The Penguins might not have known that the past 19 teams to lose the first two games of a conference final went on to drop the series, but they did realize that losing Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final tonight would put them in a deep hole.
Which probably is why they battled so hard to stay out of it.
Their efforts finally were rewarded when Sidney Crosby scored from above the left hash 40 seconds into overtime to give them a 3-2 victory against Tampa Bay at Consol Energy Center, tying the series, 1-1.
The winner, from Sidney Crosby.