Guentzel’s 4 goals help Penguins oust Flyers

Jake Guentzel scored four straight goals to help send the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins into the next round with an 8-5 win over the Flyers in Game 6 on Sunday in Philadelphia.

Guentzel, not Sidney Crosby, Phil Kessel or the injured Evgeni Malkin, won the game for the Penguins with goals off Flyers turnovers, leading them to their ninth straight playoff series win.

Guentzel had the third four-goal playoff game in team history, joining Mario Lemieux in 1989 and Kevin Stevens in 1991.

“This is what you want to play in,” Guentzel said. “You grow up dreaming about this and this is definitely fun. When the bounces start going your way, you just try to run with it.”

Guentzel tied the game at 4 with 54 seconds left in the second period off a Flyers turnover. He scored 30 seconds into the third for the lead off another giveaway, and sealed one more lopsided win over the Flyers with two goals 10 seconds apart late in the period.

It was 2-2 after one period, 4-4 after two, and nothing was decided in the fiercest game of the series between the longstanding rivals until Guentzel took control.

The Flyers lost all three games at home and not even a solid start could help them get out of the first round for the first time since 2012.

Sean Couturier had the 24th playoff hat trick for the Flyers, who haven’t won a Stanley Cup since 1975. Couturier said he played with a torn right MCL suffered in a collision at practice last week.

“I couldn’t move that well, so I just tried to be well-positioned, have good sticks,” Couturier said.

Bryan Rust scored an empty-netter with 30 seconds left to ensure the Penguins got all four of their wins by at least three goals.

The Penguins will play the Capitals or Blue Jackets in the next round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Two on the brink: The Bruins and Capitals could advance to the next round Monday with Game 6 victories. The Bruins face the Maple Leafs in Toronto, while the Capitals travel to Columbus to battle the Blue Jackets.