Penguins 3, Hurricanes 2
Defenseman Christian Ehrhoff's first goal with Pittsburgh late in the third period proved to be the difference as the visiting Penguins avenged a home loss to Carolina one night earlier.
Chris Kunitz and blue-liner Robert Bortuzzo scored 96 seconds apart in the first period as Pittsburgh beat the Hurricanes for the ninth time in 12 meetings. Backup Thomas Greiss made 32 saves as the Penguins improved to 9-2-1 on the road.
Defenseman Justin Faulk netted a power-play goal and Elias Lindholm added a late man-advantage tally for Carolina, which lost its third in a row at home. Victor Rask collected a pair of assists while Anton Khudobin remained winless on the season (0-5-2) despite turning aside 30 shots.
The teams combined for three goals in a span of less than two minutes early in the opening session, the first coming from Faulk on a one-timer from above the left faceoff circle 3:39 into the contest. The Penguins answered 17 seconds later, when Evgeni Malkin went around the net and slid a backhand pass to Kunitz for a one-timer from the left dot before Bortuzzo split a pair of defenders and beat Khudobin to the far left corner of the net at 5:32.
Greiss preserved the lead with a diving save after Jiri Tlusty set up captain Eric Staal on a 2-on-1 rush in the second period and stymied four more power plays by Carolina before his team provided him with an insurance tally. Ehrhoff broke down the right side and fired a backhander at Khudobin, who stopped the initial shot before the German buried the rebound with 4:33 to play, providing a cushion against Lindholm's tally at 19:48.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Kunitz ended an 11-game goalless drought with his ninth tally of the season. ... Hurricanes C Nathan Gerbe assisted on Faulk's goal, giving him a point in five of his last six games. ... Penguins D Kris Letang was a late scratch from the lineup and, with Marcel Goc sitting out after taking a shot off the foot in Friday's game, Pittsburgh called up fellow C Andrew Ebbett from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League