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Penguins give up 4-goal lead in overtime loss to Avalanche | TribLIVE.com
Penguins/NHL

Penguins give up 4-goal lead in overtime loss to Avalanche

Seth Rorabaugh
Seth Rorabaugh
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Penguins center Sidney Crosby shoots on Avalanche goaltender Alexandar Georgiev after driving past center Yakov Trenin in the first period Sunday in Denver.
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The Penguins’ Marcus Pettersson defends Avalanche right wing Mikko Rantanen in the first period Sunday.
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Penguins goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic stops a shot in the second period against the Avalanche on Sunday.
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Penguins center Sidney Crosby skates past Avalanche left wing Artturi Lehkonen in the second period Sunday.
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Penguins right wing Jesse Puljujarvi slides to recover the puck in the second period against the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.
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Penguins center Sidney Crosby talks with right wing Bryan Rust in the second period against the Avalanche on Sunday.
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Penguins right wing Jesse Puljujarvi (center) is congratulated by right wing Reilly Smith after scoring a goal as Avalanche defenseman Devon Toews reacts in the first period Sunday.
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Penguins center Evgeni Malkin tries to get around Avalanche defenseman Samuel Girard in the second period Sunday.
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Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson knocks over Avalanche left wing Artturi Lehkonen in the second period Sunday.
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Penguins right wing Jesse Puljujarvi (left) checks Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson in the first period Sunday.
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Avalanche defenseman Samuel Girard tries to get the puck from Penguins left wing Drew O’Connor in the first period Sunday.
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Penguins right wing Valtteri Puustinen puts a shot on Avalanche goaltender Alexandar Georgiev as Josh Manson defends in the first period Sunday.
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Penguins center Sidney Crosby, front left, is congratulated after scoring in the second period against the Avalanche on Sunday.

Despite a four-point effort by forward Sidney Crosby, the Penguins collapsed Sunday as they surrendered a four-goal lead and fell to the Colorado Avalanche, 5-4, in overtime at Ball Arena in Denver.

A goal by forward Jonathan Drouin 54 seconds into the extra period was the difference.

The result extended a losing streak to three games, and it was the Penguins’ 11th loss in their past 14 games (3-10-1).

“You can see in the first half of the game, we played on our toes,” Penguins forward Bryan Rust said to the Associated Press in Denver. “We played in their face, and if we do that, we can be better than any team.”

Penguins forward Noel Acciari did not record a shift past the 3:13 mark of the second. According to the AP, Sullivan said Acciari was being evaluated for an undisclosed injury.

Penguins forward Jesse Puljujarvi opened the scoring 7:53 into regulation with his second goal of the season.

Settling a loose puck at the top of the left circle of the offensive zone, Crosby circumnavigated his way above the opposite circle and flung a backhander toward the cage. Goaltender Alexandar Georgiev aggressively sprung to his left to make the initial save but allowed the rebound to hop over him to the opposite side of the crease. Penguins forward Reilly Smith and Puljujarvi each jabbed at the puck as Avalanche defenseman Devon Toews tried to defend it. Ultimately, Puljujarvi was credited with the score off assists from Smith and Crosby.

The Penguins doubled their lead at 15:11 of the first period via forward Bryan Rust’s 22nd goal.

After stealing a puck off Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen at the center red line, Crosby dished a short-area pass to Rust, who raced into the offensive zone on the left wing. Surging past passive resistance by Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson, Rust cut across the front of the crease and tucked a forehand shot by Georgiev’s left skate. The lone assist went to Crosby.

Crosby’s 34th goal came at 13:47 of the second period.

Off a two-on-one rush with linemate Drew O’Connor, Crosby leaned down and swiped a one-timer from the Avalanche’s right circle. Georgiev fought off the shot and directed the rebound to the right side along the goal line. Backchecking Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon beat Crosby to the rebound but wound up sending it to the right point, where it was corralled by Penguins rookie forward Valtteri Puustinen. Alertly, Puustinen one-touched the puck to the right of the cage, where Crosby deftly deflected it with the forehand side of his stick by Georgiev’s left shoulder on the near side. Puustinen had the only assist.

Less than two minutes later at the 15:40 mark, Penguins defenseman P.O Joseph scored his first goal of the season to make it 4-0.

Cycling around the right corner of the offensive zone, Crosby dished a pass to the high slot for Joseph. Adjusting a bit to create a shooting lane, Joseph chucked a wrister that beat Georgiev’s blocker. Penguins forward Emil Bemstrom supplied an effective screen on the sequence. Crosby and defenseman Kris Letang claimed assists.

The Avalanche got on the scoreboard only 25 seconds later with defenseman Sean Walker’s ninth goal.

Skating behind the Penguins’ net, Avalanche forward Ross Colton attempted a pass from the right of the cage but was off the mark, and the puck skidded to the right point, where it was settled by Walker. Surveying the scene, Walker snapped a wrister through traffic and past goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic’s blocker on the far side. Avalanche forward Zach Parise presented a stout screen in front of Nedeljkovic. Colton and linemate Miles Wood had assists.

Late in the second period at the 19:30 mark, Avalanche forward Yakov Trenin collected his 11th goal to make it 4-2.

Off a rush into the offensive zone, Walker gripped and ripped a heavy wrister from the high slot that clanked off the left post. The rebound bounced to the left circle, where Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson claimed it and tried to clear, but his backhanded attempt was partially broken up by Avalanche forward Artturi Lehkonen and stolen by Avalanche forward Brandon Duhaim between the upper hashmarks. Considering his options, Duhaime released a wrister that glanced off Trenin then clunked off Nedeljkovic’s left leg and hopped into the cage. The only assist went to Duhaime.

Drouin pulled his team within one with his 13th goal of the season 3:32 into the third period.

Following an offensive-zone entry by Toews, MacKinnon drove the puck up the left-wing boards and pulled up on the half-wall. Identifying a passing lane, MacKinnon fed a seam pass to the right faceoff dot, where Drouin swept a one-timer by Nedeljkovic’s blocker on the far side. MacKinnon and Toews tallied assists.

Nedeljkovic was pulled from the game and replaced by Tristan Jarry at 5:14 of the third period following a collision with Avalanche forward Casey Mittelstadt, according to the Penguins’ radio broadcast. Per one of the Penguins’ X accounts, Nedeljkovic told media in Denver he was pulled from the game by the NHL’s independent concussion spotter for evaluation.

Less than 10 minutes later, MacKinnon tied the score at the 15:22 mark with his 44th goal.

Gaining the offensive blue line at the center point, Toews offloaded the puck to the right wing for Drouin. Advancing to the half-wall, Drouin slipped a seam pass to the left circle for MacKinnon, who leaned down to his right knee and clapped a one-timer by Jarry’s blocker on the near side. Drouin and Toews had assists.

After that score, Nedeljkovic returned to replace Jarry, who finished with four saves on five shots.

Drouin’s winning goal came early in overtime.

Taking advantage of the open expanse offered with three-on-three play, Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar fed a pass from the neutral zone up the right wing, allowing Drouin to race into the offensive zone with speed. Surging past Letang, Drouin leveled out on his approach to the cage, avoiding a sprawling poke check attempt by Nedeljkovic and lifted a wrister into the cage. Makar and MacKinnon collected assists.

“He was the best player on the ice,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said to the AP regarding Drouin. “He was phenomenal tonight. Drouin from start to finish was the catalyst for our offense.”

Nedeljkovic stopped 21 of 25 shots as his record slipped to 10-6-5.

Notes:

• Penguins forward Jeff Carter (undisclosed injury) and defenseman Ryan Graves (family matters) were scratched.

• The Penguins had a three-game winning streak against the Avalanche snapped. That was tied for their longest active winning streak against any one opponent. They have also won three consecutive games against the Montreal Canadiens.

• This marked the third time in franchise history that the Penguins lost despite holding a four-goal lead.

• Joseph went almost exactly a year between goals. Before Sunday, his most recent score came in a 3-2 road loss to the Dallas Stars on March 23, 2023.

• The Penguins’ last overtime loss to the Avalanche was a 4-3 defeat at PPG Paints Arena on Oct. 17, 2016. Forward Gabriel Landeskog scored the winning goal against goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.

Drouin now has 20 points (10 goals, 10 assists) in 21 career games against the Penguins.

• MacKinnon extended a home scoring streak to 34 games. Only Los Angeles Kings forward Wayne Gretzky (40 games) had a longer such streak in 1988-89.

• Duhaime appeared in his 200th career game.

Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.

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