Sens get ‘legendary game’ from unlikely hero Pageau, gain rare 2-0 advantage
OTTAWA — Too much chicken parmesan left Jean-Gabriel Pageau feeling a little full before Saturday’s matinee against the New York Rangers.
It didn’t matter. The 24-year-old put together a “legendary game” at Canadian Tire Centre by scoring a career-high four goals, including the 6-5 double overtime winner. Victory gave Ottawa a 2-0 series lead in the playoffs for only the second time in team history and first since the 2007 Eastern Conference final against Buffalo.
“I think I closed my eyes when I shot and thankfully it went in,” Pageau, an Ottawa native, said of the winner. “I was on a cloud and it’s a moment I’ll never forget.”
Not only did Pageau end Game 2, he made sure it got to overtime in the first place by scoring twice in the final three-plus minutes of regulation to knot the score at five. Both goals saw him tip shots past Henrik Lundqvist — the first from Zack Smith with just over three minutes left, the second from Kyle Turris with 62 seconds on the clock.