Game Notes
Erik Karlsson has 38 points (10G-28A) in 48 career games versus the Canadiens. His 10 goals versus them are most among all active blueliners.
Drew O’Connor found the back of the net on Tuesday to give him three points (1G-2A) over his last four games. O’Connor has set career highs across the board this season in goals (7), assists (11), points (18) and plus/minus (8).
Tristan Jarry is 5-1-1 with a 2.71 goals-against average, a .905 save percentage and one shutout in eight career games against the Canadiens.
In 19 games against his former team, Lars Eller has 14 points (7G-7A), which includes 12 points (6G-6A) in his last 13 games against them.
Marcus Pettersson has succeeded against Montreal, posting eight points (1G-7A) in 12 games.
Sidney Crosby has recorded 63 points (23G-40A) in 48 career games against the Montreal Canadiens. He enters tonight’s game with points in 12 of his last 15 games versus them (6G-17A). Crosby’s 1.31 points-per-game average against Montreal is third among all active players and is tied for ninth in NHL history among players who have played at least 15 games against them.
Crosby (581) enters tonight’s game two goals shy of tying Wayne Gretzky (583) for the seventh-most goals on a single franchise in NHL history.
Crosby enters tonight’s game tied with Jari Kurri for 15th place on the NHL’s all-time even-strength goals list.
Marcus Pettersson found the back of the net on Tuesday against New York, notching his third goal of the season. The goal established a new career high for Pettersson, and his 22 points (3G-19A) are just three shy of his career best set in 2018.19 (25). Petttersson ranks first on Pittsburgh in plus/minus (+20), second in blocked shots (100), third in time-on-ice per game (22:25), and fourth in hits (64).
Montreal native Kris Letang has picked up 33 points (7G-26A) in 43 career games against his hometown team. Here at PPG Paints Arena, he’s picked up 17 points (4G-13A) in 20 games. Among all active players born in Quebec, Letang has the second-most points, but is first among Montreal-born skaters.
Pittsburgh has been one of the most defensively conscious teams in the league this season. The Penguins have allowed just 142 goals against in 53 games this season, a figure that is second among all Eastern Conference teams and the fourth fewest in the NHL.
On Tuesday, Erik Karlsson notched his 800th career point, becoming the second active defenseman to record 800 points along with Brent Burns. Karlsson accomplished the feat in 973 games, becoming the ninth-fastest defenseman to 800 points in NHL history.
Karlsson enters tonight’s game with 39 points (7G-32A) and sits one point shy of cracking the 40-point plateau for the 11th time in his career. He’s looking to become the 18th defenseman in NHL history, and just second active blueliner, to record 11 seasons of 40-plus points.
Karlsson is looking to become the sixth Penguins defenseman since the 2004.05 NHL lockout to notched 40 points in a season.
