Hockey Recap
Posts
Down 4-0 Penguins Stage Impressive Comeback to Take Down Blue Jackets

Down 4-0 Penguins Stage Impressive Comeback to Take Down Blue Jackets

Matthews scores late to rally past Devils, Flames defeat Wild in unusual double shutout game, and more.

March 08, 2023

Good morning and happy Wednesday, March 8th.

Our team is testing a new layout for our Top Shelf Highlights section. Please provide your feedback in the poll below to let us know if you love it, hate it, or could care less. Thanks fam! 👊

Down 4-0 Penguins Stage Impressive Comeback to Take Down Blue Jackets

Pittsburgh Post Gazette

The Pittsburgh Penguins’ season of peaks and valleys continued Tuesday when they had to erase a four-goal deficit to beat the NHL’s worst team in overtime.

The Penguins fell behind 4-0 to the Columbus Blue Jackets and then scored four times in the final 30 minutes before winning 5-4 on Sidney Crosby’s OT tally. Crosby finished with a goal and two assists.

Crosby is second in NHL history with 20 overtime goals, behind Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin (25). It was Crosby’s 169th three-point game, tying him with Paul Coffey for eighth most in NHL history. Steve Yzerman is seventh at 172.

After losing five out of six, the Penguins have now won five out of six to fortify their playoff outlook. The Penguins now own a three-point lead over the Florida Panthers for the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. The Penguins are only one point behind the New York Islanders who own the first wild-card spot. Pittsburgh has three games in hand over the Islanders.

The Penguins and Islanders play Thursday in Pittsburgh in a pivotal game for both teams. The Islanders are 6-2-2 in their last 10 games.

Evgeni Malkin set-up Crosby for the winning goal and finished with three assists.

"These guys have built an impressive legacy," Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. "So, to draw on those experiences, both the good and the bad, I think can only help us in these situations."

The Penguins are trying to earn an NHL-leading 17th consecutive playoff berth.

CAN'T MISS

🚨 Auston Matthews' late power play goal secures 4-3 comeback win over the Devils. The Leafs found themselves down 3-2 halfway through the third before Michael Bunting tied the game with 4:50 left in regulation followed by Matthews' power play bury not even two minutes later, his 29th goal of the season and 51st game winner of his career. Mitch Marner scored his 3rd short-handed goal of the season and Ilya Samsonov made 30 saves as the Leafs maintained a 5-point lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning for second place in the Atlantic division.

🔥 Jacob Markstrom makes 40 saves as Flames defeat Wild in double shutout. The 33-year-old netminder earned his first shutout of the season and 18th of his career thanks to 40 regulation saves followed by 3 more in the shootout to move the Flames within four points of the Winnipeg Jets for the second Western Conference wild card. Tyler Toffoli played hero once again, scoring the shootout winner for the Flames. The Wild's Filip Gustavsson made 26 saves for his second straight shutout as the Wild extended their point streak to 10 games (8-0-2).

"I thought our guys did a great job of making sure that I saw most of the pucks," Markstrom said. "A lot of sharp blocks. … It's the second game of a back to back, and we need to string games together. Nice to get one of these."