Pens have big edge in series

Associated Press

OTTAWA

Trailing by a game in their first-round series against the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Ottawa Senators know the importance of Game 4.

Ottawa took home-ice advantage in its Eastern Conference quarterfinal with a 5-4 win in the series opener in Pittsburgh, Sidney Crosby’s Penguins regained the upper hand by winning the next two games, including a 4-2 victory Sunday night at Scotiabank Place.

“Obviously [tonight] is a big game,” Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson said. “Win, we’re right back in it. If we lose, we’ve dug ourselves a deep hole. So we look for … our chance to gain momentum in the series again and go from there.”

Ottawa never led Sunday, falling behind 1:13 in when Alexei Ponikarovsky beat Brian Elliott from the right faceoff circle. The Senators tied it on Mike Fisher’s power-play goal early in the second, but Evgeni Malkin restored Pittsburgh’s lead for good moments later when he put away a loose puck after Elliott was unable to poke it away.

Crosby scored his second goal of the series on a power play late in the second. He added an assist on Bill Guerin’s breakaway goal in the third for his seventh playoff point.

“Sid is also doing it in the defensive end,” Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said. “Winning battles, jumping to loose pucks and getting out of the defensive zone with that ability to play defense. That’s a big aspect of minimizing a team’s ability to be effective against you playing in the offensive zone.”

Ottawa coach Cory Clouston said Elliott has played “fairly well” so far, though he added that the Senators needed a better outing from their starting goalie to ensure a return trip to Scotiabank Place.

“We need him to bring his ‘A’ game, for sure,” Clouston said. “I don’t think we’re a good enough team to have just average goaltending. I’m not saying he’s been average but I think he’s been a little bit inconsistent at times, but that’s no different than our team. We have to be really good [tonight], everybody.”

Elliott cemented his hold on the No. 1 role ahead of Pascal Leclaire with his play during a franchise-record 11-game winning streak prior to the Olympic break in February.

“We’ve bounced back from bad games or bad stretches and that’s how you stay positive,” Elliott said.