CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Motivation abounds for the Pittsburgh Penguins and San Jose Sharks, who will renew acquaintances on Thursday at PPG Paints Arena.Most obviously, its the first meeting between the clubs since they squared off in the Stanley Cup final last spring.That might be a bigger deal for San Jose, which lost in six games as the Penguins clinched the title and skated around with the Stanley Cup on the Sharks home ice.Obviously, it doesnt feel good when you lose to a team in the final, so you take a little pride in wanting to beat them, and you definitely get a little more hyped up for those kinds of games, San Jose center Chris Tierney told the San Jose Mercury News.The Sharks are 3-1 following a 3-2 win Tuesday against the New York Islanders.The defending champion Penguins already have the bragging rights, but they are looking at this as a big game in part on what has happened much more recently.After winning their first two games, the Penguins (2-1-1) have lost two in a row -- including a 4-0 defeat at Montreal on Tuesday that left them largely dissatisfied with their effort and discipline.That puts a bit different spin on the rematch with the Sharks.Theyre well aware of how good San Jose is and what the challenge is going to be, Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said of his players. The one thing about this league is there are no easy games. Youve got to bring your A-game each and every night to give yourself a chance.But certainly, coming off the type of game we had (Tuesday) night and moving forward, there should be plenty of motivation for us to make sure that we respond the right way.That doesnt mean the Sharks come in as a faceless opponent.I think itll be ramped up a little bit, Penguins winger Bryan Rust said. Theyre going to have a chip on their shoulder. And we obviously didnt play great (Tuesday), so were going to have a little chip on our shoulder. I think its going to be a good, physical, playoff-like atmosphere.San Jose coach Pete DeBoer is interested in seeing what the atmosphere will be.I dont know what the emotions will be until I get there, he told the San Jose Mercury News. Its tough to go on that long of a journey and then lose the way we did. I dont think there was any doubt that they deserved to win. But at the same time, for us, its a chance to ... make a statement that we are a different team this year.Pittsburgh returned its team almost completely intact, but there will be at least a couple of missing parts Thursday. Conn Smythe Trophy winner Sidney Crosby has yet to play this season because of a concussion and goaltender Matt Murray is out while he recovers from a broken thumb.In addition, top defenseman Kris Letang (upper body) and winger Conor Sheary (eye) are day to day after leaving Tuesdays game.San Jose was the bigger, more physical club in the final. It added a couple of players during the offseason in forward Mikkel Boedker and defenseman David Schlemko that appeared to be a direct attempt to add the kind of speed that Pittsburgh used to its advantage last spring.The teams meet twice this season, with the second game coming Nov. 5 in San Jose. It just happens that this first rematch comes in the early days of the season.Now that its here, itll be good. Itll be fun, Sharks captain Joe Pavelski told the Mercury News. We would have liked a better result the last time we played that team, but its two points. Its a new year. Its important that we keep building our game and keep trying to get better. (Were) a long ways from getting back to that position, and this is another good team that well be playing.Johnathan Motley Jersey .Y. - Nelson Mandela will be honoured by the New York Yankees with a plaque in Monument Park. Terance Mann Jersey . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged. https://www.clipperslockerroom.com/Landry-Shamet-City-Edition-Jersey/ . It was the kind of score that might make everyone else wonder which course he was playing. Except that Graeme McDowell saw the whole thing. Crouched behind the 10th green at Sheshan International, McDowell looked over at the powerful American and said, "Ive probably seen 18 of the best drives Ive seen all year in the last two days. Angel Delgado Clippers Jersey .Y. -- Marcell Dareus and the Buffalo Bills defence made life miserable for Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. Louis Williams Clippers Jersey . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain.The 33rd Maui Invitational tips off Monday and will feature another field loaded with basketball powers.This years field --?Oregon, Tennessee, Georgetown, Wisconsin, Oklahoma State, UConn, North Carolina and host Chaminade -- consists of teams that have a combined 14 NCAA championships, 40 Final Four appearances and 192 NCAA tournament appearances.?The winner in Maui has gone on to win the national title four times, with UConn in 2010-11 the most recent. North Carolina has won the Maui title three times.Tennessee and Wisconsin open play at 2:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and WatchESPN.?The Volunteers will be making their third appearance in the Maui Invitational and are 2-4 all time in the event, with all losses coming against top-15 teams. Tennessee coach Rick Barness will bring his third team to Maui having coached both Providence (1991) and Texas (2004, 2008, 2012) in the tournament in the past.ddddddddddddThe Volunteers are coming off a 15-19 season, only the second losing season in Barnes 30-yard history as a head coach, and will bring a young team to Hawaii with 13 of 16 players either freshmen or sophomores. The Volunteers are 1-1 early in the season and have five players averaging in double figures in two games, led by freshman Jordan Bones 14.0 PPG. Senior Robert Hubbs III leads the team in minutes played at 29.5 and is second on the team in scoring at 13.5 PPG. ?-- ESPN Stats & Info ' ' '