Kevin Gorman: Sidney Crosby's comeback game was perfectly Pittsburgh for Penguins

It was a Pittsburgh Theme Night for the Penguins, and they pulled out all the stops in celebrating the colloquialisms and idiosyncrasies for which the city is famous.

Nothing screams that it’s a Hockey Night in Pittsburgh more than hearing Penguins captain Sidney Crosby’s name announced in the starting lineup at PPG Paints Arena.

And nothing compares to Crosby, except for maybe when Evgeni Malkin is playing in the same stratosphere.

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan called them generational talents who “have the ability to be the best one-two punch in the game.” Sullivan stopped to correct himself: “Or 1 and 1A, I should say.”

Crosby played in his first NHL game since Nov. 9 yet looked like he had never missed a game, let alone a stretch of 28 consecutive following sports hernia surgery. His impact was immediate, as Crosby had a secondary assist on Malkin’s power-play goal 7 minutes, 57 seconds into the first period. By the time the Penguins finished off the Minnesota Wild for a 7-3 victory on Tuesday night, Crosby had one goal and three assists and Malkin had two goals and one assist.

They were the top two stars of the game. Or 1 and 1A, we should say.

Sullivan wasn’t stunned by the comeback performance, as he knows that Crosby complements his skill with an unparalleled level of conditioning. Sullivan was more amazed at how easily Crosby made adjusting to an NHL game appear effortless after a long layoff.

“It’s hard to get surprised by what Sid accomplishes on the ice when you watch what he’s been able to do,” Sullivan said. “Certainly in my time here, it’s just hard to get surprised. He’s just so capable.”

What was surprising is how the Penguins survived Crosby’s two-month absence. They went 18-6-4 without him, despite compounding their depth issues by losing top scorer Jake Guentzel to season-ending shoulder surgery, as well as third-line center Nick Bjugstad and top-four defensemen Brian Dumoulin and Justin Schultz to long-term injuries.

But Penguins players weren’t shy about admitting how much Crosby means to the team both before and after the game, knowing that his presence alone alleviates pressure. The combination of Crosby centering the top line and Malkin manning the middle on the second line creates mismatches, especially after the Wild dressed only five defensemen because coach Bruce Boudreau botched his lineup card.

“Every player is important here in the locker room but Sid is captain, our leader. Great player, great teammate,” Malkin said. “You see tonight, we played so much better. We have great four lines. (The) power play is better. We’re glad he’s back.”

The Penguins were glad to be back on home ice, where they were greeted by a Pittsburgh-friendly crowd that featured music from their hometown musicians like The Clarks, Donnie Iris and Wiz Khalifa, guest videos from native sons in actor Joe Manganiello and comedians Billy Gardell and Steve Byrne and announcers dressed in Mr. Rogers-inspired cardigans. It was what we’d call a good night aht in tahn.

Crosby was in the spotlight, but Malkin also shined. His stat line shortchanges how magnificent he was alongside Bryan Rust and Dominik Kahun. Crosby marveled at how dominant Malkin is playing, calling him one of a “select few” who can control a game with the puck and saying that he is “playing awesome hockey.”

Crosby was credited with a secondary assist on Malkin’s first goal, which came on the power play at 7:57 of the first period. Malkin slid into the space created in the crease by Crosby camping out at the left post for a feed from Rust to make it 1-0. Later, Malkin drew two defenders, only to drop a beautiful pass to Rust in the slot for a 3-0 lead, an instinctive move that made Malkin look brilliant.

That was his best moment, but Malkin later scored his 15th goal on a ridiculous short-side wrist shot from the lower left circle to make it 4-0. The goal was so improbable that it created such an optical illusion that it was originally credited to Patric Hornqvist, who waved at a puck that never touched his blade.

Sullivan sees no reason why Malkin can’t continue playing at this level, even if he eventually takes a backseat to Crosby. Perhaps that’s wishful thinking, as the Penguins would prefer not to have to lean so heavily on one but rather rely on both.

“Geno’s had a certain drive since day one of training camp this year,” Sullivan said. “He’s really elevated his play through the course of the first part of the season, when we’ve had to endure all these injuries, and he’s a huge part of the amount of wins we’ve been able to accumulate to this point.”

But this night ultimately belonged to Crosby, who drew a standing ovation when he scored for a 5-2 lead at 7:41 of the third period. Jared McCann took advantage of a turnover by center Mikko Koivu, but tripped and slid a pass to Crosby in the slot. Crosby drifted toward the right circle, then fired a shot that bounced off the stick of Wild defenseman Matt Dumba.

Crosby wasn’t finished. He went behind the net, pivoted and reversed to his right and slid a pass across the goal line to Dominik Simon for a 6-2 lead. Even Simon couldn’t hide his awe for Crosby’s creativity.

“You have those huge players next to you and you’re just trying not to focus on it, even though you’ve wanted to play with them since you were little or you would never picture playing with them,” Simon said. “It’s amazing.”

That’s the best way to describe Crosby’s comeback game on a hockey night that was perfectly Pittsburgh: Amazing n’at.

Keep up with the Pittsburgh Penguins all season long.