Crosby shines, Caps choke in Game 7

Sidney Crosby rose to the occasion in his first career playoff Game 7, recording two goals and one assist as the Pittsburgh Penguins punched their ticket to the Eastern Conference finals with a convincing 6-2 decision over the Washington Capitals at Verizon Center.

Crosby finished the series with eight goals and 13 points, and currently leads all players remaining with 12 total playoff goals.

"He can elevate his game on a big stage like this," Penguins head coach Dan Bylsma said of Crosby. "He works tirelessly on his game. He really enjoys competition and laying it on the line. You play the game to lay it on the line and he's prepared for it, he's got a steely resolve when the time comes around."

Craig Adams, Bill Guerin, Kris Letang and Jordan Staal also lit the lamp for the Penguins, who took the semifinal series four games to three and will be among the final four teams to compete for the Stanley Cup for the second time in as many seasons.

The club will rest until opening the Eastern Conference finals this weekend against either the Bruins or Hurricanes, whose own Game 7 takes place in Boston on Thursday.

Marc-Andre Fleury was rarely tested for his eighth win of this postseason, needing to make just 19 saves.

Alex Ovechkin and Brooks Laich scored for the Capitals, who have dropped two of their last three series-deciding games on home ice and were denied the franchise's third trip to the conference finals.

"There was a lot of uncharacteristic play by our guys throughout the game," lamented Capitals captain Chris Clark. "Especially playing so hard and so close for the entire series. Nobody expected this. It's one step closer to where we want to be but it's obviously disappointing."

The setback continued Washington's franchise-long playoff hex against Pittsburgh, as the Caps have lost seven of eight playoff series against the Pens and have also failed to claim victory in three Game 7s.

Rookie netminder Simeon Varlamov had his worst game as a professional in defeat, victimized for four goals on 18 shots in just over 22 minutes of play. Jose Theodore completed the contest by allowing a pair of scores on 12 shots.

Fleury flashed the glove to stop Ovechkin on a breakaway a little more than three minutes in, which proved to be an omen of things to come for the Capitals.

Pittsburgh was awarded the first power play of the game and cashed in with 7:24 left in the first period. Crosby got a good carom off a double-deflection from a point shot by Sergei Gonchar, and was alone at the right post to tap the puck home.

Only eight seconds later, Adams doubled the Pens' advantage with a shot through Varlamov's pads. The two goals were the fastest scored by one team in any Game 7 in NHL history.

"We spent an awful lot emotionally after winning Game 6," said Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau. "The shots early on were close. But...we took two penalties, and when you don't give your best guys a chance, and people are standing around, it'll cost you. It was a good first period until that point."

Varlamov was sharp from there, making 14 saves in the first period, but saw a quick exit early in the second period as the Penguins doubled their advantage.

Guerin ripped a one-timer from Crosby 28 seconds in, then Letang crushed a shot from the bottom of the right circle at 2:12 which signaled the rookie's departure for Theodore.

The lead eventually grew to 5-0 with 8:23 left in the second as Staal tapped in a centering feed by Miroslav Satan.

Ovechkin picked up his eighth goal of the series with 1:51 left in the period, as Fleury played a clearing attempt right to him for an easy wraparound goal.

Crosby drew a double minor for high-sticking when he was hit in the face by Laich early in the third period, and scored on a breakaway for a 6-1 game at 2:02.

Laich did poke a loose puck past Fleury at the right post at 6:36, but the visitors expertly checked away the remainder of the game and rolled into the next round.

"We wanted to make sure we were pressuring the puck in all situations, and we did that," Bylsma admitted. "We were lucky to get that early lead, and from there able to dictate play for the rest of the contest."

Game Notes

Ovechkin finished with 11 goals and 21 points in 14 playoff games...Pittsburgh improved to 6-4 all time in Game 7s, while Washington fell to 2-6...Penguins forwards Evgeni Malkin and Satan each posted two assists...Five of the first six games in the series were decided by one goal, with three ending in overtime...The Capitals have not reached the conference finals since 1998 and have only done so one other time in franchise history (1990), and the Penguins have reached the final four six times (1991-92, 1996, 2001, 2008-09)...Gonchar returned to the lineup for the first time since a leg injury sidelined him during in Game 4...All three playoff series in which Ovechkin participated ended in a Game 7...The four-goal margin was the largest for a winning team on the road in a Game 7 since Edmonton topped Colorado in a 1998 Western quarterfinal...The Penguins did not commit a penalty the entire game.