Blue Jackets drop 6-3 decision at Penguins

PITTSBURGH -- Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist, extending his point streak to six games in a 6-3 win for the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Columbus Blue Jackets at PPG Paints Arena on Friday.

Crosby has 10 points (six goals, four assists) on the streak and 76 points (25 goals, 51 assists) this season. Because he can play a maximum of 80 games, he is four points from clinching a 20th season averaging at least a point per game, which would pass Wayne Gretzky (19) for the most in NHL history.

Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust each had a goal and an assist, and Alex Nedeljkovic made 44 saves for the Penguins (29-32-10), who have won five of six to move within six points of the Montreal Canadiens for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.

“I still think there’s areas to grow,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. “There are areas where we’ve got to get better, in particular, on the defensive side of the puck. I think that just boils down to details and commitment. I know we’re capable of that.”

Boone Jenner scored his first goal in 13 games this season, and Elvis Merzlikins made 28 saves for the Blue Jackets (31-29-9), who have lost six straight (0-5-1), including 1-0 in overtime to the Florida Panthers on Thursday. They are three points behind the Canadiens.

Columbus scored once in its previous four games.

“We were cheating to try to create offense,” Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason said. “And we don’t have to. We’ve been creating offense. They just haven’t gone in the net. Tonight, we forced the issue. We cheated.”

Evgeni Malkin put Pittsburgh ahead 1-0 at 5:28 of the first period, tipping the puck off the stick of Columbus defenseman Zach Werenski and in with a backhand at the backdoor.

“You give them time and space, you give them chances down low, they’re going to make you pay,” Werenski said. “They did that tonight. You give up five goals in a game, you’re not going to win many.”

Noel Acciari also scored on a backhand, making it 2-0 at 13:51.

Jenner, the Blue Jackets captain, scored 16 seconds later to cut it to 2-1 with a deflection at 14:07. He made his season debut Feb. 22 after having shoulder surgery Oct. 9.

“It feels good,” Jenner said. “I definitely want to chip in offensively. Obviously, it’s a big part of my game, to help us out offensively.”

Rakell extended the Pittsburgh lead to 3-1 at 14:53, tapping in a pass from Rust for his team-leading 32nd goal. Crosby had the secondary assist to extend his home point streak to 12 games (17 points; six goals, 11 assists).

Justin Danforth pulled Columbus to within 3-2 at 1:35 of the second period, getting the last touch before Pittsburgh defenseman Conor Timmins chipped the puck into his own net.

Bokondji Imama made it 4-2 at 8:15 with a one-timer, his second goal in 29 NHL games across four seasons.

“It feels great,” Imama said. “Obviously, there's a lot of work that we put into it. To see some results, it's always nice. ... The puck just came out, perfect pass from [Danton Heinen]. All I had to do was just put it on target, and it went in.”

Crosby pushed it to 5-2 at 15:31, redirecting a shot from Matt Grzelcyk for his 25th goal. The Penguins captain became the 13th NHL player to have 15 or more 25-goal seasons, joining Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals (19) as the only active players.

Kent Johnson ended a five-game goal drought, cutting it to 5-3 on a wrist shot for his 22nd this season at 3:45 of the third period.

Rust scored an empty-net goal at 18:03 for the 6-3 final.

“There’s just always something to play for,” said Nedeljkovic, who made his first start since March 7. “If not for yourself, for somebody else. It’s part of being a good teammate. You play for each other and you’re happy when the guy next to you has success because you know when you have your time, he’ll be cheering for you as well. So, it’s just part of being a good teammate, and we have a lot of those in this room.”

NOTES: Merzlikins, who made 27 saves Thursday, started a second straight day because Daniil Tarasov had an illness. Goalie Jet Greaves, an emergency recall from Cleveland of the American Hockey League, was the backup. … Malkin and Crosby had a point in the same game for the 545th time. The only duos that have done it more in NHL history are Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio (613 games) and Daniel and Henrik Sedin (587). ... The Penguins are 16-0-1 at home against the Blue Jackets since Dec. 21, 2015, for their second-longest home point streak against any opponent. They won 18 straight at home against the Winnipeg Jets/Atlanta Thrashers from March 24, 2007, to Jan. 4, 2019.