Penguins beat Coyotes for fifth straight home win
PITTSBURGH -- Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel each had a goal and two assists Tuesday night as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Arizona Coyotes 3-1 at PPG Paints Arena.
Justin Schultz also scored for the Penguins (9-6-2), who held on after taking a 2-0 lead in the opening 3 1/2 minutes.
Pittsburgh has won five straight home games but was coming off of a 1-3-1 western road trip.
The Penguins are 5-1-1 in their past seven games against the Coyotes and have won four in a row at home in the series.
Tobias Rieder scored for Arizona (2-13-2), which was trying to stack together three games in a row with at least a point for the first time.
Pittsburgh goaltender Matt Murray (9-3-1) stopped 24 shots. Antti Raanta (1-3-1) made 34 saves for the Coyotes.
Schultz returned from a concussion after missing six games and opened the scoring.
Malkin, from the top of the left circle, sent a relatively soft feed to Schultz, who had pinched in deep and was below the same circle. Schultz's severe-angle one-timer went in off of Raanta for a 1-0 Pittsburgh lead 59 seconds into the game.
Malkin made it 2-0 at 3:07 of the first. Kessel's shot from near the right dot glanced off the stick of Coyotes defenseman Kevin Connauton and was stopped by Raanta, but the rebound came to Malkin just above the crease, and he flipped in the rebound.
Reider's goal, making it 2-1, ended a shutout string of 162:17 by the Penguins at home against Arizona. He moved in from the left point on a semi-breakaway and lofted a shot over Murray's glove 26 seconds into the third.
Kessel added some insurance with a power-play goal at 6:06 of the third. Malkin's shot from the left circle popped high off of Raanta's mask. Kessel, at the right post, waited for it to come down below the crossbar and tipped it behind the goalie to make it 3-1. Pittsburgh was 0-for-5 on the power play before that goal.
NOTES: Pittsburgh D Matt Hunwick (concussion) missed his 11th game, although he has resumed practicing and took the morning skate. ... Pittsburgh D Zach Trotman was reassigned to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. ... Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan moved into sole possession of fifth place in team history with his 92nd win. ... Pittsburgh C Riley Sheahan played in his 300th NHL game. ... Arizona G Antti Raanta played in his 100th NHL game, while D Kevin Connauton played in his 200th NHL game. ... The Penguins showed a video tribute to Arizona coach Rick Tocchet, who won the Stanley Cup as a Pittsburgh assistant the past two years.