National Hockey League
Pittsburgh 5, Florida 4
When: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, December 3, 2024
Where: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Referees: Travis Gawryletz, Jordan Samuels-Thomas
Linesmen: Michel Cormier, Andrew Smith
Attendance: 15502

Bryan Rust scored the game-winning goal 91 seconds into overtime to lift the host Pittsburgh Penguins past Florida Panthers 5-4 on Tuesday.

In a battle of teams with three-game winning streaks, the Penguins won despite giving up a 4-1 third-period lead. They needed the 32-year-old right wing's eighth goal of the season to secure the second point.

Pittsburgh won despite being outshot 41-16. Tristan Jarry saved a season-high 37 shots. Florida put pressure on Jarry throughout, but the former All-Star netminder, who was sent to the AHL in late October after posting a 5.47 goals-against average through his first three starts, stopped several quality chances.

Despite being outshot 13-5 in the first period, Pittsburgh took a 2-0 lead midway through it on goals 1:12 apart from the Penguins' youngest and oldest players.

Defenseman Owen Pickering celebrated his first NHL goal on a blueline blast in his sixth game. Evgeni Malkin, 38, followed up the 20-year-old's milestone with 9:28 left in the period for his 504th goal.

For Pittsburgh, Marcus Pettersson and Kris Letang also scored and Blake Lizotte notched two assists.

Matthew Tkachuk scored a season-high four points (two goals and two assists), which put him above 600 career points. His second goal of the game came on a power play with 8:33 remaining in regulation for a 4-4 tie.

Sam Bennett scored a goal for the fourth straight game for Florida, which also got a goal from Adam Boqvist. Both of those goals came in the third before Tkachuk's equalizer.

Goalie Spencer Knight started for the Panthers with Sergei Bobrovsky stayed back in South Florida because he and his wife are expecting a baby. Knight made 11 saves.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Penguins activated Cody Glass from injured reserve. The 25-year-old center, acquired through a trade with the Nashville Predators in August, had been on IR since Nov. 8 due to a concussion.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Florida   Pittsburgh
Matthew Tkachuk 4 Points Evgeni Malkin 2
Matthew Tkachuk 2 Goals Evgeni Malkin 1
Matthew Tkachuk 2 Assists Blake Lizotte 2
Matthew Tkachuk 1 Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Spencer Knight .688 Save Percentage Tristan Jarry .902
Spencer Knight 11 Saves Tristan Jarry 37
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Florida 41 4 1-1 1-1 4 36
Pittsburgh 16 5 0-1 0-1 4 34
Upcoming Games
  • Pittsburgh will play their next game on the road against NY Rangers. The Penguins have a W/L % of .455 after a win and .375 after a loss.
  • Florida will play their next game on the road against Philadelphia. The Panthers have a W/L % of .625 after a win and .500 after a loss.