PITTSBURGH — Jeff Carter scored a career-high four goals and the Pittsburgh Penguins moved back into first place in the crowded East Division with an 8-4 victory over Buffalo on Thursday night.

The 36-year-old Carter, acquired from Los Angeles at the trade deadline, beat Michael Houser three times in the game’s first 25 minutes for his first hat trick since March 28, 2018. He added his fourth with a pretty backhand — the 398th of his career — early in the third period that put the Sabres away.

The four-goal performance was the first by a Penguin since Chris Kunitz did it in a win over Washington on Feb. 3, 2013.

Jared McCann had a goal and two assists for Pittsburgh. Brian Dumoulin, Sidney Crosby and Kasperi Kapanen also scored for the Penguins.

Tristan Jarry overcame a sloppy start to finish with 19 saves as Pittsburgh moved two points ahead of Washington for the top spot in the East. The Capitals, however, have three games remaining. The Penguins have just one, their regular-season finale on Saturday against the Sabres.

Drake Caggiula scored twice for Buffalo, but Houser’s homecoming ended with a loss to the team he rooted for while growing up in the northern Pittsburgh suburbs.

The 28-year-old spent nearly a decade before bouncing around the minors before finally reaching the NHL earlier this week. He dazzled in a pair of wins over the New York Islanders to earn a third consecutive start. Playing in front of more than 20 friends and family, Houser stopped 26 shots but couldn’t keep the NHL’s highest-scoring team under wraps.

Tage Thompson and Jeff Skinner also scored for Buffalo, but the Sabres — who began the season hoping to end a nine-year playoff drought — assured themselves of finishing with the worst record in the 30-team NHL for the fourth time since 2013-14.

The Penguins by contrast have the longest active playoff streak (15 years) in major North American professional sports. Yet just reaching the postseason isn’t enough, one of the reasons they brought in Carter last month.