Penguins Hold Off Late Rangers Rally to Win Sixth Straight, 6-5
For about 40 minutes on Sunday afternoon at PPG Paints Arena, the Pittsburgh Penguins looked like a team firing on all cylinders. Forecheck humming, goals flowing, crowd buzzing. They built a commanding 5-1 lead over the visiting New York Rangers and looked poised to cruise to a statement win.
But then came the third period. And what looked like a laugher quickly turned into a nail-biter.
Still, when the dust settled, the Penguins walked away with a 6-5 victory-their sixth straight-and a reminder that no lead is safe in today’s NHL.
Fast Start, Full Throttle
The Penguins wasted no time taking control of this one. Anthony Mantha opened the scoring just 2:27 in, and Noel Acciari followed with a tally at 6:05 to give Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead after one. Both players would go on to score again, each finishing with a pair of goals on the afternoon.
The second period saw more of the same. The Penguins' forecheck was relentless, forcing turnovers and creating chaos in the Rangers’ zone.
Midway through the frame, Jonathan Quick made a sprawling save on Rickard Rakell, but left the net exposed in the process. Rakell quickly found Mantha in the slot, and the big winger buried his second of the day.
The Rangers got on the board late in the second with a power-play goal from Alexis Lafrenière, but the Penguins responded almost immediately. Just 80 seconds into the third, Rakell struck on the power play, and 20 seconds later, Acciari cashed in from the doorstep to make it 5-1.
At that point, it felt like game over. But the Rangers had other ideas.
Trouble in the Third
With the Penguins on the power play midway through the third, Evgeni Malkin tried to thread a pass into the slot-a risky play that backfired. Vladislav Gavrikov read it perfectly, intercepted the puck, and sprung Pittsburgh native Vincent Trocheck on a breakaway. Trocheck made no mistake, scoring a shorthanded goal that gave the Rangers a spark.
Gavrikov followed up with a goal of his own just a few minutes later, blasting a one-timer from the right circle to cut the deficit to 5-3. Suddenly, the Penguins’ comfortable lead didn’t feel so comfortable.
Fortunately for Pittsburgh, rookie Ben Kindel provided some breathing room. With Quick pulled for an extra attacker, Kindel fired the puck into the empty net with 2:32 left to restore a three-goal cushion.
And it turns out, they needed every bit of it.
Lafrenière scored his second of the game with just over a minute to go, and Will Cuylle added another with 11 seconds left to make it 6-5. The Penguins held on, but not without a few tense moments down the stretch.
Standouts and Streaks
Let’s start with Mantha, who is absolutely rolling right now. With two more goals in this one, he’s up to five goals and eight points over his last four games. He’s playing with confidence and making a noticeable impact on both ends of the ice.
The fourth line was outstanding, too. Acciari had two goals, while linemates Blake Lizotte and Connor Dewar each chipped in with two assists. That trio combined for six points and a plus-6 rating-exactly the kind of depth production that fuels win streaks.
Rakell added a goal and an assist, and Sidney Crosby snapped a brief two-game scoring drought with a helper of his own. And then there’s Kindel, who’s heating up at just the right time. After going 19 games without a goal, he now has four in his last three and is up to 12 on the season-matching Trocheck’s total.
Rutger McGroarty also continues to impress since his call-up, picking up an assist and showing the kind of energy that makes it tough to send him back to Wilkes-Barre.
On the blue line, Erik Karlsson quietly notched his 700th career assist-no small feat, and a testament to his consistency and vision over the years.
Goaltending and Defensive Woes
It wasn’t Stuart Skinner’s best night-he stopped just 15 of 20 shots-but the breakdowns in front of him didn’t help. The Penguins got loose with the puck in the third period and struggled to close out the game cleanly. Still, Skinner is 8-1 in his last nine starts, and this one feels more like a team lapse than an individual issue.
The Penguins were also without Kris Letang, who was placed on long-term injured reserve with a fractured foot. He’s expected to miss about a month, but the timing aligns with the upcoming Olympic break, which could soften the blow.
Connor Clifton stepped in and delivered a solid performance, logging three hits, four blocked shots, and a key keep-in that led to Acciari’s first goal. Ilya Solovyov also held his own in limited minutes, finishing with a plus-2 rating and continuing to make the most of his opportunity.
The Road Ahead
With the win, the Penguins improve to 28-14-11 (67 points) and remain in second place in the Metropolitan Division, two points ahead of the Islanders and six up on both Columbus and Washington.
They’ll close out their pre-Olympic schedule with back-to-back games against the Senators and Islanders, with the latter carrying major implications in the standings. Then it’s off to Buffalo to face a red-hot Sabres team on Thursday night.
Since snapping their eight-game losing streak, the Penguins have gone 14-3-2, including a 13-2-2 run since Christmas. That’s a serious turnaround-and it’s come at the perfect time.
A Decade Later
The Penguins also celebrated the 10th anniversary of their 2016 Stanley Cup win, and it’s remarkable how many key players from that team are still contributing. Crosby, Malkin, Letang, and Bryan Rust are not just hanging on-they’re producing and leading the way.
Ten years later, they’re still writing new chapters. And if the Penguins can clean up their third-period habits, this season might just have another one worth remembering.