PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins are still determined to finish as the NHLs best team -- despite a recent slump. [url=http

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins are still determined to finish as the NHLs best team -- despite a recent slump. Chris Bassitt Athletics Jersey . The Penguins rebounded from a loss on Saturday and beat the leagues worst team on Monday night as goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 24 shots for his fourth shutout, a 3-0 win against the Buffalo Sabres. "When you play 82 every one isnt going to be perfect, but were trying to be the best, not just into late June, but every game," Penguins head coach Dan Bylsma said. Chris Kunitz scored his 26th goal and Deryk Engelland netted his fourth, equaling a career high. Tanner Glass scored his first goal in 26 games, a late empty-netter that sealed it for the Penguins, who won for the 15th time in 16 games at home. Sidney Crosby, who leads the NHL with 74 points, added two assists to extend his points streak in games against Buffalo to 16 games, matching his longest streak against any team. Fleury, who leads the NHL with 29 wins, registered his 27th career shutout, tied for second in the league. He helped preserve the win, denying Buffalos Brian Flynn two minutes into the third period before following it up with a right-pad stop on Matt Moulson on a partial breakaway a couple minutes later. "The first one was pretty close, and I was worried he might have cut across, so I tried to take his options away," said Fleury, who is one victory away from reaching the 30-win mark for the fifth-straight full NHL season. "Moulson, I was trying to be patient because I know he has good hands," he added. Fleury was better on the play, giving his team a sorely-needed lift after a slow start to the period. "We chipped some pucks out in the beginning of the third period, kind of sitting back, and they shoved it right back at us," Bylsma said. "Marc got stuck with those two glorious chances against. the two great saves he had to make." The Penguins are in command of the Eastern Conference, leading Boston and Tampa Bay by seven points in addition to a 15-point cushion on the New York Rangers in the Metropolitan Division entering Monday. But Pittsburgh has struggled recently with a lacklustre home effort last Monday against Florida -- 15th in the 16-team Eastern Conference -- and a 3-0 loss Saturday at Dallas. It wasnt perfect, but the Penguins were able to turn it around on Monday. "We still had times when we werent getting pucks deep, turning it over, and giving them chances to get back into the game," Kunitz said. "Our goalie made a few great saves, a few that went through his body, couldve hit somebody and went in the other way." Goaltender Ryan Miller stopped 31 shots for last-place Buffalo, which has lost seven of nine. The Sabres, who scored at least three goals the previous six games, won for the first time five games on Saturday, scoring a 5-2 victory at Columbus and stopping the red-hot Blue Jackets franchise-record eight-game winning streak, but they couldnt sustain the momentum. "Were a team that we cant have glaring mistakes," Sabres coach Ted Nolan said. "Its very demoralizing. We woke up in the third period and made a push, but not good enough." The Penguins, after a scoreless opening period, scored at 14:16 of the second. Brian Gibbons, who missed five games with a lower-body injury, hit the post on a one-timer from Crosby. The red goal light behind the net momentarily turned on before Kunitz swept the rebound into a partially empty net. Engelland scored later in the period, forcing a turnover in the Sabres zone before lifting a pass from Glass over a sprawled Miller. That was good enough for the Penguins, who continue to try and perfect their stride despite leading the Eastern Conference. "We still need to get better as a team and grow," Kunitz said. "We have 30-some games before the playoffs to make sure were running on all cylinders, and make sure were the best team going into the playoffs." NOTES: Penguins F Evgeni Malkin played in his 500th NHL game, becoming the 15th player in team history to reach the milestone. ... The Penguins are 27-2-1, and a perfect 18-0 at home when scoring first. ... Pittsburgh has won 40 of its last 48 home games dating back to last season. ... Chuck Kobasew, who played on Pittsburghs top line the past four games, was a healthy scratch on Monday in addition to Andrew Ebbett and Robert Bortuzzo. Buffalo scratched Drew Stafford, John Scott, and Alexander Sulzer ... Buffalo plays the second half of a back-to-back Tuesday at home against Washington. ... Pittsburgh opens a two-game West Coast swing Thursday at Los Angeles ... The two teams meet for the third and final time this season next Wednesday at Buffalo. Stitched Athletics Jerseys . Numbers Game looks at the As getting Jon Lester from Boston, sending Yoenis Cespedes to the Red Sox along with a deal involving the As and the Minnesota Twins. The Athletics Get: LHP Jon Lester, LF Jonny Gomes, OF Sam Fuld and cash. Athletics Jerseys 2020 . Dwyane Wade took over in the fourth quarter. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/ . Nick Holden scored two goals and had an assist and the Avalanche held off the Nashville Predators 5-4 Saturday night for their fourth straight victory.Frisco, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - FC Dallas and Vancouver Whitecaps FC will open the 2014 MLS Cup playoffs on Wednesday when the two sides square off at Toyota Stadium. The winner of the Western Conference play-in game will march on to face Supporters Shield-winner Seattle Sounders FC, but the road to the conference semifinals will not be easy for either club. Toyota Stadium has not see many visitors leave with points this season. Though Dallas suffered a 2-0 defeat to the Portland Timbers in its regular season finale, the club went on a run of eight straight league wins on home soil. Dallas could have avoided Wednesdays play-in game with a victory over the Timbers, but head coach Oscar Pareja chalked up the defeat to Portlands urgency in a must-win situation, rather than potential complacency setting in for a Dallas side that already had a playoff berth secured. No, this team did not relax, Pareja said after the match. This team played against a rival today that made things difficult for us. We werent able to respond, but thats part of the game. Today I have to give credit to a team that did things right even though we could not find solutions on the field that resulted in points on the scoreboard. The day I see it, I will say it, but no, this team was not relaxed tonight. I see them work and run and today they walked into the locker room after having given it all. They didnt get the result, which sometimes you dont get the result youre looking for, but they did not relax. While FCDs home form in the second-half of the season has been impressive, the club may rue its loss to Portland given that it will now face a surgingg Vancouver side. Oakland Athletics Pro Shop. The Caps concluded the regular season with 13 points put of a possible 15, a run that included three successive wins over Real Salt Lake, Dallas and Seattle. The rich vein of form meant that the club controlled its own destiny heading into Saturdays regular season finale, and with Portland topping Dallas earlier in the day, Vancouver needed a victory over the Colorado Rapids to secure fifth place in the West. The Whitecaps faithful at BC Place on Saturday were made to sweat it out as the winner only came in the 70th minute when Kendall Waston headed home a corner kick for the lone goal of the affair. Weve not been bad over the last few games, Vancouver boss Carl Robinson told reporters after the game. I think today was probably the story of our season in 90 minutes because we played very well at times, we had a few half chances we didnt take, then we started to get edgy a little bit, and then the big man scoring the goal. Robinson also singled out the play of goalkeeper David Ousted, who was called upon to make several key saves in order for the club to hold off the Rapids and collect the win. I think it was fitting that David Ousted kept us in it with two fantastic saves in the last three or four minutes because God knows what I would have done if one of them had gone in, said Robinson. Wednesdays clash figures to be a closely-contested affair as Vancouver and Dallas split the three-game regular season series. After the two sides played to a 2-2 draw at BC Place on July 27, Dallas claimed a 2-1 home win on Sept. 13 while Vancouver ran out to a 2-0 win over FCD on Oct. 18. ' ' '