Johnny Gaudreau Scores the First Goal of the Game but Two Second-period Goals by Sidney Crosby Push the Penguins Past the Blue Jackets 4-1

By Coby Maeir on December 6, 2022 at 9:55 pm
Jason Zucker & Elvis Merzlikins
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
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Still can't win in Pitt.

Johnny Gaudreau scored the opening goal of the game but two second-period goals from Sidney Crosby helped push the Penguins past the Blue Jackets 4-1 Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

1st Period

Gaudreau opened the scoring just 60 seconds into the game after receiving a cross-ice feed from Laine that he took to the left circle and fired a wrist shot past the glove of Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry, beating him top-shelf.

  1 2 3 F
BLUE JACKETS 1 0 0 1
PIT PENGUINS 0 3 1 4

The Jackets had a good chance to double their lead when Kent Johnson found Gustav Nyquist in front of the net with a spin-o-Rama pass, but he was denied by Jarry with 10:56 left. Nyquist did draw a cross-checking penalty, but the Jackets couldn't convert on the ensuing power play. 

The Jackets took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission along with a 10-9 edge in shots on goal. 

2nd period

The second period wasn't kind to the Blue Jackets.

Just 1:15 into the middle frame, Bryan Rust beat Elvis Merzlikins' five-hole from the left doorstep after a net-front scramble to tie the game.

Pittsburgh scored just 47 seconds later when Crosby fired a rebound from just outside the blue paint past Merzlikins.

With 15:56 to go, Merzlikins robbed Jason Zucker on a wrap-and-stuff chance from the left doorstep, keeping the deficit at one.

Crosby scored again, this time on the power play, at 10:14 from the right doorstep after deflecting a shot by Jake Guentzel.

Pittsburgh took a 3-1 lead into the final period of regulation and a 27-23 edge in shots on goal.

Third Period

The Penguins went on the power play just 41 seconds into the period, but thanks to two huge blocks by Vladislav Gavrikov and a couple of saves from Merzlikins, they couldn't extend their lead.

Laine nearly cut the lead in half with 11:29 in regulation with a between-the-legs shot in front of the blue paint but Jarry denied him.

The Jackets had three good chances to score between the 9:24 and 10:21 marks. The first was a Cole Sillinger shot from the left circle, the second was a Nyquist shot from the right circle, and the third was a tip-in chance from Kirill Marchenko, who made his NHL debut along with Tim Berni. All three shots were stopped by Jarry.

Pittsburgh put the nail in the coffin with 3:27 left at four-on-four as Merzlikins was skating to the bench but had to retreat to try and save a shot by Rust from center ice, but couldn't stop Teddy Blueger, who was denied by Merzlikins on a second-period penalty shot, from the right circle.

The Jackets lost 4-1 and fell to 8-14-2 on the season.

Stats

  • Shots on Goal: CBJ 39-34 PIT
  • Faceoff %: CBJ 52.6-47.4 PIT
  • Power play: CBJ 0/5-1/5 PIT
  • Takeaways: CBJ 5-9 PIT
  • Giveaways: CBJ 4-8 PIT
  • Blocked shots: CBJ 9-25 PIT
  • Hits: CBJ 27-29 PIT

Injury Update

No players left tonight's game with injuries.

Next Up

The Jackets are back Wednesday as they'll host the Buffalo Sabres at 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT.

Johnny Gaudreau will face the Calgary Flames for the first time in his career on Friday at Nationwide Arena at 7 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.

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