DeSmith, Pens blank Ottawa, 2-0

In Ottawa, Casey DeSmith made 26 saves and the Pittsburgh Penguins upended the Senators, 2-0.

“It’s a full team game, and we played great tonight,” DeSmith said. “I just happened to be behind everybody. … I was fortunate to make some saves tonight. Everybody in front of me did the rest.”

After a scoreless opening period, Jeff Carter scored in the middle frame to give the Pens a 1-0 lead.

“This is a pretty solid 60 minutes, throughout the lineup,” Carter said. “We played fast. They’re a good team. They played fast. They’re a skilled team. They got some chances. [DeSmith] made some big saves for us. But I thought it’s probably our most complete game in a long time. It’s a good step for us.”

The Penguins improved to 29-11-8.

“I thought [Sidney Crosby] was tremendous tonight on both sides of the puck,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. “Their line, I thought, was tough to handle all night long. They had some really good looks, especially in the third period. Just playing with a one-goal lead the way we did, just an assertive game plan, on our toes.

“It always starts with Sid, for me. He’s such a great leader in that regard, just playing the game the right way.”

The Senators dropped to 16-23-4.

“We just couldn’t generate enough,” Senators head coach D.J. Smith said. “Give Pittsburgh credit. They were skating. They came to play today. That’s not the team we saw in Pittsburgh (a 6-4 Senators loss on Jan. 20). They checked. They gave you nothing. Those are tough games for young guys.”

Bryan Rust hit for an empty-net goal in the final minute of the third period for the 2-0 final.

Matt Murray made 42 saves in the Senators loss.

“I tried to take it as just another game,” Murray said. “It’s been two years in the making, though. I’ve missed them a couple times with the weird alignment last year. So nice to get it over with, I’ll say that.

“It was weird, for sure, at the start of the game. I know, firsthand, how dangerous those guys are offensively. They came to play tonight. I’ve seen them in practice for so many years. It was different, for sure. It was a weird feeling.”