Tomas Vokoun of the Pittsburgh Penguins scrambles to cover the puck in the third period against Guillaume Latendresse of the Ottawa Senators in Game Two of the Eastern Conference semi-finals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs at Consol Energy Center on Friday in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Penguins defeated the Senators 4-3. (AFP)

Reuters/Los Angeles

Captain Sidney Crosby scored a hat-trick as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Ottawa Senators 4-3 in Game Two of the National Hockey League Eastern Conference semi-finals on Friday.

The top-seeded Penguins won the first game of the best-of-seven series 4-1.

“I think we did a great job all game of putting a lot of pressure on them but when we gave up chances they were pretty big ones,” Crosby said.

“We want to limit those big chances we give up but I feel good about how many shots we got off and the pressure we put on them.”

Crosby fired in his first goal after just three minutes of the opening period although seventh-seeded Ottawa’s Kyle Turris scored a power play goal at 13:15 to level the score.

Crosby then scored two more goals, one late in the first period and another just over a minute into the second to wrestle control back and claim his second career playoff hat-trick.

Colin Greening kept the Senators in striking range with a goal just 40 seconds later but Brenden Morrow tipped in a goal mid-period to extend the lead.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau gave the visitors hope with an early third period score but the Penguins held firm ahead of Games Three and Four in Ottawa.

 

Gritty Kings find a way to keep winning in the playoffs

A year ago, the unfancied Los Angeles Kings delivered their own unforgettable Cinderella story as they beat the odds en route to claiming the franchise’s first Stanley Cup.

They snuck into the National Hockey League’s postseason as an eighth seed and went on to beat the Western Conference’s top three teams before defeating the New Jersey Devils 4-2 in the best-of-seven Stanley Cup finals.

This season, they are seemingly at it again.

After fighting back from a stumbling start to the lockout-shortened regular season, the Kings have steadily got better and better as a fifth seed in the playoffs.

Though their offense has not always sparked, their defense has been typically gritty and goaltender Jonathan Quick appears to have regained the form that earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player during last season’s playoffs.

Most importantly, the Kings have found a way to win games against all odds. On Thursday night, they scored twice in the last two minutes to stun the San Jose Sharks 4-3 and take a commanding 2-0 lead in their Western Conference semi-finals.

Kings captain Dustin Brown looked almost as shocked as his team’s bewildered but jubilant fans as he sat in front of his locker shortly after the final buzzer sounded.

“We didn’t play a great game tonight but we found a way to win,” he told reporters after Los Angeles scored two power-play goals in 22 seconds to edge the devastated Sharks.

“That’s the important thing. Two big power-play goals. We stayed with it. It’s a roller coaster, but when you go through the experience of everything we did last year, you keep your emotions in check.

“Two minutes left, down one, it’s about capitalising. We’re happy with the result, but we have to play better. We can’t let it get to that situation every night.”

With the Kings on a five-on-three powerplay, Brown tied the score at 3-3 with a backhand shot at 18:17 of the third period to spark thunderous roars from a sellout crowd of 18,527 at Staples Center.

Moments later, center Trevor Lewis pounced on a loose puck from the left side of an open net for the go-ahead goal.

Kings center Anze Kopitar, who left the ice for a few minutes early in the third period after being cut above the lip by a flying puck, applauded his team’s gutsy effort after being outshot by the Sharks for much of Game Two.

“We realised it wasn’t our best effort, but sometimes good teams win when they don’t deserve it too,” the Slovenian forward said after Los Angeles had won their sixth straight playoff game. “We pulled it out ... and next time we want to make sure we’re not in a position like this.”

Kopitar, who had 20 stitches on the cut above his lip, knows the Kings face a daunting challenge at the infamous Shark Tank when the series shifts to San Jose for Game Three on Saturday.