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Pens rally to take out Canucks

Jan 8, 2014 - 7:08 AM Vancouver, BC (SportsNetwork.com) - Sidney Crosby scored with 54.2 seconds left in regulation to force overtime and netted the only goal in the shootout to give the Pittsburgh Penguins an improbable 5-4 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.

Crosby and Kris Letang scored 16 seconds apart late in regulation, and Marc- Andre Fleury stopped all three skaters he faced in the shootout in a memorable win for Dan Bylsma, who posted his 232nd victory as Penguins head coach to move past Eddie Johnson for the top spot in franchise history.

"To be down two with that much time left we knew we needed to get two quick ones," Crosby said. "We found a way."

Fleury finished with 22 saves, and Evgeni Malkin and Brian Gibbons scored regulation goals in the club's third win in a row.

Vancouver dropped its fifth consecutive game despite scoring four straight goals to take a 4-2 lead late in the third.

Zack Kassian and Chris Higgins each had a goal and an assist, while Eddie Lack posted 31 saves in a losing effort.

Pittsburgh had all the momentum and a 2-0 lead when Crosby threw a rare ill- advised pass from behind his own net into the middle of the ice. Jason Garrison intercepted the puck and wristed a shot up high with 4:25 remaining in the middle stanza to cut Vancouver's deficit in half.

Christopher Tanev evened things when his wrister from above the left circle got through traffic and found the back of the net at the 7:39 mark of the third, and two quick goals by Higgins and Kassian elated the home fans.

Higgins was the recipient of a generous lead pass from Jannik Hansen and scored on a backhand, and Kassian roofed one over Fleury's left shoulder 17 seconds later for a 4-2 Canucks lead with 6:36 remaining.

The Penguins lifted Fleury with under two minutes left, and Letang quieted Rogers Arena with a successful one-timer from the point. Seconds later, Crosby completely silenced it when he kicked the puck to himself on the right doorstep and stuffed in the tying goal with 54.2 ticks on the clock.

After a scoreless overtime, Crosby beat Lack between the pads for the game- winner.

"We dominated for 18 minutes in the 3rd. In the end, they were better than us. They got the job done," said Tanev.

Gibbons single-handedly got the Penguins on the board with 6:45 remaining in the opening period, as the rookie forced a turnover in the neutral zone and went in for his first goal since his NHL debut on Nov. 18.

Malkin, in his second game back from a lower-body injury that cost him nine games, added his 12th of the season 5:25 into the second on a shot from between the circles.

Game Notes

Crosby extended his point streak to six games ... The Penguins improved to 24-2-0 when scoring first and are 4-0 in shootouts ... Pittsburgh has won seven straight games against Western Conference teams ... Vancouver fell to 2-6 in shootouts.