NHL playoff roundup: Penguins take Game 1 from Capitals

Sidney Crosby outdueled Alex Ovechkin in a vintage goal-for-goal showdown between the NHL's top teams, and Nick Bonino and Marc-Andre Fleury put the finishing touches on a playoff classic.

Crosby scored two goals in 52 seconds, Bonino had the winner in the third period and Fleury made dazzling saves with and without his stick, helping the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the host Washington Capitals 3-2 Thursday night in Game 1 of their highly anticipated second-round series.

Almost eight years after their "dueling hat tricks" game, Ovechkin answered Crosby with his fourth goal of the playoffs, but his team couldn't compensate for the Penguins captain's greatness.

"They're special athletes, both those guys, and they look for those big moments and they capitalize on those big moments," Capitals coach Barry Trotz said. "They're special players."

Crosby scored twice in the first 64 seconds of the second period to give him as many goals as he had points in the Penguins' series against the Capitals a year ago.

"That's how it goes sometimes," Crosby said. "You don't get some for a while and then they come in bunches."

With linemates Jake Guentzel and Patric Hornqvist playing a game of "Get Crosby the puck and watch him do his thing," the 2016 playoff MVP capitalized on a couple of Washington mistakes and looked as if he had a third goal in him a few more times.

"Bones is a guy that's a high-stakes player," coach Mike Sullivan said.

Ottawa 2, N.Y. Rangers 1: Erik Karlsson was hoping for a good bounce. He got a great one.

Karlsson's shot from an almost impossible angle beat Henrik Lundqvist with 4:11 left in the third period, sending the host Senators to a victory over the Rangers in the opener of their second-round playoff series.

Karlsson's first attempt was blocked by Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh, but the second — the shot leaving his tape from below the goal line — somehow found its way past Lundqvist, who had been nearly unbeatable to that point.

"Those are always nice to get," Karlsson said. "And I think that the amount of pucks that we put at the net we deserved one of those."

"There's three guys in line with that puck and I pick it up, but it just hit me in the head and it's in," Lundqvist said.

It was Karlsson's first goal and seventh point of the playoffs. The 26-year-old defenseman, who has been playing with a foot injury, also logged more than 28 minutes in the win.