PITTSBURGH _ Sidney Crosby picked up his 1,000th NHL point and later helped the Penguins grab a dramatic win, 4-3 in overtime, against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday at PPG Paints Arena.
The historic moment came when Crosby won a loose puck and dished to Chris Kunitz in the slot at 6:28 of the opening period.
The key moment came with 21.1 seconds left in overtime, when Evgeni Malkin drove the net and Crosby pushed the rebound past Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck for the walk-off winner.
Crosby became the sixth player to hit the 1,000-point mark in a Penguins sweater and the fourth to do it at home. He's the 86th player in the history of the NHL to reach 1,000.
After allowing a pair of third-period goals in the first 8:24, the Penguins got a power-play goal from Phil Kessel at 13:55 of the third before Crosby won it in dramatic fashion, helping the Penguins avoid the shootout.
The Penguins improved to 63-0 when leading after two periods since the start of last season, 51-0 under coach Mike Sullivan.
It nearly didn't happen, as Nikolaj Ehlers took off on a breakaway in overtime after Kris Letang fell down, but Marc-Andre Fleury stood tall and made the save.
He made an even better one not long after, robbing Bryan Little on a two-on-one break for Winnipeg.
Fleury picked up his 15th win and was victorious for the second time in his past three starts.
Evgeni Malkin scored the Penguins' first, on a blast from the left circle 59 seconds into the game.
The win helped the Penguins (36-13-7) stretch their winning streak to 16 consecutive games over the Jets in the series, their best run of success against any NHL team, and it improved their home record to 24-3-3 for an NHL-high 51 points.
Topping the Jets helped the Penguins run their record to 10-2-2 over their last 14, but this one may have come at a cost.
Defensemen Justin Schultz and Olli Maatta left in the second period with injuries, both on hard hits along the boards. Dustin Byfuglien got Schultz, Adam Lowry injured Maatta.
Schultz appeared to injure his head or neck, Maatta his hand, although no specific information was immediately available. They did not return, forcing the Penguins to close the game with just four defensemen.
Rookie Patrik Laine benefitted from some nifty Jets passing for a goal late at 17:10 of the second period, his 27th of the season. In 10 games since returning from a concussion, Laine has six goals and 11 points.
Paul Postma tied the score at 2 at 4:22 of the third period, pushing a knuckling puck through a screen and past Fleury. Dustin Byfuglien pushed the Jets ahead, 3-2, with a wraparound goal at 8:24.
Kessel's snapper from the left circle at 13:55 of the third period was his fourth in as many games, a Penguins-best run for him.
Crosby picked up an assist on Kessel's goal as well, lifting him to 1,002 career points.
The Penguins travel to Columbus on Friday as they slide back into Metropolitan Division play before returning home to host the Red Wings on Sunday.
