PITTSBURGH — On Saturday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins triumphed over the Nashville Predators with a score of 3-0, marking an impressive performance from star player Sidney Crosby, who netted his goal in a fourth consecutive game. Goalkeeper Alex Nedeljkovic achieved his first shutout of the season, making 25 saves during the match.
Crosby, serving as the captain for Team Canada in the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off, not only scored but also contributed an assist, tallying his 484th multi-point game in the process. This milestone places him among only six players in NHL history with more multi-point games than he has.
Nedeljkovic recorded his ninth career shutout, while forward Bryan Rust added an empty-net goal, achieving his sixth season with at least 20 goals. Meanwhile, Philip Tomasino found the net against his former team after being traded from Nashville to Pittsburgh on November 25.
On the defensive end, Erik Karlsson, who serves as an alternate captain for Sweden, provided two assists, bringing his career total to 30 assists in a season for the twelfth time, a record that leads all active defensemen.
For Nashville, goaltender Juuse Saros returned to action with 33 saves after sitting out the previous game against Buffalo due to illness. The Predators, who had previously enjoyed a five-game winning streak, are now facing a four-game losing streak, including a narrow one-goal loss to Buffalo the night prior.
On the Penguins’ side, forwards Danton Heinen and defenseman Vincent Desharnais joined the team after being acquired from Vancouver in a recent trade. Pittsburgh also secured a first-round pick and prospect Melvin Fernstrom as part of the deal that sent Marcus Pettersson and Drew O’Connor to the Canucks.
In terms of performance stats, the Penguins’ game against the Predators marked their first back-to-back victories since mid-December. Despite having a challenging recent run of 3-4 over a seven-game stretch, the Penguins are trailing with a record of 5-8-3 in their last 16 games.
A pivotal moment of the game occurred at 10:43 in the second period when Rickard Rakell delivered a cross-ice pass to Crosby, who executed a graceful finish from his knees to extend the lead to 2-0.
Looking ahead, the Nashville Predators will play against Ottawa on Monday night, while the Penguins are set to host the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday evening.
