By Wayne Scanlan, The Ottawa Citizen
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/sports/index.html
April 17, 2010
PITTSBURGH — The Penguins got their win, and the Senators got their series split.
One might think they're both happy heading to Ottawa for Games 3 and 4 of this Eastern quarterfinal, but instead they're both ready for more nasty playoff hockey after a wild couple of nights in Pittsburgh.
A brilliant Sidney Crosby play set up the winner with 4:12 left in the third period as the Penguins outlasted Ottawa 2-1 in Game 2. With Jason Spezza in hot pursuit, the Penguins captain whirled and pivoted behind the Senators net, circled out front and from his knees sent a pass to Kris Letang, whose screen shot from the point beat Brian Elliott above his glove.
"I lost sight of it," said the Senators goaltender afterward.
Crosby had a unique form of hat trick, stopping a puck at his own goal line, scoring a goal and setting up the winner. Crosby now has five points in two games.
"We knew he was going to have some success against us, it's impossible to stop him every night," said Senators head coach Cory Clouston. "He was the best player on the ice."
Sergei Gonchar #55 of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Jarkko Ruutu #73 of the Ottawa Senators mix it up in Game Two of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2010 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Mellon Arena on April 16, 2010 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.Photograph by: Justin K. Aller, Getty ImagesSo much for the supposed lack of hatred between the Senators and Penguins.
Game 2 took a harsh turn even before Senators defenceman Andy Sutton tried to take Jordan Leopold's head off with a flying hit to the head late in the first period as Leopold approached the Senators blue line with his head down.
Leopold, 29, from Golden Valley, Minnesota, appeared to be unconscious by the time he hit the ice. He lay motionless for about half a minute before coming around, although he had to be helped off the ice. Leopold will be re-evaluated today but was clearly suffering from head trauma.
The NHL is trying to wean targeted head hits out of the game, but this was not the blind side or "back pressure" hit the league is vowing will result in suspensions. Sutton didn't even receive a two-minute minor on the play, although on replays his elbow appeared to make contact with Leopold's head.
Sutton said afterward, it was merely the same sort of hit he's been making all year, and grew angry when a reporter suggested it was an elbow.
"Are you an expert?" Sutton said, before media relations staff led him out of the room. "Are you an expert?"
Penguins head coach Dan Bylsma stopped short of calling it a dirty hit, terming it a "hard hockey hit" and expected the NHL will take a look at it to determine if a suspension is mandatory. One insider said last night he does not think the NHL will suspend Sutton.
Leopold is a big loss on the Penguins blueline -- he averaged 22 minutes per game this season with Florida and Pittsburgh, coming over to the Penguins for the final 20 games of the regular season.
The non-call escalated hostilities, and the first period ended with a fight between Ottawa's Zach Smith and Pittsburgh's Max Talbot.
"It was playoff hockey," said Spezza. "It's fun to be back in the mix."
The back and forth flow of the first period degenerated into roller derby in the second period, and with so few calls being made, that seemed to work in Ottawa's favor. They'll take their chances trading hits and holds with the Penguins rather than trading scoring chances.
Heading into the third period tied 1-1 on the road, after winning Game 1, was just about ideal for the Senators. Next goal wins. What road underdog wouldn't like those odds? While Pittsburgh had outshot Ottawa 21-13 after 40 minutes, Elliott didn't have to make spectacular stops, just several from the point and high slot that he was able to see cleanly.
In the third period, both teams rolled pucks through the goal crease, missing the go-ahead goal by inches, with Crosby and Anton Volchenkov playing the role of saviour for their teams.
How did they get to the late drama?
The Senators could not have had a more auspicious start. From a harmless looking play, they generated the game's first goal on its first shot, a wrister from Peter Regin just inside the blueline, 18 SECONDS after the opening faceoff. Great shot, caught the top corner, but Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury just waved at it.
The goal only seemed to inspire the Penguins to take their game higher.
Pittsburgh got the goal back when Senators goaltender Brian Elliott failed to control a rebound on a Chris Kunitz shot and Crosby whacked in the rebound on his backhand for Crosby's first goal of the series. Looked like a long night ahead for both goalies, and yet they both settled into a surprising duel after yielding 9 goals combined in Game 1.
After the Sutton hit on Leopold, the Penguins had most of the play, as the Senators made infrequent visits to the Penguins zone. Still, they nearly scored on a second period power play. Sutton, Public Enemy No. 1 in Pennsylvania, was booed by the Mellon Arena patrons every time he touched the puck, and fans jeered and pounded the glass near the penalty box when Sutton was finally sent off for a holding call in the second period.
The Senators survived that penalty and another to Sutton in the third period, as the game's pace escalated again.
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