Written by the AP at The Salt Lake City Tribune
With help from Sidney Crosby, Jake Guentzel and the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins are on the verge of sweeping their opening playoff series against Columbus.
Crosby played keep-away with three Blue Jackets players behind the net before passing the puck to a perfectly positioned Guentzel in front during overtime on Sunday night.
The 22-year-old rookie capped his hat trick by slipping it past Sergei Bobrovsky at 13:10 of the extra period for a 5-4 win and a 3-0 advantage for Pittsburgh in the playoff series.
The Penguins will try to finish off Columbus on Tuesday night.
The loss was deflating for the Blue Jackets, who scored 11 seconds into the game and jumped out to a 3-1 lead after the first period only to let the Penguins climb back in, as veteran goalie Marc-Andre Fleury regained the form that frustrated Columbus in the two previous games.
Fleury, forced into action for the injured Matt Murray, had 33 saves in another wild and hard-hitting matchup between the Metropolitan Division rivals.
The biggest save might have been a shot by Brandon Dubinsky that Fleury took off his mask seven minutes into the overtime.
Guentzel earned the first playoff hat trick for a Pittsburgh rookie. The accomplishment was still sinking in after the win.
“I don’t even know yet,” he said. “It’s a pretty unique night.”
Bryan Rust and Evgeni Malkin added goals for the Penguins. Malkin and Crosby each had two assists.
Cam Atkinson had two goals for Columbus, and Zach Werenski and Dubinsky also scored. Bobrovsky had 42 saves.
Werenski, a 19-year-old rookie defenseman, also took a puck to the face on a shot by Phil Kessel that opened a gash on his right cheek in the second period. He played a couple shifts in the third period with a full facemask, but his eye swelled shut and he had to sit out the rest of the game.
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