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Ducks quack under Penguins' pressure
The Penguins beat the Anaheim Ducks 5-2 before 17,052 at Mellon Arena Monday night, giving them 11 goals in their last two games.
That outburst has followed back-to-back shutouts as the team struggled to adjust to a sudden outbreak of injuries that radically diminished the lineup.
The medical issues are an ongoing process as the Penguins face a three-game trip, but they have proven to themselves they can win with a depleted lineup.
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"To our credit, we battled and worked. It's not as pretty as some other points we've gotten, but certainly (they're) two big wins going on the road."
The struggling Ducks were probably the perfect opponent for the finale of the three-game homestand.
Anaheim is at the bottom of the standings, already 17 points off the pace for first place in the Pacific Division.
The Ducks were also at the end of an unproductive eastern trip.
The Penguins took the lead at 1:31 of the first period when Matt Cooke backhanded a shot past goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere.
Pittsburgh's 0-for-30 power play drought ended at 5:13 of the first. Sidney Crosby made a pass to Bill Guerin, who rocketed a one-timer past Giguere for a 2-0 lead.
The 39-year-old Guerin later fought 24-year-old Ryan Getzlaf, which seemed to give the Penguins an emotional boost.
"When he's at his best, he's playing with an edge, and you saw that tonight," Byslma said of Guerin.
Anaheim cut the lead in half at 9:06 as Todd Marchant scored on a shorthanded breakaway.
The Penguins restored the two-goal lead with Jordan Staal's shorthanded goal at 9:)6 of the second.
Sprung by a pass from Deryk Engelland, Staal took off on a breakaway and tucked a backhander behind Giguere.
"He made a great play to get me the puck and I just took off," Staal said.
Engelland had a big game with five hits and a plus-three rating.
With Alex Goligoski (lower body) joining an injury list that already includes fellow defensemen Sergei Gonchar, Brooks Orpik and Kris Letang, it's critical that some of the replacements called up from the minor leagues step up.
Engelland and Ben Lovejoy each had an assist, and Engelland's was his first NHL point.
"We didn't have many options other than to throw those guys in the fire against some pretty good players," Bylsma said. "We put them on the power play in some situations. They made smart plays with the puck, and they gave us a chance defensively to get to the offensive zone. They played real well tonight."
The Penguins were comfortable after reclaiming the two-goal lead, but it took a shot off a goal post and an arm save by Marc-Andre Fleury to keep the Ducks from getting back in the game.
Martin Skoula made it 4-2 at 3:28 of the third with a 45-foot wrist shot through Mike Rupp's screen. Teemu Selanne got a bouncing puck past Fleury at 17:21, but Cooke hit the empty net in the final minute.
"There are still some areas we want to improve on, but we'll take the two points," Crosby said. "It's not easy, especially now with the guys we're missing."
Notes
Defenseman Nate Guenin, a product of Hopewell High School, made his Penguins debut and had five hits in 14:42, even though he was minus-1...Crosby had one assist. Evgeni Malkin didn't have a point, but had a team-high four shots on goal...The Penguins out-hit the Ducks, 32-20. Cooke had six hits, Engelland and Guenin each had five, and Crosby had four... Defenseman Jay McKee blocked five shots, including one off his chest that had him slumped on the bench in pain afterward...The Ducks were without Saku Koivu, who has a lower-body injury...The Penguins were given today off. They will practice Wednesday morning before leaving for Ottawa. ... Gonchar has been cleared for contact in practice and is no longer wearing a cast on his injured right wrist.
