Penguins weave more OT magic
PITTSBURGH — Mike Sullivan would love to point to a coaching tactic or some semblance of strategy that explains why the Pittsburgh Penguins are so good in overtime.
Only Sullivan can’t. He’s been coaching long enough to know that when just six men are on the ice and his team has one of the NHL’S most gifted offensive groups, it’s best to just get out of the way.
“For the most part, it’s really just about great players making great plays, and when our guys have the puck, they’re dynamic,” Sullivan said.
The latest proof came midway through the extra period Monday, when Phil Kessel drew Calgary goalie Jon Gillies away from the net and slipped a cross-ice pass to Justin Schultz, who buried it to give the Penguins a 4-3 victory.
Schultz’s fourth goal of the season helped the twotime defending Stanley Cup champions improve to 10-1 at home in overtime this season.
“We’ve got the players that are so good out there with that much ice, so we enjoy it,” Schultz said. “We don’t like to go to (overtime) that much, but it’s nice to know that we can get wins.”
Evgeni Malkin scored his 37th goal for the Penguins and added an assist. Kris Letang and Chad Ruhwedel also scored for Pittsburgh.
Tristan Jarry had 35 saves, including a breakaway stop on Calgary star Johnny Gaudreau early in overtime, as the Penguins pulled within one point of Washington for first in the crowded Metropolitan Division.
Mark Giordano, Mikael Backlund and Troy Brouwer scored for the Flames, who outplayed the Penguins for long stretches before dropping their fourth straight. Gillies stopped 28 shots but had no chance when Kessel slid a cross-ice pass to a wide-open Schultz.
At Vancouver, British Columbia, Brendan Leipsic, acquired by Vancouver last week from the Golden Knights, scored his second
Canucks 4, Islanders 3, OT—
goal of the game 2:47 into overtime and added an assist as the Canucks dealt New York its seventh straight loss.
At Buffalo, N.Y., Rasmus Ristolainen had two assists on consecutive shots from the right point that were deflected in during the opening minutes for Buffalo, which dealt Toronto its fourth straight loss.
At Edmonton, Alberta, Oscar Klefbom’s first goal in 34 games came 50 seconds into overtime as Edmonton halted a three-game skid.
At Dallas, Erik Karlsson scored on a breakaway with 2:19 left in overtime to back Craig Anderson, who had 31 saves.
Sabres 5, Maple Leafs 3— Oilers 4, Coyotes 3, OT — Senators 3, Stars 2, OT —