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Conklin, Malkin lead Penguins to sixth straight win

Jan 6, 2008 - 12:04 AM PITTSBURGH (Ticker) -- Ty Conklin and Evgeni Malkin are all the Pittsburgh Penguins need these days.

Conklin stopped 35 shots and Malkin scored his fourth goal in the last two games to lead the Penguins to a 3-0 victory over the Florida Panthers on Saturday.

Captain Sidney Crosby added a tally and an assist for Pittsburgh, which has won six straight overall and three in a row over Florida for the first time since 1998-99.

"We're playing good hockey," Crosby said. "You just have to give yourself a chance. If you play consistent every night and give yourself a chance, that's all it takes. Some nights, you're not going to be rewarded for that, but I think we've realized that if we stick to how we know to play, we give ourselves the best opportunity possible to win."

The Penguins have been on a torrid stretch thanks to Conklin, who stopped 11 shots in the first and 12 in each of the final two periods to record his second shutout of the season and fourth career.

"I think the shot totals are a little misleading," Conklin said. "I think that if you look up there (on the scoreboard) and see 35 shots or 35 shots in the box score, I don't think it told the story of the game. I think we played solid in our end and created a lot of scoring chances."

Conklin got all the support he needed in the first period as rookie Tyler Kennedy and Malkin staked the Penguins to an early 2-0 lead.

Kennedy dropped to one knee and one-timed a pass from Ryan Malone past goaltender Tomas Vokoun just 4:26 into the game.

"I think Kennedy is bringing some speed, scoring some goals," Pittsburgh coach Michel Therrien said. "He's got four game-winning goals so far. We really like the way he's competing."

Malkin, who recorded a hat trick in a 6-2 win over Toronto on Thursday, scored just 1:51 later.

With the Penguins on the power play, Malkin accepted a feed from defenseman Ryan Whitney in front of the net and beat Vokoun for his 18th tally of the season - 12 of which have come on home ice.

Crosby tallied late to cap the scoring, beating Vokoun between the pads with 2:41 remaining.

"They outplayed us tonight," Florida coach Jacques Martin said. "They were more determined. You look at the first goal, our defense pinched and three forwards were on the offensive goal line. You look at the lines and one line was minus-2. It's tough to win hockey games when your best players are minus."

Vokoun stopped 31 shots for Florida, which had just one power-play opportunity.

"I think the effort speaks for itself," Vokoun said. "You know, the game could have been done after five minutes or 10 minutes, and there's not really much to say about it."