PITTSBURGH _ Eight days before the Feb. 25 trade deadline, Mats Zuccarello and Kevin Hayes continued to do their part to raise the Rangers' asking price for them. The two free-agent-to-be forwards combined for three goals in the Rangers' 6-5 loss Sunday afternoon to the Penguins in Pittsburgh, with Zuccarello getting the first two for the Rangers. Hayes, who also had an assist, got one late to trigger a comeback attempt that fell just short.
Two goals each by Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang led the way for the Penguins, who took control of the game by scoring three goals in the third period after killing off a four-minute high sticking penalty to Sidney Crosby. Crosby's stick got up underneath the eye shield of Rangers defenseman Neal Pionk late in the second period. Pionk left the game and did not return "for precautionary reasons," Rangers coach David Quinn said.
Quinn said the Rangers' failure to take advantage of the extended power play was the turning point.
"We got demoralized and they got a new set of energy and a new lift and the whole complexion of the game changed," Quinn said after the Penguins' big penalty kill. "And it was really unfortunate, because, battling back from down 3-1, and putting ourselves in the position we did _ there's a lot of good signs. But, to be that flat on your power play and to not really generate much, (that) certainly gave the crowd and them a lot of life."
Forty-nine seconds after Crosby exited the penalty box, Letang scored his second goal of the game to put the Penguins up 4-3 at 4:36 of the third. Malkin's first goal, at 7:24, made it 5-3, and then, at 9:55, Malkin made it 6-3 with his second _ a SportsCenter Top 10 candidate that came on a spinning, no-look backhander into the top corner against Rangers goaltender Alexandar Georgiev (35 saves).
Zuccarello didn't agree that the failed four-minute power play was the reason the Penguins broke out.
"Their goalie made some good saves and unfortunately they get a goal right after (the power play ended), and that's hockey sometimes," Zuccarello said. "But we let it slip _ we gave them three right away. We've got to manage the puck, manage the game a little bit better than that."
Hayes' goal _ his 14th of the season, at 14:14 of the period _ gave the Rangers some life and Mika Zibanejad scored his 26th goal of the season with 18 seconds remaining to make it 6-5. But the Pens held on for their 31st win of the season (31-21-7). The Rangers fell to 25-25-8, and flew after the game to Raleigh, N.C., where they play against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.
The teams exchanged own goals in the first period, with Letang getting the Penguins on the board first when he banked a centering pass off Ranger defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk's skate and in at 16:11. But the Rangers equalized on their first power play, when Zuccarello's attempted feed to Zibanejad was deflected in by Pens center Teddy Blueger with 39.2 seconds left in the period.
Marcus Pettersson's power-play goal at 11:41 of the second period put the Pens back in front, and Brian Dumoulin's goal at 14:09 made it a 3-1 lead. But the Rangers tied it on goals by Zuccarello _ who nudged the puck across the goal line after Zibanejad's shot had trickled through Pens' goalie Casey DeSmith and was inching its way across the line at 14:09 _ and Ryan Strome's eighth of the season tied it 3 at 17:45.
