Up 3-1 in the third period, at home, against a Columbus Blue Jackets team that has been making a move in the standings, the Penguins collapsed and ultimately fell in a shootout, 4-3.

Kirill Marchenko and Kent Johnson scored in the shootout and the Columbus Blue Jackets rallied to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 on Tuesday night.

With both teams in the midst of the postseason race near the midway point, tonight's game takes on added importance

Pittsburgh falls to 3-6-3 against the Metropolitan Division and 1-2-3 in their six games since the holiday break

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The Columbus Blue Jackets went into Tuesday night’s game in Pittsburgh losers of 15 games in a row at PPG Paints Arena. At long last, that streak has ended.

Pittsburgh Penguins veteran center Evgeni Malkin, 38, who had not missed a game since the 2021-22 season -- a streak of 209 contests -- did not play in Tuesday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets at PPG Paints Arena with an upper-body injury.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have seen superstar veteran Evgeni Malkin play in every game since he returned from offseason surgery ahead of the 2021-22 season. Ahead of their meeting with the Columbus Blue Jackets,

Pittsburgh Penguins superstar forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin had been in the lineup for each of the team’s 164 games over the previous two seasons. And both campaigns ended with the Penguins failing to qualify for the postseason.