Kapanen scores in third, Penguins rally to defeat Golden Knights

PITTSBURGH -- Kasperi Kapanen broke a tie in the third period with his first goal in 14 games, helping the Pittsburgh Penguins rally for a 4-3 win against the Vegas Golden Knights at PPG Paints Arena on Thursday.

After Jake Guentzel tied it about two minutes earlier, Kapanen gave Pittsburgh a 4-3 lead at 9:25 by scoring from the right post off a pass from Brock McGinn. It was his first goal since the season opener on Oct. 13. Kapanen had an assist earlier in the game for his first point since Oct. 22.
"Forward," Kapanen said on where he goes from here. "We've got to get better too. I thought we played a pretty good game, but I think there's still room to improve."

Guentzel and McGinn each had a goal and an assist, and Tristan Jarry made 34 saves for the Penguins (12-8-4), who are 6-1-1 in their past eight games.
Logan Thompson made an NHL career-high 43 saves, and Jack Eichel had a goal and an assist for the Golden Knights (17-7-1), who have lost three of four.
"We're in Pittsburgh, they're five-time] Stanley Cup champions," Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. "Down 2-0, they're having an uneven year. They're going to come and have a push.
"It's been acknowledged, but we have some veteran guys in the room that have to say, 'Hey, it's coming. So make sure we're ready.'"
Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang missed a second straight game since
[suffering a stroke Monday
. The diagnosis was announced Wednesday after a 3-2 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.
"He's obviously in our thoughts," Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said. "We know it's not an easy situation. Just tried to pull it together and get a win for him."

Guentzel tied it 3-3 at 7:33 of the third on a one-timer set up by Evgeni Malkin during a 4-on-3 power play, ending Pittsburgh's drought with the man-advantage at 18.
"They were quicker than us tonight," Vegas forward Reilly Smith said. "It's a little bit of a wakeup call. We've got to do a better job just upping the tempo, especially when you play a team like Pittsburgh. They're good at starts. We knew that coming in. We just didn't answer well enough."
Eichel's goal put the Golden Knights ahead 1-0 at 3:59 of the first. After McGinn turned the puck over deep in his own end, Mark Stone collected it and passed above the crease to Eichel for a tap-in near the left post.
Smith made it 2-0 at 17:59, scoring with five seconds left on a power play following a pass from Phil Kessel for a snap shot from the right face-off circle.
Pittsburgh had not allowed a power-play goal in eight games, killing 19 straight.
McGinn cut it to 2-1 at 2:23 of the second, spinning for a wrist shot from a sharp angle to the right of the net. Rickard Rakell then tapped in a pass from Guentzel to tie it 2-2 at 13:07 when Crosby won the puck along the wall.
"They're a good team," Theodore said. "But I think, at the same time, we've got good players too. We can make plays."

Shea Theodore gave Vegas a 3-2 lead on a power play at 1:26 of the third, shooting from the point past a screen from Stone.
"I thought the guys competed really hard all night," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "They didn't get discouraged when we got down a couple of goals early in the game. We just kept playing. There was a lot of the game we really liked.
"I think, when we're at our best, our puck-pursuit game is relentless. We just kept playing the game. There were some lead changes, or whatever may be. But I loved the mindset, just kind of next-play attitude, next-shift attitude."
NOTES: Letang is out indefinitely and will go through a battery of tests throughout the next week. He took a "twirl" on the ice at the Penguins practice facility on Thursday but has not been cleared for anything hockey-related, Sullivan said after the morning skate. … Eichel played with a face shield after taking a puck up high in a 3-2 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday. … Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo was out a second consecutive game because of personal reasons. He could return when Vegas plays the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday. … Crosby had the secondary assist on Rakell's goal and leads the NHL with 27 points (11 goals, 16 assists) at even strength in 24 games.