Before Rickard Rakell tied Sunday's game with 12.8 seconds left between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets, there was an underrated play made at the blue line by Erik Karlsson. 

The Penguins were moving the puck around with authority during the 6-on-5 when Kris Letang dished the puck back to the point. The puck had serious juice and was in danger of leaving the offensive zone, but Karlsson controlled it, getting it to Sidney Crosby. Crosby then passed the puck to Anthony Mantha, who found Rakell open in front for the tying goal. 

I bring that play from Karlsson up because had he not made it, the Penguins would've lost in regulation and had their four-game winning streak snapped. Karlsson then got the primary assist on Crosby's game-winner, finding him fresh off the bench in the offensive zone before Crosby made no mistake with a vintage backhand move on a breakaway. Blue Jackets goaltender Jet Greaves had no chance on that deke. 

Those two plays capped off Karlsson's best performance of the season in a Penguins uniform, which is saying something, given that he has been marvelous all season. He played 18:34 at 5v5 and was on the ice for 67.5% of the shot attempts, 57.4% of the expected goals, and 57.1% of the scoring chances.

He was driving offense each time he was out there, and there was even a sequence earlier in the game (before Rakell's tying goal) when he took a pass from Parker Wotherspoon, his defensive partner, and deked right around Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner before firing a shot off the post. He then kept the play alive in the offensive zone before the Penguins got two more quality looks. The second look came from Crosby, who looked to have a sure goal, but was denied. 

Ever since the Christmas break, Karlsson has five points in five games, including a two-assist performance against the Detroit Red Wings last Thursday. One of those assists came on Blake Lizotte's goal late in the third period that looked like it was going to be the game-winner before the Red Wings tied it on the power play. It came off a fortunate bounce, but Karlsson still showcased a shoot-first mentality from the point. 

Karlsson has all the confidence in the world right now, and part of it is because head coach Dan Muse is putting him in the best position to succeed. He plays with a stable partner in Wotherspoon and has been positionally sound. He's not being overly aggressive with his pinching.

He's been running the show at the point on the power play all year, which ranks second in the NHL at 29.7%. 12 of his 31 points have come on the PP. 

Heck, Karlsson has also been a staple on the penalty kill all year long and has done a pretty solid job at getting to loose pucks and forcing clears. He’s already logged 92:40 on the penalty kill this season, more than his last two seasons combined on that unit. He played a good bit on the PK in Ottawa and in San Jose, so it's been nice seeing Muse utilize that element of Karlsson's game. 

Takeaways: Penguins Roar Back From Three-Goal Deficit, Beat Blue Jackets In OTThe Pittsburgh Penguins extended their winning streak to five games in dramatic fashion against the Columbus Blue Jackets, which is just another indication that this team may be better than anyone thought.

If he keeps this up, there's a legit chance the Penguins could find their way into the playoffs, which still feels a little crazy to write, given the team's low expectations heading into the season. However, that's why you play the games, and right now, the Penguins are on a 98-point pace heading into the second half of the season.

They're in the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but are only one point back of the New York Islanders for second in the Metropolitan Division. They still have a lot of divisional games upcoming, which could be good for them since they're already 7-1-3 against the Metro this year after going 9-13-4 against the division last year.

Karlsson has silenced all of his doubters this year, and without him playing at this level, the Penguins wouldn't be in the position that they're in. 

(Data via Natural Stat Trick).

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