Alex Nedeljkovic becomes first goalie to score and assist in a game as Penguins dispatch Sabres 5-2

Alex Nedjelkovic was already having a fine night in goal for the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday before he floated a puck into the Buffalo Sabres’ empty net to score the 19th goalie goal in league history and seal a 5-2 victory.

🚨 ALEX NEDELJKOVIC JUST SCORED A GOALIE GOAL 🚨 pic.twitter.com/kywcdyrW4b

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) January 18, 2025

His earlier assist on Cody Glass’s second tally of the game makes him the first netminder to ever score and assist in the same contest.

Nedeljkovic’s piece of history makes him the 47th netminder to record a multipoint game, though Mike Reese’s three-point effort for the Calgary Flames in 1993 means he’ll have to settle for second place in the all-time single-game point charts at his position.

A big offensive night for ‘Neddy’ will doubtlessly overshadow an excellent performance between the pipes, where he turned away 40 of Buffalo’s 42 shots on goal.

Nedeljkovic, who had already scored at the ECHL and AHL levels, needed a strong outing after he was chased from his last start against the Ottawa Senators, who beat him five times on Jan. 11.

The veteran’s play is more important than ever now that the Penguins have sent longtime starter Tristan Jarry (3.31 GAA, .886 SV% in 22 GP) to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. 

Nedeljkovic, who had his own struggles before Friday’s game (3.40 GAA, .886 SV% in 19 GP), figures to split the net with rookie Joel Blomqvist (3.60 GAA, .903 SV% in 8 GP) the rest of the way for Pittsburgh.

The Penguins’ win was a successful start to a seven-game road stand that will go a long way towards determining their postseason destiny. Pittsburgh is three points adrift of the second wild card without any games in hand. They’ll face off with the rival Washington Capitals tomorrow night at 7 p.m. ET.