Penguins’ winning streak reaches six

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH

By his own admission, Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Zbynek Michalek doesn’t watch much film of opposing goalies.

The way Michalek figures it, he doesn’t get enough shots to worry about it.

Maybe he should start.

Michalek scored for the first time since October, Chris Kunitz added his 19th goal of the season, and Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 36 shots as the Penguins beat Phoenix 2-1 on Monday night for their sixth straight win.

“He needs to do a little better with his mental preparation and in our scouting report and pretend we play Phoenix every night,” Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said.

Michalek — who spent five seasons with the Coyotes before signing with Pittsburgh in 2010 — beat Mike Smith to the stick side, and Kunitz followed with a nearly identical shot just over three minutes later as the Penguins improved to 10-1 in their last 11 home games.

The Pittsburgh bench erupted when Michalek scored for just the second time this season, yet it was Fleury who continually lifted his teammates out of their seats.

Phoenix put the pressure on, especially in the final frantic minutes when a pair of late power plays kept Fleury busy. He was up to the task, winning his sixth straight start and earning his 35th win of the season, one behind Nashville’s Pekka Rinne for the NHL lead.