After Saturday's announcement that Evgeni Malkin would miss up to two months with injury, the Pittsburgh Penguins called up forwards Conor Sheary and Dominik Simon from the AHL, and the pair made instant impacts Sunday.
Sheary scored two goals in the second period and Simon, playing his first NHL game, picked up on assist on Matt Cullen's game-winner to lead the Penguins to a 5-3 win over the New York Rangers.
"He's a terrific kid," head coach Mike Sullivan said of Sheary. "He works hard. It's great to see a kid like that get rewarded. His effort is inspiring."
The 23-year-old even spent some time on the top line early in the third period while Chris Kunitz sat in the box for five minutes after fighting Chris Kreider.
Simon, meanwhile, impressed with an assist and a hit in just under eight minutes of ice time.
Dominik Simon is the sixth 2015 draft pick (and second Penguin) to make his NHL debut his season. The previous five: pic.twitter.com/0vFAJK07zl
β Seth Rorabaugh (@emptynetters) March 13, 2016
Sidney Crosby and Tom Kuhnhackl also had multi-point games Saturday, while Marc-Andre Fleury made 18 of his 24 saves in a busy first period.
The Penguins will play their second of six consecutive games against Metro Division opponents Tuesday when they host the New York Islanders.
