Penguins top line the difference in Game 1 win against Capitals

WASHINGTON --Trailing by two goals 28 seconds into the third period, the Pittsburgh Penguins did not flinch.
Instead, they did what they always seem to do against the Washington Capitals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They found a way to win.

Pittsburgh's main protagonist was its top line of Jake Guentzel, Sidney Crosby and Patric Hornqvist. Each scored a goal over a span of 4:49 to turn a 2-0 Capitals lead into a 3-2 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Second Round on Thursday.
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Matt Murray also did his share, making 32 saves, 17 after Alex Ovechkin's 2-on-1 goal put Washington ahead 2-0.
"It's one game," Crosby said. "We did some good things. In any playoff series, it's just about getting better with every game."
Pittsburgh might be better in Game 2 here Sunday (3 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVAS) simply by getting healthier. Center Evgeni Malkin sat out with a lower-body injury Thursday, but participated in the Penguins optional morning skate and appears close to returning. Left wing Carl Hagelin also missed Game 1 with an upper-body injury, but is not in Washington and it appears he's less likely to play Sunday.
That the Penguins were able to defeat the Capitals in Game 1 without two key players wasn't surprising because they've done it before.

In Game 4 of the 2016 second round, they were missing defenseman Kris Letang because of a suspension and they won 3-2 in overtime. In Game 4 of the second round last season, Crosby was sidelined with a concussion and Letang missed the entire playoffs with the neck injury, and the Penguins again won 3-2.
They won each of those series and now they're off to another good start against the Capitals.
"Our guys, they never look for excuses," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "We feel like we have a deep team. We've got capable people that can step into the lineup and can help us win. It's hard to replace a guy like [Malkin], and [Hagelin] is another guy that I think brings a lot to our team. These guys are good players, they're not easy to replace, but I think we just have a next-man-up attitude and that's how it has to be."

Although the Penguins got admirable efforts from injury replacements Carter Rowney and Dominik Simon, it was their top line that led the way. Guentzel (one goal, two assists), Crosby (one goal, one assist) and Hornqvist (one goal, one assist) combined for seven points.
Guentzel had four goals and one assist in Pittsburgh's 8-5 series-clinching win against the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 6 of the first round. The 23-year-old's 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) tied Crosby, who had 16 in 2010, for the second most in the first seven games of a playoff year in Penguins history, behind Mario Lemieux's 17 in 1992.
Crosby is one point behind with 15 (seven goals, eight assists) and Hornqvist has eight (three goals, five assists) despite missing two games with an upper-body injury.
"I just think we complement each other well," Guentzel said. "We get on the forecheck and we're always around each other. Playing with Sid, it makes it pretty easy and opens up a lot of space for us."
Guentzel, Crosby and Hornqvist were on the ice for both Capitals' goals. The first came on an Evgeny Kuznetsov breakaway 17 seconds into the first period.
After Ovechkin beat Murray over the glove from the left circle to make it 2-0, Guentzel, Crosby and Hornqvist elevated their game and scored on each of their next three shifts.

First, Hornqvist deflected defenseman Justin Schultz's right point shot past goaltender Braden Holtby at 2:59 to bring Pittsburgh within 2-1. Guentzel set up Crosby for the tying goal from the right circle -- with his pass going off a defending Ovechkin's stick -- at 5:20.
Guentzel made it 3-2 by deflecting Crosby's shot from the left half wall past Holtby on the short side at 7:48.

"I thought Sid's line was pretty solid all night long," Sullivan said. "They just stayed with it and they ended up being the difference for us in the third period."
Murray helped. He could not be blamed on either of the Washington goals and made some spectacular saves, including two by diving to his right to stop the puck with the inside of his blocker hand. The first came on Devante Smith-Pelly's rebound chance 1:42 into the second period to keep the Penguins within 1-0.
The second came on Brett Connolly's rebound chance with the Capitals pressing for the tying goal with 2:29 remaining in the third period.

"It was like déjà vu," Murray said. "It was like the exact same play, through a screen. So I came out to take out the first shot, wasn't able to control the rebound, and when it went back door I just tried to get something on it."
He did, and the Penguins won despite not playing their best.
"I just loved our resilience and our stick-to-itiveness," Sullivan said. "We just stayed with it and we found a way in the third period."