Opportunistic Pens bend, never break
And a two-plus minute sequence in the first period of Pittsburgh's 5-0 victory in Game 4 against Philadelphia at Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday night summarized the First Round series thus far, which the Pens lead 3-1.
The Pens had a 1-0 lead on the scoreboard with under eight minutes to play in the opening frame when the Flyers entered the offensive zone. The flurry was on as the Pens came under heavy fire.
Claude Giroux took a slap shot. Goaltender Matt Murray made the save. Giroux had a follow-up tip that went just wide of the net. The Pens scrambled as the Flyers regained possession of the puck.
Andy MacDonald slap shot. Murray save. Ivan Provorov wrist shot. Puck went wide. The Pens looked like they were killing a penalty as they created a box, but didn't have the energy to play aggressively on the puck carrier. Instead, they passively tried to keep the puck to the outside.
Jakub Voracek snap shot was turned aside by Murray. The Pens unit - Sidney Crosby, Dominik Simon, Jake Guentzel, Kris Letang, Brian Dumoulin - had nothing left to give.
After a brief reprieve and line change, the Flyers regained possession of the puck and regained the offensive zone. Travis Konecny's wrist shot went wide of the post. A few turnovers by the Pens led to another extended shift trapped in their own zone.
In all, Philadelphia registered over two minutes of zone time, six shots at the net and three shots on goal. More importantly, the comatose crowd had come to life. The building was buzzing with every shot, waiting for a cacophonous eruption.
The Flyers had all of the momentum. The Pens were fighting for survival.
Then along came Phil Kessel.
Kessel and linemate Evgeni Malkin jumped over the boards and picked up the puck for a 2-on-2 break. Kessel managed to get ahead of his man and Malkin gave him the puck. Kessel sneaked a shot through the five-hole of Flyers goaltender Brian Elliott.
Philadelphia put together its best sequence of action all series long and all it had to show for it was a 2-0 deficit.
The Flyers were dominating and in complete control. It took the Pens one rush, one shot to steal it all away from them. It was a backbreaking goal that silenced the crowd and decimated the Flyers' hopes.
For all their best efforts all series long, the Flyers haven't been able to stand toe-to-toe with the Pens. That two-plus minute sequence was an encapsulation of the opening four games.
As the first period drew to a close, Konecny exited the penalty box after serving two minutes for interference. He had a clear breakaway on Murray. The Pens goaltender kicked the shot aside with his right pad.
The Pens have gotten the big save from their goaltender. The Flyers have not. The Pens have scored the opportunistic goal. The Flyers have not.
The Pens bend, but never break. And if you crack open the door slightly, the Pens will promptly kick down the whole darn thing. They're one swift kick away from the Second Round.
