OTTAWA – Both Mike Sullivan and Guy Boucher will head into Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals Thursday night with the utmost confidence that their goaltender will get the job done under the brightest lights possible.

Only one will be right.

In Game 6, it was Boucher's confidence that was rewarded most when Craig Anderson one-upped Matt Murray by making 45 saves in a 2-1 Senators victory.

The Penguins had a 75-46 advantage in shot attempts in the game, outshot the Senators 23-10 in the second period and went on three power plays that were at least somewhat effective.

Anderson stood his ground each time. The only goal he gave up came on a superhuman individual effort by Evgeni Malkin in the second period.

It was an impressive bounce-back performance for Anderson, who was pulled after allowing four goals in the first period of Game 5.

"The moment I got yanked in that game, it's gone," Anderson said. "You can't change what happened in the past. So from that moment on, you have to look forward and get ready for the next one. So as soon as that happens and you leave the rink, you put it behind you.

"You know, as far as tonight, you just try to stay in the moment as best you can and focus on the baby steps. One shot at a time, and the big picture takes care of itself when you worry about the details."

After Anderson's four-goal blow-up on Sunday afternoon, Boucher was asked who his starting goalie would be for Game 6. He blew off the question immediately.

"Oh my God," Boucher said. "I know (you have to ask the question), but you really should not."

Boucher said he wouldn't have left a coaching position in the Swiss league last summer to take the Ottawa job if it hadn't been for Anderson.

"It's hell when you don't have it because everything you do turns to darkness, and there's nothing that really matters when you don't have a real No. 1 goaltender," Boucher said. "It's always going to start with the goalie for me because I've been humbled enough now in situations where you can play great and you just can't win. It's like a quarterback in football and a pitcher in baseball, and we have it. We got that guy."

Sullivan obviously has similar feelings about Murray, which became obvious as the Eastern Conference finals unfolded.

The first chance he got after Murray recovered from a lower-body injury and Marc-Andre Fleury faltered in Game 3, he put the 22-year-old Stanley Cup champion back in net.

Murray has been exceptional since replacing Fleury in the first period of Game 3, stopping 96 of the 101 shots he's faced in the series. His performance Tuesday, though, might have been defined by a puck that got past him.

Before the second period was two minutes old, Ottawa's Mike Hoffman skated up the left wing and sent a shot through traffic that pinged in off the far post.

Murray, whose greatest strength is his ability to anticipate plays, rarely if ever concedes an opponent beat him with an unstoppable shot. He came fairly close to doing so in Hoffman's case.

"He did a good job of holding it and waiting for his screen to get to the net," Murray said. "Right as he skates in front of me, he releases the puck and puts a really good shot. He's a really good shooter. He put a good one on me there."

Despite the goal, Murray was in relatively good spirits in the locker room after the game, as were many of his teammates.

If the Penguins play the same game Thursday that they played Tuesday, Murray is confident he will run his career record in Game 7s to 2-0.

"I think we played the way we need to, honestly," Murray said. "Credit to them. They played a solid defensive game. But at the same time, we were controlling the play for the most part. Anderson had a big night. If not for him, I think it's a different result."

THE SERIES: Tied, 3-3

LAST GAME: Trevor Daley had a goal disallowed for goaltender interference in the second period and the Penguins lost 2-1 in Game 6 Tuesday night.

NEXT GAME: The Penguins will try to go 3-0 in Game 7s under Mike Sullivan when they host the Senators at 8 p.m. Thursday at PPG Paints Arena. As of late Tuesday night, a limited number of tickets were still available.

A NOTE: Sidney Crosby saw a three-game goal streak end in Game 6, but it wasn't for a lack of offensive-zone time. Crosby had six shots on goal, and when he was on the ice at even strength, the Penguins had a 23-11 advantage in shot attempts.

A QUOTE: "All year we said the same thing about our players. That's our team. The guys are fighters, and they choose to fight. They don't choose to bail out. They don't choose to freeze. They choose to fight." –Boucher

A NUMBER: 29 – consecutive unsuccessful power-play attempts for the Senators before Bobby Ryan scored on a five-on-three advantage in the second period of Game 6.

Jonathan Bombulie is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jbombulie@tribweb.com or via Twitter at @BombulieTrib.

Editor's note: Visit triblive.com for the Chipped Ice A.M. report every morning the Penguins play or practice throughout their series with the Senators.

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