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Staal, Malkin lead Penguins to sixth win vs. Flyers

Jan 13, 2007 - 11:30 PM PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) -- Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal are playing well beyond their years, as the Philadelphia Flyers surely can attest.

Malkin scored two goals and set up another and Staal snapped a tie 7 1/2 minutes into the third period as the Pittsburgh Penguins remained perfect against the Flyers this season with a 5-3 victory.

The second overall pick in 2004, Malkin scored his 21st goal of the season with just over five minutes remaining in the first period to give Pittsburgh a 2-1 lead.

With the game deadlocked at 3-3 in the third, the Russian sensation set up the 18-year-old Staal for his 13th tally at 7:34 to put the Penguins ahead for good.

"We have a good offense," Malkin said through an interpreter. "We always try to create some offense, and today we were able to play well offensively and defensively. That's why everybody contributed."

Malkin added an empty-netter in the final minute to seal the victory for Pittsburgh, which improved to 6-0-0 against its intrastate rival this campaign.

Both Staal, who was drafted second overall in June, and Malkin earlier in the day were selected to participate in the NHL YoungStars Game during the All-Star break.

Staal added an assist and Michel Ouellet set up three goals for the Penguins, who halted a three-game losing streak.

"I felt that we carried the play pretty well throughout the game and we really put pressure on them," said Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby, whose assist gave him 16 points in six meetings with Philadelphia this season. "We dropped the first two on this road trip and we really wanted to get this one."

Captain Peter Forsberg had a goal and an assist for Philadelphia, which managed just 18 shots in dropping its sixth straight overall.

"Good teams get the breaks and bad teams don't get any breaks," Forsberg said. "Right now, we're not good enough to get any breaks. ... All we can do is work harder, win some games and get some confidence back."

Rookie Ryan Potulny gave the Flyers the lead 97 seconds into the game with his fourth goal, but defenseman Sergei Gonchar forged a tie at 7:26. With 5:12 remaining in the first, Malkin gave the Penguins a 2-1 edge when he fired the puck into a vacant net after Ouellet's wrist shot from the slot was deflected to the left side.

Former Flyer Mark Recchi made it a two-goal bulge with 4:44 left in the second, gaining possession along the right wing boards and walking to the faceoff circle before firing a wrister that beat goaltender Antero Niittymaki high to the stick side for a power-play tally.

"We played a real solid game today," Recchi said. "We played the way that we wanted to play, and to allow 18 shots in their building, that's pretty good on our part. The guys were ready and we really responded to get a big win."

Forsberg notched his 100th point as a Flyer when he faked a shot from the left circle and fed Gagne, who fought off defenseman Rob Scuderi in the low slot and tipped the puck by netminder Marc-Andre Fleury less than two minutes later.

Forsberg knotted the contest at 3-3 with 92 seconds remaining in the period with a one-timer from just above the right circle. It was the Swedish superstar's first goal since November 24.

"We had a good spurt in the second and into the third, but we lost an embarrassing sixth in a row against Pittsburgh," Forsberg said. "We played pretty decent through some periods of the game. For once, we got the crowd into it."

"We battled, and at one point, we looked like a team and started to build on something," Gagne said. "We found a way to tie the game. We didn't play very well overall in the game, but the game is tied going into the third period."

Earlier in the day, Gagne was selected as an All-Star reserve for the Eastern Conference, the Flyers' lone representative in the midseason gala.

"It's always an honor to represent the team," he said. "This is my second time. I was a bit nervous the first time, but I enjoyed it. ... This year, I hope to be relaxed and more comfortable in the locker room."

In the third, Malkin carried down the right wing for a 2-on-1 and made a nifty cross-slot pass to Staal, who redirected the puck past Niittymaki for a 4-3 advantage.

"I saw (Malkin) skate up along the boards," Staal said. "I jumped into the play. He pitched a perfect pass to me and I was able to tip it in. It was pretty big. I'm pretty excited to help get the win with that goal."

"We turned over the puck and they were off to the races," Flyers coach John Stevens said. "It is unfortunate because I think we were making an opportunity to mount an attack."

Malkin completed his second two-goal game with 32 seconds to go.