The Penguins were in perfect position to take the first game against the Flyers. They had a 3-0 lead, a power play, and a chance to bury Philadelphia who came into the series with a goaltender that had lost five straight playoff games.
But the Flyers, as they have all season, chipped away and eventually won in overtime on a goal from Jakub Voracek. And now, the onus is on the Stanley Cup favorite, Penguins, to play catch up.
Sidney Crosby opened the scoring 3:43 into the first period. Kris Letang took a shot at the point and the puck was deflected by Pascal Dupuis. With a lose puck in front of Ilya Bryzgalov, Sidney Crosby chipped a backhanded shot that went over the left shoulder of the russian net minder and in the net. For Crosby, it was his first playoff goal in two years.
Tyler Kennedy expanded the lead for Pittsburgh, scoring a goal during a 2 on 1 rush 7:49 into the first. Jordan Staal skated down the near boards and fed a backhanded pass. The puck appeared to bounce on its way to Kennedy but he was able to one time the puck past Bryzgalov to put the Penguins up two.
The Penguins got the next goal -something they failed to do in previous meetings against the Flyers this season- from Pascal Dupuis. Steve Sullivan’s no-look back hand pass bounced off of Bryzgalov and popped in the air. Dupuis crashed the net and batted the puck out of mid air for his first goal of the playoffs. When the first period ended, the home crowd was roaring and the Flyers looked to be on the run.
But the Flyers battled back. Daniel Briere scored on a breakaway 6:22 into the second. Replay showed Briere was about two feet offside as he took the puck from Brayden Schenn, but the referees deemed the play good.
In the third, the Flyers took complete control of the game. Daniel Briere scored again, midway through the third to cut the Penguin lead to one. The Flyers were able to effectively cycle the puck before Briere’s shot from the near wall found its way past Marc-Andre Fleury.
With the momentum completely on Philadelphia’s side, the Flyers drew a power play after an interference penalty to Brooks Orpik. The Penguins effectively limited the Flyers’ chances for most of the power play, but Scott Hartnell connected with Brayden Schenn on a slap pass that was redirected in front of the net.
With the game suddenly tied at 3-3, the Penguins tried to counter quickly, but could not register a goal as time wound down in regulation.
After giving up three goals in the first, Ilya Bryzgalov was stellar for the final 40+ minutes of the game. The unique-minded goaltender drew attention from the Pittsburgh fans after telling the media he was only scared of bears when asked who was the most worrisome player on the Penguins’ roster. A handful of fans showed up dressed as bears, but it would be Bryzgalov who got the last laugh.
Jakub Voracek didn’t allow the overtime period to last too long. Just 2:23 into the extra frame, Voracek pounced on a loose puck and scored to put the Flyers up 1-0 in the series. It was a backbreaking game for Pittsburgh, and one that could determine the series.
- Pascal Dupuis extended his point streak to 18 straight games, dating back to March 7th.
- Sidney Crosby registered his first playoff goal since May 10th, 2010 against the Montreal Canadiens in game 6 of the semifinals.
- The Penguins had just 5 shots in the third period and 0 shots in overtime.
- The Penguins suffered their third overtime loss when leading after two periods; their second loss this season to the Flyers.
Photo courtesy of Yahoo! sports
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