Flyers vs. Penguins: History of Stanley Cup Playoff Series

The cross-state rivalry between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins began during the NHL Expansion wave of 1967. Both franchises joined the “Second Six” and grew toward eras of NHL dominance.

However, their rivalry didn’t develop until the 21st century. The advent of the Sidney Crosby era in Pittsburgh introduced the perfect villain to ignite the intensity of Flyers fans and their desperate chase for Stanley Cup glory.

The hits have come flying while the gloves have dropped to the ice without a thought. Stanley Cup contenders have inevitably met on the playoff collision course, and the clock has ticked into (too) many overtime periods. Danny Briere transitioned from player to executive while Rick Tocchet repeatedly alternated sides. Countless Sean Couturier and Evgeni Malkin battles unfolded while Claude Giroux desperately aimed to reach Crosby’s status.

Meanwhile, the Flyers and Penguins have built the fiercest rivalry in the NHL with irreplaceable playoff series memories.

1989 Patrick Division Finals
Flyers win series 4-3 in 7 games

An underwhelming 36-36-8 record landed a fading group of older Flyers in the playoff field. The Flyers defeated the Washington Capitals in the opening round to set up their first ever playoff series matchup against the Penguins in the Patrick Division Finals.

Tim Kerr stunningly scored seven goals and added 10 assists in the seven-game series while 24-year-old Rick Tocchet provided the grit for the Flyers. Mario Lemieux posted an incredible 199 points during the regular season, and he fell just short of Kerr with seven goals and nine assists in the second-round series.

The Flyers lost in the Conference Finals, however, and missed the playoffs in five consecutive seasons from 1989-90 through 1993-94.

The Penguins, meanwhile, headed in the opposite direction. Rookie Jaromir Jagr burst onto the scene in 1990-91 and teamed up with Mario Lemieux for consecutive Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992.

1997 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals
Flyers win series 4-1 in 5 games

The Legion of Doom took shape during the shortened 1994-95 season. Two playoff exits tempered the excitement in Philadelphia, but Eric Lindros and the Flyers dominated in 1996-97 with championship expectations.

Lindros scored three goals and added six assists in an opening round series against the Penguins that lasted only five games. John LeClair, Mikael Renberg, and Rod Brind’Amour helped feed their captain and superstar in what they didn’t realize at the time would be the peak of his NHL career.

The Flyers also disposed of the Buffalo Sabres and New York Rangers to advance to their only Stanley Cup Final of the Eric Lindros era.

2000 Eastern Conference Semifinals
Flyers win series 4-2 in 6 games

Philadelphia fans undoubtedly know the story of the five overtime game against the Penguins in their series matchup during the 2000 Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, they might not know about the series’ unusual sequence.

The heavily-favored Flyers led the Eastern Conference with 105 points in 1999-2000. They disposed of the Buffalo Sabres in five games to open the playoffs and subsequently drew the seventh-seeded Penguins in the second round.

While the Penguins hadn’t yet emerged as the arch-rival to the Orange & Black, Jaromir Jagr had entered the conversation as the best hockey player in the world without Mario Lemieux as Pittsburgh’s centerpiece.

Jagr and Martin Straka stormed out of the gates to stun the Flyers in Games 1 and 2 at the First Union (F.U.) Center. Notorious pest Matthew Barnaby brought the playoff edge that fueled the venom of the Philadelphia crowd – which he proudly wore like a badge of honor.

The Flyers escaped in Game 3 on an overtime goal by unlikely hero Andy Delmore, but they still found themselves in a hole in Pittsburgh.

An average Thursday night in Philadelphia on May 4, 2000 then changed the course of history. The clock ticked past midnight. Flyers fans who stopped by a friend’s place for the game called out of work the next morning.

The puck bounced from end to end. Exhausted players shortened their shifts to as little as 15-20 second rotations. They munched on pizza deliveries at points during four overtime intermissions. Stories of the scoreless overtime periods have traveled through Philadelphia sports folklore for decades.

Keith Primeau finally broke the 1-1 tie nearly midway through the fifth overtime at 2:35 am on the East coast. He stopped at the Pittsburgh faceoff dot and fired a wrister past Ron Tugnutt to end one of the most memorable games in the history of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Flyers had seized the momentum with the series headed back to Philadelphia. Andy Delmore struck again with the only playoff hat trick by a rookie defenseman in franchise history. The Flyers rolled the exhausted Penguins 6-3 and closed the unconventional series in Game 6 at Mellon Arena.

2008 Eastern Conference Finals
Penguins win series 4-1 in 5 games

The Flyers stormed back with a vengeance from the worst season in franchise history. The additions of Danny Briere, Scott Hartnell, and Kimmo Timmonen boosted a growing young core with Mike Richards and Jeff Carter to a playoff berth.

Playoff series wins against the Washington Capitals and the top-seeded Montreal Canadiens landed the red hot Flyers in the Eastern Conference Finals against the emerging rival Penguins.

Sidney Crosby and the Penguins had arrived on the scene with conviction in their franchise player’s first season as captain at age 19. They won their first of two consecutive conference championships in five games.

The Penguins took a 3-0 series lead with the help of Marian Hossa, who finished with five goals and four assists in the series. The Flyers stole Game 4 in Philadelphia, but a gentleman’s sweep indicated they were one step behind the new Eastern Conference powerhouse.

2009 Eastern Conference Semifinals
Penguins win series 4-2 in 6 games

Mike Richards and Jeff Carter emerged as Philadelphia's franchise centerpieces during the 2008-09 season. The pair of 2003 first-round picks became the team’s top two scorers, while Richards wore the captain’s ‘C’ for the first time. The John Stevens era took real shape with another playoff appearance.

The Flyers locked up the fifth seed with 99 points, the same number as the fourth-seeded Penguins, who didn’t look quite as overwhelming as they had in the playoff series one year before. 

Sidney Crosby and company jumped ahead again, however, with a 2-0 series lead in Pittsburgh. The Flyers hung tough in 2009, and they appeared to have their rivals on their heels in Game 6.

Danny Briere buried a power-play goal to put the Flyers ahead 3-0 early in the second period. The series momentum had flipped with a Game 7 in Pittsburgh seemingly imminent. Only 15 seconds passed before the pendulum swung the other way.

Dan Carcillo dropped the gloves with Maxime Talbot in an ill-advised fight. The Penguins scored 14 seconds later to begin a five-goal barrage to eliminate the Flyers. Talbot scored both Pittsburgh’s goals in the decisive Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final to help bring Pittsburgh its first of three championships in the Crosby era.

The narrative had officially taken shape. The Flyers needed to clear the Pittsburgh hurdle if they wanted to take the next step into Stanley Cup contention. Paul Holmgren told Flyers fans just how seriously he took the challenge by acquiring Chris Pronger in the ensuing offseason.

2012 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals
Flyers win series 4-2 in 6 games

The stage was set well before the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs began. Jaromir Jagr stunned his former NHL team by choosing to sign with their arch-rival in his return from overseas at age 39. Maxime Talbot also headed east on the PA Turnpike to join the Flyers for the 2011-12 season.

If the rivalry turncoats didn’t provide enough juice, bad blood boiled over in late regular-season matchups on March 18, April, and April 7.

The Penguins had emerged as a Stanley Cup favorite with a healthy Sidney Crosby, but could they handle the intensity of a rivalry that had neutralized their superior talent?

Crosby found the back of the net three minutes into Game 1 to help the Penguins to a 3-0 lead after the first period. The Flyers somehow stormed back with the help of a Danny Briere breakaway goal (and a questionable call), a breakout game from Brayden Schenn, and an overtime winner by 22-year-old Jake Voracek.

Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier both scored hat tricks in Game 2 to give the Flyers a commanding lead coming back to Philadelphia. All animosity came to the surface.

The Flyers dominated in a chaotic 8-4 victory with fluky goals, fights, suspensions, infamous trash talk, radio commentator rants, hair pulling, and ultimately, a Philadelphia crowd chanting “You can’t beat us!” as the Penguins left the ice in an 0-3 hole.

Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal crushed a helpless Ilya Bryzgalov in a 10-3 blowout in Game 4, and Pittsburgh made the series interesting with a Game 5 win despite the struggles of Marc-Andre Fleury.

Giroux steered the ship back to its course. The breakout center took the opening draw of Game 6 against Crosby. He set the tone with a punishing hit on the Pittsburgh captain and quickly buried the game’s first goal on the opening shift. The Flyers cruised to an emphatic 5-1 victory to finish a sequence of utter chaos that the hockey world will never forget.

2018 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals
Penguins win series 4-2 in 6 games

Watching their arch-rival win back-to-back Stanley Cups crushed the spirits of Philadelphia fans in the spring of 2016 and 2017. Sidney Crosby and the Penguins finally harnessed their talent without allowing undisciplined chaos to even the playing field. The rest of the NHL couldn’t keep up with their loaded firepower.

The Flyers had their shot at revenge, however, in a 2018 playoff series. Claude Giroux’s hat trick in game 82 capped off a memorable 102-point regular season. Could the franchise end its malaise of the 2010s and reemerge as contenders?

The Penguins outclassed the Flyers from the opening faceoff. They stampeded to a 7-0 win in the series opener, helped by a natural hat trick from Crosby.

The Flyers leaned too heavily on goaltender Brian Elliott – who had dealt with a core injury during the regular season – because Michael Neuvirth and Petr Mrazek didn’t provide much confidence behind him. The goaltending trio allowed 25 combined goals in the four losses of a six-game series.

While a clutch goal in Game 5 from breakout scorer Sean Couturier pushed the series back to Philadelphia, the Flyers collapsed defensively in the 8-5 elimination loss in Game 6. The Wells Fargo Center crowd angrily tossed beverages and whatever they could find onto the ice in the final minutes to force stoppages on a rough day for the Flyers.