Crosby scores shootout winner, Penguins rally to beat Blue Jackets 4-3

Crosby lifts Pens past Blue Jackets in shootout

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Pittsburgh scored twice in the final 3 minutes of regulation to tie it and Sidney Crosby had the only goal in the shootout to lead the Penguins to a 4-3 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday night.

Brent Johnson stopped 29 shots before the shootout, then stymied Antoine Vermette, Rick Nash and Kristian Huselius in the tiebreaker. The Penguins improved to 6-0-0 on the road, the franchise’s best start ever away from home.

Ruslan Fedotenko and Alex Goligoski scored late goals in a 39-second span to tie it. Chris Kunitz also had a short-handed goal and an assist. Crosby added two assists.

Nash had two goals — one while on his knees — and Derek Dorsett his first of the season for the Blue Jackets, who lost their third in a row.

Columbus led 3-1 before Fedotenko netted a rebound at the left circle off a wide shot from the right point by Martin Skoula with 2:56 left. With the Penguins suddenly buzzing, Goligoski took a feed from Crosby seconds later, teed it up in the high slot and beat goalie Steve Mason to the glove side to knot the score.

Mason had 29 saves for Columbus.

The Penguins were playing without center Evgeni Malkin. Sidelined by a strained right shoulder, he missed his first game in three years.

With a large portion of the capacity crowd of 19,136 cheering for the Penguins, the Blue Jackets slowly built a two-goal lead.

Nash broke through late in the first on the power play. He collected the puck behind the cage and tried a wraparound, the puck sliding to the right wing where Derick Brassard’s wrister was blocked by Johnson. Nash had skated to the slot and was knocked down. While still on his knees, the rebound came to him and he jammed the puck in for his seventh of the season.

It was his first goal with a man advantage this season — he has twice as many short-handed goals so far.

Nash made it 2-0 early in the second on a seemingly innocuous play. Vermette slipped a pass from behind the net to Nash, who was charging down the right wing. Nash just put his stick on the ice near the edge of the right circle and flicked the puck past Johnson’s right skate.

The Penguins cut into the lead after not getting a call. With Pittsburgh a man down, Kunitz had a breakaway and was brought down by defenseman Fedor Tyutin’s diving poke check. With the Pittsburgh fans booing lustily as play continued, Kunitz ended up with the puck on the left doorstep and lifting it high over Mason’s glove and into the net.

Dorsett gave Columbus a 3-1 lead late in the second. The Blue Jackets killed a penalty with Sammy Pahlsson coming out of the box in stride to feed Dorsett, who faked and then beat Johnson.

NOTES: The Penguins wore their baby blue third jerseys for the first time on the road since the 2008 Winter Classic in Buffalo, a 2-1 shootout victory. … A video clip of Colorado’s Adam Foote getting leveled on a check — he forced a trade to leave Columbus at the trade deadline in 2008 — was met with loud cheers. … Goligoski has goals in three straight games, while Crosby stretched his points streak to six in a row. … It was the only meeting this season between the teams.