<Ul> <Li> ← 2015 </Li> <Li> Stanley Cup Finals </Li> <Li> 2017 → </Li> </Ul> <Li> Stanley Cup Finals </Li> <P> The 2016 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the National Hockey League (NHL)'s 2015--16 season, and the culmination of the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs . The Eastern Conference champion Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Western Conference champion San Jose Sharks four games to two to win their fourth championship in franchise history (all of them on the road). Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs . </P> <P> The Penguins had home ice advantage in the series, being the club with the better regular season record . The series began on May 30 and concluded on June 12 . This was the first Stanley Cup Finals since 2007 to feature a team making their Finals debut . This was the first Stanley Cup playoff meeting between teams from Pittsburgh and the San Francisco Bay Area since the Penguins franchise themselves swept the Oakland Seals in the 1970 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals . </P>

Who did the pittsburgh penguins beat in the stanley cup