Malkin's hat trick carries Pens over Islanders
First, Sidney Crosby went into a slump, and Evgeni Malkin followed
by going into an extended one. Those days look to be gone for the
Pittsburgh Penguins, who finally watched both of their stars enjoy
big games on the same night.
Malkin broke out of a slump with three goals and Crosby
scored twice while figuring in every Pittsburgh goal as the
Penguins recovered after blowing a three-goal lead to beat the
Islanders 6-4 on Tuesday, ending New York's four-game winning
streak.
Trent Hunter and Richard Park scored in the third period as
the Islanders came back from deficits of 3-0 and 4-1 to tie it, but
Kyle Okposo drew a tripping penalty midway through the period that
led to Malkin's power-play goal that made it 5-4. Earlier, Okposo
failed on a penalty shot and couldn't score twice on breakaways,
all in a span of 1:34 in the second period.
Malkin scored from the right circle to put the Penguins back
into the lead at 11:09 of the third, and he added an empty-net goal
with 29.6 seconds remaining, resulting in a brief delay as hundreds
of hats and giveaway bags littered the ice. Both goals came on a
Penguins power play that went 4 for 7 after beginning the game as
the NHL's second worst.
"Those two goals are great examples of his (Malkin's) shot,''
Crosby said. "He was ready to let it go. Those are tough for
goalies to stop when he sets up like that. When he got his chances
to let it rip, he buried it.''
It was the first time in their careers that Crosby, the 2007
NHL scoring champion, and Malkin, last season's champion, each
scored multiple goals in the same game.
"When you give those guys time and space to make plays,
they're going to make them,'' Islanders goalie Dwayne Roloson said.
"Especially with the skill that they have.''
Malkin has four goals in two games after going 11 consecutive
games without a goal following his last previous three-goal game
Dec. 23, not long after Crosby had only one goal in 11 games.
"But I'm not thinking about my goals,'' Malkin said. "I'm
just want to play my game and help my linemates.''
Crosby's six points matched his career high previously set
against the Flyers in December 2006, and topped his previous season
high of five points Nov. 28 against the Rangers. He has nine
multiple goal games this season - three in seven games - and, with
32 goals, he has only one fewer than the 33 he scored last season.
Crosby beat Roloson for even-strength goals that made it 1-0
late in the first and 4-1 in third and he also set up Bill Guerin's
power-play goal and the three Malkin power-play goals.
"You never really felt comfortable, it was a shootout and not
an easy one for the goalies,'' Crosby said. "Those nights are great
for the power play's confidence. We did a lot of good things to
have success, but we know we've got to work on it.''
Penguins forward Pascal Dupuis left the ice with a towel held
to his face after being rammed into the boards by defenseman Andy
Sutton with 2:55 remaining. Sutton drew a game misconduct. Dupuis
was on the ice for several minutes after striking the rear boards
face-first before getting up and walking to the Penguins' dressing
room, leaving a puddle of blood on the ice.
Penguins backup goaltender Brent Johnson, out for five games
with an undisclosed injury that forced the Penguins to use an
amateur goaltender during their 6-2 loss Saturday at Vancouver,
made 31 saves during a sometimes shaky performance.
The Islanders, playing their second game in as many days
after beating the Devils 4-0 with Rick DiPietro in goal on Monday,
looked sluggish and a step slow at the start. But the Isles'
fatigue apparently wore off after Freddy Meyer's first goal of the
season started their comeback later in the second period.
Notes: The Islanders haven't won as many as five
in a row since winning six straight in February 2008. ... The
Islanders have lost their last six in Pittsburgh. ... Okposo failed
on his penalty shot at 4:36 of the second. He also couldn't beat
Johnson on a pair of breakaways. ... Pittsburgh scored multiple
goals on the power play for only the second time in 16 games.
