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PITTSBURGH -- This was nothing less than a statement by the Pittsburgh Penguins, folks.
A loud and clear one too, about how good they are, how far they've come and yes, about the killer instinct that some people wondered if they really possess. It's there, it's real and it's something that should send chills up the spines of whichever team ends up facing the Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals.
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| The Pens display the killer instinct most thought they didn't possess. (Getty Images) |
"We got off to a great start and never turned off the gas," Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said. "Everyone contributed, everyone bought into what they had to do, that's what it takes to win these kinds of games."
Obviously, but the truth is the Penguins really shouldn't have had to play this one after winning the first three games of this series without breaking much of a sweat. They were forced into it only because they sleep walked through the opening period of Game 4 when the Flyers were desperate to avoid being swept in their own building, and the young Penguins, who finished last in the conference two seasons ago before being embarrassed in the first round last spring, clearly learned a lesson from it.
In fact, they figured it out before Game 4 was over, taking control during the final two periods and nearly pulling off a comeback. To a man, they insisted the momentum they gained would carry over.
Did it ever.
The Penguins' high-octane power play has made Philadelphia pay throughout this series, and Pittsburgh needed only 12 seconds after their first chance with a man advantage to do it again. It wasn't even three minutes into the game when Ryan Malone redirected Crosby's shot beyond goalie Martin Biron, giving the Penguins the start they wanted and setting the tone of things to come for the Flyers.
"We stressed before the game about how important it was to get that first goal," said Malone, the Pittsburgh native who had a pair of goals and an assist in the game. "You saw what happened in their building when they got the first goal the other and got the fans behind, so for us it was all about seizing the moment because you don't want to give teams any life."
If the Flyers had any life in them, it was gone by the time before the halfway point of the period, when Evgeni Malkin stuffed the puck in from the side of the net after Malone dug it out from behind. It was a weak goal, one of several that a shaky Biron would allow before all was said and done, and with a two-goal lead, Pittsburgh was able to get into the defensive mode that has been so critical to its success all season.
The Penguins shut down the Flyers for the balance of the opening period, limiting them to just five shots overall, and then blew things open when Philadelphia started pressing midway through the second period. The Flyers had some of their best chances early in period, but Jeff Carter and Scott Hartnell were robbed by Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, a last hurrah for Philadelphia before the ice completely tilted in favor of the home team.
Marian Hossa and Malone scored with a few minutes of each other to open things up, and then Jordan Staal delivered a back-breaker with 58 seconds remaining in the middle frame. By the time Pascal Dupuis rounded out the scoring four minutes into the third period, the Flyers were doing little more than counting down the minutes until the embarrassment was over.
It was a crushing end to what was actually an uplifting season for the Flyers, who finished last a season ago then rebuilt so quickly and remarkably, they not only made the playoffs but knocked off two of the conference's top-three seeds in the first couple of rounds.
Philadelphia had even bigger dreams coming into this series, mainly because they had beaten the Penguins in five of the eight regular-season games they played. But the playoffs are what separates the men from the boys and when these intra-state rivals met again, it was clear Pittsburgh was simply on another level.
"There's no question we need to get better, but I think we have," Flyers coach John Stevens said. "We made tremendous strides this year and came an awful long way, but you have to give Pittsburgh credit, they're very deserving of moving on.
"They've got talented players, great passion for the game and their staff has really got them to buy into a real team game. So they've got the three ingredients in my opinion that you need in terms of a team. They'll be a test for whoever comes out of the West."
Now that's a statement that no one will disagree with.
