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Penguins top Panthers to break losing streak

Chicago Blackhawks v Pittsburgh Penguins

PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 20: Evgeni Malkin #71, Chris Kunitz #14, James Neal #18 and Matt Niskanen #2, all of the Pittsburgh Penguins, celebrate Neal’s second period goal against the Chicago Blackhawks on December 20, 2011 at CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)

Jamie Sabau

Clearly the Pittsburgh Penguins need to put together more clever displays of solidarity.

The team showed up to practice with captain C’s on their sweaters as a tongue-in-cheek nod to some strange Sidney Crosby rumors, but they really must have made their injured leader proud in the way they played tonight. The Penguins pasted the Florida Panthers 4-1 to end a disturbing six-game losing streak.

Evgeni Malkin’s top line was a dominant force in this game, as you can see from their stats:

Malkin: one goal, +2 rating, seven shots on goal and 11 attempted shots overall.
James Neal: one goal and one assist, +2 rating, nine shots on goal and 12 attempted shots.
Chris Kunitz: two assists, +1 rating, three shots on goal and four attempted.

That’s the kind of night that reminds us all that as banged up as the Penguins might be, they still have Geno. Better yet, it looks like Neal is back to being the dangerous scoring threat he’s been for most of the season with his first goal in seven contests.

The Penguins are still on the outside of the playoff picture thanks to the Washington Capitals’ 4-3 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning, but if nothing else, they got that monkey off their backs.