On Monday night, just days before Christmas, fans were treated to an early Christmas present as the Pittsburgh Penguins (15-15-5) and Philadelphia Flyers (15-15-4) opened the first of four meetings this season. It is never a dull moment in the Battle of Pennsylvania, as three of the last four meetings were determined by one goal, including a 7-6 thriller back on Feb. 25, 2024. The Penguins were looking for a bounce-back victory following a 3-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils, while the Flyers were looking to make it two wins in a row following a 5-4 overtime win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
With an impressive 11-4-2 all-time record against the Flyers, Mike Sullivan turned to Tristan Jarry between the pipes. John Tortorella opted for Samuel Ersson for the Flyers.
Game Recap
The first period saw the Penguins take control early with four goals. Bryan Rust opened the scoring at 1:29, followed by an Egor Zamula game-tying goal. The Penguins responded quickly: Rickard Rakell made it 2-1 at 11:53, followed by a Michael Bunting power-play goal to make it 3-1 at 16:15. Philip Tomasino added a power-play goal of his own to make it 4-1 at 17:44. Sidney Crosby had himself a period, collecting three assists.
The second period saw the Flyers give the Penguins a bit of a scare. Just 4:29 into the period, Noah Cates found the back of the net to make it a 4-2 game. At 13:06, Sean Couturier made it a one-goal game. With just 1:12 to go in the middle frame, Bunting collected his second goal of the game to make it a 5-3 game, which they carried into the locker room.
To begin the third, Aleksei Kolosov replaced Ersson, who had surrendered five goals on just 14 shots. While it was a great effort from the Flyers to fight back into the game, Crosby notched his fourth point of the night with an empty-net goal. On a late power-play, the Penguins made it a 7-3 game as Blake Lizotte tallied his eighth goal of the season.
Despite the loss, the Flyers outshot the Penguins 26-22.
After a few days off for Christmas break, both teams are back in action on Saturday, Dec. 28. The Penguins will travel to Long Island for a meeting with the New York Islanders, while the Flyers head out west to take on the Anaheim Ducks.
