Sidney Crosby records hat trick as Penguins top Blue Jackets, extend winning streak to 5

It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon or a veteran of nearly two decades in the NHL to realize that games against divisional foes command more gravity than other contests.

Regardless, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, a mere 19 years into his NHL career, implored that axiom when queried in advance of his team’s first meeting with the Metropolitan Division rival Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday.

“They’re all huge (with) just the way the playoff format is huge,” Crosby said following practice in Cranberry on Monday. “You see the strength of our division. Every single point you can grab against a divisional team is massive. You have to understand that.”

Crosby appeared to have a firm grasp of the assignment Tuesday as he led his team with a dominant performance in a 5-3 triumph at Nationwide Arena in Columbus. The victory extended a winning streak to a season-best five games.

With a hat trick and an assist, Crosby extended a scoring streak to nine games.

“I thought we felt pretty comfortable throughout the night, as far as how we were playing and what we’re generating,” Crosby told the Associated Press in Columbus.

Crosby opened the scoring 4:10 into regulation with his eighth goal of the season.

From the center point of the offensive zone, Penguins defenseman Kris Letang swatted a one-timer that missed the mark to the right of the cage and struck off the end boards. The puck bounced through the legs of Blue Jackets rookie forward Dmitri Voronkov into the right circle, where Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson one-touched a backhand pass to Crosby, just below the circle. In one motion, Crosby fired a wrister over goaltender Elvis Merzlikins’ left leg on the near side. Pettersson and Letang had assists.

The Blue Jackets responded at 10:29 of the first period via forward Kirill Marchenko’s fourth goal.

Picking up a loose puck in his own zone, Marchenko transitioned to the attack, surged through the neutral zone and gained the Penguins’ blue line on the right wing. Unimpeded by a passive stick check attempt by Penguins defenseman Ryan Shea in the right circle, Marchenko veered to the slot and flipped a backhander that found an avenue between goaltender Tristan Jarry’s left arm and thigh. There were no assists.

That score snapped a shutout sequence of 119:24 for Jarry over four games.

Forward Yegor Chinakhov supplied the hosts with their first lead late in the opening period at the 19:28 mark.

Settling a rimmed puck at the right point of the offensive zone, former Penguins defenseman Erik Gudbranson dished a forehand pass to Chinakhov in the right circle. Curling to his right, Chinakhov lifted a heavy wrister that beat Jarry, once again between his left arm and thigh, on the near side. Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner provided a strong screen on the sequence. Gudbranson and defenseman Zach Werenski claimed assists.

Things were tied again, 2-2, 7:04 into the second period when Penguins forward Jake Guentzel scored his sixth goal.

Cycling out of the Blue Jackets’ right corner, Crosby fed a pass from the right half wall to the slot for forward Vinnie Hinostroza darting off the bench during a line change. Running into Gudbranson, Hinostroza was unable to cleanly accept the pass. But Guentzel, loitering near the right hashmarks, located the loose puck in the slot and shuffled a forehand shot through Merzlikins’ five hole. Assists went to Hinostroza and Crosby.

Defenseman Erik Karlsson’s sixth goal restored a lead for the Penguins, 3-2, at 8:40 of the third period.

Taking the puck at the right half wall of the offensive zone, Malkin slipped a cross-ice pass to Karlsson, who golfed a one-timer from above the left circle under Merzlikins’ right arm on the near side. Malkin and linemate Rickard Rakell registered assists. Karlsson’s scoring streak was extended to six games.

The Blue Jackets persisted and tied the game again, 3-3, 3:05 later thanks to forward Alexandre Texier’s third goal.

Chasing a puck dumped into the Penguins’ right corner, Blue Jackets forward Justin Danforth hustled past Penguins defensemen Ryan Graves and Kris Letang to claim possession then dished a pass to the right of the cage for linemate Sean Kuraly, who shuffled a forehand shot on net. The puck banked off of Jarry’s left leg and bounced to the left of the crease, where Texier cleaned it up with a wrister into a mostly vacant cage. Kuraly and Danforth had assists.

Crosby scored again at 14:28 to give his team another lead, 4-3, at 14:28 of the third.

From near the left corner of the offensive zone, Crosby moved a pass to the slot, potentially intended for linemate Bryan Rust. The puck missed the mark and was corralled at the right point by Karlsson, who hesitated for a moment, allowing Crosby to set up shop to the right of the crease. Karlsson then chopped a forehand pass to Crosby, who made a dazzling deflection with his stick over Merzlikins’ left shoulder on the near side. Karlsson and Guentzel tallied assists.

Crosby completed his hat trick and secured victory with an empty net goal at 19:23 of the final frame. Rust had the lone assist.

Jarry made 28 saves on 31 shots as his record improved to 6-5-0. He has won four consecutive games.

“We’re trying to play the game the right way, and we’re trying to work collectively as a group,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan told the AP. “It was a good team effort. We stayed with it.”

Notes:

• Crosby had the Penguins’ last hat trick against the Blue Jackets. During a 5-2 road win on Jan. 21, 2022, Crosby had three goals and an assist.

• The Penguins’ scratches were forward Jeff Carter (undisclosed injury) and defenseman P.O Joseph (healthy).

• In seven career games against the Penguins, Merzlikins remains winless (0-6-0).