Korpisalo makes 27 saves, Bruins shut out Penguins for 3rd straight win

BOSTON -- Joonas Korpisalo made 27 saves, and the Boston Bruins extended their winning streak to three games with a 1-0 victory against the Pittsburgh Penguins at TD Garden on Sunday.

It was Korpisalo’s first shutout this season and his eighth in the NHL.

“It’s nice, but I would just rather win,” he said of the shutout.

Viktor Arvidsson scored for the Bruins (25-19-2), who have won five of their past six (5-1-0), including 10-2 against the New York Rangers on Saturday.

“A win is still a win,” Korpisalo said. “I was hoping the guys could save a couple of goals for today and we did, one. That was a good team effort today.”

Stuart Skinner made 17 saves for the Penguins (21-14-9), who have lost in a row, including 2-1 to the Calgary Flames on Saturday, following a six-game winning streak.

“We didn’t do ourselves any favors tonight by taking as many penalties as we did,” Pittsburgh defenseman Erik Karlsson said. “It was a tight game, a winnable game for us but we didn’t do enough today to sustain it long enough to create more chances for ourselves to tie the game.”

The Bruins were 0-for-6 on the power play. The Penguins were 0-for-2.

“Maybe some mental tiredness,” Arvidsson said of the man-advantage. “We weren’t as sharp as we usually are, but we’ll keep doing what we’re doing, keep playing and that’s brought us success this year and the details we’re playing with on the power play.”

Skinner praised his team's performance on the penalty kill.

“It was huge,” he said. “Obviously, power plays can give a team a lot of momentum and (Boston) is running at a really good percentage right now, especially the last few games they’ve been really hot. How we were able to snuff them out was huge, a big confidence booster for this group, and doing that gave us a chance to win tonight.”

Sean Kuraly appeared to give Boston a 1-0 lead at 4:57 of the first period. Tanner Jeannot's shot from the bottom of the right face-off circle rebounded off Skinner and then Kuraly's right glove in front. It was determined Kuraly punched the puck into the net and the play was ruled no goal after a review.

Arvidsson gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead at 11:00 of the first. He outmuscled Pittsburgh defenseman Erik Karlsson in front of the net, kicked a rebound off Henri Jokiharju’s shot from the point onto his stick, and put a backhander off the left post before it bounced in off Skinner's right leg.

“I was trying to get it to my stick, and back towards the net and luckily it went in,” Arvidsson said. “I’m just trying to be a disturbance in front of the net, trying to win battles, set up my teammates for chances, too. I thrive in those kinds of games.”

In the waning minutes of the second period, Boston defenseman Jonathan Aspirot, who signed a two-year contract extension earlier in the day, blocked a point-blank, quality scoring chance to preserve the one-goal lead.

“It’s huge,” Korpisalo said of the blocked shot. “It gives energy to our team, and everyone’s doing it right now. In the last period we had some big blocks, a lot of stuff you don’t necessarily see with box outs, winning puck battles, and it was a great battle win today.”

The Bruins were without leading goal-scorer Morgan Geekie due to a family matter, but he is expected to return to the lineup against the Detroit Red Wings at TD Garden on Tuesday. As a result, Michael Eyssimont returned to the lineup and played on the third line with Alex Steeves and Fraser Minten.

Penguins forward Kevin Hayes, a Boston native, played his 800th NHL game, and defenseman Connor Clifton played his 400th NHL game.

“It’s cool,” Hayes said. “Obviously, you want to play every night. Lately I’ve been scratched, but it’s funny how things play out and you play your 800th game in your hometown. I had no clue that my family was going to be in the corner. It was a really cool moment.”

NOTES: Korpisalo became the first Bruins goaltender with a shutout against the Penguins since Tuukka Rask (Dec. 16, 2015). ... Pittsburgh defenseman Connor Clifton played his 400th NHL game. ... Linesman Matt MacPherson officiated his 1,000th game and was honored during a pregame ceremony.