In his final appearance in an NHL game, Marc-Andre Fleury played the third period and made eight saves, giving up no goals at sold-out PPG Paints Arena as the Penguins beat Columbus in preseason hockey, 4-1.
Fleury was given the choice of starting the game or playing the third period and opted for the end to “get the chance for a win one last time.” He said the atmosphere was “Crazy, that’s for sure” as he was showered with standing ovations and chants of “One more year” over and over again. His wife and three children were in attendance. His daughters were born in Pittsburgh but his six-year-old son was born after he was traded to Las Vegas seven years ago and had never experienced the love of Penguins fans for his father.
Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell, and Ville Koivunen scored for the Penguins. Rakell scored the second goal to give the Pens the lead and added an empty net goal at the end.
The Penguins play at Detroit tomorrow night.
