PITTSBURGH (AP) — With Penguins stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin injured, the Tampa Bay Lightning had to figure that if they could contain Pittsburgh's secondary scoring, they could win the teams' first-round playoff series.
What the Lightning couldn't have planned for is that Pittsburgh's fourth line would do so much damage. Led by Arron Asham's three goals, the unheralded line of Asham, Craig Adams and Mike Rupp has been the Penguins' secret offensive weapon as they have built a 3-1 series lead heading into Game 5 at noon on Saturday in Pittsburgh.
After scoring only five goals in the regular season, Asham has a goal in each of Pittsburgh's three victories in the series as the Penguins are one victory away from advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the fourth consecutive season.
The old story about the Penguins used to be that they were a top-heavy team, too reliant on their stars for offense. This series, Pittsburgh has turned that upside down. The so-called fourth line's four goals are more than any other unit; its six points also lead the team.
Pittsburgh is 5-1 in series under Bylsma, but the Penguins have lost all four games with him in which they've been at home with a chance to close out a series. That led Bylsma to joke that his son says he can't win a big game at home.