Evgeni Malkin scored the decisive goal in the shootout, and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Calgary Flames 2-1 on Wednesday night for their fourth straight victory.
Pittsburgh Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin (71) gets a shot past Calgary Flames goaltender Dan Vladar for a shootout goal during an NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2022. The Penguins won 2-1.
(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Malkin, who was recognized for playing his 1,000th NHL game Sunday, threw a backhand over Dan Vlader’s glove. After Malkin scored, he threw his stick into the crowd and celebrated with his teammates.
Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell also scored in the shutout for the Penguins, who improved to 6-1-1 overall in their last eight games. Jan Rutta scored in regulation, and Tristan Jarry made 33 saves for his 100th NHL win.
Dillon Dube scored in the second period for the Flames, who have won two in a row. Calgary has four wins in its last six games overall after a seven-game losing streak.
Vladar, making his fourth start of the season and first since Nov. 10, stopped 38 shots.
Rutta opened the scoring at 2:09 when he beat Vladar with a blocker-side wrist shot from between the circles.
Pittsburgh appeared to take a 2-0 lead on a goal by Bryan Rust. But it was waved off due to an offside call following a coach’s challenge.
Calgary then tied it at 1 at 8:37 of the second when Dube headed a Chris Tanev shot past Jarry.
Malkin honored
The Penguins celebrated Malkin in his first home game after making his 1,000th career regular-season home run Sunday in Chicago.
Malkin’s teammates all wore his no. Wore 71 jersey during warmups. Malkin’s wife, Anna, and six-year-old son, Nikita, joined him on the ice during a pregame ceremony. He received personal gifts to commemorate his 1,000th career game, including a silver hockey stick.
Flames continue to travel
Calgary was playing the fourth game of a season-long six-game road trip.
The Flames lost the first game of the trip to Tampa Bay, but bounced back with wins against Florida and Philadelphia before Wednesday’s shootout loss to the Penguins. Calgary closes out the trip with games at Washington and Carolina.
READ MORE: Flames win 5-2 over struggling Flyers
The Flames have at least a point in their last seven games at PPG Paints Arena, dating back to the 2015-16 season.
© 2022 The Associated Press
