Kris Letang and the Pittsburgh Penguins came out of their holiday break hoping to claw their way back into playoff contention. They were seventh in the Metropolitan Division despite major moves made in the offseason to bolster their team. On Wednesday night, Pittsburgh took an emphatic step forward with a win over the New York Islanders.

The Penguins went into Long Island and dominated. They came away with a huge 7-0 win to stun the hometown Islanders. Kris Letang once again made a major impact, especially in the second period. In fact, his second-period outburst made never-before-seen history in the NHL.

Letang recorded five assists in the period. He became the first defenseman in NHL history to record five points in a single period, according to NHL Public Relations. Furthermore, he became the first blueliner since Sheldon Souray in 2004 to record six points in a single game.

Kris Letang leads Penguins to victory vs. Islanders

The Penguins and Islanders played to a scoreless first period. However, Pittsburgh exploded for six of their seven goals in the middle frame. Kris Letang recorded his first assist on Jake Guentzel's 15th goal of the season to make it a 2-0 game.

Letang recorded assists on the next four goals in the period, as well. Guentzel scored his second of the game to make it 3-0. After that, franchise icon Evgeni Malkin scored twice to further increase the lead. Finally, forward Radim Zohorna scored the final goal of the second period.

Letang was not done there, however. He provided the primary assist on Valtteri Puustinen's first goal of the season, giving the veteran Penguins defenseman six points on the night. The star blueliner now has 20 assists on the season, bringing his point total to 23 through 33 games.

This is a huge victory for a Penguins team that has tried to find their stride this season. Let's see if Kris Letang's performance on Wednesday sparks Pittsburgh's season and helps them get back into the playoff race.