The Penguins needed Sidney Crosby to do Sidney Crosby things against Philadelphia. The captain delivered
Game 6 is in Philadelphia, and the Penguins will head across the state not only with momentum, but also with their unquestioned leader starting to look like his old self after an uncommonly quiet start.
Apr 27, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) /looks on against the Philadelphia Flyers during the third period in game five of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images Charles LeClaire/Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images PITTSBURGH — The sequence might as well have served as a metaphor of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ season. There Sidney Crosby was, his left knee throbbing after absorbing a blistering shot from the point by teammate Ryan Shea, limping off the ice and disappearing down the tunnel in the second period of Game 5 against Philadelphia.
A few minutes later, with the Penguins’ longtime captain still out of sight, the Flyers tied it. Suddenly, a contest Pittsburgh had controlled for significant stretches was gone. The young Flyers, many of them experiencing the cauldron of playoff hockey for the first time, were surging.
A quick playoff exit for a team that spent six months defying expectations loomed. And just like that, Crosby’s familiar No. 87 returned to the bench.
And just like that, he was over the boards and on the ice. And just like that, he was finishing off a shift by flipping the puck to Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang at the top of the Flyers’ zone. Crosby’s back was to the play when Letang’s somewhat innocent shot from the point sailed wide of the Philadelphia net.