Penguins Shut Out Capitals, Take First Place In East

WASHINGTON — Bryan Rust scored two unassisted goals, Tristan Jarry made 23 saves and the Pittsburgh Penguins shut out the Washington Capitals 3-O Saturday night to reclaim first place in the East Division. Trade deadline pickup Jeff Carter also scored his fourth goal in 10 games in a Penguins uniform. Jarry registered his second shutout of the season as the Penguins beat the Capitals for the sixth time in eight meetings this season. Two nights after each team clinched a playoff berth, this potential postseason preview looked awfully lopsided. The Penguins pounced on opportunities and scored on three of their first 13 shots against Ilya Samsonov to suck the life out of the crowd of just over 2,000. It was far from the complement of talent either team would want in a playoff series. The Capitals didn’t have captain and leading goal-scorer Alex Ovechkin and top defenseman John Carlson because of lower-body injuries, and the Penguins remained without forward Evgeni Malkin and Brandon Tanev with injuries that have kept them out for several weeks. But Pittsburgh hasn’t slowed down. With captain Sidney Crosby inching into the MVP discussion, the Penguins have won 16 of 23 games without Malkin and again look like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.