The Philadelphia Flyers have not owned the Stanley Cup in 50 years.\u00a0For what is approaching half of that time, they\u2019ve been owned by the player they hate the most.<\/p>\n
Sidney Crosby, who has long taken particular delight in silencing the citizens in the eastern part of the commonwealth, did it again Monday. The Penguins\u2019 captain remained red hot, scoring two more goals, as the Penguins played perhaps their most convincing game of the season in a 5-1 victory.<\/p>\n
Bryan Rust, Kevin Hayes and Tommy Novak also scored for the Penguins.\u00a0Tristan Jarry remained extremely sharp since missing three weeks with an injury, denying 28 of 29 Philadelphia shots. And the Penguins killed off six of seven penalties while scoring three power-play goals.<\/p>\n
Crosby has 18 goals this season. Only Colorado\u2019s Nathan MacKinnon and Boston\u2019s Morgan Geekie have lit the lamp more. Crosby would probably have even more if not for the fact that the NHL doesn\u2019t allow teams to play an opponent more than four times in a regular season. Playing against the Flyers never gets old for the 38-year-old Crosby.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has fun playing the villain, and I think he enjoys it,\u201d Rust said. \u201cI don\u2019t know if he\u2019ll come out and say it, but I think he enjoys it.\u201d<\/p>\n
No NHL player has ever produced more points against the Flyers. After the two-goal effort, Crosby has now produced 60 goals and 138 points in 92 games against Philadelphia.\u00a0This includes 29 goals in Philly, the most a road player has ever produced against the Flyers. It also marked the 10th time that Crosby has scored the first goal of a game against the Flyers.<\/p>\n
They hate to see him coming\u2026 and for good reason.<\/p>\n
Crosby has 58 goals and 136 points in 92 games vs Philly, the most any player has ever put up on the Flyers. pic.twitter.com\/M8aARyfTnd<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 2, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n The victory is the third in four games for the Penguins, who currently find themselves in the Eastern Conference\u2019s top wild-card spot.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s always been a rivalry, long before I played here,\u201d Crosby said. \u201cI just try to get ready (for these games) like everyone else.\u201d<\/p>\n Of course, he\u2019s not like everyone else.<\/p>\n 10 postgame observations\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2022 Crosby in Philadelphia is always wonderful theater.<\/p>\n My favorite part of the game was in the third period, when Crosby neatly redirected an Evgeni Malkin pass, only to have the shot denied by Dan Vladar\u2019s glove. Right after a whistle blew the play dead, a Flyers fan in the front row stuck up his middle finger at Crosby.<\/p>\n They didn\u2019t get to witness a Crosby hat trick in Philadelphia \u2013 he recorded one for the first time in his NHL career there in 2006 \u2014 but that moment was about the only time that Flyers fans had something to cheer for as far as Crosby was concerned.<\/p>\n He\u2019s completely locked in now, which was evident Friday night in Columbus. Something clicked, and he\u2019s been operating on a higher plane since that night. This is routinely the time of year when he gets hot. Combine that with the fact that Philadelphia was on the schedule, and this result was what you\u2019d expect.<\/p>\n He\u2019s a different person when the Flyers are on the schedule. \u00a0I don\u2019t believe that will ever change. Even though it\u2019s literally been 20 years ago, he\u2019s never forgotten how he was treated in Philadelphia \u2014 by both the Flyers and the fans \u2014 when he was an 18-year-old rookie. He\u2019s been taking it out on them ever since.<\/p>\n \u2022 Let\u2019s not discount what Tristan Jarry is doing. He wasn\u2019t all that good in relief Saturday, but let\u2019s ignore that appearance.<\/p>\n Jarry otherwise has been outstanding and Monday was his best performance of the season. He had a commanding presence about him all night because of how aggressively he played. He looked huge in net all night.<\/p>\n Up next for the Penguins is a trip to Tampa Bay, where Jarry historically plays well. I have to think they\u2019re going to ride him for a while. He absolutely deserves the opportunity.\u00a0His confidence was clear to see in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought he was really sharp,\u201d Dan Muse said. \u201cBreakdowns are going to happen, and he was on.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 It was a big night for Bryan Rust, who scored a goal and added a couple of helpers.<\/p>\n I continue to marvel at Rust\u2019s evolution.\u00a0The pass he made on Crosby\u2019s second goal was not only a beauty, but it\u2019s one he never would have considered during earlier portions of his career.<\/p>\n That’s 18 goals this season for Sidney Crosby \ud83d\udd25 pic.twitter.com\/5dsXpCjvKC<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 2, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n When Rust arrived in Pittsburgh, he was a shot-first player to the extreme.\u00a0While he continues to shoot the puck freely, Rust has methodically added playmaking touch in the second half of his career. This was quite a feed to set up Crosby.\u00a0Oh, and that shot Rust unleashed for the Penguins\u2019 third goal wasn\u2019t so bad, either. What a rocket.<\/p>\n A ROCKET FROM RUSTY \ud83d\ude80<\/p>\n \u2026 AND WE GET 1\/2 OFF RUSTY’S SHAKE AT THE @MShakeFactory<\/a> TOMORROW! pic.twitter.com\/mYnn9bneNg<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 2, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u2022 There was a strange quirk to this game.<\/p>\n It was the Penguins who were utterly dominant and who carried play almost exclusively.\u00a0And yet, it was the Flyers who were given seven power plays, compared to three for the Penguins.\u00a0Some of the calls were justified, but frankly, the Flyers received a couple of very fortunate calls.<\/p>\n I only bring this up because I was impressed by how calm the Penguins stayed. No, they weren\u2019t happy with the officiating. And no, having to face a couple of five-on-three power plays isn\u2019t anyone\u2019s idea of a good time. But the Penguins clearly stayed mentally focused and their penalty killing did the job.<\/p>\n \u2022 I am very intrigued by the Penguins so-called \u201ckid line.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben Kindel centered Ville Koivunen and Rutger McGroarty, who was playing in his first NHL game of the season. All things considered, I thought the line played very well together and produced ample offense. Kindel set up McGroarty for a great look in the first period, but he missed the net.<\/p>\n I love that all three players on this line bring something different to the table. Koivunen has great hands and is a pass-first player. Kindel is blossoming into a special two-way center and his hockey IQ is his greatest trait. McGroarty is big, rugged, good defensively and possesses the offensive game to complement these two.<\/p>\n I\u2019d keep this trio together. I think there\u2019s something there and I suspect it takes pressure off when they\u2019re playing with each other as opposed to more experienced veterans.<\/p>\n \u2022 McGroarty looked pretty good.<\/p>\n One moment stood out. With around 8:40 left in the third period, McGroarty showcased a burst of speed through the neutral zone that was so impressive, I had to do a double-take to make sure it was him.\u00a0It was.<\/p>\n I kept hearing from people in Wilkes-Barre over the past couple of weeks that McGroarty\u2019s skating is much more advanced this season than last.\u00a0Indeed.<\/p>\n \u2022 Ryan Graves was slipping into bad habits and bad form during his past two games.<\/p>\n Not tonight. This was his finest game in a Penguins\u2019 uniform. His gap control was terrific all game. He was physical. He made good decisions with the puck.\u00a0That\u2019s precisely the kind of game you want from him.<\/p>\n \u2022 Blake Lizotte, who was outstanding on the penalty kill, \u00a0got crushed by a Garnet Hathaway hit in the first period. Lizotte responded by whacking him with his stick in, shall we say, a very sensitive region.<\/p>\n I\u2019m surprised the Flyers didn\u2019t go after Lizotte for the remainder of the game. They took a couple of runs at him but generally let him off the hook.<\/p>\n \u2022 Maybe Boko Imama\u2019s presence had something to do with that. The Penguins\u2019 enforcer played in his first NHL game of the season.<\/p>\n Imama was outstanding all night. He had a presence about him on the forecheck and hit the post in the third period. When things turned nasty, he made his presence felt. Imama often asks Hathaway to fight, but Hathaway hasn\u2019t yet accepted the invitation.<\/p>\n Imama brought more to the table in this game than a handful of bottom-six players have all season. He should remain in the lineup in Tampa on Thursday.<\/p>\n \u2022 Mark your calendars for January 15 and March 7.<\/p>\n That\u2019s when the Penguins and Flyers meet again, with both of those meetings taking place in Pittsburgh.\u00a0The rivalry is turning nasty again, even though Trevor Zegras didn\u2019t impress Connor Clifton. This is a good thing.<\/p>\n Trevor Zegras was trying to make Connor Clifton flinch but to no avail \ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude05 pic.twitter.com\/Zmma7E1s0R<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) December 2, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n When there is hate between the Penguins and Flyers, we are all entertained. After a couple of years of reasonably vanilla games, there has been some serious fireworks in the first two meetings of the season.<\/p>\n It\u2019s about time.<\/p>\n