Penguins beat Senators in 2OT of Game 7 to return to Stanley Cup Final
PITTSBURGH — Veteran forward Chris Kunitz scored his second goal of the game at 5:09 of double overtime to lift the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 3-2 win against the Ottawa Senators and second consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Penguins, trying to be the first team in 19 years to repeat as Stanley Cup champions, will play the Nashville Predators, starting Monday in Pittsburgh.
Sidney Crosby set up Kunitz with a pass into the slot area. Kunitz hadn’t scored in this postseason before Thursday night.
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First OT: The Penguins were the more dangerous team in overtime. Forwward Phil Kessel nearly won it when his shot plopped on top of the net. Senators goalie Craig Anderson made eight saves in this period alone.
Karlsson racks up minutes: Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson was brilliant (18 points) in the playoffs, and he didn't seem to tire. That was especially true in this one as he played a game-high 39:33. He also had two assists. Karlsson has played more than 80 minutes more than any other player in the playoffs.
Tying goal: Senators forward Ryan Dzingel, who had played sparingly in the game, scored with 5:19 left in regulation to tie the game 2-2. Karlsson ripped a shot off goalie Matt Murray’s right post. The puck caromed off of Murray's arm where Dzingel batted it out of the air and into the net.
Penguins led twice: Pittsburgh scored the first goal, then claimed a 2-1 lead when defenseman Justin Schultz scored on a shot from the point on the power play with 8:16 left in regulation.
The penalty: Ottawa defenseman Dion Phaneuf was in the penalty box with the Senators’ first penalty of the game. He interfered with Kessel along the boards, and the Senators didn’t like the call. They had been disciplined until that point, and Phaneuf’s hold-up of Kessel was a minimal call on the sliding scale.
Ottawa’s MVP: Anderson continued to be his team’s difference-maker, making 39 saves. He was wall-like, particularly in the second period when he made 14 saves. In the third period, he stopped Bryan Rust’s breakaway, assisted by Karlsson harassing him from behind. He made another an important save on shots from the slot by Jake Guentzel and Matt Cullen.
The Senators’ aggressive defensive play was made more valuable by Anderson’s stinginess in net.
No momentum: The Penguins didn’t get the anticipated lift from scoring the first goal of the game (from Kunitz in the second period) because Mark Stone scored 20 seconds later. It was a deflating for the Penguins and the crowd.
