Penguins 6 - 3 Lightning
Final
  for this game

Pens aim for another victory, try to extend Lightning's skid

Jan 15, 2012 - 3:37 PM (Sports Network) - Rallying behind their injured captain, the Pittsburgh Penguins halted a season-high losing streak last time out.

A let down this afternoon would put the shoe on the other foot.

The Pens continue their tour of Florida with a meeting against the Tampa Bay Lightning, who are hoping to snap a six-game losing streak.

Pittsburgh carried a six-game skid of its own into Friday's meeting with the Florida Panthers and gutted out a 4-1 victory to halt its slide. That win came on the same day that the Penguins saw Sidney Crosby skate with the club for the first time in more than a month.

The Pens' captain does not have a return date from his post-concussion symptoms and has played in just eight games this year after suffering his head injury back in January of 2011.

With a return for Crosby hopefully on the horizon, Marc-Andre Fleury made 25 saves to down the Panthers. James Neal, Steve Sullivan, Tyler Kennedy and Evgeni Malkin all scored in the win, which also came without the injured Kris Letang and Jordan Staal.

"It's obviously a good feeling to get out of a slump like that," said Neal. "We did the right things tonight to get out of this snap and now we have to keep it going."

Pittsburgh is tied for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference with 48 points, 10 more than Tampa Bay. The Lightning are on their longest losing streak since a six-game slide from Dec. 7-17, 2009 and will look to avoid going on its longest losing drought since ending the 2008-09 campaign on an 0-7-2 skid.

Tampa hasn't won since Dec. 31 and suffered a 4-3 loss to Washington on Friday. Dwayne Roloson made 16 saves and Tom Pyatt, Steven Stamkos and Vincent Lecavalier had the goals.

"We don't doubt anyone's character in this room or anyone's desire to win," said Stamkos. "Today was unfortunate and there's been too many of those where we deserve to win and we don't."

Stamkos has scored in seven of his past nine games, logging 10 goals in that span. He leads the NHL with 30 goals and is tied for second with 49 points.

Tampa Bay has won four of its past six regular-season meetings with Pittsburgh and also eliminated the Penguins from the opening round of last year's playoffs in seven games.

The Lightning have also won four of their past five at home versus the Penguins, including a 4-1 victory on Nov. 17. Lecavalier scored twice for Tampa Bay.






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