Pens skate past Canes 7-3

The Pittsburgh Penguins dressed most of their regulars -- Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Phil Kessel among them -- and the Carolina Hurricanes did not for Tuesday's exhibition game at Consol Energy Center.

The result was somewhat predictable -- a Pens victory. But the margin of victory and the play of goalie Cam Ward had to be a major concern for the Canes, beaten 2-0 Monday by the Washington Capitals.

The Pens won 7-3, scoring all seven goals in the first two periods. Ward allowed six goals on 21 shots before being replaced midway through the second period by rookie Rasmus Tirronen.

Defensemen James Wisniewski and Justin Faulk had first-period goals for the Canes. But the Pens, with Marc-Andre Fleury in net, led 4-2 after the first and 7-3 after two.

Letang had a goal and three assists in a plus-5 game for the Pens while Kessel, acquired from Toronto in a major offseason trade, scored twice. Crosby had a goal and two assists.

Jeff Skinner scored in the second for the Canes, getting a stick on a shot by Elias Lindholm. Noah Hanifin also assisted on the goal.

Hanifin, the Canes' first-round draft pick this year and the fifth overall selection, was playing his first exhibition game. He had 23:02 in ice time -- including 5:12 on the penalty kill and 2:21 on the power play -- and a minus-1 rating in his professional debut.

Lindholm, playing on a line with Skinner and center Victor Rask, had two assists. Brock McGinn had an assist and was a team-best plus-2 in 14:10 of ice time.

Forward Joakim Nordstrom, acquired in a trade with Chicago, was in the Canes' lineup for the first time and used in all situations in a minus-3 game.

Eric and Jordan Staal, Kris Versteeg, Ron Hainsey and John-Michael Liles were among the Canes’ veterans sitting out the game.

This story was originally published September 23, 2015 at 9:07 AM with the headline "Pens skate past Canes 7-3."