Vladar's blunder proves costly as Penguins edge Flyers to force Game 6

The Pittsburgh Penguins prolonged their Round 1 series with the Philadelphia Flyers once again by winning 3-2 in Game 5 on Monday.

Kris Letang was credited with the game-winner late in the second period on a fluky goal that bounced off the boards and Flyers goalie Dan Vladar before going in the net.

It's the second straight game in which Vladar surrendered a goal he'd surely love to have back. In Game 5, he attempted to play the puck behind the net but was stripped by Rickard Rakell, who deposited the puck into the open net. The Penguins won 4-2 with an empty-netter.

Pittsburgh built a 2-0 lead with goals from Elmer Soderblom and Connor Dewar to open Game 5. The Flyers responded with tallies from Alex Bump - who entered the lineup in place of the healthy scratched Matvei Michkov - and Travis Sanheim. However, Letang scored 2:06 after Sanheim's equalizer for his second game-winner in as many outings.

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby notched his second straight multi-point game, picking up assists on the Dewar and Letang goals. Crosby picked up his 100th career playoff victory.

Arturs Silovs stopped 18 of 20 shots and is now 2-0 in the postseason since replacing Stuart Skinner in the Penguins' crease.

The Flyers jumped out to a 3-0 series lead, but the Penguins have now won consecutive games to stay alive. Pittsburgh is two wins away from becoming the fifth team in Stanley Cup Playoff history to win a series after falling behind 3-0. The 2014 Los Angeles Kings were the last team to pull off the reverse sweep, doing so in the Western Conference quarterfinals against the San Jose Sharks en route to winning their second Stanley Cup in three years.

Game 6 is Wednesday in Philadelphia.