PHILADELPHIA —
Chris Kunitz scored his second goal just 18 seconds into the third period to cap a four-goal rally and lift the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night.
Pascal Dupuis, James Neal and Tyler Kennedy also scored goals for the Atlantic Division-leading Penguins, who won their third straight game.
Jakub Voracek had two power-play goals, Zac Rinaldo and Kimmo Timonen also scored for the Flyers, who blew a 4-1 lead after the first period.
Both starting goalies – Philadelphia’s Ilya Bryzgalov and Pittsburgh’s Marc-Andre Fleury – were pulled after allowing four goals.
Scott Hartnell had his tying goal disallowed near the midpoint of the third period because his stick was above the crossbar when he deflected Timonen’s shot into the net.
The Flyers fell to 11-13-1 and remain on the outside of the playoff race with 23 games remaining.
The visitor has won all three games this season in this intrastate rivalry between two teams that struggle to play much defense against each other.
Voracek had a hat trick in a wild 6-5 win at Pittsburgh on Feb. 20. The Flyers and Penguins combined for 45 goals through the first four games of last year’s first-round playoff series that Philadelphia won in six games.
A turnover by Timonen near Pittsburgh’s blue line led to a three-on-one break for the Penguins. Sidney Crosby fed Kunitz, who ripped one past a diving Brian Boucher to give the Penguins their first lead in the opening minute of the third period.
An unusual number of Penguins fans at the Wells Fargo Center roared in approval while the orange-clad Flyers fans fell silent.
Dupuis got Pittsburgh’s comeback started, scoring off a crisp behind-the-net pass from Crosby to cut it to 4-2.
Just 2:43 later, Neal scored his team-high 15th goal. Neal tried to center a pass from the side of the net to Evgeni Malkin in front, but the puck hit Bryzgalov’s blocker and went under him.
Then Kennedy ripped a slap shot just inside the left post to tie it at 4 with 4:13 left in the second. That ended Bryzgalov’s night.
Boucher entered to the usual “Boosh” chants.
The Flyers scored three times in the last five minutes of the first period to take a 4-1 lead.
First, Rinaldo put the Flyers up 2-1 on his third goal of the season. Fleury kicked aside Nicklas Grossmann’s slap shot, but the rebound went to Rinaldo in front and he snapped a wrister into the net.
Fleury then gave Philadelphia a gift goal when Timonen’s floater from outside the left circle bounced off his chest and went in.
Seconds into a power play, Voracek got his 12th goal on a wrister from the point that hit defenseman Paul Martin’s skate and trickled between Fleury’s legs with only 8 seconds left in the period.
Fleury angrily flicked the puck out of the net and was replaced by Tomas Vokoun at the start of the second.
Voracek scored his team-high 11th goal to give the Flyers a 1-0 lead near the midpoint of the first period. Claude Giroux set it up with a crossing pass from the left circle to the right, where Voracek slipped a soft one-timer between Fleury’s legs.
As the Flyers celebrated, Hartnell got into with Neal, who was coming out of the penalty box. The Penguins ended up with a power play and Kunitz scored his 13th goal less than a minute later to tie it.
Notes: Matt Read was back in Philadelphia’s lineup a month ahead of schedule after injuring his ribs in the first meeting against the Penguins. ... Voracek has nine goals in the last 10 games. ... Kunitz has a point in seven straight games, a career-high streak. ... The road team is 18-5-1 going back to 2009. ... The Penguins are 10-3-1 in their last 14 games at the Wells Fargo Center, but they’re 32-90-10 overall in Philadelphia. ... The Flyers’ sellout streak is up to 93 games.
Pro
Related Photos
-
Flyers goalie Ilya Bryzgalov defends the net as the Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin maneuvers the puck during Thursday’s game in Philadelphia. The Penguins won, 5-4. AP Photo/Tom Mihalek
Discussion
Penguins slip past Flyers
- Pro
-
-
Senators relish chance to even series with Penguins
After a win in Game 3, the Ottawa Senators are confident they can tie their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
-
Snider’s grand slam lifts Bucs over Cubs
Travis Snider took a pregame pep talk from his manager to heart. Relaxed and with a clear head, he delivered a crucial sixth-inning home run for the second time in five games.
-
Humbled Steelers ready to forget offseason
Troy Polamalu walked off the Pittsburgh Steelers’ practice field on Tuesday with rookie safety Shamarko Thomas hanging on the veteran safety’s every word.
-
Goalie Anderson gives Senators a chance
Craig Anderson has his game back, and just in time to give the Senators a chance.
-
Ottawa rallies to top Pittsburgh
Colin Greening scored 7:39 into double overtime, and the Ottawa Senators rallied for a 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins that cut their series deficit to 2-1 on Sunday night.
Daniel Alfredsson got Ottawa even 1-1 by scoring a short-handed goal with 29 seconds left in regulation just after the Senators pulled goalie Craig Anderson for an extra skater. -
Locke grinds through as Pirates blank Astros
Jeff Locke didn’t have his best stuff Sunday. He didn’t need it to shut down the majors’ worst team.
Locke allowed three hits over seven innings, Pedro Alvarez homered and the Pittsburgh Pirates won for the eighth time in 10 games, 1-0 over the Houston.
Locke (4-1) won his fourth straight decision and gave up one run or fewer for the fifth time in his past eight outings. He struck out four and walked three. -
Bengals’ Hawkins visits Windber for charity tourney
Andrew Hawkins never forgets his roots.
-
Astros beat Bucs in extra innings
Jason Castro led off the 11th inning with a double and scored the go-ahead run on a close play at the plate as the Houston Astros topped the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 on Saturday night.
-
Senators offense to get boost vs. Pens
Jason Spezza doesn’t have much time to return to form if the Ottawa Senators want to extend their season.
-
Crosby hat trick gives Pens 2-0 series lead
The Ottawa Senators have plenty of respect for Sidney Crosby.
- More Pro Headlines
-
Okla. City Mayor: Up to 13K Homes Hit by Tornado
Raw: Aftermath of Deadly Attack in London
Paperless Scanner, Vision of the Future
Florida FBI Shooting Has Boston Bombing Links
Garcetti Elected Los Angeles Mayor Over Greuel
Raw: New Video of Deadly Oklahoma Tornado
IRS Official Pleads 5th Amendment
Lawyer: Feds Investigating Susan Powell Case
Former Rep. Weiner Running for New York Mayor
Jodi Arias: Death Penalty Would Cause More Pain
Police Ram House to End Hostage Standoff
Families Begin Returning to Their Homes in Moore
Raw: Aerial View of Moore Tornado Damage
Looking for Love? Take the Prague Metro
First Person: Baby Falcons on a New York Bridge
Crews Race to Find Survivors of Okla. Twister
Oklahoma: Images of Devastation, Reunion
Raw: Students Clash With Police in Chile
Protests Outside Cincinnati IRS Office
New Xbox One Entertainment Console Unveiled
