'Tis the season for giving and, well, let's face it, the Penguins may have received a couple of gifts from the big man on Thursday night.
That, of course, would be Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk ... the real Santa doesn't come to town for another four nights.
The Wild, in their green and red uniforms, fitting for Ugly Christmas Sweater Night at PPG Paints Arena, were in an especially generous mood. A pair of hideous Wild giveaways led directly to both Pittsburgh goals in the Penguins' 2-1 win.
Not surprisingly, at least not lately, Bryan Rust was the recipient of both gift-wrapped presents.
Rust scored goals Nos. 8 and 9 of the season on Thursday. That gives him eight goals -- and nine points -- in the last six games. Even he is at a loss to explain his most remarkable turnaround.
"I have no clue," said Rust, who now also has a career-high, four-game goal streak. "I also don't know how to explain the one (goal) in 29 (games) start. Sometimes that's how hockey goes."
True, but there is something to be said for being in the right place at the right time. And that, in essence, was where Rust was Thursday.
After having absolutely zero puck luck between Oct. 27 and Dec. 8, when he infamously went 21 games without a goal on 30 shots, everything he touches is going in these days. He's had 25 shots on goal during his current tear.
"He's confident now," Mike Sullivan said. "The pressure's off him. It wasn't like he wasn't getting scoring chances in the first part of the season, he was. The puck just didn't seem to go in the net for him, now it is."
Trailing 1-0 at 13:30 of the first period, Rust dumped the puck into the Wild zone where Dubnyk tried to play the puck behind his net. On his backhand, the goalie tried to reverse the puck on a pass to defenseman Jared Spurgeon. Apparently, Dubnyk didn't see or sense Jake Guentzel, who intercepted the puck and slid it to the front of the net where all Rust had to do was tap it in:
Dubnyk, who stopped 35 of 37 shots, said it was simply a "miscommunication" between goalie and defenseman on the retrieval.
"(Spurgeon) was just yelling at me to play it up, and I just heard him yelling," said Dubnyk, who goes 6-foot-6 and 224-pounds. "So I thought being as far over as he was, I thought he was calling for the puck. I didn't know what he was calling for, and obviously he was calling for me to play it on my forehand. Just a bit of a slip-up. … Spurge does a good job talking. I just didn't hear what he said."
Nothing had to be said between the two wingers on the Penguins' top line.
"Doesn't get much easier than that," Rust explained.
No, it doesn't. But his second goal comes close.
At the 8:12 mark of the third period and the Penguins running on fumes after their emotional win a night earlier in Washington, it appeared they needed a Christmas miracle.
This time it was another big man, Wild defenseman Greg Pateryn, who obliged.
Zach Aston-Reese dumped the puck in the left corner where, with Guentzel bearing down on the forecheck, Pateryn tried to backhand a pass to defense partner Jonas Brodin behind the Wild net. The pass, however, never made it as Guentzel intercepted again and swooped toward the front of the net. With Dubnyk extending his stick on a pokecheck, Guentzel -- with his head up -- spotted Rust driving toward the net.
"I just came down middle seam and Guentzy found me," said Rust.
Indeed, Guentzel slid the puck to the slot where Rust snapped a 16-footer through Dubnyk's five-hole for the game-winner, his second in as many nights:
“I think it’s pretty self-explanatory,” said Pateryn. “Guy just picked off the puck, made a good play and that was the game winner.”
It was Minnesota's third loss in a row and eighth in the last 11. And it may have been the most infuriating.
“We gave them two goals. You can’t give the Penguins two goals and expect to win no matter what you do,” Bruce Boudreau huffed.
Following Thursday night's game, Rust and teammate Riley Sheahan greeted a small group of children and their families outside the Penguins locker room. They do it every game.
It's part of the two Notre Dame alums' "Seats for Strength" program in which they provide tickets and a post-game meet-up for children who have emotional and mental health needs.
Perhaps good karma explains Rust's sudden surge?
No, he believes "if you work hard, simplify, things will happen."
And his confidence now?
"It's getting up there. Just wants to make me want to shoot the puck more."
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Penguins vs. Wild, PPG Paints Arena, Dec. 20, 2018 - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS