Malkin scores late, Penguins defeat Stars for 6th victory in row

PITTSBURGH -- Evgeni Malkin scored with 35 seconds remaining to give the Pittsburgh Penguins their sixth straight win, 2-1 against the Dallas Stars at PPG Paints Arena on Monday.

Malkin chipped in his ninth goal this season after Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger was spun around outside of the crease while poking the puck away from Bryan Rust. It was Malkin's first goal since Nov. 20 but extended his point streak to six games (one goal, eight assists).
"I'm still focused on my game," Malkin said. "I know it's coming. I just [try to] be patient and use my chances. … A rebound, I think 'Rusty' tried to move around the goalie, but the goalie poke-checked and the puck was coming to me. I saw it was an empty net, I just needed to shoot it into the net. It's almost an empty-net goal."

Jason Zucker had two assists, and Tristan Jarry made 26 saves for the Penguins (17-8-4), who are 11-1-1 in their past 13 games.
Roope Hintz scored, and Oettinger made 24 saves for the Stars (16-8-5), who had won two straight after losing their previous two.
"I thought we played a great road game," Oettinger said. "We gave ourselves every chance to win. Just a bad bounce at the end, so I think we have to be proud of how we played. We feel like we deserved a point or two. That stings, but we have to flush it quick."

Hintz gave Dallas a 1-0 lead 19 seconds into the first period on the second shot of the game. Nils Lundkvist took a shot from the point that went off the skates of Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang, going to Hintz near the right post for a wrist shot five-hole.
Pierre-Olivier Joseph tied it 1-1 at 13:14 on the power play, taking a pass from Kasperi Kapanen and driving to the left face-off circle for a wrist shot past a screen from Zucker. It was Joseph's first goal this season and second in 45 NHL games.
Ty Dellandrea had a chance to put Dallas back in front on a 2-on-1 at 9:14 of the second, but Jarry made a pad save on his wrist shot. The rebound went back toward the crease off Rust, and Jarry spun to keep it from bouncing into the net.
"Pretty good road game for 19-and-a-half minutes," Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. "We made a mistake at the end there. Did a lot of good things, had chances to score some goals. I think we would've liked to give [Oettinger] some offensive support tonight.
"I thought there were goals out there. We didn't execute. Had some 2-on-1s, things like that, that probably could have changed the game. But we had a solid road effort."

Jarry is 9-0-1 in his past 10 starts, allowing fewer than three goals six times.
"I just think he's competing," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said of Jarry. "When he's at his best, it's economy of motion with his movement in the blue paint. He's got a calm demeanor to his game. I think that rubs off on our team. That's why I preface it with saying he's competing hard.
"There's always that fine line between composure or poise and nonchalance. We want to be on the right side of that line. I think he's on the right side."
Sidney Crosby nearly gave the Penguins a lead at 11:14 of the third, but shot wide after getting behind Stars defenseman Esa Lindell and taking a pass from Guentzel to go in alone. Crosby went without a point for the fourth time in 18 games since Nov. 5.
NOTES: Malkin's go-ahead goal was the fourth-latest in regulation in the NHL this season, behind Arizona Coyotes forward Lawson Crouse (59:46 on Dec. 9), Montreal Canadiens forward Josh Anderson (59:41 on Oct. 12) and Vegas Golden Knights forward Mark Stone (59:34 on Oct. 11). … Penguins forward Jake Guentzel, who played his 400th NHL game, had his point streak end at seven games (three goals, eight assists). ... Pittsburgh defenseman Jeff Petry did not play with an upper-body injury sustained in a 3-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday. He continues to be evaluated. … Stars forward Jason Robertson was held without a shot on goal for the second time this season; he also went without a shot against the Boston Bruins on Oct. 25. Robertson has one assist in four games since having 34 points (21 goals, 13 assists) on an 18-game point streak.