(Sports Network) - Sergei Gonchar's power-play goal midway through the third period broke a tie and Maxime Talbot's empty-net tally in the final minute of regulation cemented Pittsburgh's 4-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals at Mellon Arena.

Talbot also scored in the opening period along with Kris Letang for Pittsburgh, which now trails the best-of-seven series, 2-1. Marc-Andre Fleury was strong with 27 saves in the victory, including 14 stops in the second period. The Penguins were on cruise control in that middle stanza, but came alive in the final 20 minutes to get back in the series.

"In the second period, they came out really strong," said Talbot. "They were putting pressure on us. They put us on our heels. Luckily, Fleury was there. He was definitely (the main reason Pittsburgh won) in my book. It's nice to get a big win."

Evgeni Malkin -- whose participation in this game had been in question following an incident near the conclusion of Game 2 -- posted three assists for Pittsburgh, while fellow superstar Sidney Crosby finally reached the scoresheet for the first time in the series with an assist on the game-winning goal.

Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen scored for the Red Wings, who are attempting to successfully defend their Stanley Cup title from a year ago when they defeated these same Penguins in six games. Detroit goaltender Chris Osgood allowed three goals on 20 shots.

The teams will return here on Thursday for Game 4.

Detroit forward Pavel Datsyuk was again absent from the lineup for the sixth straight game with a swollen foot. Datsyuk suffered the injury when he blocked a shot in Game 2 of the West finals against the Blackhawks.

The second period was dominated by the visitors, but it ended as the only scoreless frame thus far in the Finals and the teams entered the third period tied at 2-2.

"We came in the locker room (after the second period) and we calmed down," said Talbot. "The message was simple -- everybody sit down, just relax, bear down, stay with it and keep it simple. Nothing more needed to be said. We knew how we needed to play to be successful in the third and we came on strong."

Early in the final frame, Crosby's backhander from below the left circle barely missed the net and less than two minutes in, Jordan Staal's one-timer from the left circle was stopped by Osgood, as was the rebound attempt from the crease by Matt Cooke.

The Red Wings did not register a shot on goal through the first eight minutes of the period. As much as Detroit controlled the second period, the situation was clearly reversed in the third. Cooke's hustle on the forecheck on a dump- in led to an interference penalty called on Jonathan Ericsson and the Pens went to work with the extra skater.

"I was a little surprised to see that call," said Detroit's Nicklas Lidstrom.

With about 30 seconds to go on the power play, Gonchar gained control at the centerpoint after a pass from Malkin and his slap shot appeared to slightly change direction before it flew into the back of the net with 9:31 to play in regulation.

"Special teams is a key to every game you play," said Pittsburgh head coach Dan Bylsma. "Our power play has been a strength in the last couple of years. In the playoffs, when you can get power-play goals in a key game like this, it's huge in addition to the way (Fleury) played tonight. We needed big performances from special teams and our goaltender, and we certainly got them."

The Pens did not let up after they gained the lead and smothered Detroit the rest of the way with several time-consuming offensive flurries. It was Pittsburgh, not Detroit, that produced the scoring chances. Talbot hit the post with under four minutes remaining, then stood all alone in front moments later but couldn't lift the puck high enough.

Osgood went to the bench in favor of the extra skater in the final minute, but Talbot's wrister into the empty cage from near the red line sealed the win.

In the opening minutes of the first period, Pittsburgh applied tremendous offensive pressure. For the first two shifts, Crosby and Malkin skated on the same line along with Bill Guerin. The combination of Crosby and Malkin created a pair of quality scoring chances for the Pens.

Under two minutes after the opening faceoff, Crosby used his speed, maneuvered through the slot and created a 2-on-1 with Guerin, but the puck slid off Crosby's stick when he tried to make a pass. Moments later, Malkin was all alone at the right post, but Osgood's pad slid across in enough time to thwart the attempt.

The Penguins opened the scoring at the 4:48 mark on Talbot's fifth goal of the playoffs. A nice effort by Letang at the centerpoint kept the puck inside Pittsburgh's offensive zone and the disc landed on the stick of Malkin. From along the left half-wall, Malkin centered the puck to Talbot, whose one-timer from the slot flew past Osgood and ignited the home crowd.

"He's good with the puck, and if you give him time, he'll find the open players," said Lidstrom about Malkin.

Detroit, though, began to take control. The visitors won the battles in the corners and also started to control the neutral zone.

Less than two minutes after Talbot's tally, the Red Wings knotted the score on Zetterberg's 10th postseason marker. Ville Leino held control behind the net and attempted a stuffer at the right post, but Fleury made a sliding save. The rebound, though, kicked out directly to Zetterberg, who easily buried it into the back of the net from near the right post below the circle at the 6:19 mark.

Franzen gave Detroit a 2-1 lead with 8:27 remaining in the opening stanza with a power-play goal. Pittsburgh blueliner Brooks Orpik was whistled for interference, and Zetterberg held control in the Wings offensive zone along the left side. From near the half-wall, Zetterberg fired a cross-ice pass that deflected off the stick of Pittsburgh's Cooke and caromed to Franzen, who lit the lamp with a one-timer from inside the right circle.

For a stretch of about 20 seconds in the latter stages of the period, the Red Wings had six skaters on the ice, but neither referee took notice. Shortly after, however, the Pens received the power play they deserved when Dan Cleary was sent to the penalty box for a holding infraction.

On the ensuing power play, Letang held control atop the left circle and fired a laser slap shot that made its way under Osgood's pads for a 2-2 score at 15:57.

Less than three minutes into the second period, Detroit nearly moved ahead. A turnover in the neutral zone by Pittsburgh forward Ruslan Fedotenko led to a breakaway for the Red Wings. Mikael Samuelsson gained control of the puck and skated uncontested through the slot, but his wrist shot clanked off the left post with 17:40 on the clock.

Moments later, Marian Hossa, who skated for Pittsburgh in the 2008 Finals, again nearly put Detroit in front. Hossa sent a turnaround wrist shot toward the net from inside the lower right circle with a screen in front of Fleury, but the puck missed the far post by inches.

Midway through the stanza, Detroit forward Justin Abdelkader hustled down the right-wing side on a 2-on-2 rush and fired a slap shot from the top of the circle that Fleury snared with his glove.

Franzen had a good look from the high left slot with 7:10 to go. Franzen noticed heavy traffic in front of the net and sent a wrister to the crease area that nearly fooled Fleury after a change of direction.

Strong forechecking by Darren Helm along the right rear boards led to a holding penalty on Penguins forward Miroslav Satan at the 15:35 mark. During the Detroit power play, the best scoring chance occurred when Zetterberg's floating wrister from the centerpoint hit the crossbar after Fleury lost sight of the puck.

"I thought we took the game over (in the second period) and had great opportunities -- probably as many as we've had at any period of time -- but we didn't score," Babcock said.

Game Notes

Malkin has tallied a point on the scoring play of each of Pittsburgh's first five goals of this Finals series. He is only the second player in league history to accomplish the feat, joining Montreal's Henri Richard against Toronto in 1960. Malkin, who now has 33 points (13 goals, 20 assists) during these playoffs, is the first player to reach the 30-point mark in a single playoff season since 1996 (Joe Sakic, Colorado)...The Penguins are now 7-2 at home this postseason...The last team to win the Cup after losing Games 1 and 2 on the road was the 1971 Montreal Canadiens, who defeated the Chicago Blackhawks...Detroit's Kris Draper did not play. He is still suffering from a groin injury he incurred versus Chicago...The Red Wings won both contests in Detroit by a 3-1 score...Osgood faced only four shots in the second period...The Wings finished 1-for-2 on the power play, while Pittsburgh was 2-for-3 with the extra skater...Near the end of Game 2, Malkin received an instigator penalty, which, according to NHL rules, is accompanied by a one-game suspension when the infraction occurs in the final five minutes of a game. Malkin was not disciplined by the league. League senior executive vice president Colin Campbell deemed that the incident was not "retribution-seeking"...Game 4 will be shown on Versus, while Saturday's Game 5 in Detroit will be aired nationally on NBC.



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