PITTSBURGH - Under 24 hours following a disheartening loss on Long Island, the Pittsburgh Penguins returned home and had an even tougher challenge on their hands.
The Penguins played host to the Metropolitan Division’s second leading team, the New Jersey Devils, who were rested and getting their leading scorer, Jake Hughes, back from injury.
It was an uphill battle from the start, and it was Dustin Tokarski getting his second NHL start of the season.
Despite the cards being stacked against them, the Penguins had a solid start by dominating in shots and eventually getting on the board first with a power play goal from Evgeni Malkin.
The Penguins’ special teams has been struggling lately and the Malkin goal was a breath of fresh air for the power play.
The lead wasn’t held long, however, as the Devils answered back with a goal of their own a little over a minute later.
While the Penguins power play capitalized on their first chance, they fumbled all over their next two.
The Devils had multiple opportunities while a man down, but Tokarski stood tall to keep the score tied for the remainder of the opening period.
A pretty solid first period was put in the rearview as the Penguins entered the second pretty flatfooted.
Devils were outshooting the Penguins 9-1 through the first six minutes of the middle frame, and capitalized on a power play opportunity to take the lead.
The Penguins continued to stumble as the second period progressed, giving up a short handed goal to fall behind by two.
The second period ended with the Penguins behind 28-22 in shots and 3-1 in goals.
The Devils continued to carry the pace of play through the third period, picking a fourth goal and exceeding 40 shots along the way.
Malkin potted his second of the night with a little over five minutes remaining, but it was too little too late.
The Devils potted one last goal with Tokarski pulled for the extra attacker to finish the game off 5-2.
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