Staal, Caputi and Johnson Help Snap Skid And Lead Pens' To 5-2 Victory Over Thrashers

When a team is in the middle of a 5-game losing streak, it typically looks to its star players to help get the collective group out of its funk.

In the Pittsburgh Penguins' case, that would be Captain Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

So how was it that the Penguins were able to snap their skid on the strength of a 5-2 win over the Atlanta Thrashers last night at Mellon Arena without any meaningful contribution from those two?

Oh yeah, they have that Staal guy, too.

Jordan Staal had 2 goals and an assist, while Luca Caputi also had a strong performance and scored in his first game of the season for the second year in a row to lead the Penguins.

Couple their play with the sound netminding of backup goaltender Brent Johnson, who stopped 31 of 33 Atlanta shots -- including 16 in the first period and 10 when Atlanta outshot Pittsburgh 10-1 from the drop of the puck -- and that's a simple recipe for success against a team now winless in 9 games.

Kris Letang actually opened up the scoring for Pittsburgh in the second period with his first goal in 20 games when he took a pass while circling at the point and had the seas part for him down the slot faster than I would have jumped at the chance to go out on a date with Carmen Electra 10 years ago when she replaced Jenny McCarthy on the MTV show "Singled out".

Okay, I still would.

ANYWAY, Letang broke right down the slot uncontested as all the Thrasher players basically just watched him wrist one past Atlanta starting goaltender Ondrej Pavelec.

Jim Slater got his first of two goals for the Thrashers before Staal flipped one by Pavelec's blocker to up the Penguins lead to 2-1.

Then, Ruslan Fedotenko scored after skating towards the goal on somewhat of a 2-on-1 with Staal, only to see his pass be broken up but come right back to him. Rusty easily tickled the empty twine for a 3-1 Penguins' advantage.

Slater scored again before the period ended to make the game 3-2 going into the third, but then the new guy struck to restore the Pens' 2 goal lead.

Caputi deposited one in a virtual empty cage after Malkin skated around two Thrasher defenders and got off a great shot that was stopped by Pavelec, but was composed enough while going down to swipe the puck back across the crease and allow Caputi to score.

Staal finished off the scoring for Pittsburgh after RW Tyler Kennedy shot one from 45 feet coming down the right wing that went right off Pavelec's pads into the slot where Staal was steaming toward the net.

Gronk picked up the puck in full stride and made no mistake, burying it past a sprawling Pavelec to finish the scoring for the night.

Caputi had a pretty strong overall game, as I mentioned. He was strong on the forecheck, behind the net and along the wall, as advertised. His tenacity was rewarded when he scored in the third period, and he certainly didn't hesitate when the loose puck came to him. He ripped it like a goal-scorer should.

Johnson, meanwhile, has played well for several straight starts now and, while he won't be taking over the #1 job from Marc-Andre Fleury anytime soon, it's good to see him give his teammates some quality netminding when he is in there. I can't quite figure out how he does it, because he's the polar opposite of Fleury when it comes to athleticism (as both of the goals against last night clearly show), but he finds a way. He's definitely a battler in there.

Letang also played his best game in a long time last night. Aside from the goal, he was physical in his own zone, and that seemed to jumpstart his play. He needs to involve himself physically like that more often.

The important thing for the Penguins will be to keep their momentum going against the Flyers on Thursday. Their win last night will mean little if they fall to Philadelphia -- a team that has played better of late, going 4-1-1 in their last 6.

More later.

NOTES:

As expected, Defenseman Sergei Gonchar did not suit up for the Penguins last night. He is expected to practice on Wednesday, however, and it's quite possible he'll return on Thursday.

Mike Yeo was finally released from a Florida hospital yesterday and is expected to be cleared to get back behind the bench for the start of Pittsburgh's 5-game road trip beginning on Saturday.

The Penguins decided to dress Eric Godard last night, and they put Max Talbot in the press box in his place. Talbot has continued to struggle the last few weeks, and isn't having a real meaningful impact on the ice. While he probably wouldn't admit it, it's possible that he's still having some residual problems with his shoudler following off-season surgery. As long as the Penguins have an extra forward, I would expect him and Godard to rotate in and out of the lineup. Craig Adams could stand to take a turn there from time-to-time, too. He's not wowing anyone right now, has one of the lowest minus figures on the team, and is struggling in the face-off circle.