Senators rule: They beat the Penguins 5-1 for a 2-1 lead in the East.
Ottawa scores four goals in first period, chasing Pittsburgh’s goalie from game.
OTTAWA — Marc Methot, Derick Brassard and Zack Smith scored in a 2:18 span midway through the first period to chase goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, and the Ottawa Senators beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-1 on Wednesday night to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.
Mike Hoffman opened the scoring 48 seconds in, and the Senators blew it open against the sluggish Penguins a few minutes later with the fastest three goals in team playoff history. Kyle Turris made it 5-0 late in the second period.
Sidney Crosby ended Craig Anderson’s shutout bid with a power-play goal in the third. Pittsburgh has scored one goal in each game in the series, dropping the opener 2-1 in overtime and winning the second 1-0.
Anderson finished with 25 saves. Fleury gave up four goals on nine shots, and Matthew Murray made 19 saves in relief.
Hosting their first Eastern Conference final game in 10 years, the Senators came out flying. Hoffman got it going by capitalizing on Turris’ shot that bounced awkwardly wide of the goal. Hoffman stuffed the shot, standing to the left of the goal, just between the post and right pad of Fleury.
“It was a bad start,” Crosby said. “You don't want to get down at any point, but to get down 4-0 is digging a pretty big hole.”
The crowd was delirious throughout the one-sided win and all the more so when the Senators got under the skin of the Penguins.
At one point late in the first, Dion Phaneuf leveled former Maple Leafs teammate Phil Kessel. Bobby Ryan came by with a shove seconds later as Kessel waved his stick in the air at the Senators winger in apparent frustration.