Ilya Kovalchuk and rookie Adam Henrique collected a goal and an assist apiece as the New Jersey Devils defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second time in eight days with a 3-1 road triumph on Saturday.
With the victory, the Devils (48 points) moved past the Penguins (46 points) for third place in the Atlantic Division.
Dainius Zubrus provided insurance with a power-play goal 1:28 into the third period. Zubrus netted his 12th of the season after finishing off a tic-tac-toe passing play with Kovalchuk and Patrik Elias.
The Devils scored twice in the second period to take a 2-1 lead. There was confusion on the first goal as netminder Marc-Andre Fleury stopped Henrique on a shorthanded breakaway. Henrique, however, grabbed the puck and put it in the net before Fleury could cover it. It was originally called a no-goal, but Henrique was later credited with his 12th of the season.
Kovalchuk scored his 15th goal of the campaign at 11:23 off a blast from the point. Captain Zach Parise assisted on both goals in the second period.
Evgeni Malkin scored his 16th goal of the season - and first in seven games - at 4:48 of the first period for the Penguins, who lost their fourth straight game.
New Jersey | Pittsburgh | |
Adam Henrique 2 | Points | Evgeni Malkin 1 |
Adam Henrique 1 | Goals | Evgeni Malkin 1 |
Zach Parise 2 | Assists | Chris Kunitz 1 |
Dainius Zubrus 1 | Power Play Goals | N/A |
Adam Henrique 1 | Short Handed Goals | N/A |
Martin Brodeur .976 | Save Percentage | Marc-Andre Fleury .889 |
Martin Brodeur 41 | Saves | Marc-Andre Fleury 24 |
Team | Shots | Goals | Power Play | Penalty Kill | Penalty Mins | Face Offs Won |
New Jersey | 27 | 3 | 1-1 | 2-2 | 6 | 21 |
Pittsburgh | 42 | 1 | 0-2 | 0-1 | 4 | 34 |