Sidney Crosby's Hat Trick Leads Pittsburgh to Fifth Straight Win

After Sidney Crosby opened the scoring for Pittsburgh on Tuesday in Columbus, the game remained close from there. While the Penguins felt good about their game and the chances they were generating, they couldn’t seem to build a lead against the Blue Jackets.

Until the captain took over.

He tallied twice in the final 5:32 to record his first hat trick of the season, extending his point streak to nine games while leading the Penguins to a 5-3 victory, their fifth straight win.

“We have a lot of guys that can be difference makers, and a lot of nights it's going to be Sid,” Lars Eller said. “He was that for us tonight.”

“He obviously had a pretty inspired effort,” Mike Sullivan agreed.

The Penguins Head Coach has said on numerous occasions as of late that Crosby is just quietly going about his business, which is being an elite player who is the heartbeat of this team.

Crosby has been held without a point just once in 14 games this season, piling up 10 goals and nine assists. It’s remarkable how he and Pittsburgh’s other franchise center Evgeni Malkin have begun this season after the disappointing end to last year that Sullivan said they took personally. Crosby and Malkin look as dominant and driven as ever despite being 36 and 37, respectively.

“These two guys, I think they continue to perform at an elite level, night in and night out, and that's a testament to their work ethic and the sacrifices they make in putting the time and effort into keeping their games at a very high level,” Sullivan said. “I don't think it's by accident these guys have been able to sustain the level of play that they have.”

Malkin picked up an assist – his ninth of the year to go along with eight goals – when he set up Erik Karlsson for a one-timer goal at the start of the third period, which put Pittsburgh up 3-2. But just over three minutes later, not only did Columbus even it up, they got a huge opportunity to keep building momentum after getting awarded a power play.

Tristan Jarry and the guys in front of him – with Sullivan singling out Kris Letang for his efforts – did a terrific job of killing it off. And right after the Penguins went back to full strength, Karlsson found Crosby for a beautiful re-direct at the side of the net where the captain had scored his first goal of the night on a sharp-angle shot.

“I think with time, you get a feel for what guys like to do – and we played enough against each other, I think we know each other's tendencies,” Crosby said of his growing chemistry with the defending Norris Trophy winner as the league’s best defenseman. “I think it's just a matter of trying to see it the same way, and then execution. I mean, it's one thing to see it, it's another thing to execute on it.”

Crosby then added with a grin, “so, would love to connect on a few more of those.”

It was longtime linemate Bryan Rust who found Crosby with a nice little dish for the empty-netter to seal the win.

After the game, Crosby said as individuals, they’re all feeling increasingly comfortable as they start to play more games following a lengthy offseason. And as a team, they know what their game looks like and are getting to it more.

“So, I think whether you're new here or you've played here for a long time, it takes the thought out of it a little bit,” he said. “It's just nice to get out there and just play on instincts and just read plays and play off one another, and not think about the system or what you gotta do too much. So, I think it’s coming, and we’re getting to our game a lot more.”