The 37-year-old center has the longest active streak in the NHL and five goals in his past six games. He played for the first time since being named captain of Canada on Thursday for the 4 Nations Face-Off, which is being held Feb. 12-20 in Montreal and Boston.
Alex Nedeljkovic made 25 saves for his ninth shutout in the NHL and first since Nov. 19, 2023. Philip Tomasino and Bryan Rust scored, and Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell each had two assists for the Penguins (22-24-8), who have won two straight for the first time since Dec. 17-19.
Juuse Saros, who will represent Finland in the 4 Nations Face-Off, made 33 saves for the Predators (18-26-7), who have been outscored 15-6 during a four-game losing streak. They lost 4-3 at the Buffalo Sabres on Friday.
Tomasino put Pittsburgh ahead 1-0 at 10:00 of the first period, two seconds after a Penguins power play expired. He scored with a one-timer from the left face-off circle set up by Karlsson for his sixth goal this season and third in 20 games. He was acquired in a trade from Nashville on Nov. 25.
Karlsson will play for Sweden in the 4 Nations Face-Off. He leads Penguins defensemen with 35 points (five goals, 30 assists) in 54 games.
Crosby made it 2-0 at 10:43 of the second period with his 17th goal. He scored with a one-timer while on one knee from just below the right face-off circle off a pass from Rakell.
Rust scored an empty-net goal at 17:59 for the 3-0 final.
