The fans in Ottawa needed only a minute to figure out that the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins meant business because that’s how long it took Pittsburgh’s Alexei Ponikarovsky to score his first playoff goal in six years.
“I stopped, looked at what’s coming, and then just caught the goalie by surprise,” Ponikarovsky said. “We know it’s a tough series and we know they will be coming hard so basically, it’s very important to score first.”
It was only fitting that Ponikarovsky’s goal was just his second in 26 postseason games because it typified a game where nothing went right for the Senators Sunday night at Scotiabank Place. The Penguins cruised to a 4–2 victory.
The tough hit sustained by Jordan Leopold from massive Sens defenseman Andy Sutton on Friday night fueled the emotional anger that was clearly displayed in the Pens’ quest for vengeance.
The early Pittsburgh goal deflated the crowd, but a nullified goal that Ottawa’s Peter Regin kicked in with his skate with 40.8 seconds remaining in the first period depressed the fans even more.
However, Regin redeemed himself early in the second period with a beautiful backhand assist from behind the net to an open Mike Fisher at the top of the crease. Fisher’s score left Pens defensemen Brooks Orpik and Kris Letang looking at each other in blame.
The temporary momentum shift was not enough to sustain the Sens as Pittsburgh reeled off three more goals by Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, and Bill Guerin before the Sens could score again with seven minutes remaining in the game.
Malkin’s score came just four minutes after Fisher tied the game. Malkin slid the puck between defensemen Erik Karlsson and Sutton while leading the break. Pittsburgh’s Maxime Talbot beat both defenders to the loose puck and shot at goalie Brian Elliott. The puck bounced off Elliott, allowing Malkin to score on the rebound.
Crosby’s power play goal was also a thing of beauty as he skated from one side of the net to the other for a tough angled shot through traffic. Matt Cooke, who had just come out of the penalty box after the 4-on-4, made a good read in the neutral zone, pressed on the forecheck, and slid the puck around the net to allow Crosby time to reach the puck.
“Our guys drove in at the net hard and there was some space behind them. I just tried to get in that ice and had some room to put it in,” Crosby said.
The breakaway goal by Guerin was purely a display of teamwork and excellent passing in the Pens’ own zone. Crosby stole the puck from Nick Foligno and passed to Chris Kunitz, who passed to Guerin. Guerin now has 36 playoff goals in his lengthy career.
The frustration for the Sens reached a breaking point when Orpik fell down in a collision with Sens captain Daniel Alfredsson. Alfredsson lost his cool and went after Orpik with players from both sides piling in. Alfredsson was fortunate to only receive two minutes for kneeing.
Ottawa coach Cory Clouston attributed the loss to the Pens doing “a pretty job of just locking out” though the Sens “had a lot of opportunities.” Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury’s made 20 in the win.
The Senators could not capitalize with home-ice advantage and must now face the Penguins on Tuesday night down 2–1 in the series. “We’ve set the tone,” Crosby said, “but we expect them to come harder.”
“I stopped, looked at what’s coming, and then just caught the goalie by surprise,” Ponikarovsky said. “We know it’s a tough series and we know they will be coming hard so basically, it’s very important to score first.”
It was only fitting that Ponikarovsky’s goal was just his second in 26 postseason games because it typified a game where nothing went right for the Senators Sunday night at Scotiabank Place. The Penguins cruised to a 4–2 victory.
The tough hit sustained by Jordan Leopold from massive Sens defenseman Andy Sutton on Friday night fueled the emotional anger that was clearly displayed in the Pens’ quest for vengeance.
The early Pittsburgh goal deflated the crowd, but a nullified goal that Ottawa’s Peter Regin kicked in with his skate with 40.8 seconds remaining in the first period depressed the fans even more.
However, Regin redeemed himself early in the second period with a beautiful backhand assist from behind the net to an open Mike Fisher at the top of the crease. Fisher’s score left Pens defensemen Brooks Orpik and Kris Letang looking at each other in blame.
The temporary momentum shift was not enough to sustain the Sens as Pittsburgh reeled off three more goals by Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, and Bill Guerin before the Sens could score again with seven minutes remaining in the game.
Malkin’s score came just four minutes after Fisher tied the game. Malkin slid the puck between defensemen Erik Karlsson and Sutton while leading the break. Pittsburgh’s Maxime Talbot beat both defenders to the loose puck and shot at goalie Brian Elliott. The puck bounced off Elliott, allowing Malkin to score on the rebound.
Crosby’s power play goal was also a thing of beauty as he skated from one side of the net to the other for a tough angled shot through traffic. Matt Cooke, who had just come out of the penalty box after the 4-on-4, made a good read in the neutral zone, pressed on the forecheck, and slid the puck around the net to allow Crosby time to reach the puck.
“Our guys drove in at the net hard and there was some space behind them. I just tried to get in that ice and had some room to put it in,” Crosby said.
The breakaway goal by Guerin was purely a display of teamwork and excellent passing in the Pens’ own zone. Crosby stole the puck from Nick Foligno and passed to Chris Kunitz, who passed to Guerin. Guerin now has 36 playoff goals in his lengthy career.
The frustration for the Sens reached a breaking point when Orpik fell down in a collision with Sens captain Daniel Alfredsson. Alfredsson lost his cool and went after Orpik with players from both sides piling in. Alfredsson was fortunate to only receive two minutes for kneeing.
Ottawa coach Cory Clouston attributed the loss to the Pens doing “a pretty job of just locking out” though the Sens “had a lot of opportunities.” Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury’s made 20 in the win.
The Senators could not capitalize with home-ice advantage and must now face the Penguins on Tuesday night down 2–1 in the series. “We’ve set the tone,” Crosby said, “but we expect them to come harder.”
Friends Read Free