Penguins core has 'a lot of belief' team can complete comeback vs. Flyers

CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang have nearly seen it all. 

In their 20 seasons together with the Pittsburgh Penguins, they’ve won the Stanley Cup three times (2009, 2016, 2017). Crosby, in 2016 and 2017, and Malkin, in 2009, have won the Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Letang’s 25 postseason goals lead all active NHL defensemen.

Now, the longest-tenured trio of teammates in the history of North American professional sports is halfway to adding another pivotal chapter to an already established legacy. 

After falling behind 3-0 in the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round against the Philadelphia Flyers, the Penguins have won the past two games to force a Game 6 at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, SN-PIT, truTV, TNT, NBCSP, SN360, TVAS). 

“I think that it's quite clear, the situation for us,” Crosby said after a 3-2 win in Game 5 on Monday. “It's win or go home, so I think that urgency, that desperation, whatever you want to call it, I think is brought out in everybody.” 

And it’s bought Crosby, Malkin and Letang extra time in their possible last ride. 

Crosby and Letang are almost guaranteed to stay in Pittsburgh. Crosby, a 38-year-old center, is signed through next season on a two-year, $17.4 million contract; Letang, a defenseman who turned 39 on Friday, has a six-year, $36.6 million contract that runs through 2027-28. 

Malkin’s situation is less clear. The center, who will turn 40 on July 31, is in the final season of a four-year, $24.4 million contract signed July 12, 2022. He’s expected to resume talks with agent J.P. Barry and Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas in the offseason. 

“I hope it's not over,” Malkin said Friday. “I hope we're still fighting. And my future, like again, I say the same thing: I want to be here, I want to be part of the team next year, too, and I want to be retired in Pittsburgh.” 

At the time of those comments, the Penguins were still in a 3-0 hole. Letang and Crosby have elevated since.  

Letang, who had three goals in 74 regular-season games, scored the deciding goal in Games 4 and 5. The day after his birthday, he put Pittsburgh ahead 3-1 at 4:27 of the third period on the way to a 4-2 win on Saturday, and broke a 2-2 tie Monday with a point shot that hit off of Philadelphia forward Alex Bump before bouncing off the end boards, hitting both of goalie Dan Vladar’s legs and sliding past the goal line at 17:12 of the second period in Pittsburgh's Game 5 triumph.

“It’s pretty simple, every single play on the ice matters, whether it’s a puck battle or a blocked shot, or whatever it is,” Letang said. “You have to focus shift-by-shift, making sure you win the sequence you’re on the ice (for). You try to do it over and over.”

Crosby was held to one assist in the first three games, but the Penguins captain has responded with four points (one goal, three assists) in the past two. 

That has provided a pulse, but Pittsburgh remains on the edge of losing a sixth straight playoff series since last winning in the 2018 first round, advancing past Philadelphia in six games. 

“I think that we've done a great job of handling adversity,” Crosby said. “Again, here, we're faced with more and that doesn't get any easier. We know it's a big challenge going into there, but I think we have a lot of belief in our group. We've done it time and time again, so we think we'll do it again here." 

It’s not entirely unfamiliar; Crosby, Malkin and Letang have been in this exact scenario once before.  

In the 2012 first round, the Penguins lost the first three games to the Flyers, including Games 1 and 2 at home. They won 10-3 on the road in Game 4 and returned home for a 3-2 victory in Game 5. It all led to a deflating 5-1 loss with Malkin providing the lone Pittsburgh goal in Game 6. 

What happened 14 years ago won’t impact Wednesday, though.  

"I think every series is new,” Crosby said. “You try to rely on experience to some extent, but I think it's new groups, different situations.” 

Still, history matters. Crosby, Malkin and Letang have won plenty, so they know better than to look ahead. They’ve also lost enough to rarely panic. 

That mentality has guided the Penguins for two decades. It’ll need to be widely adopted to earn a Game 7. 

“You think about the number of playoff games that these guys have been in, and the number of big moments, high-pressure situations they’ve been in, in the past,” Pittsburgh coach Dan Muse said. “I think that experience pays off and it allows them to lead the way, which they have. I think it’s a combination of experience, but just also who these guys are -- the competitiveness within them. 

“When things get hard, there’s a little bit of adversity, our backs are against the wall, this group -- led by our captain, our leadership, our veterans -- have found a way to kind of rise up and elevate our game.”