Apr 20, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Flyers right wing Tyson Foerster (71) wraps up Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Ryan Shea (5) after a stoppage in play during the second period in game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
PITTSBURGH — It's fair to wonder if any rookie has ever had as quick an impact on his team's success as Porter Martone has for the Philadelphia Flyers.
Martone has played just 11 games — nine in the regular season, and now two in the playoffs. He has points in nine of them and goals in six of them — including the most crucial goal in a 3-0 victory in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals over the Penguins that gave the Flyers a surprising 2-0 series lead in the best-of-7 series. That's a commanding lead with the series set to shift back to Philadelphia for what is sure to be an absolutely bonkers environment at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Wednesday.
With the game scoreless in the second period, the Penguins had all the momentum. They were hemming the Flyers in their own zone ad peppering Dan Vladar. The Flyers goalie and their undying commitment to defensive play in their own end were the only reason the Flyers were hanging on.
Then came a television timeout. Then came Martone.
MARTONE SCORED AGAIN AFTER THE BLOCKED SHOT ENDS UP RIGHT ON HIS STICK!!!! 😱🚨 pic.twitter.com/LRmdO8fwyK
In his first shift after the timeout, Martone made things happen. First, he won a puck battle. Then, he made a heads-up pass to Christian Dvorak, deking one way, then dropping the pass the other.
Dvorak fed Travis Konecny, who fanned on his shot, but the puck went to Martone who was driving toward the net and he slid a backhander past goalie Stuart Skinner to give the Flyers the lead.
It was his second playoff goal in as many games. His sixth since arriving on the roster on March 31. He is a difference maker.
The goal also settled the Flyers down, and after a weak cross-checking penalty to Luke Glendening, Owen Tippett helped pad the lead with one of the best individual efforts you will ever see shorthanded.
Tippett used his speed to win a race for the puck in the Pittsburgh end, then won a board battle along the wall to keep possession. What came next — a dipsy-do move around two Penguins and then a perfect pass past a third to Garnet Hathaway for the goal will be shown on Flyers playoff highlight reels for generations.
Hathaway easily deposited the puck into a yawning net, something he couldn't do that cost the Flyers a game in Utah earlier this season when there wasn't a goalie there.
GARNET HATHAWAY SHORTHANDED GOAL GIVES THE FLYERS A 2-0 LEAD pic.twitter.com/GysqFqSzDC
It was Hathaway's first playoff goal, which matches the total number of goals he had all season. You may not remember the other, as it came in a 7-2 blowout loss to Tampa on Jan. 10.
From there, the Flyers turned it over to the defense and goalie Dan Vladar, who made several big stops as the Penguins ramped up the desperation and the pressure to try and tie the game.
Vladar finished with 27 saves and his first shutout as a Flyer. Their team MVP all season, a shutout was the one statistical superlative that eluded him. So, it was apropos that the first one came in the 35th time this season he allowed two goals or fewer in a game.
The Flyers penalty kill was superb. They killed off five Penguins power plays, Hathaway scored shorthanded and Glendening nearly scored on a two-on-none breakaway with Sean Couturier, but Skinner made a brilliant save.
Glendening made up for it with an empty net goal to seal the victory.
Physical play was once again on the menu, as it turns out the 81 combined hits between the Flyers and Penguins in Game 1 was indicative of what was to come. In Game 2, the Flyers outhit Pittsburgh 48-32 (80 total hits) .
