PITTSBURGH — The Nashville Predators insist goaltender Pekka Rinne isn’t to blame for the 2-0 series deficit against the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Final.

Rinne is just looking to put both games in the past.

Pittsburgh overwhelmed Rinne and the rest of the Predators with a three-goal blitz in the first 3:18 of the third period during a 4-1 win Wednesday night, a game that ended with Nashville’s star goaltender on the bench after he was pulled by coach Peter Laviolette. The coach did not commit to starting him when the series resumes this weekend, though he praised his.

“When you lose a couple games and get pulled, you’re not happy about how things went,” Rinne said. “But you have to put those things behind and focus on the things you can control and that’s Game 3.”

That game is Saturday night in Nashville, and Rinne and the Predators are counting on a big dose of energy from a wild fan base that will be seeing the franchise’s first Stanley Cup Final game at home.

“Our focus is Game 3 and going home to a crowd that’s going to be electric,” Predators’ captain Mike Fisher said.

Fifty teams have taken a 2-0 lead since the final went to a best-of-seven format. Of those, 90 percent went on to win the Stanley Cup.