Penguins Star in This Philadelphia Story

Just as most everyone in Philadelphia predicted, the Flyer-Penguin series is going back to Pittsburgh with a team up 2-0.

Only it wasn’t supposed to be the Penguins.

Robert Lang and Jaromir Jagr, two of a half-dozen Czechs in the NHL’s most international lineup, each scored twice in a 4-1 victory Saturday at Philadelphia.

As the game wound down, there was a delay of nearly five minutes after three fights broke out at opposite ends of a fast-emptying arena. Ten players were penalized, five on each team, with all five Flyers leaving for the rest of the game.

“They wanted to show they had some fight left in them,” Penguin forward Matthew Barnaby said.

The Penguins had not won in Philadelphia in 16 games over six years, only to do so twice in three days in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Game 3 of the best-of-seven series is Tuesday night at Pittsburgh.

New Jersey 1, Toronto 0--Martin Brodeur stopped 20 shots at Toronto as the Devils evened their Eastern Conference semifinal series at 1-1. Game 3 is Monday night in New Jersey.

The series is boiling down to a goaltending battle between Brodeur and Toronto’s Curtis Joseph. On Saturday, Joseph stopped every shot he saw, but was helplessly screened when Colin White scored at 6:41 of the first period. White, with his first career playoff goal, scored when his rising point shot found the far right upper corner. Joseph was screened by his defenseman, Danny Markov, who was chasing a New Jersey forward through the crease.

Maple Leaf defenseman Bryan Berard, wearing sunglasses over his damaged right eye, made his first appearance at a game since taking a stick blade in the eye on March 11. Berard received a standing ovation.