This final series featured two strong teams: the Pittsburgh Penguins and the San Jose Sharks.

For the San Jose Sharks, this was a very special moment. It was their very first time playing in a Stanley Cup Final! The Pittsburgh Penguins, on the other hand, were more experienced, making their fifth appearance in the championship series. The Penguins ultimately won the series in six games. They beat the Sharks 3-1 in the final game, which was played at the SAP Center in San Jose.

The 2016 Stanley Cup Series

The Stanley Cup Finals is a best-of-seven series. This means one team needs to win four games to become the champion. The 2016 series was a thrilling battle between the Penguins and the Sharks. Each game was played with high energy and skill.

Game-by-Game Breakdown

The series started with two games in Pittsburgh. The Penguins won both of these home games. They took an early lead in the series.

The series then moved to San Jose for Game 3 and Game 4. The Sharks fought back in Game 3, winning in overtime. This gave them hope. However, the Penguins won Game 4, putting them one win away from the championship.

Game 5 was back in Pittsburgh. The Sharks played a great game and won, showing their determination. This meant the series would go back to San Jose for Game 6.

In Game 6, the Penguins sealed their victory. They won the game 3-1, becoming the 2016 Stanley Cup champions.

Team Rosters

Here are the players who were part of the Pittsburgh Penguins and San Jose Sharks teams during the 2016 Stanley Cup Finals. The years in boldface next to a player's name mean they won the Stanley Cup in that year.

Pittsburgh Penguins Players

#	Nat	Player	Position	Hand	Age	Acquired	Place of birth	Finals appearance
19		Bennett, BeauBeau Bennett	RW	R	24–18224	2010	Gardena, California	first
13		Bonino, NickNick Bonino	C	L	28–03728	2015	Hartford, Connecticut	first
28		Cole, IanIan Cole	D	L	27–09627	2015	Ann Arbor, Michigan	first
87		Crosby, SidneySidney Crosby – C	C	L	28–29428	2005	Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia	third (2008, 2009)
7		Cullen, MattMatt Cullen	C	L	39–20739	2015	Virginia, Minnesota	second (2006)
6		Daley, TrevorTrevor Daley	D	L	32–23132	2015	Toronto, Ontario	first
8		Dumoulin, BrianBrian Dumoulin	D	L	24–26424	2012	Biddeford, Maine	first
16		Fehr, EricEric Fehr	C/RW	R	30–26330	2015	Winkler, Manitoba	first
29		Fleury, Marc-AndreMarc-Andre Fleury	G	L	31–18131	2003	Sorel-Tracy, Quebec	third (2008, 2009)
62		Hagelin, CarlCarl Hagelin	LW	L	27–27827	2016	Södertälje, Sweden	second (2014)
72		Hornqvist, PatricPatric Hornqvist	RW	R	29–14727	2014	Sollentuna, Sweden	first
81		Kessel, PhilPhil Kessel	RW	R	28–23828	2015	Madison, Wisconsin	first
34		Kuhnhackl, TomTom Kuhnhackl	LW	L	24–12724	2010	Landshut, Germany	first
14		Kunitz, ChrisChris Kunitz – A	LW	L	36–24436	2009	Regina, Saskatchewan	third (2007, 2009)
58		Letang, KrisKris Letang	D	R	29–03329	2005	Montreal, Quebec	third (2008, 2009)
12		Lovejoy, BenBen Lovejoy	D	R	32–09732	2015	Concord, New Hampshire	second (2009)
3		Maatta, OlliOlli Maatta	D	L	21–27921	2012	Jyväskylä, Finland	first
71		Malkin, EvgeniEvgeni Malkin – A	C	L	29–30129	2004	Magnitogorsk, Soviet Union	third (2008, 2009)
30		Murray, MattMatt Murray	G	L	22–00222	2012	Thunder Bay, Ontario	first
51		Pouliot, DerrickDerrick Pouliot	D	L	22–13222	2012	Estevan, Saskatchewan	first
17		Rust, BryanBryan Rust	RW	R	24–01624	2010	Pontiac, Michigan	first
4		Schultz, JustinJustin Schultz	D	R	25–32625	2016	Kelowna, British Columbia	first
43		Sheary, ConorConor Sheary	LW	L	23–35423	2015	Melrose, Massachusetts	first
40		Sundqvist, OskarOskar Sundqvist	C/RW	R	22–06522	2012	Boden, Sweden	first
37		Zatkoff, JeffJeff Zatkoff	G	L	28–35328	2012	Detroit, Michigan	first

San Jose Sharks Players

#	Nat	Player	Position	Hand	Age	Acquired	Place of birth	Finals appearance
61		Braun, JustinJustin Braun	D	R	29–10629	2007	St. Paul, Minnesota	first
88		Burns, BrentBrent Burns	D	R	31–07831	2011	Barrie, Ontario	first
39		Couture, LoganLogan Couture – A	C	L	27–05927	2007	Guelph, Ontario	first
4		Dillon, BrendenBrenden Dillon	D	L	25–19525	2014	New Westminster, British Columbia	first
27		Donskoi, JoonasJoonas Donskoi	RW	R	24–04324	2015	Raahe, Finland	first
48		Hertl, TomasTomas Hertl	LW	L	22–19622	2012	Prague, Czech Republic	first
31		Jones, MartinMartin Jones	G	L	26–13726	2015	North Vancouver, British Columbia	second (2014)
68		Karlsson, MelkerMelker Karlsson	C/RW	R	25–31325	2014	Lycksele, Sweden	first
12		Marleau, PatrickPatrick Marleau	LW	L	36–25436	1997	Swift Current, Saskatchewan	first
7		Martin, PaulPaul Martin	D	L	35–08235	2015	Elk River, Minnesota	first
83		Nieto, MattMatt Nieto	LW	L	23–20323	2011	Long Beach, California	first
8		Pavelski, JoeJoe Pavelski – C	C	R	31–32031	2003	Plover, Wisconsin	first
46		Polak, RomanRoman Polak	D	R	30–02830	2016	Ostrava, Czechoslovakia	first
34		Reimer, JamesJames Reimer	G	L	28–07228	2016	Morweena, Manitoba	first
16		Spaling, NickNick Spaling	C	L	27–25027	2016	Palmerston, Ontario	first
19		Thornton, JoeJoe Thornton – A	C	L	36–32936	2005	London, Ontario	first
50		Tierney, ChrisChris Tierney	C	L	21–33021	2012	Keswick, Ontario	first
44		Vlasic, Marc-EdouardMarc-Edouard Vlasic	D	L	29–05729	2005	Montreal, Quebec	first
42		Ward, JoelJoel Ward	RW	R	35–17635	2015	North York, Ontario	first
57		Wingels, TommyTommy Wingels	RW/C	R	28–04428	2008	Evanston, Illinois	first
9		Zubrus, DainiusDainius Zubrus	C/RW	L	37–34537	2015	Elektrėnai, Lithuanian SSR	third (1997, 2012)

Images for kids

• 

  Nick Bonino scored the game-winning goal in Game 1.

• 

  Conor Sheary scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game 2.

• 

  Joonas Donskoi scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game 3.

• 

  Matt Murray saved 23 of 24 shots faced in Game 4.

• 

  Logan Couture scored three points in Game 5, adding to his playoff-leading 30-point campaign.

• 

  Kris Letang scored the Stanley Cup-clinching goal in Game 6.

• 

  Sidney Crosby captained the Penguins to their second Stanley Cup championship and third Finals appearance in nine seasons.

• 

  Joe Pavelski captained the Sharks to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance in franchise history.

• 

  The Penguins and the Sharks shaking hands after Game 6.