Claude Giroux cut the lead to 4-3 on the Flyers’ third power-play goal of the game with 3:25 remaining.
By Sarah Berkowitz
Nothing lasts forever, in life and in sports.
Not even the Flyers’ dominance over the cross-state rival Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Pens scored three goals in the second period and ended an eight-game losing streak against the Flyers with a 4-3 win last night at Consol Energy Center.
After trailing 2-0 following the first period, Pittsburgh tied the game 2-2 on a Sidney Crosby wrist shot 7:29 into the second. Crosby fit the shot into a small window between goalie Steve Mason’s right shoulder and the crossbar for his 15th goal of the season and his ninth in the past 13 games.
“I think we all felt we had much better [following the first period],” Crosby said. “The message was just to stick together and play the right way, and we had lots of time left. So, I think that’s exactly what we did.”
Crosby, who has scored at least one point in 12 of the past 15 games, assisted Phil Kessel’s power-play goal to give the Penguins a 3-2 lead with 5:54 remaining in the second. Crosby sent a pass from behind the net through the crease to Kessel to the left of the net, where he jammed a shot past Mason, who made 41 saves.
Kessel scored again on a 2-on-1 with forward Carl Hagelin to extend Pittsburgh’s lead to 4-2 at 6:20 of the third period.
“We had a lot of good chances tonight and they went in,” Kessel said. “I just tapped [each of his goals] in. I’ve missed a couple like that this year, so it was nice to get them to go in the net.”
Claude Giroux cut the lead to 4-3 on the Flyers’ third power-play goal of the game with 3:25 remaining.
The puck was loose with less than 10 seconds remaining and Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury scrambling in his crease, but the Flyers weren’t able to take advantage.
“I think [the Flyers against the Penguins are] big games, and tonight was a good game,” Giroux said. “A couple mistakes cost us, but overall, I think we played pretty good. But we all know we have more here.”
Fleury made 29 saves for his first back-to-back wins since Nov. 17 and 19.
Pittsburgh (22-17-7) defeated Philly (20-17-8) for the first time since a 4-1 win on Oct. 17, 2013. The Penguins, who had not won at home against the Flyers since a 2-1 overtime victory on March 24, 2013, are 3-13-1 against them at Consol Energy Center since it opened in October 2010, including 2-11-1 in the regular season.
The Flyers, who entered Thursday ranked 27th in the NHL on the power play, scored on each of their two first-period chances to build the two-goal lead.
With Penguins defenseman Ian Cole in the penalty box for hooking, defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere took a slap shot into Pittsburgh’s crease, where Kris Letang battled with Wayne Simmonds. The puck slid to Brayden Schenn to the right of Fleury, and Schenn elevated a wrist shot over Fleury’s pad before Letang could clear it, giving the Flyers a 1-0 lead with 9:43 remaining in the first period.
Pittsburgh defenseman Trevor Daley took a hooking penalty with 4:21 left in the first, and Jakub Voracek scored the Flyers’ second power-play goal 12 seconds later. Giroux sent a cross-ice pass to Voracek, who held the puck, allowing Cole to slide by, before sending a wrist shot past Hagelin and Fleury’s stick handle for his sixth goal.
Daley cut the Flyers lead in half with a power-play goal on the Penguins’ first opportunity. Ryan White was called for slashing with 14.3 seconds remaining in the first, and Daley sent a wrist shot over Michael Del Zotto’s stick and through Penguins forward Eric Fehr’s legs to make it 2-1 at 1:40 of the second.
White said he felt his penalty and the ensuing goal were what sparked Pittsburgh, but he and Voracek each said it’s sometimes necessary to take those penalties.
“They have good players,” Voracek said. “They’re a fast team, so sometimes you’re forced to take those penalties. Sometimes it’s a question of if you can kill it. Too bad we didn’t. … I think if we were better even strength, we win that game.”
Penguins forward Chris Kunitz left the game with 8:01 remaining in the third after he and Giroux tangled legs, leading to Kunitz hitting his back into the boards. Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan did not provide an update on his status.
Sullivan said he was pleased with the Penguins’ resiliency.
“I really liked how we responded,” Sullivan said. “I told the guys after the game that it’d be nice to not have to come back from a two-goal lead and maybe get a two-goal lead, but certainly, the resolve that I think our team has displayed here over the past couple of weeks … I think the one thing it has done is it’s provided a lot of evidence that our guys can come back and so, we can still win games if it doesn’t go our way early in a game.
“We get down a goal, or two, we have the people in our room that are capable of coming back in that circumstances, and I think these kinds of games provide strong evidence. I think it will serve us well moving forward.”
