- Crosby opened scoring on the power play, then kicked a puck to Letang for the GWG in a 4-2 Game 4 win
- His skate-pass on the boards freed it to Letang at the point for a slap-shot finish past Dan Vladar
- Read below for the play, video, and what is next as the series shifts back to Pittsburgh for Game 5
Sidney Crosby decided he wasn’t done yet.
The Penguins captain scored the opener and used his skate to dig and kick a puck back to Kris Letang for the game-winning goal in a 4-2 Game 4 win over the Flyers on Saturday in Philadelphia. Pittsburgh trimmed the series to 3-1 and forced Game 5 at PPG Paints Arena on Monday.
The 4-on-4 sequence in the third looked stuck. With the puck tangled along the left-wing boards in a four-man scramble, Crosby reached in with his right skate to free it and immediately used the same foot to push it back to Letang at the left point. He turned and charged the net to screen Jamie Drysdale, giving Letang a clean lane in the high slot. Letang stepped in and beat Dan Vladar with a slap shot for his first goal of the series.
Here is the play and the rest of the video highlights from Saturday night:
“It’s all the little details,” Letang said. “Sometimes it’s not the crazy play or the pass that’s finding the guy back post. Sometimes it’s little details like picking the guy and giving me a lot of time to pick my shot. It was an amazing play. Just shows how much IQ he has on the ice.”
Crosby’s first-period power-play goal was his 16th career playoff goal against the Flyers. That moves him past Wayne Gretzky and Evgeni Malkin, both stuck at 15, for the most by any player against Philadelphia.
Rickard Rakell stole the puck from Vladar behind the net early in the second and tucked it into an empty cage. Connor Dewar tacked on an empty-netter with 57 seconds left. Coach Dan Muse swapped Stuart Skinner for Arturs Silovs after three straight losses, and the rookie answered with 28 saves in his first appearance of the series.
The series has been chippy from the jump:
“It’s only one, but I think it gives us some life,” Crosby said. “I think that looked more like our game.”
Game 5 is Monday at PPG Paints Arena (7 p.m. ET).
