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Malkin, Gonchar power Penguins past Canadiens

Feb 22, 2008 - 5:30 AM MONTREAL (Ticker) -- All-Stars Evgeni Malkin and defenseman Sergei Gonchar scored 36 seconds apart midway through the third period as the Pittsburgh Penguins rallied to a 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.

Malkin and blue-liner Ryan Whitney each had a goal and two assists while Jarkko Ruutu and Ryan Malone also scored for Pittsburgh, which improved to 6-2-0 in its last eight games.

Captain Saku Koivu, Christopher Higgins, Michael Ryder and defenseman Roman Hamrlik tallied for Montreal, which was denied in its bid for five consecutive victories for the first time this season.

"The team wasn't focused enough to get the two points," Koivu said. "Things happen during the game, and I think it was an emotional game again. At this point of the season, you're going to see more individual battles and matchups.

"The bottom line is that we didn't get it done on the penalty-killing or on the 5-on-5. Again, I think it was more the mental part of the game than the physical."

After Ryder and Hamrlik scored just over three minutes apart to given the Canadiens a 4-3 lead early in the third, Malkin made his presence felt.

The Russian superstar evened the contest at 10:22, scoring his 35th goal of the season on a breakaway. The league leader with 82 points, he then helped set up Gonchar for the winning tally.

"Gonchar played a great game for us tonight, big plays all around," Malone said. "We respect (the Canadiens') talent and their power play. We knew if we opened up the game, it would be high-scoring, so we tried to limit their chances. But they still got four on us."

With Pittsburgh on the power play, Gonchar's wrist shot sailed past screened goaltender Cristobal Huet and just inside the left goalpost at 10:58 for his 10th goal of the campaign and 600th career point.

"When you're in the league for a while, it happens," the 33-year-old Gonchar said of the milestone. "I was fortunate enough to play with good players in Washington and here, and fortunate enough to stay healthy throughout my career."

Gonchar credited his team's resolve for being able to withstand Montreal's third-period flurry.

"After those two (quick Montreal goals in the third), we still played our style and stuck with our system," Gonchar said. "I guess that's why we won the game."

Whitney opened the scoring just 6:46 into the first period by wristing a shot past a screened Huet. After Ruutu doubled Pittsburgh's advantage with 73 seconds remaining in the first, Koivu halved the deficit by one-timing the puck past netminder Dany Sabourin 3:27 into the middle session.

"Overall, a lot of guys have stepped up," Whitney said. "We've been on fire, knock on wood. It's about all the guys working hard."

Malone restored the two-goal advantage with a power-play goal just 3 1/2 minutes later.

Higgins again cut the deficit to one, accepting a quick feed from Alexei Kovalev in the slot and firing a shot past Sabourin.