Senators top Rangers in 2 OT

OTTAWA, ONTARIO >> JeanGabriel Pageau got his fourth goal of the game in the second overtime after scoring twice late in regulation, lifting the Ottawa Senators over the New York Rangers 6-5 Saturday in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Ottawa leads the series 2-0 despite trailing by two goals after Brady Skjei’s score with 14:50 left in the third. Pageau cut it to 5-4 with 3:19 left in the period, then tied it with 1:02 remaining.

Pageau scored again 2:54 into the second OT, snapping in a shot during a 2-on-1 rush alongside Tommy Wingels. Pageau is the first Senator ever with four goals in a playoff game.

Marc Methot and Mark Stone also scored for Ottawa, and Craig Anderson had 43 saves.

Skjei had two goals for New York and Michael Grabner, Chris Kreider and Derek Stepan also scored. Henrik Lundqvist stopped 28 shots.

The series heads to New York for Game 3 on Tuesday night.

Ottawa lost Clarke MacArthur to injury and won despite letting Grabner and Stepan score short-handed. It leads a playoff series 2-0 for only the second time in team history and first since the 2007 Eastern Conference final against Buffalo. The Senators have never swept a postseason series.

Skjei scored a few minutes after Stone cut New York’s lead to 4-3. Skjei broke up an odd-man rush, took a feed from Brendan Smith in transition and fired in his fourth goal of the playoffs.

Pageau rallied the Senators with a pair of tip-in goals, the first on a point shot from Zack Smith, and the second on Kyle Turris’ shot from the left faceoff circle.

After his OT score, Pageau slid into the end boards, skated to the left corner and was swarmed by teammates. Wingels stopped to scoop the puck out of the goal before joining the pile.

The 24-year-old Pageau has two career postseason hat tricks. He scored 12 goals in 82 games for Ottawa this season, and this was his first career overtime score.

After Erik Karlsson’s unlikely tally late in regulation lifted Ottawa in Game 1, the Senators came out flying early in Game 2. Canadian Tire Centre appeared near capacity after more than 2,000 seats were left empty in the opener two nights earlier.

Ottawa had three straight power-play chances early, but it didn’t even manage a shot on goal in that time, although Karlsson did hit a post. Mike Hoffman fired a sloppy pass that was picked off by Kevin Hayes at one point and MacArthur dropped another feed to no one in particular.

Grabner got his goal during Ottawa’s second power play. Stone couldn’t corral a puck that sailed around the boards, and Jesper Fast and Grabner sped away on a successful 2-on-1.

Pageau tied it with 6:01 left in the first, his second of the playoffs. The Ottawa native picked off Dan Girardi’s pass in the neutral zone, then beat Lundqvist.