Letang and Martone clash after the buzzer as tempers boil over
The Penguins survived Monday. Game 5 in Pittsburgh ended with a win and a scrum along the boards. Right in the middle of it? Kris Letang and Porter Martone.
Twenty years separate them. The 39-year-old defenceman has been on the Pittsburgh roster forever. The 19-year-old Flyers winger has been a pro for less than a season.
Doesn't matter. They got tangled. They had words. The series rolls on.
Pittsburgh trailed 3-0 in this thing before winning Game 4. Now they've won two straight and dragged this back to a Game 6. Philadelphia still leads 3-2 in the series.
Martone is the story Philadelphia didn't see coming. The teenager has 3 points in 4 playoff games and was a plus-4 through this round. He's already scored two game-winners.
Letang has been doing this since most of his current opponents were in middle school. He picked up a game-winner of his own earlier in this series.
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Dan Muse and the Penguins flip the script on Rick Tocchet's Flyers
Pittsburgh finished 41-25-16 for 98 points and 10th overall in the regular season. Philadelphia finished 43-27-12 for the same point total at 11th. Two clubs that mirror each other on paper.
That mirror is what makes the closing scrum so satisfying for Penguins fans. The kid lined up with the veteran and neither one backed off.
Dan Muse has his group playing on borrowed time. The Pittsburgh coach watched his team get embarrassed for three games.
They've responded with discipline, structure, and a little bite.
Tocchet's Flyers were one win away from closing out the Penguins on home ice.
Now they have to walk back into Pittsburgh for a Game 6 and figure out how to finish the job.
Martone is at the centre of why this hasn't been a sweep.
The rookie has been productive at his age while the Flyers have leaned on him heavily through this round.
Letang isn't producing the way he once did. The numbers say he's getting older. But the moment when the camera caught him chirping a teenager said the rest.
Pittsburgh's bench knew. So did Philadelphia's. The scrum was both teams telling each other this isn't over.
If Game 6 in Pittsburgh feels anything like the end of Game 5, expect a chippy hour of hockey with two clubs that suddenly remember they really don't like each other.
The Flyers had this series in a headlock. The Penguins won't let go now.
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APRIL 27, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Mikhail Sergachev | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Brett Howden | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Nick Schmaltz | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Sidney Crosby | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Jack Eichel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Noah Hanifin | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Rasmus Ristolainen | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Alex Bump | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Michael Carcone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Ian Cole | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Connor Dewar | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Pavel Dorofeyev | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Clayton Keller | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Kristopher Letang | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Travis Sanheim | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cole Smith | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Elmer Soderblom | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Noah Cates | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Lawson Crouse | - | 1 | 1 | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||
| 2025-2026 NHL STANDINGS | ||||||
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Sabres | 82 | 50 | 23 | 9 | 109 | |
| Lightning | 82 | 50 | 26 | 6 | 106 | |
| Canadiens | 82 | 48 | 24 | 10 | 106 | |
| Bruins | 82 | 45 | 27 | 10 | 100 | |
| Senators | 82 | 44 | 27 | 11 | 99 | |
| Red Wings | 82 | 41 | 31 | 10 | 92 | |
| Panthers | 82 | 40 | 38 | 4 | 84 | |
| Maple Leafs | 82 | 32 | 36 | 14 | 78 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Hurricanes | 82 | 53 | 22 | 7 | 113 | |
| Penguins | 82 | 41 | 25 | 16 | 98 | |
| Flyers | 82 | 43 | 27 | 12 | 98 | |
| Capitals | 82 | 43 | 30 | 9 | 95 | |
| Blue Jackets | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 92 | |
| Islanders | 82 | 43 | 34 | 5 | 91 | |
| Devils | 82 | 42 | 37 | 3 | 87 | |
| Rangers | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Avalanche | 82 | 55 | 16 | 11 | 121 | |
| Stars | 82 | 50 | 20 | 12 | 112 | |
| Wild | 82 | 46 | 24 | 12 | 104 | |
| Mammoth | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Blues | 82 | 37 | 33 | 12 | 86 | |
| Predators | 82 | 38 | 34 | 10 | 86 | |
| Jets | 82 | 35 | 35 | 12 | 82 | |
| Blackhawks | 82 | 29 | 39 | 14 | 72 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Golden Knights | 82 | 39 | 26 | 17 | 95 | |
| Oilers | 82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 93 | |
| Ducks | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Kings | 82 | 35 | 27 | 20 | 90 | |
| Sharks | 82 | 39 | 35 | 8 | 86 | |
| Kraken | 82 | 34 | 37 | 11 | 79 | |
| Flames | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| Canucks | 82 | 25 | 49 | 8 | 58 | |
COMPLETE STANDINGS | ||||||