Post-Game: Pens put Panthers away early in 5-2 win

Post-Game: Pittsburgh 5 - Florida 2

With talk of tonight being a trap game, the Florida Panthers battled hard for sixty minutes but the superior team came out on top and the Penguins put the game away in the first period.

Pittsburgh jumped on the Panthers early, getting 1st period goals from Mark Letestu (7), Sidney Crosby (28) and Matt Cooke (7), taking a commanding 3-1 lead just 10:57 into the 1st period.

The Penguins peppered Panthers goaltender Tomas Vokoun who was pulled in the 1st after surrendering 3 goals on 14 shots. Pittsburgh outshot Florida 17-8 in the 1st period and pushed the play offensively.

Out of the gates, the Penguins were the quicker team to the puck, which led to Mark Letestu's opening goal as Chris Conner won a puck battle on the wall and moved the puck up to Tyler Kennedy who found a streaking Mark Letestu down the right side who showed great patience in beating Vokoun for his 7th goal of the season.

Leading 3-1, after goals from Letestu, Crosby and Cooke, Ben Lovejoy pushed the Penguins lead to 4-1, tallying his 1st career NHL goal at the 6:19 mark of the second period. Lovejoy also had his first NHL fight in the 1st period, throwing down with Florida's Shawn Matthias.

It was a night of first for Lovejoy who appeared in his 31st career game. Lovejoy collected his 1st goal, 1st fight and earning the games No. 1 star.

"He's {Ben Lovejoy} a guy who works really hard and was happy to see him get that, " Crosby said. "He played a great game, stepping up to fight there and scoring a big goal for us. As the game went on they kept pushing and that goal became pretty important for us."

Lovejoy was hit with a puck in the face late in the game but is believed to be okay. He received 11 stitches after the game.