Penguins top Islanders in overtime, end losing streak

PITTSBURGH -- Sidney Crosby scored in overtime and Derick Brassard had his first goal with the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 3-2 win against the New York Islanders at PPG Paints Arena on Saturday.
Crosby kept the puck on a 2-on-1 with Justin Schultz before taking a shot through Christopher Gibson's five-hole at 3:48 of overtime. It was his third goal in five games.
Tristan Jarry made 25 saves for Pittsburgh (37-25-4, 78 points), which avoided a fourth straight loss and pulled within one point of the Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers for first place in the Metropolitan Division.

WATCH: [All Islanders vs. Penguins highlights]
"We generated a lot of shots, a lot of chances, and didn't give up a ton, so that was important," Crosby said. "But the main thing is to get the two points and try to build off that."
The goal came 33 seconds after Pittsburgh killed a penalty for too many men on the ice.
With the Penguins trailing in the third period, Brassard tied it 2-2 at 11:29 when he collected a rebound off a shot from Phil Kessel and backhanded it past Gibson's left pad. It was Brassard's first goal since the Penguins acquired him in a three-team trade with the Ottawa Senators and Vegas Golden Knights on Feb. 23.
"Obviously, we were down in the score and we felt like we were playing a pretty good game, shooting 50 times on their goalie and it was a good effort by our team," Brassard said. "We bounced back like that after three straight losses and we just stuck with it."
Kessel got his 400th NHL assist on the goal.
Gibson made an NHL career-high 48 saves for New York (29-29-8, 66 points), which has lost six in a row (0-4-2) and is three points behind the Carolina Hurricanes for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.

After the game, Gibson couldn't remember another time he faced 50 shots.
"It was great," Gibson said. "I loved every single second of it. I'm really happy with my game except that last goal and the loss there."
Brandon Davidson scored his first goal with the Islanders at 1:11 of the first period. He took a backhand shot from the top of the right face-off circle while Jarry attempted to drift backward to the left post, but he seemed to lose an edge and stumble, allowing New York to take a 1-0 lead.

"I don't think that's the first time that's happened and it probably won't be the last," Jarry said. "It's just something you have to put your mind past and just restart. … It's tough. It's just one of those things where you have to catch yourself and you have to refocus right away. I think it was one of those fluke things where my skate just got caught in the ice and I wasn't able to get back up quick enough."
Patric Hornqvist tied it 1-1 with a power-play goal at 18:04 of the second period.

Anders Lee gave the Islanders a 2-1 lead at 4:59 of the third period. Lee took a shot that trickled past Jarry and hit Jamie Oleksiak's skate.
"The importance of the game was obviously there," Lee said. "We knew what we needed to do. We had to come away with two points. That third period was a 1-1 game on the road in a tough building against a really good team. We knew what we set out to do and [the goal] was ugly, it was awful, but it was a goal.
"It gave us a lead. It gave us a chance. Obviously 30 minutes later, it was whatever. In overtime, we lose it."

Goal of the game

Crosby's goal at 3:48 of overtime.

Save of the game

Jarry's save against Nick Leddy at 1:33 of overtime.

Highlight of the game

Brassard's goal at 11:29 of the third period.

They said it

"We wanted to accomplish a goal [in overtime], so obviously we didn't accomplish that. We didn't shoot the puck enough. … Guys were staying out [on the ice]. You have to be a team. You have to roll it over and give someone else a chance." -- Islanders coach Doug Weight
"I liked our team game tonight. I thought we had the puck an awful lot. We generated a significant amount of scoring chances. I thought we controlled territory. … There were a lot of things to like about our game." -- Penguins coach Mike Sullivan

Need to know

The Islanders are the first team since the 1993-94 Los Angeles Kings to allow 50 or more shots on goal at least five times in the same season. ... Islanders forward Jordan Eberle returned after missing a 6-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Friday because of soreness. … Islanders forward Casey Cizikas also returned after being with his wife for the birth of their first child Friday. … Kris Letang got his 333rd NHL assist on Crosby's overtime goal, passing Paul Coffey for the most by a Penguins defenseman.

What's next

Islanders: At the Vancouver Canucks on Monday (10 p.m. ET; SNP, MSG+, NHL.TV)
Penguins: Host the Calgary Flames on Monday (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, SN, ATTSN-PT, NHL.TV)