The Pittsburgh Penguins won’t go down without a fight in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. Sidney Crosby and company finally came away with a win over the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 4—escaping what would’ve been a catastrophic sweep at the hands of their eternal enemies.
Down 3-1, the series returns to Pittsburgh, where the Penguins must win their first home playoff game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs if they hope to stay alive in the 2025-26 NHL season. After being held scoreless through the first two games, Crosby has seemingly found his footing against Philadelphia.
Coming off a two-point outing against the Flyers in Game 4 at Xfinity Mobile Arena, the Pens’ captain spoke on the team’s performance. His message might as well serve as a warning to the Flyers, who have now learned the fourth win of any series is the hardest to secure.
“It’s only one, but it gives us some life,” Crosby admitted after the game, via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “That looked more like our game. And it’s probably taken us three games to look like ourselves a bit. So that’s something that we can definitely build on.”
Sidney Crosby at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC.
Penguins are one game away from elimination
The Penguins have their backs against the wall. Any mistake could put them out of the race for the Stanley Cup and bring an end to what’s been an incredible 2025–26 NHL campaign. Not many expected the Pens—nor the Flyers—to be here. Still, here they are, and they have no desire to head back home early.
Luckily for Pittsburgh, this isn’t Crosby and company’s first rodeo. They’ve been here before, although they’ve never come back from a 3–0 series deficit. There’s always a first time for everything, though. That’s looking at the bright side.
Penguins could relive 2012 memories
On the other hand, the series against the Flyers could turn out to be awfully similar to the matchup in the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs. That time, Crosby and the Penguins lost the first three games before prevailing in Games 4 and 5, only to be defeated in Game 6 back in the City of Brotherly Love. There’s a high chance the Pens-Flyers series goes exactly that way 14 years later. After all, history has a way of repeating itself.
Still, having looked like themselves for the first time in the series and snapping their six-game losing streak (going back to the regular season), the Penguins have reason to believe things can end up differently this time. Showings like their performance in Game 4 definitely help, and it might be just what Crosby and Pittsburgh needed to come to life.
