4 Takeaways From Flyers’ Game 2 Win vs. Penguins – The Hockey Writers –

You couldn’t have asked for a better start than this. The Philadelphia Flyers will head back to Xfinity Mobile Arena with a 2–0 series lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins following back-to-back victories on the road.

The Flyers’ latest win, in Game 2, was a 3–0 shutout that had plenty of standouts. Let’s discuss four takeaways from the night.

Penalty Kill Excels (And Tippett’s Magic)

The Flyers were shorthanded five times in this game—not ideal in a defense-first playoff series. Despite their lack of discipline (controversial officiating aside), the Orange and Black had the last laugh. They were perfect on the penalty kill and had multiple dangerous chances, including a second-period insurance marker.

As was true in Game 1, the Flyers didn’t give the Penguins’ power play much to work with. Pittsburgh had very few quality looks, and if anything, conceded the two biggest chances.

One was a 2-on-0 breakaway featuring Sean Couturier and Luke Glendening, which goaltender Stuart Skinner thwarted. It was well-executed on the Flyers’ behalf—the save was just better.

Skinner wasn’t so lucky late in the second period, though. He played the puck to the corner after a clear by the Flyers, but Owen Tippett was first on it. Upon retrieval, he played the puck to himself along the boards, danced by defenseman Kris Letang, and passed to Garnet Hathaway, who had a wide-open net to seal the deal.

The PK EARNED this one. #PHIvsPIT | #IgniteTheOrange pic.twitter.com/5SWA6XYo9v

— x – Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) April 21, 2026

Now, the Flyers can’t expect this level of penalty-killing dominance to stick. But with the way things are going, it’s an aspect of their game that they can feel confident about. If special teams continue to be a strength, this could be a short series.

Martone Can’t Stop Scoring

Porter Martone, a 19-year-old rookie, did it again. In two career playoff games, he has two game-winning goals.

Martone’s game-breaking presence is simply a continuation of what he showed in the regular season, where he had a stat line of four goals and six assists in nine contests. Even in a defense-first environment, the 2025 sixth-overall pick cannot stop scoring.

The sample size is small, but Martone already looks to be a star player. Considering his age, it’s hard not to get excited about what the future holds. This is franchise cornerstone stuff.

Vladař Is a Series-Changer

Dan Vladař finished the regular season as one of the league’s most effective 5-on-5 netminders. With a 1.80 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage, the Penguins—a potent team at five-a-side hockey—knew heading into this series that they’d have their hands full with the Czech sensation. Right now, they can’t solve him.

Vladař is a playoff-series-changing goaltender. Philadelphia had winning efforts in Games 1 and 2, yes, but a rock between the pipes has certainly helped. Your fate can change drastically when you aren’t getting the big saves—the Flyers are.

Hockey is about a lot more than just goaltending. But winning games becomes that much easier when the battle between the pipes goes your way more often than not. Vladař deserves all the head pats.

Flyers’ Defense Continues to Suffocate Penguins’ Offense

This wasn’t as complete a 5-on-5 effort as Game 1—there were some hiccups—but the Flyers’ defense continues to suffocate the Penguins’ offense. Limited to just 1.04 expected goals through two periods, according to Hockey Stats, Pittsburgh didn’t generate much.

The tides started to turn in the third period, where the Flyers committed to a bend-don’t-break mentality. Still, Game 2 was a strong defensive effort from the Orange and Black. The defensemen had a lot of weight on their shoulders—exits, retrievals, etc.—but remained composed.

For the first time since 2012, ironically against the Penguins, the Flyers have a 2–0 lead in a postseason series. They’ll head to Xfinity Mobile Arena on Wednesday (April 22) and Saturday (April 25), vying for at least one win to put Pittsburgh on the ropes.