Lightning Jolt Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins might have lost far more than a game.

A team spokesman said Jaromir Jagr, bothered by a leg injury, was leaving the team to return to Pittsburgh after playing nearly 30 minutes in the Penguins' 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay on Thursday night. The Penguins play at Miami on Saturday night.

Jagr was in the Pittsburgh lineup after missing most of the Penguins' last game because of an upper leg injury. He failed to record a point for the second straight game after opening the season with a 15-game points streak.

"He's still a little sore," Pittsburgh coach Kevin Constantine said. "He's probably not as sharp as he's been in the past."

The injury in the thigh area just below Jagr's right groin sidelined the NHL scoring leader for all but three minutes against Buffalo on Tuesday night.

Kevin Hodson made 26 saves, and Robert Petrovicky and Pavel Kubina scored first-period goals for Tampa Bay.

The Lightning have won four straight at home, the franchise's longest streak since a five-game run in 1996-97.

"For us to win hockey games, our goaltending has to be good every night," Tampa Bay coach Steve Ludzik said. "That's a tough position to put them in."

German Titov spoiled Hodson's shutout bid, scoring with just under three minutes left. Titov has three goals and six points during a five-game points streak.

Hodson made a strong save on Martin Straka on a first-period breakawy, and robbed Titov from point-blank range in the third.

"I was going by myself, saw the open net and couldn't put it in," Straka said. "His skate was there, so there's nothing you can do about it. When you get those chances, you need to bury them."

Petrovicky scored a fluke goal midway through the first period. The Lightning center scored from in-close after a shot by Andreas Johansson missed the net, hit the end boards and wound up in front of the net. Kubina scored on a backhand shot late in the period.

The Penguins had the first five power-play chances of the game, but failed to score each time. Pittsburgh finished 0-for-6 overall.

Pittsburgh's Jan Hrdina and Aleksey Morozov also returned Thursday night. Hrdina missed 12 games because of a sprained ankle, and Morozov was sidelined for eight games by a charley horse injury.

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