Sidney Crosby on Thursday scored the only goal of a shoot-out to lift the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 4-3 comeback victory over the New York Islanders.
Casey DeSmith made 26 saves in the victory, including five stops in overtime, plus all three of the Islanders’ attempts in the shoot-out.
Mathew Barzal had given the Islanders a 3-2 late in the third period, before Evgeni Malkin tied it for the Penguins with 18 seconds remaining.
Photo: AFP
“It’s a huge goal for us. We needed a win for our confidence,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “I love how our guys dug in down the stretch.”
Barzal scored his fifth goal of the season on a tremendous individual effort, maneuvering the puck around and past defenseman Pierre-Oliver Joseph, before beating DeSmith over the shoulder at 13:35.
Barzal leads the Islanders with 13 points and has a seven-game points streak.
Casey Cizikas and Jean-Gabriel Pageau also scored for the Islanders, who lost for the first time in four home games at Nassau Coliseum.
Semyon Varlamov made 32 saves for the Islanders, but could not stop Crosby’s backhand in the shoot-out.
“It was a playoff-style game,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. “I think they played really well. I thought we played really well.”
Malkin’s tying goal, his third of the season, came with DeSmith pulled for an extra attacker. Malkin blasted the puck past Varlamov from the right point, with assists to Bryan Rust and Kris Letang.
Malkin has 80 points, including 32 goals, in 66 career games against the Islanders.
“Tough to give one up,” Islanders captain Anders Lee said. “It was a good shot, it had eyes. It was one of those things.”
Rust and Zach Aston-Reese had the Penguins’ other goals.
Rust said his team’s ability to come back provides confidence, but an easier path is preferable.
“When you’re down, have to work harder,” Rust said. “Our mindset moving forward is to try to get the lead more and go from there.”
The Penguins outshot the Islanders 23-14 over the second and third periods, though the Islanders had a 5-2 shots advantage in overtime.
Cizikas opened the scoring for the Islanders with a spectacular goal, his third this season, at 5:39 of the first period. He outmuscled Penguins defenseman John Marino for a loose puck, before sliding it past DeSmith as he was falling. Cal Clutterbuck and Ryan Pulock had assists.
Pittsburgh tied it at 11:47 when Rust completed a pretty passing play from Crosby and Jake Guentzel for his third this season.
With the assist, Crosby continued to add to his totals against the Islanders. The 33-year-old center has more points against the Islanders (115) than any other active player against a single team. Crosby has 36 goals and 69 assists in 69 regular-season games against the Islanders — with a 42-18-9 record in those games.
Pageau put the Islanders ahead 2-1 when he tipped in Nick Leddy’s shot from the point at 16:40 of the first period. The goal was Pageau’s second this season and his first tally in nine games. Josh Bailey assisted.
Aston-Reese tied it for a second time, scoring on his season debut for the Penguins. He slipped the puck past Varlamov on a backhand wraparound at 7:03 of the second period. Teddy Blueger assisted.
The Islanders were coming off a 2-0 win over the Rangers on Monday at Madison Square Garden. They are 2-0-3 in their past five contests.
Sullivan said that his team’s ability to rally is attributable to veterans such as Crosby and the 34-year-old Malkin, who have been teammates since the 2006-2007 season.
“It takes a certain level of resilience and mental toughness in a belief we can come back,” Sullivan said. “It always starts with our leadership. They are a pretty accomplished group.”
Elsewhere, Kevin Stenlund scored the game-winning goal with 74 seconds remaining in regulation as the Blue Jackets claimed a 6-5 comeback victory over the Blackhawks, the Panthers mauled the Lightning 5-2, the Oilers overcame the Canadiens 3-0 and the Predators downed the Red Wings 3-2.
The Jets spanked the Senators 5-1, the Hurricanes blew away the Stars 5-3, the Ducks downed the Golden Knights 1-0, the Kings sank the Sharks 6-2 and the Flames were too hot for the Canucks in a 3-1 victory.
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