Penguins Catch Lightning in a Bottle, Prevail 5-4 in OT

Even in the face of a major shakeup, the Penguins’ Lazarus-like rise from the dead continued last night against the Lightning at Amalie Arena. In a thrilling, see-saw affair that featured top-notch play by both teams, the black and gold prevailed, 5-4, in overtime. Our fourth win in a row.

Well rested and seeking to avenge the thumping they’d received on Sunday night in the ‘Burgh, Jon Cooper’s crew drew first blood…literally…at 5:39 of the opening frame. Bolts newcomer Tanner Jeannot unleashed a shot from the slot that glanced off Drew O’Connor’s stick and struck Kris Letang square in the face before bounding off Ross Colton into the net. Letang, who’d been struck up high only seconds earlier by another shot, left a trail of blood as he exited the ice.

Talk about a marked man. From his stroke to the death of his father, it’s been that kind of season for Tanger.

Down to five defensemen and trailing 1-0 against a very determined foe, the Pens refused to wilt. To the contrary, we displayed tons of heart, grit and tensile strength and were soon rewarded.

Just past the six-minute mark of the second period, Sidney Crosby retrieved the puck just inside the Bolts’ blue line along the right sideboards. After taking a few strides to decoy the Lightning defense, Sid spun and hit Jeff Petry with a beautiful cross-ice pass. Taking full advantage of traffic in front, the veteran defender beat all-world goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy to the glove side.

Turns out big Jeff was just warming up. With his dad, former big-league pitcher Dan Petry looking on, Jeff corralled a cross-ice pass from Jeff Carter on the ensuing shift, adroitly backed over the line, then swung around d-man (and ex-Pen) Ian Cole before beating Vasilevskiy top shelf from a sharp angle.

Marcus Pettersson got whistled for interference at 9:10 and…well…you just don’t want to be in the box against the Bolts. Super-skilled Brayden Point pounced on a loose biscuit near the crease and drilled it past Tristan Jarry for his 38^th goal of the season.

Showing loads of moxie, our guys regained the lead at 15:06. Pettersson, rumored to be a trade target of old friend Jimmy Rutherford, airmailed a long lead pass toward the Tampa zone. Timing the fluttering rubber perfectly, Jason Zucker tucked it in his mail pouch, galloped toward the net Pony Express-style and smoked Vasilevskiy five-hole to give us a 3-2 lead. The puck crossed the line just as Letang returned to the bench.

Unfortunately, No. 58 would be a central player in the next bit of black-and-gold hardship when he was flagged for delay of game. Not to be outdone, Petry followed suit four seconds later, handing the Bolts a 5-on-3 power play for nearly two full minutes.

The Pens miraculously made it to the horn still clinging to the lead. But Steven Stamkos beat Jarry with a bullet from the left circle just as Letang was about to step from the sin bin just 38 seconds into the third period to knot the score again.

Then came the play of the game IMHO. After scooping up a chip pass from Josh Archibald, O’Connor bulled around Bolts d-man Darren Raddysh with a stunning power move and beat Vasilevskiy, perhaps signifying the rangy forward’s coming of age.

A shame it didn’t stand up as the game-winner. That’s because Tampa oak Victor Hedman beat Jarry off the rush at 15:50 to knot the score a fourth time.

Honestly, I was thrilled we got a point. Could we possibly get two?

Happily the answer was yes.

Following a huge save by Jarry on Brandon Hagel early in overtime, Zucker worked a give-and-go with Pettersson. Marcus shed the checking effort of Stamkos, then curled back toward the slot and placed the puck on a platter for Zucker, who drilled it home.

The perfect ending to a terrific game.

Puckpourri

Stats-wise, the contest was as even-steven as it gets. The Pens held a miniscule edge in shot attempts (53-52), shots on goal (32-31) and high-danger chances (11-10). Scoring chances favored our hosts (34-27).

Zucker and Petry paced the Pens’ attack with two goals apiece. Petry’s two goals in 25 seconds are the second-fastest by a Pens defenseman. Darryl Edestrand struck for two goals nine seconds apart back on March 12, 1972.

Despite recent opinions to the contrary, the veteran rearguard is quietly having a solid season for the black and gold.

Out of the blue, the Pens seem to have rediscovered their November-December form when they went 15-3-2. They’re playing some of their best hockey of the season. Play-by-play announcer Steve Mears described our effort as clean, crisp and solid. I wholeheartedly agree.

Speaking of awakening from the dead, Carter registered two assists…his first two-point effort since December 28. Following an extended stretch of Zombie-like hockey, the big guy’s shown signs of life the past handful of games.

Almost by accident it seems, the Pens have developed two young players. His confidence growing with each game, O’Connor has proven he belongs. Despite scant playing time he’s established himself as a bottom-six force with two goals and a helper in his past four games. Three goals and six points in his past 12.

Although still a bit coltish, fellow youngster Pierre-Olivier Joseph is emerging on ‘d.’ With a game-best plus-three, he shone last night during Letang’s absence and seems well-matched with veteran Jan Rutta.

Newly acquired forward Mikael Granlund made his black-and-gold debut and was pretty much as advertised. He did some good things 5v5 and nearly set up Carter for a breakaway. Likewise, he led all Pens forwards with 3:50 of shorthanded ice time. In the faceoff circle? Not so good (40 percent).

The Pens swept the season series with the Lightning, 3-zip.

Bonino, Bonino, Boninoooooooooo!

Although the deal hasn’t officially been announced, the Pens have reportedly acquired forward and former HBK linchpin Nick Bonino from San Jose.

In 59 games with the Sharks, the 34-year-old has tallied 10 goals and 19 points at a cap hit of $2.05 million. In order to make the deal work, San Jose will either need to hold back salary or receive a player in return.

Perhaps Brock McGinn (or Danton Heinen) going west? Stay tuned for further details…

On Tap

The Pens (31-21-9, 71 points) wrap up the road trip against Florida (30-27-6, 66 points) on Saturday night. With our victory, we regained fourth place in the Metro and the top Eastern Conference wild-card spot, one point up the Islanders.