• Who: Penguins (9-5-4) vs. Predators (6-9-4)
• What: NHL regular season, Game 19
• When: 9:15 a.m. Eastern
• Where: Avicii Arena
• Goaltenders: Sergei Murashov (0-1, .889 SV%) vs. Juuse Saros (6-6-3, .894 SV%)
• TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh, NHL Network (national)
• Stream: SNP360 (local)
• Radio: Penguins Radio Network
• Boxscore: NHL.com
• Media notes: Penguins | Predators

► FOLLOW ALONG

• Penguins win 4-0 and split the Global Series, 1-0-1. Sergei Murashov records his first win, a 22-save shutout. Goals from Parker Wotherspoon, Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, Blake Lizotte.

• GOAL: Penguins hit the empty net. Blake Lizotte. Good for him, that was from 100 feet out in the neutral zone. He gets a lot of those. Penguins 4, Predators 0

• Down to five minutes. Shots are even, 20-20.

• Penguins kill the penalty.

• Penguins to the PK with eight minutes left. Parker Wotherspoon gets two for interference.

• Predators have pulled ahead in shots, 18-17. Sergei Murashov is keeping them up 3-0.

• Big sliding pad save by Sergei Murashov.

• Connor Dewar was clocked at 22.7 miles per hour on a rush in this game.

• Did some intermission research, Ryan Graves has actually been in a surprising number of career fights. Just one with the Penguins, early last year. But when he was in the minors earlier in his career he was going up against heavyweights.

• Third period is underway.

• Weird stat from Bob Grove: The last eight times the Penguins have allowed 10 or fewer shots through two periods, they have a 0-6-2 record.

• Kevin Hayes is managing an expected goals for percentage of 100%. He’s been on the ice for 9-2 shot attempts, 7-0 unblocked attempts, 2-0 high-danger chances, 5-0 shots on goal. Evgeni Malkin and Anthony Mantha are right behind at about 98%.

• Another little scrum breaks out at the end of the period. 

• End of the second, score is still 3-0. Shots are 15-10 Penguins, they were 8-4 Predators that period.

• A scuffle breaks out after that save, Ryan Graves seemed to be at the center of it. That’s twice now where he has Predators players going after him in stoppages. Last time it was Nic Hague after his hit, this was more Michael McCarron. He’s been chippy.

• Sergei Murashov with his best save of the game so far, he flashes the glove.

• Ryan Graves just hit Luke Evangelista along the boards and dumped a linesman into the benches in the process.

• Back to full strength. Joona Koppanen had a big clear toward the end of the kill.

• Penguins kill the Ryan Shea minor. Parker Wotherspoon got a shot shorthanded right at the end of it. Still killing off the too many men, Phil Tomasino is serving it.

• Penguins get called for too ment men with 34 seconds left in the kill. So it’ll be a 5-on-3 PK for 34 seconds, followed by a 1:26 penalty kill.

• Penguins are back on the PK with 9:03 left in the second. Ryan Shea is called for a slash.

• The Evgeni Malkin-Kevin Hayes connection isn’t bad, Hayes has nearly gotten one a few times now. Best he’s looked since coming back.

• Nine minutes into this period and shots are 2-1 Predators. 

• Penguins kill the penalty. 

• Predators thought they scored but it was for sure after the whistle, ref immediately waives it off. Ref came on the mic and said it was no goal for goaltender interference but there was also for sure a whistle right before.

• Predators get their third and fourth shots of the game early into their power play. Sergei Murashov makes easy work of them.

• Penguins to the PK with 13:57 left int he second, Ryan Graves for tripping. Feels like there were several things missed on both sides before that finally got called.

• Nicklas Backstrom is in attendance.

• Slower game in the first three minutes of the second. Lots of back and forth action but nobody can get anything off.

• Second period is underway.

• Stu Barnes, big in Sweden:

TAYLOR HAASE / DKPS

• End of the first period, it’s 3-0 Penguins off of goals from Parker Wotherspoon, Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby. Shots are 11-2 Penguins.

• Niclas Lidstrom is here. Big applause.

• Joona Koppanen is getting under the skin of the Predators at the net front. Just got into it a little after a whistle with Nic Hague.

• Seems like that timeout earlier did quell the Penguins’ momentum. I don’t know if it gave any to the Predators, but it definitely slowed the game down.

• Connor Dewar nearly gets one now by going to the net, off a Sidney Crosby setup. 

• Penguins have a 10-2 lead in shots, 13-5 lead in attempts, a 4-0 lead in high-danger chances.

• GOAL: Sidney Crosby now makes it 3-0, capitalizing on an earlier Predators turnover. His 12th of the year, from Kris Letang and Bryan Rust. Just dominating here. Penguins are outshooting Nashville 10-1. Predators call timeout to settle things down. Penguins 3, Predators 0

• GOAL: Evgeni Malkin doubles the lead. Kevin Hayes went to the net and took the initial shot, rebound ends up behind the goal and Malkin banks it in off Juuse Saros. Second time in as many games that Malkin has done exactly that. Penguins 2, Predators 0

• Much better start here, by the way. 6-1 lead in shots 7:34 in. 

• A lucky fan just won a Noel Acciari jersey at the TV timeout. No shade to Acciari, but what?

• PA announcer went 1-for-3 in pronouncing the names of the goal/assist-getters there. Tough start.

• GOAL: Parker Wotherspoon, 2:19 in. Fakes a shot from the point, then shoots one through traffic. His second as a Penguin. Erik Karlsson set it up, Joona Koppanen with the secondary assist. Looked like it hit a Predator on the way in. Penguins 1, Predators 0

• Absolute robbery by Juuse Saros on a redirect attempt from Tommy Novak. Novak looked like he couldn’t believe it afterward.

• Final game here is underway.

• Ceremonial puck drop is the band Bolaget, the guys who were at practice the other day meeting Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell.

• Probably the only building ever where Sidney Crosby isn’t the last one announced in the starting lineups. It’s Erik Karlsson, of course.

• Can definitely confirm no Patric Hornqvist ceremonial puck drop, by the way. Because he’s sitting in front of me in the fake press box.

• Death, taxes, unusable wifi at any event the NHL is in charge of.

• Very cool: With this being the Penguins’ “home” game of the series, the DJ keeps mixing Mike Lange calls into the warmup tracks.

• Of note: Harrison Brunicke is getting his fifth scratch, making him now eligible for a two-week AHL stint. Scroll down to my feed entry from last night for a better explanation on how that all works.

• Big shakeup to the forward lines with Ville Koivunen out. Connor Dewar on the top line, Kevin Hayes on the second, Tommy Novak down to the third, with Danton Heinen drawing back in. Connor Clifton replaces Matt Dumba on defense:

Connor Dewar – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust 
Kevin Hayes – Evgeni Malkin – Anthony Mantha
Tommy Novak- Ben Kindel – Phil Tomasino 
Joona Koppanen – Blake Lizotte – Danton Heinen

Parker Wotherspoon – Erik Karlsson
Ryan Shea – Kris Letang
Ryan Graves – Connor Clifton

• It’s about that time: