WATCH: Penguins poked the bear and the Flyers made them pay for it
Wednesday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena was everything the Penguins-Flyers rivalry has been missing for the last seven years. These are two teams that genuinely hate each other playing playoff hockey in Philadelphia for the first time since 2018 with 20,000 fans in orange that lost their minds from the opening face off.
Wednesday night was the Flyers first playoff game in Philadelphia since 2018.
The Penguins came into this series acting like they were still the class of the NHL.
Even against the Flyers, they believed that Crosby and Malkin and Letang still meant automatic respect and that making the playoffs was just business as usual for a franchise with three Cups in the trophy case.
The national media bought that. The oddsmakers bought that too but the reality is Pittsburgh hasn’t done shit worth talking about since 2018. They haven’t won a playoff series in 8 years which in my book, means they haven’t been relevant in 8 years. All the Penguins have is a Hall of Fame center who keeps dragging them back to the postseason on reputation alone.
As for the Flyers, they weren’t supposed to be here. Nobody thought any of this is possible and now they’re up 3-0 on the team that walked in thinking the series was theirs for the taking. Last night in South Philly, the stage was finally big enough to remind everyone why this is one of the best rivalries in professional sports.
Flyers take 3-0 series lead and the Penguins are officially dead men walking
The building was a madhouse before puck drop and it only got crazier from there. Pittsburgh had a 1-0 lead and a little bit of swagger.
Travis Konecny and Bryan Rust light the match.
We should be clear that Konecny caught Rust with a sneaky elbow and honestly, good, because what Rust did next was soft as baby shit.
He pinned Konecny to the ice behind the net, knocked his helmet off, and started feeding him shots while he was down. Real tough guy stuff when the other person can’t defend himself. The Flyers immediately swarmed and the result was every man on the ice heading to the penalty box as the crowd went nuclear.
Here’s the part that tells you everything you need to know about the Pittsburgh Penguins. When all the pushing and shoving settled and Konecny dropped his gloves ready to actually throw hands, Rust turned around and skated away.
Just turned his back and left. You want to jump a guy when his helmet is off but the second he’s ready to fight for real, you run? That’s not tough. It’s cowardice and everyone watching witnessed it.
Travis Konecny and Brian Rust:
The refs spent a solid 10 minutes trying to sort through the mess. That’s 10 minutes of standing around on the ice while 20,000 fans in orange got louder and restless.
Every second that passed, the energy in Xfinity Mobile Arena climbed higher. Whatever momentum Pittsburgh had from that 1-0 got absorbed by the crowd and redirected straight back at the Penguins.
Everyone on the Flyers and Penguins ended up in the box
Both teams got five roughing penalties each. Rust got four minutes because the refs saw exactly what everyone else saw. The Flyers came out of it with a power play and the entire building behind them.
This is when you knew the game was going to flip…
Trevor Zegras, who has been waiting for a moment like this his entire career, stepped up and ripped a slap shot from the circle to tie it 1-1. First career playoff goal. The place erupted.
After that it was complete domination.
Risto scored his first career playoff goal. Nick Seeler, of all guys, blasted one from the blue line past Skinner’s glove. Three goals in six minutes caused the Penguins to stand around looking at each other wondering what the hell just happened, like they had no idea they poked the bear and sent Xfinity Mobile Arena into chaos.
This is who the Penguins are. It’s who they’ve always been.
They want to play dirty when it’s convenient. They want to take cheap shots and get under your skin and then hide behind the refs when things escalate. Rust had every opportunity to answer the bell on Wednesday night and he chose to skate away.
Skinner tripped Martone in Game 2 because a 19-year-old was embarrassing him. Crosby sold a high-stick call with an embellishment that would have made LeBron proud. This franchise talks tough but folds the second someone matches their energy.
The Flyers not only matched it, they exceeded it, and now Pittsburgh is in a 3-0 hole with zero answers. I said Flyers in 6 before the series. I might have been too generous to Pittsburgh.
This ends Saturday night. Crosby and Malkin and Letang might be playing their last game together in Philadelphia on Saturday. The dynasty that tormented this franchise for over a decade might take its final breath at Xfinity Mobile Arena in front of a sea of orange and honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Flyers in 4.
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