3 keys to Penguins' Game 1 victory

For the first time in a decade, the Eastern Conference champions won the opening game of the Stanley Cup Final.

Indeed, the Pittsburgh Penguins replicated a feat last achieved by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006, taking Game 1 courtesy of a 3-2 win over the San Jose Sharks on home ice and putting themselves in a very favorable position moving forward

Since the Stanley Cup Final went to the best-of-seven format in 1939, the team that has taken Game 1 has gone on to capture the Cup 77.6 percent of the time (59 of 76 series) and each of the past four years, according to NHL Public Relations.

Here are three keys to Pittsburgh's Game 1 win.

Depth scoring

Pittsburgh's top three lines all got in on the scoring, with goals coming from seemingly unlikely but increasingly reliable forwards.

The Penguins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals scored 62 seconds apart by Bryan Rust and Conor Sheary. The pair made NHL history in the process.

Rust, who scored for the third straight game, set a club record for rookies with his sixth goal of the postseason, while Sheary notched his third.

The game-winning goal came off the stick of Nick Bonino, who now sits tied with Sidney Crosby for second on the team in playoff scoring with 16 points, two back of Phil Kessel and one ahead of Evgeni Malkin.

Getting the puck on net

The Penguins are making a habit out of out-shooting the opposition, and it's paying off.

In fact, the Game 1 winners outshot their opponent for the 10th straight game (41-26), including an 80-43 margin over the past two games.

Conversely, the Sharks allowed 40-plus shots on goal in regulation for only the second time in 2015-16, including the regular season and playoffs.

As the following chart shows, each team held an advantage in terms of total shot attempts at different stages of the game, but Pittsburgh poured it on at the end and came out with the win.

Bonino and Patric Hornqvist led the way with six shots apiece, with Kessel (5), Crosby (4), and Kris Letang (4) not far behind.

If that trend continues, the Penguins will be awfully difficult to beat, but expect the Sharks - who admitted to not being prepared - to lock things down as the series progresses.

The rookie keeps standing tall

22-year-old Matt Murray won his 12th game of the playoffs, and is now tied with Mike Vernon and Ken Dryden for second-most wins by a rookie goalie in a playoff year.

While he didn't see as much action as Martin Jones at the other end of the ice, Murray did stop 24 of 26 shots, and maintained a postseason save percentage of .924 as a result.

Three more wins and Murray will match the playoff wins record for a rookie, last achieved by Cam Ward with the Hurricanes in 2006.

Game 2 is set for Wednesday in Pittsburgh.