PITTSBURGH -- Only a few Pittsburgh Penguins players accomplished what right winger Daniel Sprong did in his fourth career game. Now the question is how long the rookie will keep doing it -- at least for now.

Sprong joined a small but elite group of 18-year-olds to score as a Pittsburgh rookie, center Evgeni Malkin also scored, and Penguins finally won for the first time this season, beating the Ottawa Senators 2-0 Thursday night.

Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside 22 shots in his 39th career NHL shutout and his 11th over the past two seasons as the Penguins -- off to their worst start in 10 years -- won after dropping their first three games.

"We kept pressing and building momentum," Sprong said. "It's a good feeling to win."

Sprong, getting an early-season trial with Pittsburgh after being the 46th player drafted overall last spring, scored 2:02 after Malkin early in the second period. Ottawa was shut out one night after blowing out the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-3 on the road.

With the Penguins up 1-0, Sprong took a drop pass from center Matt Cullen in the lower left circle, and the right winger quickly wristed the puck past Senators goalie Craig Anderson at 2:25.

Sprong is the first Dutch-born NHL player since defenseman Ed Kea played for Atlanta and St. Louis from 1974-83. He had a chance for a second goal, but he shot wide against Anderson (34 saves) with about eight minutes remaining.

Sprong, who was born in Amsterdam but moved to Montreal at age 7 because he convinced his father that he could someday be an NHL player, joined Crosby, Mario Lemieux, Jordan Staal, Jarmoir Jagr and Robert Dome among a handful of players to score for the Penguins at 18.

"I have to wait for my opportunity and whatever minutes I get to play strong," said Sprong, who was bumped up to the third line because Beau Bennett has an undisclosed injury. "It's a pretty special moment, especially because I've got a few friends in town."

However, he didn't have any family in Pittsburgh; his parents stayed behind in Montreal and didn't see the goal in person. Because he could be returned to junior hockey after nine games, he said, "I still have to prove myself, and I didn't want to put pressure on myself (by having his parents around)."

The Penguins haven't yet decided whether to keep Sprong, despite his quick shooting release and obvious talent, the way they did Staal at age 18 in 2006.

"I really think he's going to be good player for the organization, but I still consider him a junior player," coach Mike Johnston said. "Those players have to learn habits away from the puck and responsibilities so the coach trusts them. I felt he's been coming along. I felt he deserved to bump up, and he responded."

Malkin has 19 goals in 31 games against the Senators, who lost in regulation for the first time in 18 regular-season games (14-1-3). They closed last season with a 23-4-4 surge that carried them into the playoffs.

Center Sidney Crosby was held scoreless for the fourth consecutive game, the first time that happened at the start of a season in his NHL career. The Penguins were also 0-for-2 on the power play, including a five-on-three in the third period, dropping them to 0-for-11 for the season. However, playing with a lead clearly made a difference for the Penguins, who never led in their first three games.

Malkin scored his first in his last 19 regular-season games only 23 seconds into the second period. Right winger Patric Hornqvist dug the puck out along the boards at center ice and passed ahead to Malkin, who beat Anderson cleanly as defenseman Erik Karlsson gave him plenty of room to get off a wrist shot from the right circle.

"They came out really hard. They did what they had to do -- they knew we were coming off a back-to-back on the road," Senators defenseman Mark Methot said. "I thought we were a little flat."

The Senators were outshot 36-22.

"But we got our chances," Anderson said. "It was one of those nights where the sights weren't on."

NOTES: Senators LW Clarke MacArthur, who missed a quarter of last season with a concussion, was held out with an apparent head injury that occurred in Columbus. LW Shane Price was active for the first time this season and was placed on the fourth line. Also scratched was D Chris Wideman. ... Ottawa G Craig Anderson started the second night of the back-to-back because coach Dave Cameron wants to give backup Andrew Hammond (groin) more practice time. ... Pittsburgh coach Mike Johnston didn't estimate how long RW Beau Bennett would be out. ... Penguins D Adam Clendening was active for the first time and replaced Ben Lovejoy on the No. 2 pairing with Olli Maatta. LW Bryan Rust was recalled from the minors and played on the fourth line. ... Pittsburgh centers Sidney Crosby and Malkin were back on the top power-play unit after Johnston split them up for the first three games. ... During the morning skate, Penguins F Eric Fehr skated with teammates for the first time since his June 3 elbow operation. It still is uncertain when he will be ready to play. ... The Penguins also sat out LW Sergei Plotnikov, who began the season on Malkin's line, and D Rob Scuderi.