Evgeni Malkin returns to lead Penguins to historic rout of Red Wings

Coming off one of their worst defeats of the season, the Penguins suggested they would offer one of their best efforts of the season on Sunday.

They ended up offering one of the best offensive performances in franchise history.

Claiming an 11-2 win in a vivisection of the Detroit Red Wings at PPG Paints Arena on Sunday, the Penguins found a way to thoroughly wash away the repugnant taste from their ugly 5-1 road loss to the rival New York Rangers.

“Tonight was substantially more fun than the other night,” Penguins forward Bryan Rust quipped. “To kind of play on our toes and not be on our heels the whole night, again, also very fun.”

The Penguins had not had that much fun – at least in a way that can be tabulated on the scoreboard – since they defeated the Philadelphia Flyers, 11-5, at the Civic Arena on Nov. 16, 1993. A six-point (one goal, five assists) effort by franchise icon Jaromir Jagr sparked that triumph nearly 30 years ago.

A mere three goals and an assist by superstar forward Evgeni Malkin boosted the Penguins on Sunday. Malkin returned to the lineup after missing Friday’s game (and Saturday’s practice) due to an undisclosed illness.

“It seems like he’s making high-end plays every time he has it,” Penguins forward Danton Heinen said. “It’s great to see. Even though he was a little under the weather, he still scores the hat trick.”

The Red Wings looked as if they were under a severe weather alert for the entire contest.

Penguins forward Kasperi Kapanen opened the scoring 4:16 into regulation. After gaining the offensive zone at center point, Penguins forward Jeff Carter offloaded the puck with a backhand pass to the right wing for Kapanen. From the half wall, Kapanen tried to deal it back to Carter who was darting to the net but Red Wings defenseman Jake Walman was able to break up the sequence. Carter reclaimed possession in the right corner and flicked a backhand pass to the slot intended for Heinen.

Kapanen wound up with the puck, settled it, deked hard to his backhand and ventured towards the left circle. With Red Wings goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic overplaying the maneuver, Kapanen was able to move to his forehand and tucked an easy shot into the cage for his 11th goal while falling over Nedeljkovic. Carter and defenseman Mike Matheson had assists.

It became a 2-0 contest at 14:23 of the first when Penguins forward Teddy Blueger scored his first goal since Jan. 17. Settling a bouncing puck above his own right circle, Penguins forward Radim Zohorna led a rush out of his own zone and gained the offensive blue line on the left wing. Creating a two-on-one rush against Red Wings defenseman Jordan Oesterle, Zohorna slid a cross-ice pass to Blueger in the right circle. Moving in, Blueger roofed a wrister over Nedeljkovic’s glove on the near side for his ninth goal. Zohorna and linemate Brian Boyle registered assists.

A defensively-deficient second period saw the teams combine for seven goals.

A power-play goal by Malkin 1:48 into the second put the Penguins up by three. After Penguins forward Sidney Crosby beat Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin on a draw in Detroit’s left circle, Penguins defenseman Kris Letang settled the puck at the right point then fed it to center point for Malkin who cranked a one-timer. The puck glanced off of the left shin of Oesterle then the stick of Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider before ramping past Nedjelkovic’s blocker for Malkin’s 14th goal. Letang and Crosby collected assists.

The rout was on 90 seconds later when Carter scored a short-handed goal. Claiming a loose puck in his own right corner, Penguins defenseman John Marino backhanded a pass to the right circle for Blueger. Turning up ice, Blueger generated a two-on-one rush with Carter against Seider. Taking a pass from Blueger at the offensive blue line, Carter lifted a wrister to the far side that clipped the inside of Nedeljkovic’s right arm and deflected into the cage for Carter’s 16th goal. Assists went to Blueger and Marino. Following the score, Nedeljkovic was pulled in favor of backup Calvin Pickard.

That tactic did little to stymie the Penguins as Rust scored at the 5:57 mark on another power-play opportunity. From the Red Wings’ left circle, Rust fed a pass to the right circle for Crosby. Allowing things to open up for a moment, Crosby fed it back to Rust who leaned down and ripped a near-side wrister for his 22nd goal. Crosby and Malkin tallied assists. The Red Wings called a timeout to get organized.

The Penguins persisted as Malkin scored again at the 7:53 mark. After gaining the zone on the left wing, Rust left a drop pass at the point for Malkin. Taking possession of the puck, Malkin chipped the puck past Red Wings forward Sam Gagner then deked around a poke check from Red Wings forward Adam Erne before firing a wrister from the left circle past Pickard’s blocker on the near side. Rust and linemate Rickard Rakell netted assists. It was Rakell’s first point with the Penguins since being acquired via trade six days prior.

A five-on-three power-play goal got the Red Wings on the scoreboard at 11:37. From the right half wall of the offensive zone, Red Wings forward Jakub Vrana fed a cross-ice pass to the left circle for Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond who quickly shuffled the puck to the right of the crease where linemate Dylan Larkin chopped the puck through goaltender Tristan Jarry’s five hole for his 28th goal. Assists were credited to Raymond and Vrana.

Vrana’s sixth goal made it a 6-2 contest at the 18:04 mark. Pushing play up ice from his own left circle, Matheson had his pocket picked by Vrana who converted that theft into a through Jarry’s five hole. There were no assists.

Crosby converted the extra point at 19:21 to put the Penguins up 7-2. From his own right half wall, Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson connected with Penguins forward Jake Guentzel on a cross-ice stretch pass. Gaining the offensive blue line on the right wing, Guentzel dealt a pass to trailing linemate Evan Rodrigues. Allowing the sequence to develop, Rodrigues slipped a backdoor pass to Crosby who tapped in his 24th goal. Rodrigues and Guentzel collected assists.

The Penguins got another power-play goal by Heinen 2:06 into the third period. Taking a pass in the Red Wings’ right circle, Heinen surveyed the zone and fired a far-side wrister past Pickard’s blocker for his 14th goal. Matheson and Rakell collected assists.

After Pickard left the game due to a suspected injury, Nedeljkovic returned and quickly allowed Malkin to complete completed his hat trick at 5:51 of the third. Off some precision passing, Malkin boomed a one-timer from above the right circle past Nedeljkovic’s blocker on the far side. Rust and Letang had assists.

Boyle got in on the act at 7:15 of the third. Corralling a loose puck in the high slot, Penguins defenseman Chad Ruhwedel chucked a wrister towards the cage. The puck hit Boyle, positioned above the crease. Fending off Oesterle, Boyle backhanded the rebound under Nedeljkovic’s left leg for his eighth goal. Defenseman Chad Ruhwedel and Blueger tallied assists.

Rakell scored his first goal as a member of the Penguins (and 17th of the season) at 17:08 of the third. Off a neutral zone turnover by Red Wings forward Filip Zadina, Matheson claimed the puck and gained the offensive blue line on the left wing the left a drop pass for a trailing Zohorna. From above the left circle, Zohorna centered a pass to the slot for Rakell who gripped and ripped a heavy wrister past Nedeljkovic’s charred glove. Zohorna and Matheson collected assists.

Jarry made 33 saves on 35 shots, improving his record to 33-13-6.

Sunday’s outburst was quite a rebuttal from Friday’s putrid display.

“I was fairly confident we were going to have a spirited effort,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “Obviously, we’ve got a proud group. No one was really thrilled with our last game. Knowing these guys the way that I know them, I expected them to come out and play on their toes and respond.”

Following a scheduled off day on Monday, the Penguins will get another crack at the Rangers at home on Tuesday.

“The next game against New York is going to be a big test for us,” Blueger said. “It’s a good challenge. In a way, it can be good for us that we play them so soon. We’re fighting with them for a playoff spot. That’s a big game for us. Tonight was good but it doesn’t mean anything if we can’t respond the next game.”

Notes:

• The Penguins’ franchise record for goals is 12. That mark was initially set in a 12-1 home win against the Washington Capitals on March 15, 1975. It was matched in a 12-1 home win against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Dec. 26, 1991.

-The Penguins became the first team in nearly 20 years to reach 11 goals in a game. That figure hasn’t been seen since the Capitals claimed a 12-2 home win against the Florida Panthers on Jan. 11, 2003.

• Malkin’s hat trick was the 13th of his career. His most recent three-goal performance came in a 5-2 home win against the San Jose Sharks on Jan. 30, 2018.

• Malkin (440 goals) surpassed Jagr (439) for third place on the franchise’s career goal-scoring list.

• Letang (638 points) surpassed forward Rick Kehoe (636) for fifth place on the franchise’s career scoring list.

• Rust (267 points) surpassed Patric Hornqvist (264) for 31st place on the franchise’s career scoring list.

• Crosby (1,394 points) surpassed forward Brett Hull (1,391) for 23rd place on the NHL’s career scoring list.

• Malkin (1,136 points) surpassed forward Marian Hossa (1,134) for 58th place on the NHL’s career scoring list.

• Rakell became the 549th player to score a regular season goal for the Penguins.

• Zohorna, in his second NHL season, established a new career-high with six points (two goals, four assists) in 16 games. Last season, he recorded four points (two goals, two assists) in eight games.

• The Red Wings had not given up 11 goals since an 11-6 home loss to the Flyers on Feb. 23, 1988.