Less than 24 hours after losing game one of the home-and-home weekend series 6-3 to the New York Islanders (14-16-7), the Pittsburgh Penguins (17-16-5) got their revenge with a 3-2 win inside PPG Paints Arena Sunday night.
In a back-to-back situation, the Penguins turned to Alex Nedeljkovic between the pipes. He made 29 saves in the win. In his first start this season, Marcus Hogberg was tremendous for the Islanders, making 39 saves in the loss.
Game Recap
The opening frame saw the Penguins get off to a good start. Just 3:54 into the game, Anthony Beauvillier buried home a pass from Michael Bunting to get the period’s only goal. Shots through the first 20 minutes were knotted at six a piece.
Early in the second period, the Penguins went on the game’s first powerplay, making no mistake about it. Bunting collected his second point of the night and fourth goal in his last three games to make it 2-0. It was a milestone moment as Sidney Crosby picked up his 1,034th career assist to surpass Mario Lemieux for the most in franchise history.
"AND SIDNEY STANDS ALONE!" 🐧
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) December 29, 2024
What a moment for Sidney Crosby as he tallies the franchise-leading assist #1,034 pic.twitter.com/gmdWBjqnjB
Though being heavily outplayed in the middle frame, the Islanders had a surge of chances on the two powerplays they saw. Despite the many scoring chances, the Penguins came away with a two-goal lead heading into the locker room. The Penguins held a 21-15 shot advantage in what was a very shot-heavy period.
Early in the third period, the Penguins’ game management continued. At 6:57, Philip Tomasino gave the Penguins a second powerplay goal to make it a 3-0 game. In typical Patrick Roy fashion, he pulled Hogberg with seven minutes left for an extra attacker, which paid off. Anders Lee continued his hot play against the Penguins with his third goal of the weekend to make it a 3-1 game at 12:59.
Still with plenty of time left, and the goalie pulled again, the Islanders brought the game to within one with Bo Horvat’s 10th of the season at 16:10 of the third period.
Both teams will finish 2024 on the road on Tuesday (Dec. 31). The Islanders travel to Toronto for an afternoon meeting with the Maple Leafs. The Penguins head to Detroit for the third and final regular-season matchup with the Red Wings.
