Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Penguins finally take care of business

Two points from the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Pittsburgh Penguins drew a rematch with the hottest team in hockey.

The Detroit Red Wings, winners of six straight, beat the Penguins on Tuesday and were poised to play spoiler once again Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena.

Things looked dim early, as the Red Wings took a 1-0 lead when fourth-line forward Matt Puempel scored his first goal of the season on the power play at 7 minytes, 35 seconds of the first period.

But the Penguins rebounded in a big way for a 4-1 victory to clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs for the 13th consecutive season. Next, they host the New York Rangers on Saturday night to determine their seeding.

This one was about taking care of business.

1. Game-time decision: Defenseman Kris Letang had missed 15 of 18 games since Feb. 23, and center Evgeni Malkin was out eight games since March 16.

The Penguins were 4-2-2 in that span but had yet to clinch a postseason berth. That made the return of Letang and Malkin a necessity, even if Penguins coach Mike Sullivan deemed it a game-time decision.

There wasn’t much doubt the duo would return, especially after they skated in the optional practice Thursday morning and again in the pre-game warm-ups.

That provided the Penguins a boost. That was especially true of the power play, which was 2 for 22 (9%) in the last nine games. Even though the Penguins didn’t capitalize on their first chance at the man-advantage, it soon paid off.

2. Big stop: The Red Wings had a 1-0 lead when winger Martin Frk took advantage of Penguins defenseman Justin Schultz breaking his stick in the offensive zone.

Frk poked the puck forward with a stride ahead of Schultz and Jack Johnson, outskating both defensemen for a breakaway against Penguins goalie Matt Murray.

When Frk went backhand, Murray made a strong stop to deny a goal. The save was a major moment. Instead of trailing 2-0, the Penguins soon would tie the score.

3. Pushing 40: Only 23 seconds later, Olli Maatta skated behind the net and dished a pass to Jake Guentzel to make it 1-1 at 10:43 of the first period.

It was Guentzel’s 39th goal of the season, one shy of a major milestone for the Penguins winger and pushed him closer to becoming the first player other than Sidney Crosby or Malkin to lead the team in goals in a full season in a long time.

The previous Penguins player to accomplish that feat was Ryan Malone in 2003-04. (Chris Kunitz led the Penguins with 22 goals in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season).

The timing was perfect. It was Guentzel’s first goal in five games, one that got the Penguins going.

4. Power switch: Phil Kessel ended an eight-game goal drought against the Red Wings on Tuesday, marking the ninth time in his 13-year career that he scored 25 goals.

That Kessel had three goals in two games against Detroit this season and four in his past five games against the Red Wings was a good sign.

This time, he scored two.

The first was on the power play, when Crosby tried to poke the puck past Red Wings goal Jimmy Howard. The puck popped out to Kessel, who buried a shot for a 2-1 lead at 18:18 of the first period.

The second goal came in the second period, after Evgeni Malkin won a faceoff in the left circle and directed the puck to Kessel, who flicked a wrister from the top of the circle while drifting toward the slot for a 3-1 lead.

5. No trick: Kessel had a chance at a hat trick on a power play in the third period, but his shot bounced off the post and hovered behind Howard in the crease.

Crosby seized an opportunity to score, diving into the net to poke the puck over the goal line for his 34th goal of the season to give the Penguins a 4-1 lead at 6:36.

Crosby was quietly efficient, assisting on each of their first two goals and scoring one of his own. It’s the kind of performance we’ve come to expect of and take for granted from the Penguins captain, especially with the stakes raised and a playoff berth on the line.

Keep up with the Pittsburgh Penguins all season long.