PITTSBURGH (AP) – Sidney Crosby scored three straight goals for his first natural hat trick in more than five years, and the Pittsburgh Penguins opened the second half of the season with a 6-5 win over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night.
The two-time NHL MVP pushed his goal total to 20 and has scored at least one in Pittsburgh’s last eight home games. The Penguins have won four straight and lost in regulation just once since Jan. 6.
Chris Kunitz had a goal and two assists. Kris Letang added a goal and an assist, and Matt Cullen also scored for Pittsburgh. The Penguins’ six goals were a season high. Marc-Andre Fleury settled down after a shaky start and finished with 18 saves.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Mark Stone, Cody Ceci, Chris Wideman and Dave Dziurzynski scored for the Senators. Craig Anderson made 38 stops.
The Penguins began the second half stressing the need to play with the intensity that carried them through a resurgent January, when they went 6-2-3 to move back into playoff position. They were fueled by a streaking Crosby, who has taken new coach Mike Sullivan’s advice to get to the front of the net.
Crosby tied for the NHL lead with eight goals in January and wasted little time getting back to work following an All-Star snub, one he likely deserved after a sluggish opening three months of the season. His three scores against the Senators came from close range, including a pair from right on the doorstep.
Pittsburgh dominated the Senators for long stretches, taking a 2-0 lead on goals by Cullen and Letang before Ottawa recorded its first shot, but a shaky performance by the typically solid Fleury allowed the Senators to get back in it.
Ottawa ripped off three straight to jump in front 4-3, including a pair in a 24-second span of the second period with both teams playing 4-on-4. Pageau tipped in Erik Karlsson’s rebound. Shortly thereafter, Fleury was unable to freeze a rebound from Zack Smith, and Ceci darted in to poke the puck between Fleury’s pads to put the Senators up 3:25 into the second.
The 403rd consecutive sellout at Consol Energy Center let out a sarcastic roar when Fleury managed to stop Ottawa’s next rush, Fleury’s two shutouts last month apparently a distant memory.
Fleury finally settled down, giving Crosby and Pittsburgh’s scorching power play a chance to go to work. Crosby tied it at 4 with a wrist shot from the left circle 6:10 into the second and gave the Penguins the lead for good just more than 10 minutes later when he parked himself right in front and had little trouble pushing a perfect centering pass from Evgeni Malkin by Anderson.
Crosby increased Pittsburgh’s advantage to 6-4 early in the third period, converting what looked like a potential turnover by Kunitz into a goal when he sprinted to the crease and redirected the puck into the net.