There were a lot of storylines – almost too many to count – in the Penguins’ 6-5 overtime victory against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday.
But, as they have time and time again, the biggest stars stole the show.
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Evgeni Malkin registered his 500th career goal, and Sidney Crosby notched his 1,600 career point and the overtime game-winner as the Penguins came out on top of a wild, back-and-forth affair. Bryan Rust, Drew O’Connor, Jesse Puljujarvi, and Rickard Rakell also added goals for the Penguins.
Malkin became just the fourth active player to reach the 500-goal milestone, joining Washington’s Alex Ovechkin, Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos, and teammate Crosby. He is the 48th player in NHL history to join the 500-goal club.
He also added three assists to help seal the win.
“It’s not easy, it’s a long way to score 500, but I’m glad to do it tonight,” Malkin said. “Finally, I’m score. Now, I’m like, more relaxed, more calm. Not think too much. Sleep better, and just play hockey. But for the first time, probably, I want to say I’m proud of myself. It’s a great number for me.”
Crosby had a night to remember as well. He picked up his 1,600th point by assisting on Bryan Rust’s first period power play goal, and he added the lone assist on Malkin’s goal as well as the overtime winner on the power play to cap off a three-point night.
Related: BREAKING: Penguins Center Evgeni Malkin Notches 500th Career Goal
And he was happy to assist Malkin’s 500th goal, just as Malkin had assisted on his.
“I wanted to, going into it the last few games,” Crosby said. “I wanted to find a way. Sometimes, it doesn’t work out that way. Obviously, we don’t play together on a line that often. So whether it was a power play, or that sort of thing, I was hoping that I had an opportunity to try to find him, and it worked out.”
He continued: “He set up me so nice for my 500th, and I was hoping I could return the favor.”
It’s difficult to quantify just how much these two players have meant to the franchise – and to the city of Pittsburgh – for almost two decades. But Malkin appreciates how he and Crosby have had the opportunity to reach milestones together in that time.
“I’m the only assist to him on 500, and he’s the only assist to me,” Malkin said. “It’s crazy. Sometimes, I do not understand how this works. But this is a great story for me and him. We probably deserve that, to share this night together.”
Although this was certainly the big milestones headline story of the night, there is a lot more to discuss. Here are a few more thoughts and observations on tonight’s win:
– This game was a wild one from start to finish, with momentum swings going in every direction. And much of it chalked up to goaltending.
The Penguins went down 2-0 early on in the game, as starting goaltender Tristan Jarry struggled early on. They got some momentum back in the form of Rust’s power play goal, but Jarry allowed a third goal to JJ Peterka just 32 seconds later, which meant three goals on just five Buffalo shots.
He was pulled in favor of rookie Joel Blomqvist, who was stellar and stopped 26 of 28 shots in relief. Jarry has been pulled in three of his last six home starts.
It’s safe to say that things are not looking good for Jarry. With Alex Nedeljkovic on the cusp on returning from injury, the Penguins are going to have some decisions to make with their goaltenders.
Related: Penguins’ Crosby Scores 1,600th Point
On the young season, Jarry has allowed 12 goals in three games, owning a 5.47 goals-against average (GAA) and an .833 save percentage (SV%). Even though he’s only started three games, that’s simply not going to cut it, especially in the midst of a stretch where the Penguins play a lot of games and need to secure as many wins as possible.
And things wouldn’t be so daunting for Jarry if Blomqvist was struggling.
Spoiler alert: He’s not. Not at all.
Blomqvist was the star of the second period for the Penguins. He made three big stops on three Buffalo breakways after bad misplays by defensemen Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang, and he made a key save on a Sabres’ two-on-one during four-on-four play. He was, arguably, the biggest reason the Penguins were able to keep the game close and, eventually, secure the win.
This is the kind of thing that good, timely, clutch goaltending can do for a team. Simply put, the Penguins are getting that from Blomqvist, and only Blomqvist, right now.
His lateral movement is quick. He’s playing with confidence and making himself look big in net. The rookie has the poise of a veteran. Over the course of three games, he has posted a 2.86 GAA and a .913 SV%.
Right now – at least, for the time being – this is his net. There should be no debate. He’s earned it through his performance.
Related: Is There A Goaltending Controversy In Pittsburgh?
– Despite scoring twice – and, almost, a third time – the power play looked a mess tonight. The Penguins spent much of their time on the man advantage in the neutral and defensive zones. It had the same slow-foot, low-movement characteristics that plagued the unit for much of last season.
The worst thing that could happen for them is to slip back into those old habits that don’t work. They have to go back to simplifying things like they had been doing for most of the pre-season and the beginning of the regular season: short passes, player movement, and not holding onto pucks.
It’s a night and day difference. They were able to finish tonight, but they won’t with consistency if the unit looks how it did against the Sabres.
– Puljujarvi continues to impress pretty much everyone.
During the second period, Lars Eller dished a perfect pass to Puljujarvi, who was all alone in front of the Buffalo net. He deked and scored a beautiful goal on the backhand, similar to a goal he scored in the pre-season, and it tied the game at 3-3 for the time being:
Sullivan called it a “goal-scorer’s goal.” If this is the version of Puljujarvi that the Penguins continue to get, they’d be wise to consider extending him a contract offer sooner rather than later.
– O’Connor scored a huge shorthanded, three-on-four goal that cut Buffalo’s lead to 3-2 and helped swing even more momentum in the Penguins’ favor heading into the latter parts of the second period.
This was a big goal for O’Connor and for the Penguins. Even though this goal came on the penalty kill, it’s yet another example of the legitimate depth the Penguins have this season.
Sullivan said he likes the way the third line of O’Connor, Eller, and Puljujarvi looks right now and that it’s good to have options to move guys like O’Connor up and down the lineup.
I expect to see O’Connor get some time alongside Crosby, but for now, the Penguins should probably leave that line be.
– These Penguins are not boring, that’s for sure.
The first two periods were already discussed. With the score tied 3-3 heading into the third period, Malkin notched his 500th to give the Penguins the lead. But at the midway point of the period, Buffalo scored two goals in 40 seconds to reclaim the lead.
Related: Bottom-Six Comes Through As Penguins Defeat Canadiens, 6-3
Then, with the goaltender pulled and just 46 seconds left on the clock, Rakell tied the game by scoring his third of the season. All of this led up to Crosby’s overtime winner 1:38 seconds in on the power play.
This was one of those games that will be remembered for a long time. Ups and downs, momentum swings, and the stars coming up big.
– Piggybacking off of this, the Penguins play a divisional matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday. The Hurricanes are off to a 1-1 start, and the Penguins will need to play a much tighter and defensively conscientious game if they are going to come away with the win.
O’Connor said they weren’t happy with the game they played, despite coming away with the win against Buffalo. Blomqvist bailed out the Penguins’ defense on several occasions, so they’d be wise to clean things up a little bit ahead of Friday’s game.
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