Penguins’ Sidney Crosby ties Wayne Gretzky on all-time list during Devils game

The Pittsburgh Penguins carried their momentum into Thursday, defeating the New Jersey Devils 4-1 at PPG Paints Arena to extend their winning streak to six games and tie the season series. The night turned into another milestone moment for Sidney Crosby, whose second assist gave him 1,087 career assists with Pittsburgh, tying Wayne Gretzky for the second-most assists with a single NHL franchise, behind only Ray Bourque’s 1,111 assists with the Boston Bruins.

Crosby also pushed his point streak to eight games, his first streak of that length since the 2012–13 season. Over those eight games, he has produced 14 points, including five goals and four consecutive multi-point performances.

The 38-year-old, now in his 20th NHL season, has 49 points, with 24 goals and 25 assists, in 42 games. His career totals now stand at 1,736 points (649 goals, 1,087 assists) in 1,394 regular-season games.

Back from an upper-body injury, Evgeni Malkin helped lead the way, scoring a power-play goal. The 39-year-old forward had missed 15 games since Dec. 4 and scored his ninth goal of the season late in the second period, finishing a 5-on-3 advantage set up by Crosby with eight seconds remaining. Erik Karlsson opened the scoring with a first-period goal and added an assist, stretching his home point streak to nine games. That run includes 12 points and is the second-longest by a Penguins defenseman in the past 30 years.

Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte rounded out the scoring for Pittsburgh. Dewar finished with a goal and an assist, while Lizotte capitalized in the third period for the final goal. The Penguins have earned points in 26 of the 33 games Lizotte has appeared in this season. Rickard Rakell contributed two assists, including primary helpers on the opening two goals.

In net, Stuart Skinner stopped 28 shots for Pittsburgh. New Jersey’s only goal came on a third-period power play from Luke Hughes, who ended the Devils’ stretch of allowing 14 consecutive goals. Jake Allen made 25 saves for New York, which has now lost three straight games and been outscored 16-2 during that span.

The Penguins, who have won seven of their last eight games, will look to keep their winning streak alive when they host the Calgary Flames on Saturday.

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