Blue Jackets make statement by thumping Penguins
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Scott Hartnell scored three goals and the Columbus Blue Jackets extended their franchise-record winning streak to 11 games on Thursday night with a 7-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in a battle at the top of the Metropolitan Division.
Hartnell scored two of his three goals in the third period and the Blue Jackets turned the game into a rout by scoring three rapid-fire goals within 51 seconds to expand their lead to 6-1.
Hartnell completed the hat trick before a sellout crowd of 19,113 with his eighth goal of the season at 6:24 of the third period.
The red-hot Blue Jackets (22-5-4), who have not lost since before Thanksgiving, are 12-0-1 in their last 13 games. They've never been in first place this late in a season in their history.
The Penguins (21-8-5) also were rolling, posting an 8-0-2 record in their previous 10 games before taking the beating. Sidney Crosby scored Pittsburgh's only goal in the first period.
Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky finished with 23 saves and boosted his record to 20-5-2. He is 10-0-1 during the Blue Jackets' winning streak, which is the longest in the NHL this season.
Also scoring goals for the Blue Jackets were Cam Atkinson, Brandon Saad, William Karlsson and Boone Jenner.
Penguins goaltender Matthew Murray gave up six goals before he was replaced in the third period by Marc-Andre Fleury.
Crosby kicked off the scoring just 2:39 into the first period when he slapped his own rebound past Bobrovsky's blocker. Ian Cole and Conor Sheary were credited with assists on Crosby's 23rd goal of the year.
The Blue Jackets took advantage of a four-minute high-sticking penalty later in the first period on Cole to tie the score. Nick Foligno zipped a pass across the crease and Atkinson, parked to the left of the goal, deposited the puck past Murray for his 15th goal of the season at 13:01 of the opening period.
The Blue Jackets grabbed a 2-1 lead at 9:45 of the second period after a review confirmed a goal by Karlsson. Sam Gagner centered the puck from his knees behind the net to Karlsson, who roofed the puck past Murray.
Two minutes later, Hartnell made it 3-1.
NOTES: RW Cam Atkinson, the Blue Jackets' leading scorer, was good to go Thursday after spending Wednesday in a walking boot. He blocked a hard shot with his left foot in Tuesday's 3-2 shootout win over the Los Angeles Kings and was sore, but no bones were broken. Atkinson scored two goals in regulation and one in the shootout in that game. The 27-year-old reached the 100-goal plateau in his career. ... Pittsburgh and Columbus are two of the hottest and highest-scoring teams in the NHL. The Penguins led the league in goals per game and the Blue Jackets were second entering Thursday's action. ... The Penguins and Blue Jackets came into the game as two of three NHL teams without a regulation loss in December. The other was the Minnesota Wild. ... Mike Sullivan picked up his first win as Penguins coach one year ago, in a 5-2 victory over the Blue Jackets on Dec. 21, 2015, in Pittsburgh. ... Penguins D Justin Schultz played in his 300th NHL game.