Penguins Close In On Sweep As Hossa, Whitney Spark 4-1 Win Over Flyers

Philadelphia, PA (AHN) - Marian Hossa delivered two goals, Pittsburgh tightened the ropes where it mattered most and the Penguins seized a 3-0 series lead with a 4-1 dismantling of Philadelphia on Tuesday night at the Wachovia Center.

Hossa blasted his seventh and eighth shots of the postseason, first off Sidney Crosby's assist in the first period and then another on an empty net with 54 seconds remaining. But before Hossa starred with his two shots, the Penguins leaned first on Ryan Whitney's first goal in 30 games to set the tone.

Whitney carded his conversion off a power play opportunity, a hooking penalty from Derian Hatcher in the first five minutes of the game. Picking off a dish from Crosby and Sergei Gonchar, Whitney delivered it perfectly past goalie Martin Biron for a 1-0 lead.

R.J. Umberger hiked his postseason goals to 10 with a score midway in the first. But after his shot cut the deficit to 2-1, the Flyers never managed to take a clean shot at the net.

Not with the Penguins flashing their "best defensive effort all year," as Whitney liked to call it after the game.

With Pittsburgh playing their stingiest defense, the Flyers were held to just three shots in the second and 18 for the entire game. And not even their 10 shots in the third could save them from going down 0-3 in the series.

Marc-Andre Fleury had plenty to do with it, saving all 10 on the way to a 17-of-18 clip in the game. Ryan Malone also delivered a goal for Pittsburgh, which can advance to the Stanley Cup finals with a sweep on Thursday night at the same Philadelphia ice.

The Penguins last made it to the championship stage in 1991 and 1992, when they won it all behind the exploits of Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr. This year's Penguins, who came in winless at Wachovia Center in all four meetings in the regular season, made a strong case to rival those two Stanley Cup-winning teams, racing to a 3-0 lead for the third straight series.

Biron finished with 21 of 24 saves for Philadelphia, which got zero goals from Jeff Carter and Mike Knuble, who combined for 0-of-10 shots on goal.