The Thrashers built a 5-0 lead through two periods before the Penguins came alive, scoring four times to give themselves a chance in the closing minutes.
But, after Pittsburgh pulled goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, Kovalchuk lingered at center ice, took a pass from Marc Savard along the boards, and raced the other way to score his 30th goal into the unguarded net.
Kovalchuk, who missed all of training camp and the first three games in a contract dispute, came into the night trailing Philadelphia's Simon Gagne by one goal for the league lead. Gagne scored his 29th in the Flyers' 3-1 victory at Washington.
Sidney Crosby picked up one assist but largely had a forgettable night for the Penguins. The 18-year-old center was twice penalized for slashing, drew derisive chants from the crowd and was taunted by Kovalchuk after the Thrashers star scored his second goal.
The Penguins nearly got the last laugh. John LeClair, Michel Ouellet, Colby Armstrong and Mark Recchi scored for Pittsburgh in the first 15:42 of the third the last three goals coming on rebounds given up by goalie Kari Lehtonen while Atlanta was short-handed.
The Thrashers knocked out Penguins goalie Jocelyn Thibault with three goals on their first nine shots, then held on desperately for their third win in four games.
Kovalchuk scored just 1:28 into the game off a faceoff in the Pittsburgh zone. Marc Savard got the puck to the left of Thibault, lured the goalie out of position and passed across to Kovalchuk, who split the legs of Ric Jackman with a shot into the open net at 1:28.
Slava Kozlov made it 2-0, then Scott Mellanby scored on a shot that went off the post and straddled the line before Thibault appeared to knocked the puck in with his glove while trying to cover it. The goal light never came on and the play was reviewed, but the replay clearly showed the puck crossing the line. That was it for Thibault, who lasted just 10.5 minutes.
The Thrashers made it 5-0 in the second period with two power-play goals against Fleury, the first by Marian Hossa. Then, with Crosby sent off with his second slashing penalty, Kovalchuk took a pass from outside the circle and one-timed a blistering shot over Fleury's left shoulder.
Kovalchuk turned quickly and pointed toward Crosby, who was coming out of the penalty box. The crowd chanted ``Crosby! Crosby! Crosby!'' toward one the No. 1 draft pick and one of the NHL's most touted prospects in years.
Notes: The Thrashers placed C Bobby Holik on the injured list before the game. He already had missed two games since breaking his foot in a New Year's Day win at Washington. ... Pittsburgh lost in regulation for the first time in six games. They had gone 3-0-2 since snapping a streak of 11 losses in 12 games.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
http://accesswdun.com/article/2006/1/118563