Sidney Crosby scored three goals — including the 200th of his career — to lift Pittsburgh to a 4-1 NHL victory on Saturday over Calgary.
The Canadian superstar reached a career milestone in impressive style, scoring all three goals in three different ways.
Crosby scored a power play goal and an even-strength goal before scoring short-handed into an empty net with 37 seconds remaining.
PHOTO: AFP
He had a chance at a penalty, but was denied by Flames goalie Miikka Kiprusoff’s save less than five minutes into the game.
Had Crosby made that, it would have recalled Mario Lemieux’s unique feat of scoring five goals in all five possible variations — even-strength, short-handed, power play, penalty and empty net — on Dec. 31, 1988, against New Jersey.
While Crosby knew his accomplishment wouldn’t have quite matched that of Lemieux, it was a let-down to come so close.
PHOTO: REUTERS
“That’s one thing I never thought [I] would ever be beat. To know I came that close, that hurts, but it was fun and, obviously, I would have liked to have put that one [penalty] in,” he said.
Crosby made it 2-0 in the second period after Chris Kunitz gathered his own rebound and slid it to an open Crosby at the side of the net. Crosby got his 200th career goal midway through the third when Paul Martin’s shot from above the circles deflected off the toe of Crosby’s stick on a power play.
Crosby, 23, completed his sixth regular-season hat trick and first this season by scoring into an empty net during a Flames power play in which Calgary created a two-man advantage.
“I think they got me the hat trick [puck], and the 200th one,” said Crosby, who has 18 goals in 25 games. “I don’t know which ones they got, but they made sure they had them all, with a couple milestones there.”
Ducks 6, Coyotes 4
At Glendale, Arizona, Bobby Ryan had his second career hat trick to help Anaheim erase a two-goal deficit and snap Phoenix’s winning streak at seven games.
Ryan scored three of Anaheim’s five consecutive goals after Phoenix took a 3-1 lead early in the second period. The short-handed Ducks had lost six straight and were playing for the second night in a row after losing 4-1 at home to Chicago on Friday.
Rookie Brandon McMillan’s first NHL goal put Anaheim ahead for good at 4-3 with 13 minutes, 21 seconds to play. Jason Blake and Corey Perry also scored for Anaheim, and Ryan Getzlaf had four assists.
Shane Doan, Keith Yandle and Scottie Upshall and Derek Morris scored for Phoenix.
Blackhawks 2, Kings 1
In Los Angeles, Patrick Sharp scored for the fifth time in six games to snap a scoreless tie and Patrick Kane also had a goal and an assist as Chicago downed Los Angeles.
Crawford started consecutive games for the second time this season and made 21 saves after stopping 26 shots on Friday in a 5-2 victory down the freeway in Anaheim. He lost his shutout bid with five minutes, two seconds remaining when Anze Kopitar beat him high to the glove side with a screened 45-foot slap shot in the slot during a 5-on-3 power play. Crawford has allowed no more than two goals in any of his last six starts.
In other NHL play, it was:
‧ Devils 2, Flyers 1, SO
‧ Canadiens 3, Sabres 1
‧ Stars 2, Blues 1
‧ Rangers 2, Predators 1, SO
‧ Senators 3, Maple Leafs 0
‧ Panthers 4, Lightning 3, SO
‧ Sharks 4, Oilers 3
‧ Avalanche 7, Wild 4
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