National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Ottawa 8, Pittsburgh 4
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 24, 2012
Where: Scotiabank Place, Ottawa, Ontario
Referees: Ian Walsh, Brad Meier
Linesmen: Bryan Pancich, Derek Nansen
Attendance: 20076


SENATORS 8, PENGUINS 4: Captain Daniel Alfredsson collected two goals and two assists as Ottawa scored four times in the second period to hand Pittsburgh its first regulation loss in 15 games.

Milan Michalek netted his team-leading 33rd goal and added two assists and fellow All-Star Jason Spezza and Nick Foligno had three-point performances for the Senators, who snapped a three-game losing skid and remained three points behind Northeast Division-leading Boston. The Bruins posted a 4-2 win over Los Angeles on Saturday.

Former Penguin defenseman Sergei Gonchar, Chris Phillips, Colin Greening and Kyle Turris also tallied and Craig Anderson relieved an injured Ben Bishop and stopped 19 of 20 shots. Bishop exited the contest midway through the second period after he positioned himself awkwardly to make a save.

Matt Cooke recorded his third two-goal performance in six games and captain Sidney Crosby scored his first goal since his return for the Penguins, who fell to 13-1-1 and dropped three points behind Eastern Conference-leading New York. The Rangers posted a 4-3 shootout victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.

After Gonchar leveled the contest 33 seconds into the middle session, Phillips gave Ottawa a 3-2 lead just over 6 1/2 minutes later after his one-timer from the right faceoff circle beat Brad Thiessen.

Ottawa doubled the advantage after Gonchar's point shot caromed off Foligno and later Turris before finding the net, but Tyler Kennedy responded 14 seconds later to trim Ottawa's lead to 4-3.

Alfredsson snapped a 12-game goalless drought by converting a shorthanded breakaway with 3:53 left in the session.

Crosby trimmed the deficit back to one, but Spezza ignited Ottawa's three-goal third to seal the win.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Ottawa claimed three of the four games in the season series. ... All-Star Evgeni Malkin saw his six-game point streak come to an end. Malkin recorded seven goals and as many assists during that streak.

Top Game Performances
 
Pittsburgh   Ottawa
Matt Cooke 2 Points Daniel Alfredsson 4
Matt Cooke 2 Goals Daniel Alfredsson 2
Sidney Crosby 1 Assists Nick Foligno 3
N/A Power Play Goals Colin Greening 1
N/A Short Handed Goals Daniel Alfredsson 1
Brad Thiessen .714 Save Percentage Craig Anderson .950
Brad Thiessen 20 Saves Craig Anderson 19
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Pittsburgh 40 4 0-4 2-4 10 33
Ottawa 28 8 2-4 4-4 10 32
Upcoming Games
  • Ottawa will play their next game on the road against Winnipeg. The Senators have a W/L % of .579 after a win and .421 after a loss.
  • Pittsburgh will play their next game at home against New Jersey. The Penguins have a W/L % of .652 after a win and .571 after a loss.