Tommy Novak turned a wild Saturday night in Pittsburgh into a finish the Penguins could actually celebrate.
Novak scored twice, and his second goal came 1:33 into overtime on a 2-on-1 set up by Evgeni Malkin, lifting Pittsburgh to a 6-5 win over the Montreal Canadiens after the Penguins watched a four-goal lead disappear.
Malkin was everywhere in this one. He scored on the power play, added two assists and reached 1,411 career points, moving past Dale Hawerchuk into 22nd place in NHL history. Sidney Crosby also chipped in with an assist, the 1,109th of his career, which tied Hall of Fame forward Joe Thornton for seventh on the league’s all-time list.
Pittsburgh’s scoring came in waves, especially during a second period that flipped the game hard in the Penguins’ favor. Ben Kindel, recently activated from injured reserve, scored on the power play, while Sam Girard and Declan Carlile also found the net. By the time the middle frame was done, the Penguins had built a 5-1 cushion.
That cushion didn’t last.
Montreal, which came in trying to start a season 2-0 for the first time since 2015-16, kept pushing back. Cole Caufield scored twice, and Nick Suzuki, Chris Kreider and Ivan Demidov also beat Arturs Silovs.
The Canadiens were still down 5-1 in the second period before Suzuki started the rally at 18:46 of that frame. Caufield, Kreider and Demidov then finished the job in the third, with Kreider scoring with 1:08 left and Demidov tying it with 44 seconds remaining in regulation.
Silovs finished with 20 saves for Pittsburgh, while Jakub Dobes stopped 24 shots for Montreal.
The Penguins also had a bit of ceremony before the puck dropped, with franchise icon, former owner and Hockey Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux taking part in a ceremonial puck drop as the team celebrated its 60th season.
Pittsburgh outshot Montreal 23-5 over a 25-minute stretch while building that 5-1 lead, then had to survive the Canadiens’ late surge before Novak ended it in overtime.
Up next, the Canadiens begin a four-game homestand Tuesday against Carolina. The Penguins host Winnipeg on Monday before playing six of their next seven on the road.
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