COLUMBUS, Ohio — Sixteen minutes was all it took.

Sidney Crosby scored two goals to extend his point streak to 15 games, and the Pittsburgh Penguins won their ninth straight by routing the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-2 on Saturday night.

The game was essentially over after Crosby’s first goal made it 4-0 with 4 minutes left in the opening period.

“We capitalized on a few mistakes they made,” said Crosby, who has 17 goals and 14 assists in his streak. “That helped. Obviously when you get a few and get a lead, they start thinking a bit where maybe they need to change things. We were happy with the start.”

A loud capacity crowd — bolstered by several thousand Penguins fans, many wearing Crosby’s No. 87 sweater — seemed primed for a competitive game. But Paul Martin’s two quick power-play goals, one by Michael Rupp and Crosby’s first (also with a man advantage) drained all the suspense.

“Early on, a couple of times, you could see they put pucks in deep and wanted to come real hard on the forecheck and try to set up their game,” Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said. “Our guys did a great job of eliminating and executing, getting out there and not allowing them to get into their game. And the power play, getting goals like that in the first period, put us in a good spot.”

The Penguins rolled without top forward Evgeni Malkin, who was sidelined by a minor knee injury.

Michael Rupp, Tyler Kennedy and Deryk Engelland also scored for the Penguins, who have points in 12 consecutive games (11-0-1). Pittsburgh also got two assists each from Kris Letang and Mark Letestu and won on the road for the sixth straight time.