Observations from the Penguins’ 5-2 win against the Devils:

It was not Kris Letang’s finest moment.

In fact, it was a selfish moment. It was a moment that gave all his many critics plenty of ammunition for their argument against his value to this team.

It was just stupid.

As the Penguins protected a 2-1 lead, forward Sidney Crosby was sent to the penalty box after high sticking Devils forward Nico Hischier 3:36 into the third period.

All of 18 seconds later, Letang came up short for his team when he got into a battle with Devils forward Miles Wood, a world-class antagonist. After exchanging a few bumps, Letang slashed Wood’s stick out of hands and was given a minor penalty.

That gave the Devils a whopping 1:42 of five-on-three power play time.

Out of Letang’s bad moment came a good moment for his teammates, specifically the five players they used to kill that.

Forwards Teddy Blueger and Bryan Rust were out there for the entire 1:42. Brian Dumoulin was able to change with Jack Johnson mid-way through. All four were keyed in on the large task at hand and limited the Devils to three shots.

And of course, the most important penalty killer of the group, Matt Murray, stopped all three of those shots.

It was a time for the Penguins’ secondary players to step up with one of their main stars let them down.

“We knew we were going to have to bear down,” Rust said. “We probably knew were going to have to block a couple of shots. Everybody when out there and stepped up.”

Their success allowed Evgeni Malkin to secure the win with two goals.

The Devils don’t have a dynamic power play by any means. They are a rebuilding team and the level of this challenge should be kept in perspective.

But given the overall funk the Penguins have been in for the past three weeks, this was a significant triumph within a key divisional victory for them.

“That was awesome,” Murray said. “Teddy had a huge block. (Rust) had a huge block. … All of us were blocking shots out there and doing what it took to get the job done. That’s what you need to win in this league.”

What happened

The Penguins took the game’s first lead 8:29 into regulation. After Devils rookie forward Jack Hughes fumbled a puck at his own right point, Penguins forward Jared McCann swiped it off of him, retreated a bit to the neutral zone and centered a pass for forward Evan Rodrigues. Gaining the offensive zone, Rodrigues pulled up on the left half wall, surveyed the zone and lifted a wrister which made its way through a forest of bodies and beat goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood’s glove hand on the far side. It was Rodrigues’ first goal as a member of the Penguin and sixth of the season. McCann had the lone assist.

(Video courtesy NHL)

At 12:46 of the first period, the Devils responded with a power-play goal. With Johnson in the penalty box for a delay of game minor, Devils forward Pavel Zacha gained the offensive zone on the left wing then fed a pass to forward Nikita Gusev driving up the right wing. From just above the right dot, Gusev gripped and ripped a wrister which bounced off Murray’s glove hand and into the cage for his 13th goal. Assists went to Zach and defenseman P.K. Subban.

(Video courtesy NHL)

Penguins defenseman Justin Schultz restored a lead for the Penguins, 2-1, at 4:15 of the second period. After taking the puck from Hischier at the Penguins’ blue line, Rust pushed the puck up the right wing through the neutral zone and gained the offensive zone at center point, making a pass to Malkin on the left wing. Malkin held up for a moment and fed a pass to Schultz rushing in from the right wing. From just inside the right circle, Schultz fired a wrister past Blackwood’s glove on the near side, off the cross bar and in. It was Shultz’s third on the season. Malkin and Rust netted assists.

(Video courtesy NHL)

The Devils had a chance to tie the game when, following a successful penalty kill, Hughes emerged from the penalty box to claim a loose puck in the neutral zone and created a breakaway. Attacking the net, Hughes’ wrist shot was kicked out by Murray’s right leg at 9:24 of the second period.

(Video courtesy NHL)

Murray made a desperate, diving scrambling with his midsection on a wraparound attempt by Devils forward Kyle Palmieri at 19:25 of the second to prevent another goal.

(Video courtesy NHL)

The Penguins got an insurance goal at 7:11 of the third. After Subban sent an errant pass out of his own left corner to the neutral zone, Letang claimed the puck and fed it to Malkin. Gaining the offensive zone, Malkin fired a wrister from the right circle to the far side which glanced off of Blackwood’s blocker and fluttered into the cage for his 24th goal. Letang had the lone assist.

(Video courtesy NHL)

Wood made it a one-goal game at 10:24 of the third with his 11th goal of the season. After a turnover in the offensive zone by Dumoulin, Hischier settled the puck in the slot and flipped it over Letang to create an outlet for the speedy Wood. From the right circle, Wood was able to fire a wrister to the far side past Murray’s glove. The only assist went to Hischier.

(Video courtesy NHL)

Malkin restored a two-goal lead for the Penguins at 13:18 of the third. Under pressure from a forechecking Rust, Devils defenseman Connor Carrick fed a bad pass out of his right corner to Wood in the right circle and created a turnover, Malkin jumped all over it and fired a wrister to the far side past Blackwood’s blocker. There were no assists.

(Video courtesy NHL)

An empty net goal by Letang at 18:45 of the third capped the scoring. There were no assists.

(Video courtesy NHL)

Statistically speaking

• The Penguins led in shots, 33-22.

• Hischier led the game with five shots.

• Hornqvist, Malkin and Schultz each led the Penguins with four shots.

• Subban led the game with 27:10 of ice time 30 shifts.

• Letang led the Penguins with 24:03 of ice time on 28 shifts.

• The Penguins had a 31-20 lead in faceoffs (61 percent).

• Devils forward Travis Zajac was 8 for 13 (62 percent).

• Crosby was 11 for 20 (55 percent).

• Devils defensemen Dakota Mermis and Damon Severson each led the game with five blocked shots.

• Hornqvist, Letang and Malkin each led the Penguins with two blocked shots.

Historically speaking

• Rodrigues is the 533rd player to score a regular season goal for the Penguins.

• Rust (170 points) surpassed forwards Troy Loney, Ryan Malone and Rod Schutt (169 each) for 48th place on the franchise’s career scoring list.

• Schultz (113 points) surpassed Shawn McEachern (112) for 78th place on the franchise’s all-time scoring list.

Randomly speaking

• Schultz’s goal was his first since he scored in a 3-2 overtime road loss to the New York Rangers on Nov. 12.

• We feel like we’re burying the lede a bit by not singing the praises of Malkin a little more prominently, but he was tuned in during this game. He was roaming the ice almost like a bully and intimidating the limited Devils, not necessarily with any sort of physical threat of harm but with the threat of what he could do with the puck. He was a major component of this triumph.

• Murray wasn’t perfect. The first goal he allowed was really leaky. But he stole a few goals at the same time. This was a good game for him, albeit with a few warts.

• The Penguins’ power play was blanked going 0 for 4. But they looked a lot better. The puck support for the puck carrier was much, much more evident than in recent games. They almost looked like they were “forechecking” in order to offer a passing option.

• Rodrigues continues to look better and better with each game. He just seems like another player they can slot in where ever he is needed and he’ll offer something helpful. He’s really adapted well to his new team.

Publicly speaking

• Coach Mike Sullivan on the significance of the victory:

“That’s one of the better games that we’ve played, one of the more complete games that we’ve played in a while. All four lines were going. The defensemen all competed out there. We were playing the game the right way.”

• Murray on the significance of the victory:

“Tonight was a step in the right direction for sure. We did everything that we needed to. We stayed on our toes. If we keep building on this one, we’ll be in good shape.”

• Marino on the victory:

“It kind of felt like everyone was back on track. We played together. There was a lot more energy on the bench. You could just feel it. Hopefully, we use this as a stepping stone and continue.”

• Rodrigues on how the Penguins’ played:

“We played really well. When we let in goals or when they scored, we had a big bounce back. They didn’t really have any sustained pressure. They were kind of one and done or they’d have one good shift and not really roll them over. I thought we did a good job of containing them and didn’t give them too many grade A chances.

• Sullivan on Letang’s penalty:

“Kris and I haven’t had a conversation. But we probably will.”

• Sullivan on Schultz’ first goal since November:

“Number one, it was a huge goal for us. But it’s good for Justin too. He’s a guy we rely on offensively. He’s capable of creating. And he knows that. Justin would have liked to have scored more goals for us this year or helped us in that capacity. As I’ve said to him on a number of occasions, you can’t always control whether or not the puck goes in the net. You just try to focus on playing the right way and the process.”

• Rust on Schultz’s goal:

“That was awesome. He’s a guy that’s such a big part of this team. To score a big goal like that, especially a nice bar-down snipe like that, was nice.”

• Marino was asked how they carry this success over to their game against the Blue Jackets on Thursday:

“The start of the games are huge. Today, everyone was kind of wound up on the bench to begin the game. That’s huge for a team to get going and build some confidence right away. If we continue that, we’ll be okay.”

• Murray was asked, tongue-in-cheek, if he had a wager on the game with Blackwood, a friend and fellow native of Thunder Bay, Ont.:

“No, no. It’s just nice to see him. He’s playing well. He’s a good kid. We know each other pretty well. We played in Slovakia (at the IIHF World Championship tournament) together last year. It’s just cool to have two guys from the same small hometown playing against each other. Always a fun moment when that happens.”

Visually speaking

• Game summary.

• Event summary.

• Highlights:

Follow the Penguins all season long.

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