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Flyers Score 4 Goals In Third, Beat Penguins 6-2

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Jakub Voracek and Dale Weise sparked Philadelphia's four-goal third period and the Flyers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-2 on Sunday night.

Jordan Weal scored his fifth goal in the first period and Valtteri Filppula his ninth in the second, then the Flyers broke it open in the third. Weise got his fifth of the season and Voracek his 19th before Radko Gudas and Shayne Gostisbehere capped the scoring.

Steve Mason stopped 25 shots for the Flyers, who won for the fourth time in seven games.

Philadelphia is six points behind Boston for the second Eastern Conference wild card, with three teams ahead of them and seven games left. The Flyers had won three of their previous nine games, including a home shutout against Pittsburgh.

Matt Murray made 27 saves for the Penguins, who missed out on an opportunity to move a point behind the Washington Capitals for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division. Pittsburgh, tied with Columbus for second place in the division, had its five-game point streak end and lost back-to-back home games for the first time this season. The Penguins have lost their last three games, but two of those losses came in shootouts.

Matt Cullen scored his 12th of the season and Patric Hornqvist his 19th on a partial breakaway in the third, but it wasn't enough to complete the comeback. Conor Sheary, fourth on the team with 21 goals, left in the first period and didn't return.

Weise gave the Flyers a 3-1 lead just 1:11 into the third period. Murray made the initial stop on a one-time feed from Travis Konecny, but Weise was at the top of the crease to put the puck across the line. Weise has three goals in his last six games.

Voracek then pushed a rebound from Claude Giroux's shot past Murray at 8:41.

Former NHL MVP Evgeni Malkin missed his sixth straight game with an upper-body injury. He did not participate in Sunday's morning skate, but coach Mike Sullivan said it was part of the rehab process.

Injured Penguins Kris Letang, Trevor Daley, Olli Maatta, Ron Hainsey and Jake Guentzel all had an on-ice workout before the team's morning skate on Sunday. Maatta (hand) missed his 19th consecutive game, while Letang (upper body) and Daley (knee) both missed their 16th straight.

Cullen opened the scoring with a power-play goal. Hornqvist's initial shot squeezed through Mason's pads, and Cullen, at the side of the net, poked the puck across the goal line.

Weal tied it in the final minute of the first period when he put a wrist shot under Murray's glove hand during a 2-on-1.

Filppula gave the Flyers the lead in the second period, finishing off a scrum in front of the net. The Penguins challenged for goaltender interference, but the goal was upheld after video review.

NOTES: Flyers C Nick Cousins missed his sixth straight game.  D Chad Ruhwedel and F Josh Archibald were both scratches for Pittsburgh.

The Penguins wore their Stadium Series jerseys, the same ones they had on against the Flyers during the February outdoor game at Heinz Field. Sunday's crowd marked the 400th consecutive regular season sellout for Pittsburgh.

UP NEXT
Flyers: Open a three-game homestand Tuesday against Ottawa.
Penguins: Finish a three-game homestand Wednesday against Chicago.

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