Pittsburgh Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin (71) celebrates his first of two goals against the Columbus Blue Jackets with Sidney Crosby, second from left, Michael Bunting (8), Kris Letang (58), and Bryan Rust (17) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Thursday, March 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Evgeni Malkin scored twice to reach the 20-goal plateau for the 15th time and the Pittsburgh Penguins continued their mastery over the Columbus Blue Jackets with a 3-2 win. The Russian became the 31st player in league history to reach 20 goals in 15 seasons. Malkin did it with a pair of power-play blasts — one from the right circle, one from the left circle — that erased one-goal deficits. Sidney Crosby had two assists for Pittsburgh to increase his career total to 995. That’s 11th on the NHL’s all-time list. Mathieu Olivier and Cole Sillinger scored for Columbus.