Theodore, Wild stifle Crosby-less Pens 4-0
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Jose Theodore made 26 saves for his first shutout of the season and 30th of his NHL career, and the Minnesota Wild shut down the Sidney Crosby-less Penguins 4-0 on Saturday night.
Chuck Kobasew, Martin Havlat, Cal Clutterbuck and Kyle Brodziak scored for the Wild, who are on a season-high, four-game winning streak. Theodore improved to 19-4-3 against Pittsburgh, including 17-1-3 in his past 21 starts.
Theodore has started each game of the Wild's winning streak because usual starter Nicklas Backstrom is out with a groin injury. Theodore has allowed only two goals in three games.
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The Wild are 9-2-1 against the Penguins and have never allowed more than two goals in a game. Minnesota has won six of seven games in Pittsburgh.
Crosby missed his second straight game — both Penguins losses — because of a concussion, and the NHL's leading scorer isn't expected to play Monday against Boston or Wednesday at Montreal. Pittsburgh is 21-12-8 in games Crosby has sat out and has won only one of seven games this season in which he didn't play or didn't record a point.
Theodore saved a shot from in close by Evgeni Malkin, 5 minutes in. He also made a nice stop on Arron Asham early in the third. But without Crosby, Pittsburgh didn't test him much beyond that and was shut out for the second time this season.
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According to STATS LLC., since New Jersey's Martin Brodeur entered the NHL in 1991-92, he is the only goalie with more wins against the Penguins (40) than Theodore. Only Patrick Lalime (2.27) has a better goals-against average in that time against Pittsburgh than Theodore's 2.32.
Kobasew gave the Wild a 1-0 lead with 6:37 left in the first when a shot by Mikko Koivu deflected off his body and into the net while he stood just in front of goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.
Havlat made it 2-0 4:43 later. Brodziak won a faceoff in the Penguins end, and Pierre-Marc Bouchard took a shot. Havlat beat the Pittsburgh defense to the rebound and fired a shot between Fleury's legs.
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Pittsburgh defenseman Zbynek Michalek hit the post with a slap shot from the point 3 minutes into the third, and Asham was denied by Theodore on an open shot from the right circle 3 minutes later.
Seconds after that, Clutterbuck beat Fleury with a similar shot from a similar spot on the opposite end of the ice.
The Penguins pulled Fleury during a 4-on-4 situation with 3:20 to play. Soon after the faceoff in the Wild zone, Brodziak flipped a puck from his own end that slowly trickled into the empty net to make it 4-0 with 2:59 left.
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NOTES: It was the first shutout at new Consol Energy Center. ... The Penguins have lost four of five and are 5-5-2 since having a 12-game winning streak snapped. They lost in regulation for only the third time in 16 home games. ... Minnesota is on a 8-2-1 stretch and has won three straight road games for the first time since the start of the 2008-09 season. ... The Wild have not allowed a power-play goal in five games.