Pittsburgh @ Detroit preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 7, 2019 ) Pittsburgh 5, Detroit 3

Captain Sidney Crosby looks as though he was never away and attempts to score for the third straight game since returning from a two-month absence when the Pittsburgh Penguins visit the struggling Detroit Red Wings on Friday night. Crosby had a goal along with three assists in a win over Minnesota on Tuesday after fully recovering from sports hernia surgery and added a goal 24 seconds into the contest during Thursday’s 4-1 setback at Boston.

Pittsburgh saw its four-game winning streak come to an end, but boasts the third-most points in the Eastern Conference (63) despite missing Crosby and several other key players for extended periods of time. The Penguins are 4-7-0 versus Atlantic Division opponents and one of the victories came at Detroit on Dec. 7 as Evgeni Malkin registered a goal to go along with two assists while the Red Wings have lost all 11 games against the Metropolitan Division. Detroit allowed 13 goals in two losses after winning back-to-back games and fell behind 3-0 in less than eight minutes Tuesday versus the New York Islanders en route to an 8-2 road setback. “It unraveled. We weren’t good enough,” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill told reporters. “I thought there were some guys that were really ready to go, and some guys that weren’t ready to go. You’ve got to compete at a high, high level. We’ve got some guys in some prime spots that have to understand how hard you’ve got to compete every night.”

TIME: 7 p.m. ET. TV: NHL Network, AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh, FS Detroit, Sportsnet

ABOUT THE PENGUINS (29-13-5): Malkin had a minus-2 rating and saw his four-game point streak come to an end Thursday, but leads the team with 47 points - eight in the past five contests. Forward Dominik Simon had two points against Minnesota and set up Crosby’s goal Thursday while center Jared McCann was blanked after scoring in three straight contests and four of the previous five. Tristan Jarry (16-7-1) made 26 saves against Boston and that should give the start against Detroit to two-time Stanley Cup winner Matt Murray (13-6-4, .896 save percentage), who has won three straight games.

ABOUT THE RED WINGS (12-32-3): Center Dylan Larkin boasts a seven-game point streak and has nine in the past nine contests to close within three of team leader Tyler Bertuzzi (34), who has been kept off the scoresheet in his past two outings. Filip Hronek has become the team’s top defenseman this season with 26 points - seven coming in the last nine games - and forward Robby Fabbri has proved to be a good acquisition with 22. Jimmy Howard (2-16-1, .876 SP) gave up five goals against Buffalo on Sunday and was pulled after the three early goals Tuesday, but Larkin told reporters: “We haven’t been good enough for him.”

OVERTIME

1. The Red Wings are 2-for-30 on the power play over the past 10 games and own the third-worst unit in the league at 15 percent.

2. Pittsburgh F Bryan Rust boasts 40 points in 33 games this season, including six in the past five.

3. Detroit F Givani Smith, a 2016 second-round pick, recorded his first goal Tuesday in his 11th NHL game.

PREDICTION: Penguins 5, Red Wings 2