Malkin scores in return from injury, Penguins beat Devils 4-1

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PITTSBURGH (AP) — Evgeni Malkin scored a power-play goal in his return from an upper-body injury and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the New Jersey Devils 4-1 on Thursday night for their sixth straight victory.

Erik Karlsson pushed his career-best home points streak to nine games with a goal, while Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte also scored for Pittsburgh. The Penguins have points in 26 of the 33 games Lizotte has played.

Sidney Crosby extended his points streak to eight with two assists and surpassed Wayne Gretzky for the second-most assists with one franchise in NHL history. It’s Crosby’s first eight-game points streak since the 2012-13 season. Crosby, who has four straight multipoint games, has five goals and 14 points in his last eight games.

Stuart Skinner made 28 saves for the Penguins, who have won six straight games for the first time since December 2022. Pittsburgh has won seven of eight following an eight-game losing streak.

Luke Hughes scored a power-play goal for the Devils, who lost their third straight. New Jersey has dropped seven of its last nine games.

Simon Nemec played after missing 12 games with a lower-body injury.

Jake Allen stopped 25 shots for the Devils.

Before Hughes scored, the Devils allowed 14 straight goals. That includes Pittsburgh’s first three goals, a 9-0 loss at the New York Islanders on Tuesday and two goals allowed against Carolina on Sunday.

Devils: At Winnipeg on Sunday.

Penguins: Host Calgary on Saturday.

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