Maybe it was above and beyond. Maybe it was just the way things have gone for the Penguins' special teams most of the time in the playoffs.

Either way, it was a magnificent effort by defenseman Sergei Gonchar that no doubt will be considered one of many playoff-turning moments once the team's whirlwind run through the postseason is completed.

It was about midway through the second period of Game 3 of the Eastern Conference final at Wachovia Center. The Penguins were clinging to a 1-0 lead with Philadelphia Flyers winger Scottie Upshall in the penalty box for tripping Evgeni Malkin.

Penalty-killer Mike Richards poached the puck from Ryan Whitney at the left point for a long breakaway. A dramatic, tying, shorthanded goal for the Flyers at that juncture could have been just the thing to get them back in the series after they had dropped the first two games at Mellon Arena.

Instead, Gonchar raced from the opposite point, dived and poked the puck off Richards' stick, preventing a shot without taking a penalty.

All in a night's work for someone Penguins center Sidney Crosby has called the best power-play pointman in the NHL.

And, on a larger scale, just one example of the way the team's power play and penalty-killing have been major assets.

"I think that's one of our strengths --everyone's confident with our special teams, with our power play and our penalty kill," said winger Ryan Malone, one of the few Penguins who is a regular in both situations, taking a regular shift when the team is shorthanded and serving as a deflection and rebound specialist in front of the net when the team is on the power play.

Although the Penguins had a rare off night in special teams numbers in a 4-1 Game 4 loss to the Flyers, going 0 for 3 on the power play and giving up two goals in four times shorthanded, they came back in the clinching, 6-0, win in Game 5 to go 2 for 4 on the power play and killed all four Philadelphia advantages.

Going into the Stanley Cup final against Detroit, the Penguins have the second-best power play in the playoffs (24.6 percent) and second-best at home (26.8 percent). Their penalty-killing comes in at No. 4 (87.3 percent, No. 3 at home, 90.6 percent).

Those numbers are better than the leaders from the regular season.

The Penguins' power play is so loaded with talent that at times during the season the coaching staff received some criticism for its choice of players on the top unit. It shapes up like this:

Gonchar as the primary pointman, with Crosby and Malkin each splitting time between the point and the half boards, Malone manning the front of the net and Marian Hossa serving as something of a roving sniper.

There's not a huge dropoff with second-unit players such as forwards Petr Sykora and Jordan Staal, and pointmen Whitney and Kris Letang

"We've got world-class players, the best players in the world," said Penguins assistant coach Mike Yeo, who oversees the power play. "Skill alone doesn't translate to success, especially on the power play. I'm fortunate not only with the skill we have, but these guys are willing to work and battle and do the things that I ask. What a treat for me to have all those things apply."

Even with the level of talent, the power play is always a work in progress. There were some recent adjustments to the unit's breakout and setup, prompting Crosby to skate to the bench and consult briefly with Yeo after a whistle in Game 3 of the series against the Flyers.

"I just wanted to make sure we were all in the right place," Crosby said, adding that there is no lack of work ethic in the group.

"We have a lot of skill, but you have to have guys who are working hard. So we're lucky to have, I think, guys that can move the puck, shoot the puck. We've got a big body in Ryan Malone who is in front of the net a lot. I think we're covered in a lot of areas."

Gonchar's booming, slicing shots make him the force that swings the pendulum.

"Before the puck comes to me, I usually look up front and see what's available," Gonchar said. "If there's traffic, I just want to deliver it to the net. Ryan Malone does a wonderful job up front and with rebounds."

Working for the shot is enhanced with Crosby and Malkin on each side of Gonchar.

"The way all three of them move the puck, we get a lot of movement, changing from one side to the other," Yeo said. "It's a pretty tough setup to defend. You've got to pick your poison. These guys have done a great job all playoffs and all season long. I still think the best days are ahead of us."

For the penalty-killing, it's more a case of the worst being behind the Penguins.

"We struggled a little early in the season," said assistant Andre Savard, who oversees the penalty-killing and defensemen. "It starts with goaltending, and the way [Marc-Andre] Fleury is playing right now has been good for the penalty-killing. Early in the season, he was struggling a little bit."

A year ago, when the Penguins lost in five games to Ottawa in the first round, they went into the playoffs with just four forwards regularly killing penalties -- Malone, Staal, Max Talbot and Colby Armstrong.

"We knew it was a problem, only having four," Savard said. "Now we've got depth."

Malone, Staal and Talbot have been joined by Pascal Dupuis, who was acquired in the same trade in which the team lost Armstrong, and Adam Hall, who was signed last fall. Jarkko Ruutu, Crosby and Malkin have been used, mostly during the regular season.

In addition, Hal Gill, acquired from Toronto at the trade deadline, gives the Penguins a big shutdown defenseman when they are shorthanded.

"We feel we have a lot of depth, guys who can come in and kill penalties," Hall said. "It doesn't matter if it's the first minute of the game, the last minute of a game, up a goal, down a goal.

"It's something that a lot of times doesn't get as much credit, but we take a lot of pride in it. All the guys do such a great job working together. You have to work hard to know the other teams' tendencies and things. There's a lot of scouting that goes into it."

And a lot of hustle and courage to chase down rebounds and pucks that have been dumped in and get in position to block shots.

Without resorting to too much of a scramble.

"That's exactly what you can't do, or you'll get caught out of position and some passing lane is going to be open," Dupuis said. "It's just a matter of paying the price, being in the shooting lane, going after loose pucks.

"It's a lot of hard work. It's all about details."