The Pens, who appeared well in over their heads as many made their Stanley Cup debuts last April, displayed that they'd learned their lessons well.

Malkin, the league's second-leading scorer, tallied once and set up two other goals as Pittsburgh won for the ninth straight time at Mellon Arena.

Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury blocked 26 shots for his first Stanley Cup shutout and is now 11-2-1 since returning Feb. 28 from a high ankle sprain.

Perhaps the most frightening news for the Senators was that they were whipped while holding Pens captain Sidney Crosby off the scoresheet, although Crosby did leave his mark late in the game, trading swings with Wade Redden before Ryan Whitney intervened and dropped the gloves with the Ottawa defenseman.

One game into the set, the defending Eastern Conference champion Senators seem set to maintain a tradition that has not seen the losing finalist from the previous spring return to the Stanley Cup final since the 1985 Edmonton Oilers.

They already look to be a team that's out of answers. They've tried changing coaches, when general manager Bryan Murray took over for John Paddock at the all-star break and they've benched their No. 1 goalie Ray Emery in favor of Martin Gerber.

So what do they do next for motivation?

"I don't see Ottawa coming out of this," NBC hockey analyst Pierre McGuire said. "I think they're in disarray. I don't think Gerber has got it. I don't think they're coming together as a group.

"I suppose they could use the Alfredsson and Fisher injuries as a rallying cry, but it's gone on too long and I've seen far too few signs that this is a team that can pull it together.

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"I think the biggest thing is they've lost their defensive identity. They used to be one of the best teams in the NHL. Andrei Meszaros has had a terrible year where so much was expected of him and the acquisition of Mike Commodore has not helped them at all. They just do not have enough depth on defense to stop Pittsburgh."

On opening night of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Senators discovered that while old ghosts may go into hiding for a time, they can resurface to haunt you again when you least expect it.

Meanwhile, New Jersey fans learned that like a ghost, they can boo all night long, but it isn't going to stop a great Scott from leaving them sleepless in Hoboken.

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