Pens win game, but lose Malkin

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH

Maybe the Pittsburgh Penguins are getting a little too used to playing without their superstar pair of former scoring champions.

They might have to do it for even longer now.

Missing Sidney Crosby for the 12th consecutive game, Pittsburgh welcomed back Evgeni Malkin after a five-game absence only to lose him seconds into the second period. But Malkin leaving the ice seemed to ignite a Penguins rally.

Dustin Jeffrey scored the first of three Pittsburgh goals in a span of 3:14 shortly after Malkin was hurt and the Penguins rallied for a 3-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Friday night.

Tyler Kennedy and Matt Cooke also scored for Pittsburgh, which has won five consecutive and eight of nine.

“You never want to see (Crosby and Malkin) out, but we’ve played for a good little stretch now without both of those guys,” defenseman Brooks Orpik said. “Everyone’s elevated their game a lot.”

Paul Gaustad and Mike Grier scored for Buffalo, playing its first game in 10 days.

Malkin’s first game back after dealing with a left knee injury and sinus infection ended when he was hurt during the first shift of the second period with a lower-body injury after a collision with Sabres defenseman Tyler Myers.

The Penguins did not expound on the severity of Malkin’s injury, saying only that he would be evaluated on Saturday.

Malkin appeared to be skating hard throughout the first period — generating a game-high three shots to that point — but he was a minus-2 as Pittsburgh trailed 2-0.

Twenty-one seconds into the second, Malkin gingerly left the ice after Myers checked him into the boards.