Category: NHL

Crosby scores in OT, Penguins slip by Islanders 3-2

Crosby scores in OT, Penguins slip by Islanders 3-2
By WILL GRAVES, AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Sidney Crosby let one chance to bury the New York Islanders slip away. The Pittsburgh Penguins star wasn’t about to let it happen twice.
Crosby finished off a 2-on-1 by sneaking a wrist shot past Chris Gibson 3:48 into overtime to give the Penguins a 3-2 win Saturday. Pittsburgh’s captain failed to convert on a rush moments earlier, but an outlet pass by Justin Schultz freed up Crosby once again.
This time he faked a pass to Conor Sheary and instead beat Gibson between the legs as the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions snapped a three-game losing streak.
“Thought I had a good opportunity to shoot and missed one right before that so glad to see it go in,” Crosby said after picking up his 22nd goal of the season.
Derick Brassard’s first goal with Pittsburgh tied it with less than nine minutes to go in regulation. Patric Hornqvist added his 18th goal of the season for the Penguins. Phil Kessel picked up two assists to become the sixth American-born player to reach 400 career assists. Tristan Jarry overcame a comically ugly start to finish with 25 saves.
Jarry’s night began by giving up a goal to New York’s Brandon Davidson just 1:11 into the game. Davidson flipped a slow backhand from outside the right circle only to see it go into the net when Jarry tripped and fell backward to the ice .
“It was a little easier when I came back to the bench and seen 90 percent of the guys laughing at me,” Jarry said. “It’s a tough thing to swallow but I’m glad we won.”
Anders Lee put New York up 4:59 into the third period when his shot caromed off Pittsburgh defenseman Jamie Oleksiak and over the goal line for his team-leading 31st. Gibson, making his first start in nearly two years, almost made it stand up. He finished with 47 saves in all but let Brassard jam one by him with 8:31 left in regulation to tie it and he was no match for Crosby late. The Islanders have dropped six straight.
Making just his fifth NHL start and first since April 10, 2016, Gibson spent most of the night trying to make up for lost time. The Penguins peppered the New York net for long stretches, often looking like they were on the power play despite being at even strength. Asked if he could remember the last time he faced 50 shots at any level, Gibson just shook his head.
“To be honest, I can’t but it was great,” Gibson said. “I loved every single second of it. I’m really happy with my game except that last goal and the loss there.”
The Penguins were coming off an ugly 8-4 setback in Boston on Thursday night, one that extended their losing streak to three and blunted their recent surge toward the top of the Metropolitan Division. Coach Mike Sullivan, rarely hesitant to shake things up during even the slightest of downturns, opted for minor tweaks instead of major ones.
Pittsburgh called up forward Dominik Simon and put him on the third line and Sullivan mixed up the bottom two defensive pairings, including giving Chad Ruhwedel his first start since Dec. 27. The result was better play in front of Jarry. After giving up 17 goals during the losing streak, Pittsburgh surrendered just the two flukish goals and Jarry collected himself after the bumpy start.
The penalty kill was sharp at the beginning of overtime, giving Crosby a chance to win it.
“The last two games I struggled a little bit and I didn’t think my game was where I wanted it to be at,” Jarry said. “I thought tonight was a good bounce back performance for me and I think it’s something I can grow on.”
NOTES: Pittsburgh G Matt Murray missed his third straight game since getting a concussion in practice Wednesday. … Pittsburgh scratched D Matt Hunwick, F Carter Rowney and C Zach Aston-Reese. … New York scratched Ds Dennis Seidenberg and Sebastian Aho and F Ross Johnston. … The Islanders went 0 for 2 on the power play. The Penguins were 1 for 2. … Pittsburgh is 7-1-1 in its last nine games against New York.
UP NEXT
Islanders: Begin swing through Western Canada on Monday in Vancouver.
Penguins: Host Calgary on Monday.
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For more NHL coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/NHLhockey

Penquins trade Josh Jooris from the Hurricanes!!!

The Pittsburgh Penguins have acquired forward Josh Jooris from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Greg McKegg, it was announced today by Penguins executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford.

Jooris is signed through the remainder of this season, and he carries an average annual value of $775,000. He will be an unrestricted free agent.

The Penguins re-assigned Jooris to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL.

Jooris, 27, has skated in 31 games with Carolina this year, producing three goals, three assists and six points. He played against the Pens in Pittsburgh’s 6-1 win on Friday night.

Earlier this month, the 6-foot-1, 197-pound Jooris suited up for five American Hockey League games with the Charlotte Checkers, picking up three assists.

A native of Burlington, Ontario, Jooris has played four seasons in the NHL with Carolina, the New York Rangers, Arizona and Calgary. He has 23 goals, 32 assists and 55 points in 204 career NHL contests. His best season came as a rookie with Calgary in 2014-15 when he had 24 points (12G-12A) in 60 regular-season games, then skated in nine playoff games.

Jooris, a righthanded shot, played three years of college hockey at Union College before turning pro.

Pens win 6th Straight 6-1 over Carolina!!!

Kessel, Malkin lead Pens past Canes 6-1 for 6th straight win
By JOEDY McCREARY, AP Sports Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Phil Kessel and Evgeni Malkin each had two goals and an assist and the Pittsburgh Penguins routed the Carolina Hurricanes 6-1 on Friday night for their season-best sixth straight victory.
Jake Guentzel had a goal and two assists, Sidney Crosby scored a late goal and Olli Maatta also scored. The Penguins took control with three goals — two by Kessel — in a 7:39 span in the second period.
Matt Murray made 27 saves for Pittsburgh, which has won 11 of 13 to overtake idle Washington for first place in the Metropolitan Division. Since the Penguins were shut out by Carolina on Jan. 4, they are 16-3-1.
They were just as busy off the ice, completing a mid-game trade in which they picked up center Derick Brassard from the Ottawa Senators. As part of the complicated three-team deal, they sent defenseman Ian Cole to Ottawa and forward Ryan Reaves to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Teuvo Teravainen scored and Cam Ward stopped 33 shots for the short-handed Hurricanes, who have gone 0-3-1 during a four-game slide that’s keeping them outside the Eastern Conference playoff race.
They played without physical center Jordan Staal, who missed the game because of a family concern — and his absence certainly was felt against Crosby, Malkin, Kessel and the rest of the two-time Stanley Cup champions’ lineup.
Kessel capped a fast-paced flurry of scoring early in the second period, scoring two goals in 2 minutes, 14 seconds for his third two-goal game of the season.
After Teravainen pulled the Hurricanes to 2-1, Kessel blasted a feed from Guentzel past Ward at 6:11. Kessel then effectively put the game out of reach by stuffing the puck past Ward for his 26th goal of the season, with a brief official review confirming that the puck completely crossed the red line.
NOTES: LW Carl Hagelin thought he had a goal for Pittsburgh early in the third, but it was erased when an official review determined the puck was kicked into the net. … Pittsburgh RW Patric Hornqvist returned after missing eight games with a lower-body injury. … Carolina D Jaccob Slavin became the fifth player in franchise history to play in 200 consecutive games.
UP NEXT
Penguins: Wrap up their three-game trip Saturday night at Florida.
Hurricanes: Begin a three-game trip Saturday night at Detroit.
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More AP NHL: www.apnews.com/tag/NHLhockey