Apr 18, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Elmer Soderblom (25) and Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim (6) tussle as linesman linesman Devin Berg (87) separates the two during the first period against in game one of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
PITTSBURGH -- It had been 2,051 days since the Flyers played in a playoff game, and they made sure not to disappoint.
Playing as stout a defensive road game as possible, it was probably apropos that it was a pair of defensemen who scored the two critical goals in a 3-2 Flyers victory over the Penguins to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-7 Eastern Conference quarterfinals on Saturday.
Jamie Drysdale and Travis Sanheim scored the first two goals for the Flyers, Porter Martone potted the game-winner with a nifty goal in the third period, and the defense really limited Pittsburgh's scoring chances.
Only an Evgeni Malkin tally on a shift where all five Flyers skaters were hemmed into their own end on a long shift and couldn't get the puck out, got behind goalie Dan Vladar until the final minute when Bryan Rust scored with an extra attacker after a Malkin shot took a carom off of Cam York's glove right to Rust's stick for a goal..
Vladar made 15 saves but wasn't tested frequently. The Flyers were aggressive and physical most of the night.
The game was quite physical, with the two teams combining for 81 hits (41-40 in favor of Pittsburgh).
Captain Sean Couturier, who appeared to find the fountain of youth, looking like the version of himself that frequently pestered Pittsburgh's best players in playoff matchups past, led all players with seven hits.
It was the physical play early that set the tempo. The Flyers came out and hit everything in yellow, outhitting the penguins 17-8 in the first period.
Pittsburgh started pushing back in the second period, but the Flyers regained the control of the tempo in the third.
It was a physical play behind the net by Owen Tippett, knocking Blake Lizotte off the puck that led to Drysdale's goal.
Sanheim made a deft move splitting two Pittsburgh defenders to snap his shot past Stuart Skinner for what was the game-winner.
Martone outhustled multiple Penguins for a loose puck and fired a turnaround snapper past Skinner to make it 3-1.
The Flyers had multiple other chances to score, but Skinner kept Pittsburgh in the game, stopping Christian Dvorak, Denver Barkey, and Trevor Zegras on breakaways.
But the Flyers didn't cheat the game. They stuck with their identity, stayed within their structure, and outlasted the Penguins to take the first game, and steal home ice advantage from the Penguins.
Game Two is at PPG Paints arena in Pittsburgh on Monday.
