Pittsburgh @ Philadelphia preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 11, 2019 ) Pittsburgh 4, Philadelphia 1

Sidney Crosby has tormented fans of the Philadelphia Flyers from the moment he was selected by the Keystone State-rival Pittsburgh Penguins, scoring 40 goals among his 97 points in 65 career encounters. Designated as Public Enemy No. 1 in the City of Brotherly Love, Crosby is bracing himself to be booed in front of nearly 70,000 fans on Saturday night as the Penguins play the Flyers in an outdoor game at Lincoln Financial Field.

"It'll be a difficult environment. It's going to be a lot, but at the same time it's fun to play in those environments sometime," said Crosby, who will play in his fifth outdoor game and first since scoring a goal in a 4-2 win over Philadelphia at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh in 2017. The two-time Hart Trophy recipient, who has a six-game point streak (four goals, nine assists) against the Flyers, saw his overall six-game point streak (two goals, 10 assists) halted in Thursday's 4-0 setback to San Jose. Crosby and the Penguins look to rebound versus celebrated rookie Carter Hart, who is hoping the crisp air of a February night in Pennsylvania will breathe new life into his game after being pulled midway into the first period of back-to-back contests. "I know that the last two games haven't been our best, but we'll put this behind us, go back to work and get ready for Saturday against Pittsburgh," said the 20-year-old Hart, who will wear a specially painted mask that pays homage to the Eagles.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC, Sportsnet 360, Sportsnet1, TVAS2

ABOUT THE PENGUINS (32-22-7): Evgeni Malkin scored four goals and set up eight others during an interrupted eight-game stretch before joining the rest of his team in being held off the scoresheet versus the Sharks. Jake Guentzel netted four of his team-leading 28 goals this month, including one in the third period of a 4-1 win over Philadelphia on Feb. 11. Veteran forward Matt Cullen, who scored the game-winning goal in the previous outdoor game versus the Flyers, is expected to compete in his 1,496th game to move past Hall of Famer Phil Housley for the third most by an American-born player.

ABOUT THE FLYERS (28-26-7): Travis Konecny set up Michael Raffl's goal in Thursday's 5-1 setback to Montreal to give him 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in his last 14 games. The 21-year-old Konecny scored in Philadelphia's 4-2 win at Pittsburgh on Dec. 1, with Sean Couturier (team-leading 24 goals) collecting an assist in that contest and 27 points (nine goals, 18 assists) in a 19-game stretch heading into the tilt versus the Penguins. "There should be a lot of atmosphere in the building," the 26-year-old Couturier said. "Philly fans are always emotional and there's always a lot of atmosphere. And in front of 70,000, it should be a lot of fun, so hopefully we can put on a good show, a good effort and get a win."

OVERTIME

1. Philadelphia captain Claude Giroux, who has club-best totals in assists (44) and points (61), has 47 points (15 goals, 32 assists) in 46 career encounters with Pittsburgh.

2. The Penguins will play in their fifth outdoor game on Saturday, moving them within one of Chicago for the most in the NHL.

3. Flyers LW James van Riemsdyk will suit up for his fifth NHL outdoor game, with three coming while playing for Toronto.

PREDICTION: Penguins 5, Flyers 2