Malkin gets 4 points, lifts Penguins past Flyers in OT

PITTSBURGH -- Evgeni Malkin scored 1:03 into overtime for his fourth point of the game, and the Pittsburgh Penguins rallied from down three goals to defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4 at PPG Paints Arena on Thursday.

Malkin took a pass from Kris Letang on a 2-on-1, held the puck as Flyers defenseman Jamie Drysdale slid by, and scored the winning goal on a snap shot.

“We fight and score a couple goals, and we believe we can change momentum and win the game,” Malkin said. “Yeah, lots of emotion for me. I hope it gives me confidence, gives confidence to the team. We all understand we’re not perfect here, but [the] next couple games, we play at home. Just use momentum, have fun, just try to win.”

Malkin had two goals and two assists, and Erik Karlsson had two goals and an assist for the Penguins (24-28-9), who had lost four straight, including 6-1 at the Flyers on Tuesday. Alex Nedeljkovic allowed three goals on 15 shots before being pulled in the second period; Joel Blomqvist made 21 saves in relief.

Matvei Michkov had two goals and an assist, Owen Tippett had a goal and an assist, and Samuel Ersson made 20 saves for the Flyers (26-26-8), who had won three in a row.

“Other than seven or eight minutes, we did a lot of good things,” Philadelphia coach John Tortorella said. “Even when they scored to tie it early, I thought we took over the third period. ... I really liked a lot of things that went on.”

Noah Cates put Philadelphia ahead 1-0 on its first shot on goal at 2:00 of the first period with a wrist shot through traffic.

Tippett made it 2-0 at 1:44 of the second period with a point shot that went in off Penguins defenseman Ryan Shea. It was Tippett’s 18th goal this season and fourth in three games.

“I think it’s one of those things where it’s just confidence,” Tippett said. “Coming back off a break (for the 4 Nations Face-Off) and off an injury, you want to kind of pick up where you left off. For me, it’s just getting my feet back under me and sometimes you get a lucky bounce.”

Andrei Kuzmenko appeared to extend the lead at 6:13, but it was determined he used a high stick to tip in a puck.

Michkov did push it to 3-0 at 7:24, tucking a backhand around the left post.

Nedeljkovic was then pulled for the second time in three starts. He allowed five goals on 13 shots before leaving an 8-3 loss to the Washington Capitals on Saturday and gave up six goals on 38 shots Tuesday.

Before leaving the crease, Nedeljkovic broke his stick over the crossbar, then slammed the bench door.

“That's raw emotion. I have no problem with that,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. “Quite honestly, I thought he inspired the group to want to compete for him. So, for me, I thought our team responded. I think ‘Ned’ was a big part of it."

Philip Tomasino and Karlsson then scored 30 seconds apart for Pittsburgh. Tomasino cut it to 3-1 at 9:05, lifting a backhand over Ersson, and Karlsson pulled the Penguins within 3-2 at 9:35 with a one-timer.

Flyers forward Garnet Hathaway left the game at 10:15, being helped to the locker room after a hit from Penguins forward Bokondji Imama. No update was provided.

Imama was called for interference, and Michkov scored on the ensuing power play, making it 4-2 at 11:05 with a wrist shot from the left face-off circle.

“It was hard to refocus again,” Michkov said. “I think we came back and scored on the power play. ... Garnet means a lot to the team. It’s a big loss.”

Karlsson cut it to 4-3 at 18:17 on a snap shot from the right circle before Malkin tied it 4-4 at 2:30 of the third period, drifting into the left circle for a snap shot.

“It means a lot for the whole team,” Blomqvist said. “Today wasn't pretty but we found a way. I give the group a lot of credit for it."

NOTES: Pittsburgh center Sidney Crosby, who had an assist, and Malkin became the first duo in NHL history to have 400 wins in games where they both had at least one point. ... Penguins forward Michael Bunting was placed on injured reserve. He is out indefinitely after having surgery Wednesday to remove his appendix. ... Pittsburgh forward Noel Acciari had one shot on goal in 12:32 of ice time in his 500th NHL game. ... Michkov had his third three-point game, tying Matt Read (2011-12) for the most by a Flyers rookie in a season in the past 30 years. He had three points in a period for the second time, tying Mikael Renberg, Al Hill, Brian Propp and Read for the most instances in Philadelphia history by a rookie.