PITTSBURGH -- Columbus coach Todd Richards insists his upstart team isnt in the playoffs "just to go to school." Maybe, but the Pittsburgh Penguins provided a pretty valuable lesson in perseverance during a 4-3 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals on Wednesday night. Down two after 21 minutes of slow and sometimes sloppy hockey, the Metropolitan Division champions responded by scoring the final three goals, including Brandon Sutters go-ahead wrist shot 8:18 into the third period. "I think we expected a tight game," Sutter said after the third playoff goal of his career. "They got up and we stuck with it. It was a good win." One that came with more than a few tense moments. Beau Bennett and Matt Niskanen scored power-play goals 45 seconds apart in the second period, erasing Pittsburghs two-goal deficit. Jussi Jokinen also scored for the Penguins and Marc-Andre Fleury overcame some shaky defence in front of him to stop 31 shots. Game 2 is Saturday night. "We have to learn from it but we found a way to win," Pittsburgh forward Sidney Crosby said. "Obviously we didnt start the way we wanted, getting down two goals. I think we have to clean up some things." If not, a series expected to be a romp could turn into something else entirely. Jack Johnson, Mark Letestu and Derek Mackenzie scored for the Blue Jackets, who remain in search of their first-ever playoff win. Sergei Bobrovsky finished with 28 saves but was handcuffed by Sutters knuckler at the end of a 2-on-1 break. "Ive seen Bob make that save a thousand times," Richards said. "It just got by him." The Blue Jackets insisted they wouldnt be intimidated despite Pittsburghs overwhelming edge in playoff experience and star power. The Penguins swept the five regular-season meetings between the teams, but Columbus surged after the Olympic break, rising to the seventh seed in the East while the injury-riddled Penguins coasted to a division title. If the NHLs youngest team was scared by the stage, it hardly showed. Johnson gave the Blue Jackets their first-ever post-season lead 6:20 into the game. He charged to the front of the net, got a feed from Brandon Dubinsky and beat Fleury with a beautiful deke from forehand to backhand. The Penguins answered with 2:51 left in the first when Evgeni Malkin -- returning after missing three weeks with a foot injury -- took advantage of a turnover by Fedor Tyutin and hit Jokinen in the slot. The knuckling wrist shot sailed over Bobrovskys right shoulder and Pittsburgh exhaled. But only briefly. With Pittsburgh defenceman Rob Scuderi off for interference, the Blue Jackets went back in front 2-1 when Letestu jammed home a rebound and sent Columbus soaring into the dressing room. "People were wondering how we would start the game with our inexperience, but we were pretty comfortable after the first period with a 2-1 lead and maybe let off the gas," Columbus centre Ryan Johansen said. Mackenzie got loose for a breakaway short-handed goal, pushing the advantage to 3-1 just 43 seconds into the second. But Columbus momentum then vanished against the leagues top power play. Bennett tipped in a Niskanen slap shot 51 seconds after Mackenzie scored. Johnson was quickly whistled for interference and Niskanen needed only 10 seconds to even the game with a snap shot from the left circle. Things settled down after the five goals in 5 minutes flurry, though Columbus didnt exactly fold. The Blue Jackets carried play at times in the first two periods. The Penguins righted themselves in the third. The miscues that plagued them for the first 40 minutes disappeared, replaced by the kind of responsible play they know theyll need to make a serious run at the franchises fourth Stanley Cup. "Nobody panicked," Fleury said. "The power play was huge for us like it has been all season. It got us back in the game and from then we were in good shape." NOTES: Pittsburgh is 10-3 in its last 13 Game 1s played on home ice. ... The Blue Jackets scratched forwards R.J. Umberger (upper body) and Nick Foligno (lower body), though coach Todd Richards said both players could be available for Game 2. ... Crosby assisted on Niskanens goal to give him 106 career points in the post-season, tied with Kevin Stevens for third on the franchise list. China Jerseys Replica .com) - Oklahoma quarterback Trevor Knight was carted off the field in the fourth quarter of 16th-ranked Sooners 48-14 loss to No. China Jerseys Quality . Louis still looking for a way out of Tampa Bay, the 38-year-old NHL veteran isnt showing his cards. http://www.chinajerseyspaypal.com/ . -- Washington Capitals forward Brooks Laich is expected to miss the rest of the regular season after having an operation on a groin muscle. China Jerseys Authentic . The visitors missed a host of good chances to win the game, and were left to rue substitute Ivo Ilicevics strike against the crossbar in the 86th minute, when he only had the goalkeeper to beat. China Jerseys . JOHNS, N.AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Joe Dumars tried to push the Detroit Pistons back toward the playoffs with a couple of big moves last off-season. That didnt work, and now the Pistons will be hiring someone else to replace him. Detroit has decided not to renew Dumars contract as president of basketball operations, a person familiar with the situation said Sunday. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the team has not made any announcement on Dumars future, says Dumars will remain with the Pistons as an adviser. Dumars was named the 2003 executive of the year, and the Pistons won the title the following season, adding the 2004 crown to the two they won when Dumars was a player. But Detroit hasnt made the playoffs since 2009, and the retooled Pistons flopped badly this season. Detroit has one of the games top young big men in Andre Drummond, but hes one of the franchises few bright spots at the moment. Owner Tom Gores must now hire a new general manager, and in the meantime, ownership executives Phil Norment and Bob Wentworth are expected to supervise preparations for the draft and free agency. Detroit signed Josh Smith and traded for Brandon Jennings last off-season in what seemed like a return to relevance, but the new-look roster lacked cohesion at times. Coach Maurice Cheeks was fired in February, and the Pistons are 29-52 with one game remaining. "I think overall we have a quality team as is," forward Kyle Singler said. "I dont know necessarily the formula to win, but we just werent able to get into a groove earlier on in the year to gain confidence and know that were a playoff team." Dumars began running the Pistons in 2000, and he made one shrewd move after another at first, acquiring Ben Wallace for Grant Hill in a sign-and-trade and sending Jerry Stackhouse to Washington for Richard p;Hamilton.dddddddddddd. He brought Rasheed Wallace to Detroit in another trade and signed Chauncey Billups as a free agent. Even a draft day blunder in 2003 — picking Darko Milicic over Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade with the No. 2 pick — seemed like an aberration when the Pistons beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the finals the following year. That title, however, is well in the past. The Pistons have played in front of sparse crowds in recent years, struggling to stay relevant in Detroit while the Tigers have drawn fans in droves to their downtown ballpark. In 2008, Dumars traded Billups in a deal that brought Allen Iverson to the Pistons. That move didnt work out, and neither did the decision to sign Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva to big contracts during the 2009 off-season. Dumars and the Pistons also struggled to find the right coach. When Cheeks was hired before this season, he became Detroits ninth coach since 1999-2000. Immediately before Cheeks, Lawrence Frank and John Kuester lasted two seasons each, with little success. When Gores took over as owner after the 2010-11 season, the Pistons were undeniably in a rebuilding mode. Last off-season, Dumars had another chance to show he could guide the franchise back to contention. Instead, the Pistons have been one of the leagues most disappointing teams in 2013-14. Although Dumars is staying with the organization in some capacity, his departure as team president and general manager marks the end of an era. Drafted by the Pistons in 1985, Dumars spent his entire 14-year playing career with the franchise, winning NBA titles in 1989 and 1990. He was Detroits vice-president of player personnel during the 1999-2000 season before being promoted to president of basketball operations. AP Sports Writer Larry Lage contributed. ' ' '