Flames at Penguins
Sidney Crosby has been racking up points at a staggering clip and the Pittsburgh Penguins are following suit. Fresh off his sixth multi-goal performance of the season, the two-time Hart Trophy winner looks to continue his surge as the Pittsburgh Penguins vie for their fourth win in a row and eighth in 10 games on Tuesday when they host the Calgary Flames.
Crosby (NHL-best 30 goals) scored two goals and set up another in Saturday's 4-1 victory over St. Louis to increase his point total to 14 (four goals, 10 assists) in his past 10 contests while his season sum of 59 is just behind Edmonton's Connor McDavid for the scoring lead - despite playing in nine fewer games. "I don't really think about numbers a whole lot," the 29-year-old Crosby said. "Then when you get close to them, you want to get them and get them over with, and move on." Crosby, who resides three points shy of becoming the third player in franchise history and 86th overall to record 1,000 career points, has scorched the Flames to the tune of 14 points (10 goals, four assists) in 10 career encounters. Calgary's Sean Monahan (team-leading 19 goals) has been burning up the competition of late with four goals and an assist during his four-game point streak and sits one tally shy of 100 for his career.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NHL.TV, Sportsnet West, TVAS (Calgary), ROOT (Pittsburgh)
ABOUT THE FLAMES (27-25-3): Mikael Backlund (team-leading 37 points) has provided a spark on the road trip with his 15th goal in Friday's 4-3 overtime victory over New Jersey and added two assists two days later in a 4-3 setback against the New York Rangers. The 27-year-old Swede collected a goal and an assist in a 4-2 win over Pittsburgh in March, increasing his total to six points (two goals, four assists) in as many career encounters with the Penguins. Fellow forward Johnny Gaudreau is riding a four-game point streak (one goal, five assists) and has scored three goals and set up another in four career meetings with Pittsburgh.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (33-13-5): Evgeni Malkin showed improvement by returning to practice on Monday wearing a no-contact jersey, but coach Mike Sullivan told reporters that the former Hart Trophy winner will miss his fifth straight contest because of a lower-body injury. "We were really encouraged with his practice," Sullivan said. "He felt strong. His next progression is to get the contact part of the practice, so that will be the next step. But certainly, the fact that he joined the team today in a non-contact capacity is real encouraging." Fellow forward Carl Hagelin was diagnosed with a concussion following Saturday's game and skated on his own Monday, prompting Sullivan to elevate Nick Bonino to the third line and join Jake Guentzel and Phil Kessel.
OVERTIME
1. Speaking of Kessel, he has four goals and as many assists in his past seven contests.
2. The Flames' victory over the Penguins last year marked their first win in the Steel City since Dec. 3, 2005, when Crosby was a rookie.
3. Penguins D Kris Letang has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in his past 11 contests.