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Players and fans celebrate the Penguins' overtime victory against the Buffalo Sabres, Friday, Dec. 17, 2021, at PPG Paints Arena.
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July’s free agency pickups shine in Penguins 3-2 win against Sabres

Fred Vuich / Associated Press

July’s free agency pickups shine in Penguins 3-2 win against Sabres

The Penguins’ pickups in NHL free agency were met with yawns.

When the market opened in July, they had only a little more than $7 million in cap space. They split it up among a few unheralded forwards, notably Brock McGinn, Danton Heinen and Evan Rodrigues. Certainly not the caliber of signings that showed up on the ticker at the bottom of your television screen.

“It means you’ve got to shop at Kmart and not at Nordstrom,” president of hockey operations Brian Burke, asked about their frugal free agency, told the Post-Gazette then. “We’re really happy with the guys we brought in. We really are.”

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The blue-light specials they scooped up then helped them again Friday night.

Pittsburgh center Evgeni Malkin during a Penguins-Islanders game in May.
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Rodrigues and McGinn both scored to help the Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres, 3-2, at PPG Paints Arena. Jeff Carter won it for the home team in overtime, ending it with 2:07 left to give them their sixth victory in a row.

Rodrigues, McGinn and Heinen have combined for seven goals during the streak.

“All three of them have been great,” Carter said. “They’re huge parts of our team right now. [Rodrigues], I don’t know what else you can say about his play.”

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On Friday Rodrigues got the scoring started for the Penguins, one of the league’s best first-period teams. They have now outscored their opponents, 24-12, in the first.

After Drew O’Connor drew a penalty, the Penguins fired six shots in 32 seconds on their first power play of the game. Rodrigues’ shot from the right circle was the one that got through Malcolm Subban, hitting the goalie then trickling in.

It was the 10th goal of the season for Rodrigues, a new career high.

He was in and out of the lineup during his first two seasons in Pittsburgh after the Penguins acquired him from the Sabres in February 2020. This fall, with their myriad health issues, he seized his latest opportunity to play in the top six.

Rodrigues continues to be one of the Penguins’ top playmakers two months into the season. And making just $1 million, he has been one of the NHL’s best bargains.

“His game never really changes,” Carter said. “He plays the right way. He’s hard on pucks. His skill, he’s always had it. But it’s really showing this year.”

The 28-year-old has improved his shot, too, giving the Penguins another weapon for their power play. Rodrigues nearly got another one on the man advantage later in the first period. He chipped his point-blank rebound try past Subban’s blocker, but it clipped Subban’s glove at the goal line and somehow stayed out.

That was one of 20 saves by Subban in the first period to keep the Sabres in the game.

In the second period, after another threatening power play put the Sabres back on their heels, McGinn buried a rebound to push the Penguins’ lead to 2-0.

It was McGinn’s eighth goal of the season. The winger, who signed a four-year deal in July worth $11 million, has added an offensive dimension to Teddy Blueger’s line without sacrificing much of the other stuff Brandon Tanev provided.

McGinn has also been a key cog on Pittsburgh’s top-ranked penalty-kill unit.

“Just having the success that I’ve had so far this season, it’s just putting in the work in the summer and having the confidence to come produce,” the 27-year-old explained. “So I think I’ve done good so far and I just want to continue.”

Heinen didn’t score Friday. But the winger, elevated into the top six with Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust still sidelined, has two goals during the winning streak.

The Penguins continued to dominate but the Sabres somehow tied it up. Zemgus Girgensons scored in the second period. Then with 5:18 left in the third, Rasmus Dahlin dipped in from the point and snapped a shot past Tristan Jarry.

Subban stopped 44 shots during regulation to get the Sabres into overtime.

“You know what? I give them credit. They don’t go away,” Carter said. “We had a really strong first period. … Their goalie was really good and they hung around.”

To open OT, the Penguins had to kill a minor penalty assessed to Carter. He repaid the favor by redirecting Kris Letang’s pass through Subban for the winner.

The Penguins killed off three more penalties against the Sabres, making it 35 in a row dating back to Nov. 16. They have not allowed a power-play goal in 15 games, the NHL’s longest streak since the New York Islanders did it in 2015-16.

Despite getting 1:56 of 4-on-3 time in OT, Buffalo got just one shot to Jarry.

“We were stingy on the entry and that limited their zone time,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “So the guys did a really good job at pressuring at the right areas and just making the entry difficult. It certainly limited their zone time. We got one big save from Tristan. … But I thought the killers in general did a terrific job.”

Matt Vensel: mvensel@post-gazette.com and Twitter @mattvensel.

First Published: December 18, 2021, 3:12 a.m.
Updated: December 18, 2021, 4:07 a.m.

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Players and fans celebrate the Penguins' overtime victory against the Buffalo Sabres, Friday, Dec. 17, 2021, at PPG Paints Arena.  (Fred Vuich / Associated Press)
Sabres winger Tage Thompson (72) and Penguins center Evan Rodrigues (9) battle for a puck in the first period.  (Fred Vuich / Associated Press)
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Sabres goalie Malcolm Subban (47) makes a save during the first period.  (Fred Vuich / Associated Press)
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