PITTSBURGH _ Bryan Rust scored three more goals on Saturday. His shootout winner against Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick won't technically count as a hat trick. But it secured the Penguins yet another win against a Western Conference team.
Tristan Jarry stopped the first three Kings shootout attempts. The Penguins went scoreless, too, until Rust continued his torrid pace by scoring on Quick.
After waiting for some hats to be cleaned off the ice, Adrian Kempe lost control of the puck, securing a 5-4 shootout win for the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena.
This game went to overtime after the Penguins came back from two goals down then let the Kings do the same in the final five minutes of regulation.
The Kings controlled the first period, putting eight shots on goal in the first nine minutes of the game then burying a couple before the first intermission.
Austin Wagner got the Kings on the scoreboard 13:08 into the game. Kris Letang stepped up on Blake Lizotte at the blue line. But before Lizotte got clobbered, he flipped a pass over the stick of John Marino to Adrian Kempe. Suddenly, the Kings had a 2-on-0 and Wagner slammed Kempe's pass into an open net.
Brandon Tanev tied it for the Penguins just 19 seconds later, looping around the net before sliding the puck by Jonathan Quick. But the Kings challenged the goal, claiming that Teddy Blueger interfered with Quick. The refs agreed. Moments after Tanev's goal was waved off, a Dominik Simon shot hit the crossbar.
After coming up empty there, the Penguins fell behind, 2-0, before the end of the first. Letang lost track of Tyler Toffoli in front. Toffoli accepted a centering pass from Sean Walker then flipped a backhander over Jarry's blocker.
Evgeni Malkin on Saturday missed his second straight game with an undisclosed absence. So Jake Guentzel again started the night as the first-line center. But after the team's scoreless first period, coach Mike Sullivan moved Guentzel back to the wing and bumped Jared McCann up between Guentzel and Rust.
It took only two shifts for Sullivan's switcheroo to pay off. Guentzel found Rust on a 3-on-2 and Rust put a wrist shot past Quick's glove from 31 feet out.
The Kings continued to pepper Jarry, outshooting the Penguins, 27-15, through two periods and twice coming oh-so close to restoring their two-goal lead. But Rust tied the score at 2 with the Penguins on a 5-on-3 power play, their first tally with a two-man advantage since Sidney Crosby got one Nov. 25, 2017.
After they set up shop for close to a minute, Guentzel again set up Rust. This time, he was between the hash marks when he flicked a one-timer past Quick. Guentzel had to sneak his pass through a couple of Kings sticks to get it to Rust.
Rust, who got the lone goal in Thursday's win over Columbus, has seven goals and 15 points in his last 11 games. He now has a dozen goals on the season.
Teddy Blueger put the Penguins ahead with 10:34 left in the third period. With Tanev crashing the crease, Rust fired the puck toward the net and it hit a Kings defender and changed course. Quick tried to squeeze the puck while sliding to his right but it dropped into the blue paint. Blueger got there first.
The go-ahead goal provided some redemption for Blueger, who had a few great looks against the Blue Jackets but couldn't get the dang thing in the goal.
Jarry preserved their lead by twice holding his ground against Anze Kopitar.
Letang let the star Kings center get behind him. But with Letang whacking away at Kopitar, Jarry kicked out his right pad to stop that breakaway. Kopitar was then awarded a penalty shot but Jarry closed his five-hole to keep that one out. The fans at PPG Paints Arena, many of them in holiday sweaters, went bonkers.
Jarry, who posted three shutouts in his previous four starts, again got the nod over Matt Murray between the pipes. It was his third straight start. Jarry entered Saturday with a 7-2 record and .958 save percentage at PPG Paints Arena.
The "Jarry! Jarry! Jarry!" chant was just dying down when Jack Johnson scored on a rebound to put the Penguins up, 4-2. It was his second goal of the season.
But the Kings charged back with goals 83 seconds apart. Kyle Clifford buried a big rebound to make it 4-3. Then during a goal-mouth scramble Michael Amadio flipped the puck over Jarry, who was on his belly, to tie it up with 3:37 left.
In overtime, Quick stopped Rust, who was looking for a heroic hat trick, on a breakaway then sprawled to deny Rust and then Blueger on follow-ups.
The Penguins are now 12-3-1 against the Western Conference. That is the most wins against Western teams among Eastern Conference teams.
The Penguins on Sunday will take off for their annual Western Canada trip. They will play Calgary on Tuesday and then have back-to-back games in Edmonton and Vancouver next weekend. The NHL's Christmas break begins after that.
