Pittsburgh Penguins get their first win by defeating the New Jersey Devils 3-1
The Pittsburgh Penguins finally picked up their first win of the season by beating the New Jersey Devils 3-1 on Monday night.
How it went down
Alex Goligoski got the scoring started late in the first period after he poked a loose puck over the Devils' blue line and fired a hard slap shot past Martin Brodeur for his second goal of the season.
The Penguins went up 2-0 early in the second period when Mark Letestu scored his second of the season by tipping in a shot from the point on the power play.
The Devils pulled one back midway through the third period when Jason Arnott won a faceoff in the Penguins' zone for Patrick Elias to fire a bullet into the top corner.
The Penguins added an empty net goal with 11 seconds remaining, through former Devil Paul Martin, to seal the victory.
What they're saying
For Martin the empty net goal was his first of the season and came against his former team. Booed every time he touched the puck, the former Devil discussed the crowd's reaction after the game.
"It was a weird feeling even coming up to today because I didn't know what to expect. I didn't know how the crowd would react. I had a lot of good memories here and it's always tough, but you put that
behind you. I'm a Penguin now, the guys have been great, we're having fun and it's good to get that first win."
Backup goaltender Brent Johnson got the start in place of Marc-Andre Fleury, and was happy the way his team performed him front of him.
"I was telling Flower (Marc-Andre Fleury) that everything was feeling right before I went out there and it was just a complete team effort," Johnson said. "I give the Devils credit, they poured it on in
the third, shooting from everywhere and going to the net, but our guys did a great job of not giving them the second chances."
What it all means
Although the Penguins have yet to win in their new building after suffering two straight losses they'll be happy to finally have their first win of the season, especially with it coming against a tough
divisional opponent. The Penguins will have a chance to get that first home win on Wednesday night when they host the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The struggles continue for the New Jersey Devils as they are still without a win and are at the bottom of the Atlantic Division – a place where no one ever expects them to be. They travel to Buffalo to
take on the Sabres on Wednesday night.
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