In Pittsburgh, Sidney Crosby struck for a goal and three assists in a 5-2 thumping of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night.
Tristan Jarry got the win for the Penguins – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
“I think just everyone’s contributing, and our work ethic, and urgency, has been there every night,” Crosby said. “We give ourselves a chance when we have that. So I feel like there’s still areas we can improve on, but I think the way everyone’s getting involved, I think the work ethic always sets the tone for everything else.”
Pittsburgh took over fist place in the Metropolitan Division with the win.
Tristan Jarry made 34 saves in the win.
Auston Matthews and Kyle Clifford scored lipstick goals late in the third to put a shine on the final.
“It looks like the process that we want to go through is to just get embarrassed enough to the point where we really look in the mirror and recognize what’s required for us to be able to compete at a high level,” Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said.
Bryan Rust and Anthony Angello (first NHL career goal) scored early for a 2-0 Pens lead.
“It was awesome,” Angello said. “It’s a dream come true to play in the NHL. It’s another, obviously, to score.”
“I think [Crosby] is getting better with every game that he’s playing here,” Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said.I think this is his favorite time of year also. He tends to play his best when the stakes get high. … I just think he’s the most complete player in the game. He’s so explosive offensively, but he’s so conscientious defensively too. It doesn’t surprise me that he elevates his game the way he does at this time of year.”
[WATCH: All Maple Leafs vs. Penguins highlights]
Frederik Andersen made 19 saves in the loss.
“It’s frustrating,” Matthews said. “It’s obviously frustrating. We’ve got 20-plus games left, obviously. We need to have more urgency in our game. Come in on time. Have to start playing some good hockey here and really figure it out in this locker room going forward.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.