Schedule and 2008 Results
Regular Season Records: Pittsburgh 47-27-8=102pts, Philadelphia 42-29-11=95pts
Game 1 on Friday, 09 May: Philadelphia loses at Pittsburgh, 4-goals-2
Game 2 on Sunday, 11 May: Philadelphia loses at Pittsburgh, 4-goals-2
Game 3 on Tuesday, 13 May: Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, 7:30pmEDT
Game 4 on Thursday, 15 May: Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, 7:30pmEDT
Game 5* on Sunday, 18 May: Philadelphia at Pittsburgh, 3:00pmEDT
Game 6* on Tuesday, 20 May: Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, 7:30pmEDT
Game 7* on Thursday, 22 May: Philadelphia at Pittsburgh, 7:30pmEDT
* if needed

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES: Up 2-games-nil:
Ignoring win order; ignoring site order: The team up 2-games-nil irrespective of site (Pittsburgh) has the following best-of-7 playoff series and games record through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds:
series record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 504-63 (.889)
series record, all best-of-7 sports, Semis round: 134-13 (.912)
series record, NHL only, all rounds: 251-37 (.872)
series record, NHL only, Semis round: 62-7 (.899)
Game 3 record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 269-298 (.474)
Game 3 record, all best-of-7 sports, Semis round: 70-77 (.476)
Game 3 record, NHL only, all rounds: 153-135 (.531)
Game 3 record, NHL only, Semis round: 37-32 (.536)
These records are drawn from the applicable 1042 best-of-7 NHL, NBA, and MLB series played through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds. Note in general that the greater the number of games or series fitting a particular situation, the greater the significance of the corresponding winning fraction: For example, 0.800 is far more likely to come closer to the true winning fraction in a given situation when the corresponding win-loss record is 400-100 rather than 4-1.

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES: Up 2-games-nil at home:
Ignoring win order; ignoring site order: The team up 2-games-nil with Games 1-2 at home (Pittsburgh) has the following best-of-7 playoff series and games record through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds:
series record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 398-41 (.907)
series record, all best-of-7 sports, Semis round: 92-12 (.885)
series record, NHL only, all rounds: 196-21 (.903)
series record, NHL only, Semis round: 46-6 (.885)
Game 3 record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 201-238 (.458)
Game 3 record, all best-of-7 sports, Semis round: 46-58 (.442)
Game 3 record, NHL only, all rounds: 117-100 (.539)
Game 3 record, NHL only, Semis round: 28-24 (.538)
These records are drawn from the applicable 1042 best-of-7 NHL, NBA, and MLB series played through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds. Note in general that the greater the number of games or series fitting a particular situation, the greater the significance of the corresponding winning fraction: For example, 0.800 is far more likely to come closer to the true winning fraction in a given situation when the corresponding win-loss record is 400-100 rather than 4-1.

SERIES NOTES:

After Game 2: The Pittsburgh Penguins hosted and defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 4-goals-2 to take a 2-games-nil lead in MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1035. When leading a best-of-7 NHL playoff series 2-games-nil, the Pittsburgh Penguins have a series record of 9-2 and a Game 3 record of 9-2. When trailing a best-of-7 NHL playoff series 2-games-nil, the Philadelphia Flyers have a series record of 2-10 and a Game 3 record of 7-5 with a three-Game 3 winning streak. The Pittsburgh Penguins thus extend their Game 2 winning streak to six games upon winning Game 1 of a best-of-7 NHL playoff series. The last best-of-7 NHL playoff series which Pittsburgh lost after winning Games 1-2 is also the last best-of-7 NHL playoff series which Philadelphia won after losing Games 1-2: series 806, in the 2000 NHL Quarterfinals, in which Philadelphia defeated Pittsburgh in six games.