The Penguins made a furious comeback to force overtime and earn a point, but the Florida Panthers scored the lone goal in the shootout to beat the Penguins 4-3.
Alexsander Barkov got the game-winning shootout goal as he beat Marc-Andre Fleury in the seventh round with a one-handed backhand shot. Panthers goaltender Roberto Luongo stopped all seven Penguins shooters.
Things were looking bleak for the Penguins as they trailed 3-1 with just five minutes remaining in the third period. Nick Spaling tipped in a Derrick Pouliot point shot on the power play to bring the Pens to within one.
Just 1:42 later, Evgeni Malkin scored on his own rebound to tie the game at three.
“That is a big point, especially when you’re down by two goals in their building,” said head coach Mike Johnston. “A game like that, we’re handicapped a little bit, just because of so many players in and out of the lineup, new bodies and new faces.”
“That was a great play by Geno there at the end.”
Former Penguins forward Jussi Jokinen scored with just 37 seconds left in the second period and Jimmy Hayes scored twice in the first 4:57 of the third period to give the Panthers their two-goal lead.
Fleury made 34 saves as the Panthers once again outshout the Penguins, this time by a 37-27 margin.
Patric Hornqvist scored 4:39 into the first period to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead. Simon Despres had two assists for the Penguins.
The banged-up Penguins injury woes continued as Blake Comeau went awkwardly into the end boards after being hooked by Brandon Pirri early in the third period and did not return to the game.
“I haven’t seen an update there,” Johnston said of Comeau. “I presume it was something more serious, or they would have gotten him back in the lineup.”
With the Pens traveling to Tampa for a game tomorrow night against the Lightning, they may be forced to again call for reinforcements from the minors.
“We’ll see how [Comeau] is and then we may need one more guy,” said Johnston.
Photo credit: NHL
