PITTSBURGH (AP) Having home ice is supposed to be an advantage in the NHL. So far in the 2018 playoffs Kris Letang Jersey , the only guarantee to playing at home is a monochrome backdrop provided by fans in team-specific T-shirts.Consider the following:– The Pittsburgh Penguins finished with the second-worst road record among the 16 playoff teams. Then the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions ripped off three wins in Philadelphia to kickstart their pursuit of a three-peat and backed it up with another victory in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series in Washington.– The Capitals dropped Games 1 and 2 at home in overtime against Columbus in the opening round only to beat the Blue Jackets three times in Columbus on their way to advancing to the NHL’s final eight for the fourth consecutive year.– Winnipeg posted an NHL-high 32 wins on home ice. One of their seven regulation home losses, however, was a wild 6-5 setback at the hands of Nashville in February. The Predators‘ triumph helped them win the Presidents Trophy and guarantee home ice through the playoffs. The Jets, of course, won the series opener in Nashville to steal that advantage.Home teams are just 26-26 so far in the playoffs heading into Tuesday, when Pittsburgh hosts Washington (7:30 p.m. Eastern, NBCSN) and Winnipeg welcomes the Predators (8 p.m., CNBC). Both series are tied after the visitors claimed their respective openers on the road.Asked why the games have become a coin flip regardless of venue, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan – whose team was outplayed at PPG Paints Arena by Philadelphia in Game 2 and Game 5 in the opening round – admits he can’t really come up with a reason.”I don’t know if I have answer for you that makes sense,” Sullivan said Monday. ”Sometimes when teams go on the road Mario Lemieux Jersey , they have tendency to simplify their game … I know our team historically has been very good at home and I believe we will continue to do that.”If Pittsburgh wants to become the first franchise in 35 years to win three straight titles, it doesn’t really have much of a choice. Though Sullivan is right in that the Penguins are pretty good at PPG Paints Arena, they’ve only been so-so when facing the Capitals. Washington won Game 3 and Game 6 in Pittsburgh during the 2017 postseason and wrapped up its third straight Metropolitan Division title with a 3-1 win there on April 1.”You’ve got to create your own momentum, but it gives you good memories,” Capitals coach Barry Trotz said. ”If you have to go back into the memory bank, at least we have one. Those are things that you can bank on maybe for some positive feeling going forward.”Predators forward Nick Bonino couldn’t offer up any specifics about Nashville’s victory in Winnipeg even though it happened all of two months ago, saying only ”I’m sure we played a solid road game.”The road does offer the visiting team a sense of routine. There aren’t as many friends or family around. No kids waking up in the middle of the night. No traffic to deal with in most places. Just wake up, suit up and go play.”You go out to dinner, there’s not really any distractions,” Bonino said. ”You’re there for hockey.”And the hockey in both series has been spectacular. Nashville avoided heading to Canada in an 0-2 hole with a thrilling double-overtime escape in Game 2. Washington responded after blowing a two-goal Matt Murray Jersey , third-period lead in Game 1 by winning a predictably chippy Game 2.That chippiness included a questionable hit by Washington’s Tom Wilson to Pittsburgh defenseman Brian Dumolin’s head in the second period that sent Dumolin into the concussion protocol. Dumolin skated with his teammates on Monday and his status – much like the status of star center Evgeni Malkin (lower body) and Carl Hagelin (upper body) – won’t be determined until Tuesday.Wilson was not penalized for the hit and received a pass from the league when it opted not to schedule a disciplinary hearing to review the play. While Dumolin said he didn’t see Wilson coming because he was bracing for a hit by Alex Ovechkin, Wilson claimed Dumolin turned his head just before impact leaving Wilson with no time to react.”He stops and turns and I’m kind of right there as (Ovechkin) is coming in pretty aggressively,” Wilson said. ”It’s a collision.”Pittsburgh star Kris Letang wasn’t surprised Wilson’s hit wasn’t deemed illegal. Why?”Because we don’t know anymore (what’s legal and illegal),” he said.And we don’t know what a given night is going to bring anymore either. Home teams get to sleep in their beds. They get the luxury of the last line change before faceoffs, allowing them to get the matchups they want. And so far it has made zero difference in the result.”It doesn’t have to be pretty always on the road,” Predators defenseman Matt Irwin said. ”I think we embrace that.”—AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno in Washington, D.C., and AP Sports Writer Teresa Walker in Nashville, Tennessee, contributed to this report. NASHVILLE http://www.officialpenguinsproshop.com/authentic-adidas-olli-maatta-jersey , Tenn. (AP) Filip Forsberg dropped his broken stick and raced to the bench for another just as the puck slid around the boards near his skates. He grabbed a new stick from the Predators‘ equipment manager, fought off Jets defenseman Ben Chiarot and kept the puck onside.Then he skated toward Connor Hellebuyck, holding off Chiarot as he scored, then slid into the net .The man also known as Scoresberg or Filthy Fil then helped send the Western Conference semifinal back to Nashville for a deciding Game 7 with another highlight-reel worthy goal. Viktor Arvidsson found Forsberg and the Swede slipped the puck through his legs, a movement that prompted Hellebuyck to slide away from the post to cover the empty net to his left.Forsberg immediately flipped the puck through the sliver of an opening, causing a GIF-frenzy on social media.With the postseason that Forsberg is having, Nashville goaltender Pekka Rinne can’t settle on the best goal he’s seen from his teammate.”I feel like these two series that already at least three or four really unbelievable goals, and it’s hard to pick,” Rinne said. ”I’m just a fan when I watch him play.”Forsberg led the Predators with 64 points helping Nashville win the franchise’s first Presidents’ Trophy during the regular season. He now is the franchise’s all-time leading scorer in the playoffs with 15 points this postseason, bringing Nashville back for Game 7 on Thursday night against Winnipeg as the Predators seek a second straight berth in the West final. The winner of this series will host the Vegas Golden Knights for the first two games.With Pittsburgh and Boston eliminated Womens Patric Hornqvist Jersey , Forsberg now is tied with Washington’s Alex Ovechkin for the most points scored this postseason with 15, and the Predators forward has a plus-4 rating that is a point ahead of Ovechkin with both having played 12 games each.Forsberg looks just comfortable passing the puck through his own legs as those of a defenseman he’s undressing on his way to another goal or even just juggling the puck with his stick to give teammates time to get back onside. The 23-year-old forward from Ostervala, Sweden, said his stick skills are the result of lots of hard work.”Natural is definitely not the word for it, but it just takes a lot of practice, takes a lot of you doing,” Forsberg said. ”Just try to maybe do it in practice and stuff like that and once in a while you get time and space for it in a game, you try to pull it off.”Some scorers tap into their natural talent, blessed with quick hands and eyes along with soft hands. Others spend hours and hours developing muscle memory. Forsberg counts himself among those who made themselves into scorers. He started as a young child using a shooting ramp his father built for Forsberg and his brother and lots of road hockey.”I think that’s where it all started,” Forsberg said.His skills grew as he led his junior team with 40 points in 2010-11 and helped Sweden win silver at the 2011 World Under-18 Championship. Forsberg was captain when Sweden won both the World Under-18 and World Junior championships in 2012.The Washington Capitals made Forsberg their first-round pick at No. 11 overall in 2012. He never played a game for the Capitals before being traded April 3 Phil Kessel Jersey , 2013, to Nashville in exchange for Martin Erat and Martin Latta.The Predators wasted no time getting Forsberg on the ice, playing him five games that same season. Forsberg spent only 13 games with Nashville in 2013-14, and he has been a fixture in the lineup since 2014-15. They signed him to a six-year, $36 million contract in June 2016.Center Nick Bonino won two Stanley Cups with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in Pittsburgh, and he’s gotten to watch Forsberg up close this season after signing as a free agent.”He’s very skilled,” Bonino said. ”He’s one of the most skilled sticks I’ve ever seen. Practice is fun with him. Games are fun with him.”Forward Colton Sissons sees Forsberg as having a gift that helps him see how best to move the puck instantly to execute in high-pressure moments. Sissons also is pretty sure of what might happen if he tried to mimic some of Forsberg’s scoring moves.”I might break my ankle or something bad might happen,” Sissons said. ”I’d probably just jam it in the near post, but I’ll leave the through the legs stuff to Fil and some of those guys.”—