Game Notes
Tonight, Drew O’Connor is set to play in his 100th career game. The 25-yearold forward has played all 99 career games with the Penguins, registering 22 points (9G-13A). He has three points (2G-1A) in four career games versus Tampa Bay, including goals in back-to-back contests.
The Penguins have wins in five of their last six games against the Lightning (5-1-0) and have points in six of their last seven against them (5-1-1).
Jake Guentzel has points in 14 of his last 16 games (6G-12A). Since this stretch began on Oct. 24, only Sidney Crosby (10G-9A) has more points than his 18.
Evgeni Malkin (19) and Erik Karlsson (18) are each on the brink of hitting the 20-point plateau. They are looking to become the third and fourth players on Pittsburgh to accomplish this feat, joining Sidney Crosby (24) and Jake Guentzel (24). Only Edmonton (5), Tampa Bay (5), Vancouver (5), Toronto (4) and Colorado (4) have more players with 20-plus points.
Jeff Carter has 18 goals and 32 points (18G-14A) in 41 career games versus the Lightning. Only four active players have more goals against the Lightning than him.
Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby leads Pittsburgh in goals (13) and points (24), is second in multi-point games (5), and has registered points in 17 of 21 games this season (81.0%). Crosby, who ranks 15th in NHL history with 1,526 points (563G-963A), is just one goal shy of cracking the top-25 list for most goals in NHL history.
Malkin and Bryan Rust each notched their 10th goals of the season on Tuesday night in Nashville. Between Malkin, Rust, and Crosby (10), the Penguins are now one of just two teams in the NHL with three 10-goal scorers on their roster.
Jake Guentzel notched an assist on Tuesday night against Nashville, tying him with teammate Sidney Crosby for the team lead in points with 24 (7G-17A). Guentzel’s 17 assists also rank first on Pittsburgh, and he currently sits two points shy of tying Paul Coffey for the 12th-most points in franchise history.
The Penguins have been one of the NHL’s best teams at 5-on-5 play this season. Pittsburgh’s 50 goals for at 5-on-5 are fourth in the NHL, and the Penguins have the NHL’s top-two point scorers at even strength: Crosby (21) and Guentzel (21).
Kris Letang (5G-35A--40 Pts.) and Erik Karlsson (13G-27A--40 Pts.) are tied for third in NHL history for points by a defenseman against the Lightning.
