Flyers Fall Short as Blackhawks Win Cup

The Flyers lost to the Blackhawks last night and thus ended their amazing run at the Stanley Cup, and had to watch Chicago celebrate their Stanley Cup victory on our home ice.

Much like the rest of this postseason, the Flyers did everything they could to win this game, and left it all out on the ice; but in the end, it wasn’t enough. The Flyers were outplayed from the start of the game early, and Michael Leighton had to keep the Flyers in the game early. The end of the first period saw a 1-1 score. The Flyers got on the board first in the 2nd period, when Danny Briere continued his great postseason and roofed a shot over Niemi. However, the Blackhawks responded with 2 in the period to take a 3-2 2nd period intermission lead.

The Flyers really dominated the 3rd period, as they needed to in order to stay in the game. Finally, the Flyers were able to beat Niemi with about 4 minutes left in the game, as Scott Hartnell notched his 2nd goal of the game. Once again, the Hartnell-Briere-Leino line was easily the best line on the team, and was the most effective line of the postseason.

Once overtime started, the Flyers had the momentum and were outplaying the Blackhawks, getting most of the scoring chances at this point. However, all it takes is 1 shot on net, and Patrick Kane provided just that. On a very innocent looking play in the Flyers zone, Kane had the puck on the side, and really nowhere to go with it. He made a couple moves, got some room past Kimmo Timonen, and sent a puck towards Leighton, who was covering the post. The puck somehow snuck through Leighton, and into the net to give the Blackhawks their first Stanley Cup since 1961. It was a pretty weak goal to be honest, but that is also what great players do; they score big goals when it doesn’t look like they have anything or anywhere to go with the puck.

The Blackhawks were probably the better team, I would say overall they probably had more chances than the Flyers, especially in 5 on 5 situations, and when the game was tied. The Blackhawks seemed to come out at the start of games and really outplay the Flyers. The Flyers seemed to play their best hockey when they were down in games. That isn’t to say the Flyers didn’t play well or Chicago dominated the series, because I don’t think either of those are even close to true; it just seems like the better team overall won. Not the better team by much, but the better team nonetheless. If the Flyers had been able to steal 1 of the first 2 games in Chicago, it would have been a completely different series, and probably a different outcome. As the road team, you have to win 1 of those first 2 games.

Either way, it was a great season and everything. Even though the Flyers disappointed at points, and were very up and down, they still made it to the Stanley Cup Finals which can’t be considered a disappointment as a season. It is disappointing, and will be going forward, but the season as a whole is not a disappointment. Even before the season when the Flyers were considered one of the top teams in the East, you still would have put them behind the Penguins and Capitals in the pecking order.

We did get to see some unbelievable moments. The final regular season game win in the shootout. Beating up on the Devils handily, who routinely beat up on the Flyers the past 2 decades. Coming from 3-0 down against the Bruins – not only in the series – but also in Game 7, to advance. Watching Brian Boucher play great hockey, getting injured, and then watching Michael Leighton pick up right where Boucher left off. Whooping up on the Canadiens, while collecting 3 shutouts in the Eastern Conference Finals. And then finally hitting the wall and losing in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Flyers did their best, and managed to not fold when they got down 2-0 in the series, and make it a series at least.

Most of the team will be back next year to try to make a run at another Stanley Cup appearance. It will be much tougher next season, as we still will go into the season behind the Penguins and Capitals, as teams expected to win the Eastern Conference. Either way, it was a great season, with a disappointing end, and we can look forward to hopefully winning it all next season.

Now a Best of 3 Series

The Flyers won Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals in front of a crazy home crowd at the Wachovia Center to take even up the series at 2, and now it becomes a best of 3 series.

The Flyers jumped all over the Blackhawks in this game in the first period, and even though things got close at the end, the Flyers held off the Hawks to win the game 5-3. The Flyers got a great solo effort from Mike Richards to get on the board early in the first period. Shortly after, Matt Carle kept a Blackhawks clearing attempt in the zone and fired a puck into the open net. Carle's goal went as unassisted, but James van Riemsdyk played a big role on that play, bringing the puck around behind the net and getting it out in front. After a Blackhawks Patrick Sharp goal, Claude Giroux snuck behind the defense, and Kimmo Timonen found him with a great pass, and the Flyers took a 3-1 lead into the first intermission.

After a scoreless 2nd period, Ville Leino banked a shot off a Blackhawks defender and passed Antti Niemi and gave the Flyers a 4-1 lead halfway through the 3rd. The Blackhawks would not go away however, and scored 2 quick goals to make it 4-3, and then had plenty of good opportunities down the stretch to tie it, but Jeff Carter put the game away with an easy empty netter, and give the Flyers a 5-3 victory. Ville Leino's goal allowed him to become the all-time leading Flyers postseason scorer for a rookie passing Brian Propp.

5 different Flyers had goals, and no one had more than 1 assist either. The top line that needed to step up, ehh sort of stepped up. Richards goal was on the power play, so it was not with his linemates, and was a solo effort anyways. Carter's goal was an empty netter that hopped over Blackhawks defender Duncan Keith's stick and gave him an easy breakaway goal. The top line did play better though, and Carter, although I still don't think he had a good game, did play better than Game 3. The top line really needs to get going though, and win a game in Chicago.

The Flyers did do what they should have and replaced Daniel Carcillo with van Riemsdyk, and although van Riemsdyk made some mistakes, he also has an assist, and a great play on the Matt Carle goal. van Riemsdyk solidified his spot, and should play on the Giroux, Asham line the rest of the postseason.

Michael "Lights Out" Leighton turned the lights out on the Blackhawks, and made 31 saves in the game. Leighton played very well, and there wasn't much he could have done on any of the 3 Blackhawks goals. The first one was deflected, again off a Flyers played, as Braydon Coburn deflected the puck into the net. The 2nd one was on a 5-on-3 advantage, so it's hard to do anything on that one. And the 3rd one was kind of fluky and just a matter of the Blackhawks sending the puck towards the net, and the puck kind of rid on Timonen and Toews going towards the net and went in. Leighton really has played well, and needs to do it on the road now to steal a game.

Chris Pronger has been fantastic this Stanley Cup shutting down the first line of Kane-Towes-Byfuglien. He has the Blackhawks players all complaining about his play, and he is pushing these 3 players around, and having his way. Pronger did not have a point last night, and actually only played 28 minutes, which is less than usual for him, but he always has an impact on the game, and in this postseason, it has been a very positive impact.

Now... there is still a lot of work to do. The Flyers do have the momentum, but all that momentum might stop come Game 5 when the puck drops in front of the Chicago crowd. The series is now a best of 3 series, and the Blackhawks have 2 home games to the Flyers 1. The Flyers need to find a way to steal a game in Chicago, and it really needs to be Game 5 since the Flyers do have the momentum. The Flyers do not want to let Chicago go up 3-2, and have to win 2 in a row, with the final one being in Chicago. The Flyers really need to come out and try to win Game 5. The top line has the capability of having a big game, and stealing a game. Michael Leighton has the capability to steal a game. The team needs to step up for Game 5, and come back to Philly with a win, a 3-2 series lead, and a chance to win the Stanley Cup Finals on home ice in Game 6. Of course, that is much easier said than done.

Flyers Drop Game 1

...Well I guess that is not how things were drawn up before the game by either team. The Flyers lost game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals 6-5 to go down in the series 1-0. The game was a crazy game to say the least, and each team had multiple leads during the contest.

The Flyers got on the board early and often in Game 1. Unfortunately for them, so did the Blackhawks. The Flyers could never seem to get any momentum going, as once the Flyers would score, it seemed like the Blackhawks wasted no time getting the goal back. The Flyers opened the scoring in the 1st period, as Ville Leino fired a puck towards the net that went off a defenseman and made its way in. The Blackhawks came right back and score 1 minute later. The Blackhawks scored again a few minutes after that, but the Flyers answered with 2 more before the period was over, goals from Scott Hartnell and Danny Briere, to make it a 3-2 Flyers lead at the first intermission.

If you flipped over to Comcast at this point, you could see Roy Halladay complete the 20th perfect game in MLB history. Maybe this would be a good sign for a great Philadelphia sports night.

Unfortunately, the Blackhawks scored 1 minute into the 2nd period on a 2 on 1, and the game was tied at 3. About 7 minutes into the period, Blair Betts scored a goal, but again, the Blackhawks had an answer; the Blackhawks scored 2 minutes after Blair's tally to make it 4-4, and then scored again 5 minutes after that. Michael Leighton was yanked after this goal, a move I did not agree with. For the 2nd straight period, the Flyers scored in the final minute and a half of the period, with Arron Asham scoring in his 2nd straight game to make the score 5-5 going into the 3rd.

Michael Leighton was clearly not playing well, and I understand getting him out of the game in a game he is playing poorly, and tryint to re-fresh for Game 2. However, the Flyers were only down 1 goal at the time Leighton was pulled, and the game was tied going into the 3rd period. I would have rather had Leighton in the net for the 3rd period of a winnable game than Brian Boucher. The only reason to me to pull a goalie is when a goalie is playing poorly, and you have basically conceded that the game would be lost. This would have been a fine situation if the score were 5-1 or 5-2. However, the Flyers were only down 1 goal, and you want to keep the goalie out there who gives you the best shot at winning or getting on a hot streak - and to me that is Leighton. I'm not defending Leighton's play last night, because it was subpar, but I still would have kept him out there.

The 3rd period slowed down and calmed down a little bit, and Antti Niemi, the Blackhawks goalie, who had been struggling all game, along with Leighton, turned his game around and shut down the Flyers. I believe Leighton could have done the same if he was out there. The Blackhawks scored what would be the game winning goal 8 minutes in, on a fairly weak goal where Boucher bit on a shot fake and was out of position for the shot. The Blackhawks then clamped down on defense, and the Flyers never got any great chances towards the end of the game, and only finished the 3rd period with 6 shots in the period. Before the 3rd period, the Flyers were outshooting and outchancing the Blackhawks.

Either way, the Blackhawks really had to win this game more than the Flyers did. The Flyers really need to try to get Game 2 now, and come back home with the series tied 1-1. The Flyers got this crazy game out of the way; they now need to re-focus, relax, and play some better hockey all around. The Flyers seem to be able to play well playing fast, or slow hockey, but I think the Flyers need to try to slow the pace down a little bit. The Flyers need to do a better job in the neutral zone of not allowing the Blackhawks to come through and gain entry to the Flyers zone so easily. If the Flyers can win Game 2, they have still accomplished their goal of splitting in Chicago.

Micahel Leighton needs to step up his game, and show that he can look comfortable in between the pipes, because he never got into a rhythm. Also, the Flyers need to show they can hold onto a lead because blowing 3 leads in the game in unacceptable, even if they are only 1 goal leads, and early in the game. After they take the lead, if they do in Game 2, they need to do a better job on defense of not giving up shots in the slot, and just taking advantage of whatever scoring chances they get, much like Game 4 in Montreal.

Game 2 is not necessarily a must win, but if they do not take it, it makes both Game 3 and Game 4 at home must win games for the Flyers. A win in Game 2 would also allow the Flyers to calm down a little bit, and play their game coming back home for Games 3 and 4. They now just need to re-group, and execute Peter Laviolette's game plan for Game 2.

Flyers Advance to Stanley Cup Finals

The Flyers put down the Canadiens on Monday night to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. This will be the Flyers first Stanley Cup appearance since 1997, when they were swept by the Red Wings, and the Russian 5. The Flyers haven’t won a Stanley Cup since 1975 when the Broad Street Bullies were around, and have been to the Stanley Cup 5 times since then, and lost all 5.

This version of the Broad Street Bullies enters the Stanley Cup playing their best hockey all season. They defeated the Canadiens, who were playing great hockey coming into the series, 4-2, to eliminate Montreal. The Flyers advanced, and will face the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup Finals, who swept the #1 seeded San Jose Sharks.

Eliminating the Canadiens in Game 5 is exactly what the Flyers needed to do. You didn’t want to have to go back to Montreal for a Game 6, or give them any momentum. The game didn’t start out exactly as planned, as Montreal scored 59 seconds into the game. They then went on the power play, and had an opportunity to take a 2-0 lead in the game.

They didn’t, and that particular Canadiens power play was the start of the Mike Richards show for the night. Richards plowed through a Canadiens player at the point setting up a shorthanded odd man rush that resulted in a good scoring chance for Braydon Coburn. About 30 seconds later, Claude Giroux cleared the puck out of the Flyers zone, and Richards chased after it. The puck slid into the Montreal zone, and Richards was in a race with Canadiens defenseman Roman Hamrlik to be the first to the puck. Canadiens goalie Jaroslav Halak then decided he wanted to be first to the puck and skated after it. What resulted was a 3 person sliding collision which sent Richards, the puck, and Halak’s goalie stick towards the net. Richards got up, avoided Halak’s stick, and put the puck into the back of the net.

This was just the beginning of Mike Richards playing the “I’m not going to let this team lose this game” role. That is what a captain should do in a big game like this, and Richards was up to the task. The Flyers added 2 goals in the 2nd, one on a nice pass by Matt Carle, which left Arron Asham in front of the net by himself. He made a nice move, and beat Halak. Just over a minute later, the Flyers showed great puck movement, including an unreal behind the net pass from Richards to Jeff Carter, who put a shot over Halak’s shoulder.

Of course the game had to be nerve racking though, as Montreal scored just 7 minutes into the 3rd period, and the Flyers had to hold off a desperate Canadiens team for most of the rest of the game. They did just that, as the defense played well, and Michael Leighton played well down the stretch, and another fabulous Mike Richards play led to a Jeff Carter empty net goal. Mike Richards played his best game in a while, and it was especially important for him to do this in such a big game. Richards is the captain of the team, and the leader, and he showed why on Monday. He was not going to let the Flyers lose that game, and was a beast on almost every shift of his.

Richards had a solid game, Arron Asham had a number of chances, and the defense and Leighton was solid. The first goal was a little bit of lazy defense, but also a goal that Michael Leighton could have saved. After this point though, Leighton was solid. The fans were amazing as always, as Philadelphia fans always are, and were rewarded with getting to watch the Flyers celebrate a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. If the Flyers can win this Stanley Cup, it would be one of the more memorable seasons in Philadelphia sports history, and one of the best coaching performances by Peter Laviolette in these playoffs.

This was a great win, but the goal is to win the Stanley Cup, so there is still plenty of work to be done. As good as the Flyers are playing right now, which they are, the Blackhawks have been a great team wire to wire. They were the #2 seed in the Western Conference, which is a stronger conference than the East, and could have easily been the #1 seed. Instead, they took it to the #1 seeded Sharks in the Western Conference Finals. The Blackhawks feature 3 solid lines, come at you in waves, have star players on offense and defense, and also have a hot goaltender, much like the Flyers. It will not be easy, but it should be a very good Stanley Cup Finals.

Flyers Win Game 4

The Flyers bounced back from their disappointing Game 3 loss and won Game 4 in hostile Montreal to take a 3 games to 1 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Flyers did exactly what they needed to do going into Montreal for 2 games. They needed to just win 1 of those games and come back home with a 3-1 series lead. After the Flyers disappointing Game 3, they needed to step it up and take Game 4, so that the Canadiens would not have all the momentum and a series tied at 2.

The Flyers locked it down defensively, and Michael Leighton bounced back from Game 3, and recorded his 3rd shutout in 4 games of the series, as the Flyers won 3-0 in Game 4. The first period was a defensive battle with not many scoring chances, which I thought was a good thing for the Flyers, so the crowd would get slightly bored and restless. In period #2, the Flyers took over. Claude Giroux made an unbelievable solo play and beat the Montreal defense to put the Flyers on the board early in the 2nd period.

Later in the 2nd period, Chris Pronger made a great pass to Ville Leino, allowing Leino go move in on a breakaway, and Leino beat Halak to put the Flyers up 2-0 after 2 periods. In the 3rd, the Canadiens did put a lot of pressure on, but Leighton and the defense were up to the task. The Flyers had to kill off 2 power plays in the 3rd period, and then after doing so, Claude Giroux put in his 2nd goal of the game into the back of the net from his knees into the empty net to end the game.

The Flyers hardly allowed Montreal any good chances, and the Canadiens only ended up with 17 shots, after outshooting the Flyers in all 3 games thus far. Give a lot of credit to Peter Laviolette for regrouping the team in between games, and setting up the game plan, and allowing the Flyers to execute. Also, credit Matt Carle, and Chris Pronger, both of whom were really bad in Game 3, and both of whom really played well in Game 4.

Ian Laperriere and Jeff Carter both returned from injury to give the Flyers a needed boost. Jeff Carter moved onto the first line with Mike Richards and Simon Gagne, as Daniel Carcillo was a healthy scratch. I was calling for mostly Arron Asham to get scratched, but if it wasn't him, I would say Carcillo was the next guy who should have been scratched. Carter played almost 14 minutes, including a couple on the power play, and had 4 shots on goal, which is good. Laperriere replaced Andreas Nodl in the lineup, and played a little over 9 minutes, including a short period of time on the penalty kill. Blair Betts and Darrol Powe did a great job on the penalty kill. Laperriere is mostly known for his penalty killing and leadership as being a great locker room guy.

Again, the Flyers accomplished their task of taking 1 of 2 in Montreal, and now go back home for Game 5 with a 3-1 series lead. You really would love to close out this series in Game 5, so you don't give the Canadiens any life, and don't have to go back to the crappy city that is Monreal, and deal with their annoying fans. Game 5 is Monday night at 7:00.

Flyers Brought Back Down to Earth

The Flyers lost last night in Montreal 5-1, but still hold a 2-1 series advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Well, I guess it was wishful thinking to think the Flyers would never allow another goal in the playoffs, and just win every game on their way to their first Stanley Cup since the 1970s. The Flyers lost against a motivated, and spunky Montreal Canadiens teams, in front of a raucous/annoying crowd of French Canadians singing soccer chants.

The Canadiens took control from the beginning of the game, and never looked back. In the first 5 minutes of the game, the Flyers actually had 2-3 decent chances to score, including a power play, but Halak made a few nice saves, and kept the score tied at 0. Montreal got on the board halfway through the first, when Mike Cammalleri put in a rebound off the back boards to break Michael Leighton's shutout streak, and finally give the Canadiens some momentum, and their first lead of the series. The Canadiens put in 3 more, before the Flyers were able to get a goal in the 3rd period to avoid the shutout. And in classic Broad Street Bullies fashion, the Flyers just beat the crap out of the Canadiens at the end of the game. Simon Gagne continued his hot scoring streak, and scored the lone goal for the Flyers.

The Flyers defense really was the reason they lost this game, and it was most notably Matt Carle, and Chris Pronger. Quite frankly, Carle, and Pronger were horrible in this game. Carle and Pronger were both guilt of defensive let downs, turnovers, and not picking up guys going to the net all game long. It is hard to blame Leighton for most of the Canadiens goals, the Canadiens just flat out outplayed the Flyers all game long.

The Canadiens also outshot the Flyers for the 3rd straight game, which is disconcerting. The Flyers need to do a better job of keeping the play in the Canadiens end, and doing a better job cycling in the offensive zone. If the defense can play better, and the Flyers can cycle the puck and keep it down low, they should be more effective in Game 4.

A loss in this situation isn't necessarily the worst thing that could happen. The Flyers weren't going to sweep through everyone. You knew they were going to lose a game at some point, and it happened on Thursday night. Losses are not always necessarily the worst thing that can happen. The Flyers can not re-group, move on from their solid 6 game winning streak, go back to the drawing board, and pretend that this series is tied going into Game 4. If the Flyers can win Game 4 in Montreal, they still will be in command of this series.

Flyers Continue Hot Streak

The Flyers continued their amazing postseason run last night by winning Game 2 against the Canadiens and holding serve by winning both games at the Wachovia Center. The Flyers won the game 3-0, and have now outscored the Canadiens 9-0 in the two games.

The story of this game was simple – Michael Leighton. Leighton, much like in Game 1, kept the Flyers in the game when they were outplayed in the first period for the 2nd straight game. In Game 1, Leighton had to make 13 saves in the first period, as the Flyers went into the locker room with a 1-0 lead. In Game 2, Leighton was even better, making 16 saves in the opening period, again allowing the Flyers to take a 1-0 lead into the break. Leighton made 3 point blank saves in a row on Andrei Kostitsyn in the first period right out in front of the net. Leighton put himself in a great position all night in order to make the necessary saves. Leighton’s positioning has been nothing short of spectacular, allowing him to make nice saves, and not get out of position.

On the offensive end, I would have liked to see the Flyers get more chances and opportunities. The Flyers need to get better at 5-on-5 hockey going forward in this series, especially on the road. The Flyers power play is what has propelled them to this 2-0 series lead, along with Leighton. The Flyers were 2-6 on the power play in Game 1, and 2-4 in Game 2. The 4 power play goals in the first two games of the series has been solid, and obviously I would like the Flyers to continue to score power play goals, but also want to see the Flyers play better 5-on-5 hockey the rest of the series.

Also, the Flyers have technically been outshot in both games so far, so that is something to look at going forward. Actually in each game, the Canadiens have come out and really controlled the first period, but the Flyers have scored a goal in the first period each game. The 2nd period seems to be fairly even both games, and the Flyers outshot the Canadiens in both 3rd periods thus far. Shots on net is a somewhat overrated statistic, as you can have plenty of scoring chances and not get a shot on net, and put a weak shot on net which isn’t a scoring chance.

Any way you look at it, taking a 2-0 series lead is a very good thing, but it doesn’t get any easier having to go to Montreal for Games 3 and 4. Montreal is one of those teams who has a very good home ice advantage, and always seem to play better on their home ice than on the road. The Flyers need to continue to play good defense in front of Michael Leighton, as we cannot rely on Leighton to shut out the Canadiens the entire series. The Flyers defense I think has done a good job shutting down Mike Cammalleri and Tomas Plekanec. The Flyers need to take at least one in Montreal, as you don’t want let the Canadiens back in this series by winning 2 in a row and tying the series at 2, and having all the momentum. Game 3 will be Thursday night in Montreal.

Flyers Continue Momentum in Game 1

The Flyers beat the Canadiens in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals in convincing fashion, winning the contest 6-0. I really was not sure what to expect from this series, as the Flyers came in after dominating the Devils, and then having the historic comeback against the Bruins. The Canadiens entered the game as the #8 seed, but beat the #1 seed Capitals, and the defending champion Penguins.

The Flyers scored early and often in this game, taking a 1-0 lead on the power play just 4 minutes into the game as Braydon Coburn, who has been solid all postseason got rewarded with his first goal of the postseason, much like van Riemsdyk's tally in Game 7 against the Bruins. Speaking of James van Riemsdyk, he had another good game, and put in a goal in the 2nd to make it 2-0. The Flyers continued the onslaught from there, and added goals from Briere, and Gagne in the 2nd period, and then Hartnell and Giroux in the 3rd period to win the game 6-0. Matt Carle and Ville Leino both had 2 assists in the game.

Obviously scoring 6 goals will be the big story of the game, but Michael Leighton obviously stopped every shot that came his way, and played a great game. He wasn't challenged a whole lot, but did make some very nice saves early, including 13 in the first period alone to keep the Flyers head, and allowed the Flyers to put the game away.

The game wasn't necessary as lopsided as the score way, both teams had chances and opportunities to score, the Flyers just took advantage of theirs, and Leighton greatly outplayed Halak, who was pulled after the Flyers 4th goal. You have to be encouraged with the way the Flyers played, and I didn't even mention Mike Richards and Chris Pronger in the summary.

Hopefully the Flyers put this game behind them quickly, and move onto Game 2, and hold down home ice. They still need to come out and continue their strong forechecking and get to the Canadiens when they are not playing well. We have seen numerous times where the Flyers will score 6 goals one game, and then 0 or 1 the next, so hopefully the Flyers come out and play well in Game 2. The Flyers have now outscored their opponents 10-0 since going down 3-0 in Game 7 against the Bruins. Either way, very positive and encouraging sign to start the series with.

Flyers Win!!!!!

The Flyers capped off a historic comeback, one of the best in playoff sports history, to beat the Bruins 4-3, in a game that featured an unbelievable comeback of its own.

Only 3 teams in the history of sports, and 2 teams in the history of the NHL had ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit. The Flyers not only did that, but also fell behind the Bruins by a score of 3-0 in the 1st period, only to still come back and win the game 4-3 with a 3rd period goal.

The Bruins were all over the Flyers in the 1st period, and the Flyers took 2 stupid penalties, both of which the Bruins capitalized on to make it a very quick 2-0 lead. The Bruins then had numerous chances to make it 3-0, and then finally did that on Lucic's 2nd goal of the game.

At that point, Flyers coach Peter Laviolette called a timeout, in what turned out to be one of the best timeouts in Philadelphia sports history. He told Michael Leighton to calm down, and if he did not allow a goal the rest of the game, the Flyers would win. He also said that someway they needed to get a goal before the 1st period was over.

The Flyers would do both of those. James Van Riemsdyk, who has been very back this postseason, scored on a semi-fluky goal that slid under the pad of Tuukka Rask. This accomplished exactly what the Flyers needed by getting the score back to a manageable 3-1 deficit going into the first intermission.

The Flyers came out on a mission in the 2nd period, and really dominated this period and got back in the game. Scott Hartnell jumped on a rebound early in the 2nd period and roofed a backhand to make the score 3-2. Shortly after, Danny Briere threw a puck in front of the net, which somehow deflected into the net to make it 3-3. The Flyers actually appeared to score again later in the period, and it was reviewed, but was not called goal. Sure looked like a goal to me.

The game went to the 2nd intermission tied at 3, and the Flyers had all the momentum. The Flyers continued to play well into the 3rd period, and even though the period was fairly even, the Flyers did have the majority of the scoring chances.

A too many men of the ice penalty gave the Flyers a power play a little more than halfway through the 3rd period, and Simon Gagne scored as the power play was winding down. The Flyers held off the Bruins the last 8 minutes of the game to cap off one of the best moments in sports history.

I would say that this victory ranks up there among the top 10, possibly top 5 Philadelphia victories I have ever watched in my lifetime. Just flat out unbelievable. Down 3-0 in the series, then down 3-0 in Game 7 in Boston, only to come back and win against a team that supposedly locks it down defensively when they get a lead. Incredible.

Hopefully the Flyers can continue this little momentum and run they have going now. It helps that they have home ice advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals as the #7 seed, because the #8 seed Montreal Canadiens await them. Game 1 of that series is Sunday night at the Wachovia Center.

Flyers Force Game 7

The Philadelphia Flyers are on the verge of making history Friday night by attempting to be the 3rd hockey team ever, and 4th professional team (NHL, NBA, MLB) ever to come back from a 3 games to 0 deficit. The Flyers won Game 6 at the Wachovia Center, in front of a raucous crowd, which included myself, and forced a game 7.

Teams have gone down in playoff series 3-0 in Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, and the National Basketball Association 281 times. Only 3 times has a team ever come back from such a deficit to win the series. It has happened twice in the NHL, and once in MLB. The last time it happened in the NHL was 1975. The Flyers still have their work cut out for them though, and obviously it goes without saying that to win any game in the playoffs on the road, in a Game 7 is an extremely difficult task.

The Flyers jumped out of the gates quickly in Game 6, and really dominated the play in the first half of the first period. Some great forechecking, and great work around the net to keep the puck alive by the Richards-Carcillo-Gagne line led to the first goal of the game by Mike Richards. Kimmo Timonen also did a good job pinching in on the play getting the puck out in front of the net to Gagne. The Bruins then had their chances as they took control late in the first period, and into the 2nd period. Michael Leighton was up to all the challenges though, including a first period breakaway that he saved.

Late in the 2nd period, the Flyers were about to have a long 5 on 3 power play when Chris Pronger knocked Zdeno Chara to the ice and got called for a weak penalty. However, on the 4 on 3 power play, Danny Briere blasted a shot over Rask’s shoulder and into the net. The two goal scorers in Briere and Richards continue to play really well in the playoffs.

Michael Leighton, making his first start since March 16th, played amazing. He made save after save in the 3rd period when the Bruins were really pressing. The Bruins did finally get a puck past Leighton with exactly 1 minute left in the 3rd period, but they didn’t get much pressure in the final minute, and the Flyers left the ice with a 2-1 victory, and all the momentum going into Game 7. However, momentum can change quickly, especially when you go on the road.

The Flyers need to jump out quickly, like they have the last 2 games, and get a first period lead. The last 2 games, the Flyers have scored in the first period, and it has forced the Bruins to play from behind, something they are not good at doing. The Bruins are not an offensive power; they are a physical, defensive team that likes the get the lead and sit on it. The Flyers need to make sure this doesn’t happen in Game 7. That will be easier said than done.

Flyers Make It a Series

The Flyers won last night 4-0 in Boston to actually make this 2nd round series competitive. The Flyers still are up against the wall, and still need to take 2 more in a row, starting tomorrow night in Philadelphia.

The Flyers really outplayed the Bruins in Game 4 in Boston from start the finish. The Scott Hartnell-Ville Leino-Danny Briere line did most of the damage, as Ville Leino was flying all over the ice. Take a look back, and you can see that we reported during the first round series against the Devils that Ville Leino should be playing, and possibly taking Scott Hartnell's spot in the lineup. Leino got the Flyers on the board in the first, and did most of the damage on the next 2 goals, getting an assist on 1, and skating circles around the Bruins to keep the puck in the offensive zone for a Hartnell goal the other time. Beisdes Leino, and Hartnell, Simon Gagne had 2 goals to close out the game.

Speaking of Scott Hartnell, he finally showed up for a game. He scored for the first time in 22 games, and did have a good game overall, skating better, and being more aggressive. This line will need to continue the strong play if the Flyers want to win the series.

The game was somewhat strange in that you had the Flyers really dominating, the Bruins taking dumb penalties, and then giving up in the 3rd period taking cheap shots at the Flyers the entire period. The Flyers, being the most hated team by officials in sports, would have gotten suspensions thrown their way if they had done some of the things the Bruins were doing in the 3rd. Claude Giroux was boarded late in the 2nd period, continued to play for the rest of the 2nd, but then sat out the 3rd period. It looks like this was more precautionary and that Giroux will be good to go Game 6.

Brian Boucher, however, will not be good to go for Game 6, and will probably miss the rest of the playoffs with a strained MCL. Boucher has been very good in these playoffs, and will definitely be missed, but I'm not so sure Michael Leighton is much of a downgrade from Boucher, even though Leighton does not have the playoff experience that Boucher does. Leighton saved all 14 shots he faced after he entered the game last night, but the Flyers did a very good job defensively, really for the first time all series.

Game 6 will be important, and the home crowd will need to get the Flyers into the game. Kotite's Corner will be present in the crowd cheering on the orange and black. Game 6 will start at 8 o'clock.

Flyers Lose Winter Classic

The Flyers lost to the Boston Bruins 2-1 in overtime today in another great Winter Classic game. The rain and snow held off, and the game went on as planned. It started to get dark and chippy by the end of the game, and the Flyers allowed a late Bruins goal in regulation, and then in overtime to lose the game.

Overall, the game was great to watch, and I'm sure was fun to be at and play in. The atmosphere was great. Flyers fans, who are the best in the NHL packed Fenway Park, and you could hear Flyers chants throughout the game. The Flyers got a goal early in the 2nd period on the first career goal by Danny Syvret. The Flyers had a lot of chances throughout the 2nd period, and dominated most of the action that period.

The 1-0 lead held up through most of the 3rd period as well, until the refs gave the Bruins a bullshit power play with less than 4 minutes left in the game. Former Flyer, Mark Recchi scored on the ensuing power play with a little over 2 minutes left. I am a huge believer that referees do not like the Flyers at all. I know the Flyers play rough, and they lead the league in penalty minutes, but they always seem to have a target on their backs. Because of that reputation, refs are always going to call the Flyers on weak penalties, that other teams would not get called for.

Either way, the game went into overtime, but before that, the Flyers got another penalty called against them with under a minute left in the 3rd period. The Flyers fought that penalty off, but the Bruins scored a goal a couple minutes into the overtime period to win the game and the Winter Classic. Right before the Bruins scored, Danny Briere had a wide open net with the puck on his stick, but couldn't get a shot off. If the game were indoors, Briere probably buries that, but he wasn't able to get the shot off with the chippy ice in overtime. I will say that Michael Leighton was solid in net all night for the Flyers, and there wasn't much he could do on the 2 goals that were scored against him.

Even though it seems like it is tough to play on, and the conditions aren't as good as a regular indoor game, I am a big fan of the Winter Classic, and was glad the Flyers were chosen to play in it, even though I am very disappointed with the outcome. Also am disappointed we had to watch that fat phony, Curt Schilling during the 1st intermission wearing a Bruins jersey talk about Philadelphia and Boston fans.