The Pittsburgh Penguins’ preseason game in Halifax had the feel of a home game as interest in Sidney Crosby was high, but the Ottawa Senators escaped with a 3-0 victory on Tuesday night.
At the Scotiabank Centre, home of the Mooseheads in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, there was no doubt who the crowd favorite was. After showing off Cole Harbor to his teammates the previous day, Crosby played a very rare game in his home province.
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Rather, it was the rare Senators supporters in the stands who rejoiced during the meeting. Midway through the first period, Ottawa took the lead thanks to a beautiful wrist shot from Ridly Greig. Just before the end of the period, Brady Tkachuk added even more by recovering Tim Stützle’s throw.
The German scored the Senators’ third goal towards the end of the third period. Joonas Korpisalo was responsible for closing the door in front of the net and blocking the Penguins’ 40 shots.
Nonetheless, the evening was full of emotion for Crosby, who had no choice but to salute the crowd twice while receiving a huge ovation before the first whistle. Also celebrated were Nova Scotians Ryan Graves and Kori Cheverie, the head coach of the Montreal PWHL team, who was also responsible for the ceremonial faceoff.
Sidney Crosby saluted the crowd here in Nova Scotia with the stick for the second time as they stayed on their feet and continued to cheer after the first. pic.twitter.com/Fk3LYZcRPs
– Pens in Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) October 2, 2023