Senators expect best shot

For sure, the prospect of taking a commanding 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference second-round series against the Rangers is positively tantalizing for the Senators.

But that, they insist, is not their focus.

To a man, the Senators conceded after an hour-long practice at the Garden on Monday that they got away with one Saturday night in the form of their soul-crushing 6-5 win in Ottawa.

“We have to move on from [Saturday], because they played better than we did,’’ Ottawa star defenseman Erik Karlsson said Monday. “We know that if we want to have a chance to play with them then we’re going to have to be a lot better than we were in Game 1 and 2. We’re really happy with the end result of the last game, but it’s not something that we want to bring with us moving into [Tuesday’s] game.’’

Ottawa coach Guy Boucher all but admonished himself Monday for a Saturday game plan that was not structured strongly enough to counteract the Rangers’ strength, which is their transition game and speed.

“We expect their very, very best,’’ he said. “We’re expecting the fans to be wild, and expecting them to bring their A-plus game. They have 1,000 games of experience in the playoffs [on their roster], which is more than double what we’ve got. Over the span of games they’ve played, they’ve displayed resiliency and ability to bounce back.’’

If there’s one player on the Senators who best knows the players in the other dressing room, it is Derick Brassard, who played the last four seasons with the Rangers before joining Ottawa.

“I expect their best game, and we’re going to have to match it,’’ Brassard said. “There’s a lot of character in that room, really good leadership, and it starts from their coach [Alain Vigneault]. We have to expect their best game. I think the first 10 minutes is really important.’’