I'm going to get to what transpired over the weekend later tonight when I have more time to coherently put my thoughts together, but this is something I absolutely have to get off my chest.
First of all, I really, really like Peter Laviolette. He's a fiery coach that demands a lot from his players, a good strategist and someone that just seems to get the most out of his players more times than not. He won a Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes, and last season he was masterful in leading an underachieving Flyers team that barely made the playoffs all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. He's become a cult hero almost overnight in Philadelphia for his aggressive and game-changing use of timeouts, and the Flyers improved from a team that needed to get a shootout victory on the final day of the regular season just to qualify for the playoffs to a team that was among the best in the NHL and finished with the second seed in the East, albeit with a horrid slump mixed in.
The guy can coach his ass off, there's not doubt about that. But to be perfectly honest, Peter Laviolette has done nothing but make baffling decision after baffling decision in this series with Buffalo. And in all honesty, if he simply did the obvious, logical thing instead of going into what looks like panic mode, the Flyers may have already advanced to the second round instead of needing overtime yesterday just to stay alive and force tomorrow's deciding game 7.
And it's not like it took long for people to start questioning him. It began before the start of game 1, when he decided to dress Andreas Nodl and Dan Carcillo instead of Nikolay Zherdev. The critics did make a pretty good point, discussing the Flyers' late-season scoring woes, saying the Flyers needed a scorer and finisher in their lineup against one of the NHL's premier goaltenders and best defensive teams more than they needed grinders like Nodl and Carcillo. It was a point well taken, however I actually had no problem with Laviolette's decision for game 1. Yes, Zherdev brings a lot to the table offensively, but he's never been known for his defense, and one missed defensive assignment can cost you a game in the playoffs.
Still, it's hard to deny that Zherdev would have helped in game 1, with the Flyers getting shut out. And though he definitely has had his defensive lapses, Zherdev has been working harder defensively the past two games. But Nodl did play fairly well in game 1, and Carcillo has been good this entire series, while Zherdev has continued to be brilliant at times and infuriating at others. So I wasn't overly upset with Laviolette's decision to sit Zherdev in game 1.
I also didn't have a problem with Laviolette starting rookie Sergei Bobrovsky in net despite his inconsistent play. It made sense to me, hoping to get a good showing from Bobrovsky, and if he didn't play well, Laviolette could always turn to the experienced Brian Boucher, a goaltender who has performed time and time again in the playoffs and who is used to coming on in relief.
While I agreed with Laviolette on his decision to start Bob and his decision to scratch Zherdev in game 1, that doesn't mean I was on board with all that he did in game 1. In fact, I flat out could not and did not understand why he called a timeout in game 1 as the Flyers were about to go on a two-man advantage in the second period. At that point in the game, the Flyers had Buffalo reeling, had just gone up another man and had the building rocking and all the momentum in the world. It was the exact moment to pounce on the Sabres and give them no room to breathe. Instead, Laviolette slowed the game down by inexplicably calling that timeout on a 5-on-3 in the second period of game 1. It allowed the Sabres to regain their bearings, and of course Buffalo killed both penalties off and stole a 1-0 game 1 victory.
The man may be lauded for his use of his timeouts, but that was going overboard. And he's used a few timeouts at odd times since. He certainly hasn't been as magical with them as he was last postseason.
But that's hardly the most baffling thing Laviolette has done. After Sergei Bobrovsky had a rough outing in game 2 and was subsequently pulled before the Flyers came back and won behind a tremendous showing by Boucher, Laviolette did the single stupidest thing he's done since becoming the head coach of the Flyers. In what can only be described as a panic move, Laviolette scratched Bobrovsky and made Michael Leighton the backup to Boucher. Now, I was all in favor of starting Boucher after Bob's shaky outing in game 2 and Boucher's incredible performance in relief. I think just about all of the Delaware Valley was. But to banish Bob to the press box for one bad outing in favor of a guy who had played in a grand total of 1 NHL game during the 2010-11 season? That's just ludicrous, especially considering the guy gave up four goals (albeit in a win) in that game.
I understand the soft spot for Michael Leighton. I really do. I was there for the ride last season. Without Leighton, the Flyers don't even make the playoffs, let alone come within two victories of hoisting the Cup. The guy was tremendous in getting the Flyers to the Final. But in the six games against the Blackhawks, it became clear that Leighton wasn't THE GUY that this franchise has been looking for my whole life. And regardless, this isn't last year. This is this year, a completely different season.
Michael Leighton didn't carry the Flyers to the playoffs this season. He didn't work in tandem with Brian Boucher to lead the Flyers to the top of standings and ultimately gain the second seed in the conference. Sergie Bobrovsky did. He's the guy who got the Flyers to where they're at, along with Boucher. He's the guy who played a tremendous game 1 in defeat, the guy who's been between the pipes more often than not to get the Flyers to the playoffs. To banish him after one bad playoff performance is more than unfair, it's insane. You go with guys who brought you there. Simple as that.
Michael Leighton did a lot for the Flyers in 2009-10, but he did absolutely nothing for them this year. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Sure, he played really well for the Phantoms down the stretch, but guess what, this isn't the AHL. How you go with a guy who played a total of 60 minutes in the NHL this season over a guy you counted on for 52 starts and 54 games during the regular season is beyond me. And really, it's indefensible unless the guy comes in and plays lights out. We all know Leighton didn't do that.
When Boucher let in two insanely atrocious goals in game 5 and a third before a period was even in the books, Leighton came in and saw very little work. But in overtime, after his defensemen needed him to bail them out for a horrid turnover, he left a fat rebound and got tagged with a really tough loss. Then yesterday, he surrendered three embarrassingly bad goals. And all Sergei Bobrovsky could do was helplessly watch from the press box.
Forget about what this does to Bob's confidence and psyche going forward. From a purely hockey sense, the decision was insane, is insane and will always be insane.
Then there's the case of the skaters in game 5. With Jeff Carter unavailable after a knee injury and Nodl still out from being injured in game 2, Laviolette had to make a difficult decision on who to insert into the lineup. The most obvious choice would be Jody Shelley, a regular in the lineup all season, a grizzled veteran with playoff experience and a guy who contributed mightily for this team. Shelley has been missing with an injury, but all indications were that he could go if needed.
Laviolette decided against that for whatever reason, whether it was conditioning, too much time off the ice or Shelley still not being 100 percent. So the next logical choice would be rookie Ben Holmstrom. Not ideal, obviously, suiting up a rookie for his first NHL playoff game and just third NHL game period in the midst of a series tied at two games apiece, but it would have to do. Holmstrom did play two games this season and did not look overwhelmed.
But no, Laviolette didn't do that either. Instead, he dressed a guy who had exactly zero NHL shifts in his life, a guy who essentially is nothing more than a hitter. And while he didn't do anything stupid and actually threw some nice hits in his extremely limited ice time, the decision to dress Zac Rinaldo in a pivotal game 5 made absolutely no sense whatsoever. What was the purpose in dressing a guy that Laviolette literally could only use for a few minutes? What if one of the other forwards would have gotten hurt? Was he really prepared to let Rinaldo take more shifts? I just don't get it. Jody Shelley was a guy who helped get the Flyers to where they're at, just like Sergei Bobrovsky. And at least Ben Holmstrom contributed briefly to this team (playing in twice as many games as Leighton!). But when a few things didn't go the Flyers' way, when the series wasn't going quite as planned, Laviolette panicked and turned his back on a couple of the guys who helped get him to where he's at in favor of guys who had little to no impact on this season whatsoever.
I like Peter Laviolette. I'm glad he's the coach of the Flyers. But win or lose tomorrow night, he's put his team in a precarious position by making what can only be described as indefensible, panic-stricken decisions. And honestly, all I can ask myself is, "What is Peter Laviolette thinking?"
The Phillies are playing the Red Sox at Fenway this weekend. As a city, I typically hear nothing but nice things about Boston, especially for 20-something singles such as myself. Well, if you're white anyway. Lavar's Love Child lives there, and he doesn't seem to mind all that much. There are a ton of bars, (some where everybody knows your name), lots of seafood and those funny accents.
The fans are annoying as hell, but at least they're passionate and know sports. It's not Philadelphia fans aren't overbearing to outsiders as well. But one thing I cannot overlook, one thing I cannot stand, and one thing that makes every single person from Boston deserve to get their teeth kicked — "Sweet Caroline."
Sweet fucking christ, how I hate this song. I hate it so god damn much. Thanks to stupid ass Boston Red Sox fans singing this song with unending joy during fucking baseball games, the epidemic has spread. It's played at Penn State home games, and a bunch of the retarded fucking students that pop their collars and sing their hearts out. To Sweet Caroline. At a fucking football game. This is not right. That song has no place near a sporting events. Sports are meant to be physical, and violent, and intense. The proper soundtrack is hard, intense music, Rage Against the Machine, White Zombie, hard rock, heavy metal. Not this pussy shit. And it all started because of Boston and the stupid Red Sox and their stupid fans. I hate them all so much for it.
If you are one of these morons at a sporting that just can't wait for Sweet Caroline to start blaring over the loudspeakers so you can sing along, I hope you die. Seriously. You are all that is wrong with taking in a sporting event in person these days. The people who get up and down 50 times during a game to get food, walk around, meet friends, use the bathroom. The people who talk all god damn game long about everything under the sun except for the actual game. The people who sing along to gay-ass songs like Sweet Caroline and Living on a Prayer. Die. All of you. I hate you all so much. You ruin the fan experience for those of us who go to, you know, actually watch the game. I place the blame largely at Boston's feet.
Links …
-With the World Cup set to begin this weekend, Ed has an interesting post comparing some of the world's best soccer players with some of the NBA's best basketball players. Definitely worth a read.
Yes, the same Quin Snyder who did a tremendous job at Missouri before he resigned amongst scandal. Oh yeah, and he went to Duke, so you know he's an asshole. Awesome. Though I have to admit, he did do one hell of a job coaching it up at Missouri.
-Big Baby drooling like a big baby, as the Celtics tied the NBA Finals at 2-2 thanks in large part to Davis, Nate Robinson, Tony Allen and Rasheed Wallace:
Mark Jackson had a great line afterward as well. I can't get enough Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy.
-Speaking of Sheed, this was awesome:
And also, that wasn't a foul. At all. I love Sheed.
-More Sheed, this time an in-depth look at his battle with Pau Gasol.
-Don't tell the national media, but Philadelphia fans showed some incredible class, giving Michael Leighton a standing ovation and much love, soft goals or no soft goals.
10 Amile Jefferson 6-7 SF/PF Friends Central (PA) Lanky forward has a very polished game.
Here's some of Amile doing his thing:
-Philadelphia 76er Marreese Speights and Philadelphia native/former Villanova Wildcat Kyle Lowry are hosting a basketball clinic in Bryn Mawr later this month.
-A plea from beelove to Ruben Amaro to call up Domonic Brown to the big show, preferably replacing the utterly useless Greg Dobbs. I completely and utterly agree.
-Oh yeah, and all hell is breaking loose in college sports, precipitating by football, as you all know. Nebraska is joining the Big 10, Colorado is going to the Pac-10, and the domino effect is going to be insane. Like Boise State joining the Mountain West. What I do know is that Penn State can't demolish Nebraska enough. I really hate Nebraska, which should fit well for my extreme hatred for Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and every other Big 10 school not from Pennsylvania.
And finally, to show I have no ill will toward Neil Diamond despite my disdain for that one particular song, enjoy some Neil Diamond cover action courtesy of Saving Silverman.
That's what the shirts the Flyers gave out to fans said last night. And that's exactly the way I feel about what transpired in game 6.
After the way this season unfolded, after watching this underachieving regular season team turn into the biggest overachievers of the entire Stanley Cup playoffs, you want to say it's impossible to be disappointed. The Flyers had no business even being in the Stanley Cup Final, let alone hoisting Lord Stanley's massive Cup. But that's not realistic, not when your team comes out flat for a second straight game, this time at home facing elimination. Not when your top line literally didn't show up for a single shift. Not when the team battles back in a game they had no business hanging around in, ties it not once, but twice, almost wins it in regulation, forces overtime … and then loses on this:
When the realization of what just happened set in, I sat with my head in my hands, feeling like the loneliest person in the world even as I was surrounded by a sea of orange. But at that moment, in section 218, row 8, seat 5, I couldn't even muster up the energy to lift my head toward the ice.
It was as painful a loss as I can remember. I was there at the last football game played in the Vet. In the mass confusion that resulted from Patrick Kane's disappearing puck, the Wachovia Center turned as silent as Veterans Stadium did when Ronde Barber took it to the house. There were no words. There was no booing. It was just stunning, appalling silence. We were left in shock. How did that puck go in? What just happened? No one quite knew. All we knew was that it hurt. The seemingly most harmless shot of the night turned into the most lethal.
That was tough to take, and impossible not to be disappointed by, no matter what has transpired. You don't get to watch your team make it all the way to the final two very often. It took 13 years for the Flyers to get back here. Who knows when they'll return next? You hate to see them end things on a such a heartbreaking note.
The ironic thing about last night is that the Flyers would have been nowhere even near overtime without the tremendous play of Michael Leighton early. He faced 17 shots in the opening period, stopping all but one of them. The Blackhawks dominated in every conceivable way, but Leighton wouldn't let them break it open.
Before the first 20 minutes were through, the Flyers tied it on a rebound by Scott Hartnell. And Leighton was strong again early in the second until he gave up a weak goal to Patrick Sharp, but rebounded nicely for an excellent third. In all, he stopped 37 shots. But two of the four he didn't were really, really bad, and ultimately cost the Flyers and ended their season.
The one reassuring thing, though not reassuring enough, is to look at this series and admit that the Flyers simply lost to a better team. There's really no way to argue that, and my roommate summed it up best. Through the first four games, these two teams looked even. Each game was close, up for grabs, there for either team to take. That's evident by the first three games all being decided by just one goal, and the fourth only decided by two thanks to a late empty-netter. But in the last two games, the Blackhawks looked like a superior team, and they were. They were the aggressors, they hit the hardest, skated the fastest, played the smartest. They were the ones taking it to the Flyers, connecting on crisp passes, forcing turnovers, pinning the Flyers deep, blocking shots, getting out in transition. They looked like the team that finished second in the West. The Flyers looked like a team that had fought so hard just to make it this far that they had nothing left in the tank; they looked like the inferior team.
That was certainly the case last night. The Blackhawks were all over the Flyers from the start. They peppered Michael Leighton early and often, while never even letting the Flyers near Antti Niemi. They outshot Philadelphia 17-7, scored on a power play as Dustin Byfuglien again capitalized with Chris Pronger in the box. It was the second game in a row that Byfuglien scored in front of the net with Pronger in the box. The Flyers were lucky that's all they surrendered, because Chicago was buzzing.
Even when they made mistakes, such as taking two early penalties of their own, it didn't matter. In four minutes of power play time, the Flyers didn't get off a single shot. That's two man advantages without a shot. It was incredibly frustrating. Here were the Blackhawks, completely dominating and firing everything they could at Leighton, giving the Flyers a break, a chance to get into the game, yet the Flyers couldn't muster a single shot on net during their first two power plays. Instead, they were hesitant, indecisive, and determined to try and make a pretty play instead of just firing rubber and pouncing on the rebounds. It made no god damn sense. Niemi has certainly made more big saves when the Blackhawks have needed them compared to Leighton — or Boucher — but the guy has been far from impressive and most assuredly prone to leaving fat, juicy rebounds all series long. Fire the puck and get on those. The Flyers didn't seem too interested in doing that.
Somehow, they did manage to weather the incredible storm the Blackhawks threw at them, and then finally, with their third man advantage, they stopped dicking around. Gone was the timidness, as the Flyers started to just let it fly. Then just like that, with 27 seconds remaining in the period, Danny Briere received the puck from Pronger, wound up and fired a slap shot that Niemi stopped but left out in front, and Scott Hartnell banged the rebound home. Tie game, somehow, some way, even as the scoreboard read shots: Chicago 17, Philadelphia 7.
The Flyers were unbelievably lucky to get out of there with the game tied. As has been the case for most of the series, only one line showed up: Briere-Leino-Hartnell. The Richards-Gagne-Carter line continued to be atrocious, so much so that Peter Laviolette finally decided to break them up after the first period. Matt Carle looked like the shitty defenseman Matt Carle instead of the awesome offensive force he can be at times, turning the puck over time and time again. The fourth line saw little time. And Giroux-Asham-JVR had a couple good shifts, a couple bad ones. Defensively, Kimmo Timonen looked slow all night, Braydon Coburn had some jump but didn't really do anything special, Pronger took a couple bad penalties and made a few turnovers himself, and Lukas Krajicek and Oskars Bartulis rarely saw the ice. It was a rough period all the way through, and it really wouldn't get a whole lot better.
Honestly, the Flyers looked like a one-line team last night. They've looked like one a lot in this series, which is in complete contrast to the team that fought its way through the Eastern Conference. Each night, it seemed as though a different player, a different line was stepping up. But throughout, it's been Briere-Leino-Hartnell and no one else.
No matter what anyone else may think, I know from what I saw that Jeff Carter was the single worst player in the series. It was painful to watch. He looked slow, lazy, uninspired and, quite frankly, terrible. Now, all of this is not his fault, for sure. He missed a large portion of the end of the season with a broken foot, then had his other foot broken in the first round against New Jersey. It's tough to expect the guy to be in game shape. And he wasn't in game shape. Which is why it baffles me so much that Jeff Carter got so much ice time in this series.
Far be it from me to question Peter Laviolette all that much. I think he's a great coach, the guy I want behind the bench for this team for a long, long time. He got just about everything you could have hoped for out of this team, out of these players. But I think after games 1 and 2, it was pretty clear Jeff Carter just wasn't Jeff Carter out there. He wasn't fast, he wasn't snapping off shots left and right, and he wasn't scoring. He looked slow, plodding, out of shape. He was hurting the team. Yet he still played over 20 minutes in the first two contests.
After that, Carter's ice time diminished a little, playing 17:33 in game 3 and just 15:13 in game 4, but then he was back up to nearly 18 minutes in game 5 and nearly 20 minutes last night, though going into overtime surely had something to do with that. What he did to warrant those minutes is beyond me. I know he's Jeff Carter, the all-star center and team's best goal-scorer. But he wasn't that guy. He was hurting the team. He was the worst player. His ice time should have been slashed dramatically, to something like 10 minutes where he could go all out and not worry about getting fatigued for his later shifts. Darroll Powe, while nowhere near the player or scorer of Carter, has been busting his ass all postseason, always providing energy, always hitting, always skating. He should have earned more ice time in Carter's stead, giving the team a little boost. At least, that's my take, but then again, I'm not in that room, I'm not at the practices. Laviolette put it on his all-star center to work his way through it and step up his game. He didn't. Carter finished the Final with just one goal and one assist, and that goal came on an empty-netter in game 4. He was a minus-6. And he looked like the worst player on the ice each and every game. Last night was no exception, as he finished as a minus-1 and failed to convert on a wide open net on a shot late in the third period that would have sent this thing back to Chicago for game 7 tomorrow. Jeff Carter just didn't look like Jeff Carter.
Not that he had any help. Mike Richards and Simon Gagne were equally as bad last night, and for the most part largely invisible in this series as well.
Richie was a minus-1 as well last night, looked like he was fighting the puck all game long, couldn't win any faceoffs at all until the third period (a common theme for every center in this series), and besides one monster check, wasn't physical either. He looked sluggish and shaky. And for the series, he finished at a minus-7 with just one goal and one assist. Gagne was even worse, finishing a minus-3 last night and a minus-8 for the series, scoring just two goals and not getting a single assist. Carter, Richards and Gagne combined to put up a staggering minus-21 rating, scoring just four goals and handing out just 2 assists among them. Not one of them had a single assist after game 2. They were the team's worst line in the series, and that trio was nonexistent for the most part. It's hard for a team to win when its top line, its best players aren't producing, or even looking remotely dangerous. Especially when really only one line was causing any damage.
But man, was that one line wreaking havoc. So much so that it almost was enough to make up for the rest of the team's shortcomings. The Flyers looked considerably better early in the second period, and they wound up taking the lead in a game that the Blackhawks were still dominating, thanks again to the one line this team could count on. Lukas Krajicek got the puck to Ville Leino, who came roaring into the zone before laying a beautiful pass off Briere, who was streaking in from the wing. Briere made no mistake with it, ripping one by Niemi to give the Flyers the lead and bring the house down, as I jumped for joy.
But the elation wouldn't last long. Less than two minutes later, the Blackhawks came down the ice in transition … and the Flyers played some of the laziest, most passive defense of all time. Surprise, surprise, it was with Gagne and Carter on the ice. It was an all-around terrible defensive effort, from the zone entrance to the goal let in by Leighton. Duncan Keith came back in transition, with Gagne in position to line him up. Instead of standing up at the blue line and forcing Keith, Gagne slowly, cautiously backed up, putting no pressure on Keith at all and letting him just waltz into the zone. Gagne was lax, but he did have Keith marked. But compounding Gagne's lack of a challenge, Lukas Krajicek came over to mark Keith as well, a player already being manned by Gagne. That left Matt Carle all alone in front with one Blackhawk going toward the net and Patrick Sharp drifting in from the outside. Carle was forced to take the man going to the net, leaving Sharp wide open thanks to Jeff Carter not checking him on the backcheck to pick up Krajicek. That left Sharp with a clear shooting lane, but one at a bad angle. Sharp let a wrister go, a very savable shot at a bad angle, yet Leighton couldn't stop it.
Tie game, less than two minutes after taking the lead, thanks to horrific defense and soft goaltending. I was pissed. And the Blackhawks weren't done. With that goal, Chicago regained its footing and started going to work again. Then Matt Carle turned the puck over in his own zone for seemingly the millionth time last night. Right when he gave it up, I said, "Nice turnover, Carle, you fuck." Seconds later, the puck found its way to Hjalmarsson, who fired a blast that was deflected in front by Andrew Ladd and past Leighton, 3-2 Hawks. Fuck.
The Blackhawks simply were the better the team through two periods. Better in every facet of the game. They were dominating faceoffs, dominating physically, winning every puck battle, doing everything they could to go back to Chicago as Stanley Cup champions. The Flyers were just hanging on for dear life. Barely. Through two periods of play, the Blackhawks held a 37-13 shot advantage. Truthfully, the game shouldn't have even been close. I really didn't have a good feeling about things, but then again, the Flyers had just gotten completely dominated, couldn't possibly play any worse, yet they were still within a goal. If they could just turn things around a little bit, maybe they'd have enough to send this thing back to Chicago. The problem was, many of the players showed no signs of life.
To start out the third, things weren't going so well. It was all Blackhawks once again. The Flyers got an occasional chance here and there, but it was one and done. They weren't getting to any rebounds, still weren't winning many battles, still couldn't sustain any pressure. Meanwhile, with the Flyers pressing and pinching and doing all they could, Chicago was getting counterattack after counterattack, leading to some really good chances. Luckily, Leighton was up for them, and as the period wore on the Flyers got stronger. They started to finally win some draws. The began skating a little more. And then it happened.
Of course it was the Leino-Briere-Hartnell line to the rescue. They've been carrying this team all series long. And they were trying their damnedest to carry them back to Chicago one more time. It started on the stick of Ville Leino, who rumbled through the neutral zone effortlessly, waltzed in the Chicago zone and threw it out in front. There it went off Marian Hossa and right to Scott Hartnell, who swatted it home, tie game with four minutes left. It was pandemonium. I had never heard the Wachovia Center so loud in my entire life. Not during any previous Sixers or Flyers playoff game. Not during A.I.'s return. Never. The place was going bonkers, and for the first time all night, I thought the Flyers would win. I was miserable, heart beating a mile and minute and furious, for the first 50 minutes of the game, watching the Flyers struggle at home with elimination minutes away. Then there was that ray of hope. This team, no matter how poorly they play, no matter how insurmountable the odds seem, just doesn't quit. Now they finally had momentum on their side.
It was all Flyers from then on, and with less than two minutes remaining, Jeff Carter had the game on his stick. I had been killing him all night long, all series long, saying the guy simply shouldn't be on the ice. After the first period and a half, I didn't want him hopping over the boards at all. He had been terrible, awful, the worst player out there. Then he found himself, the team's most potent goal-scoer the past two years, with Niemi down and out, a whole ocean full of net to shoot at. He patiently went around a diving Brian Campbell. All he had to do now was lift the puck over the sprawling Niemi, and the Flyers would have an improbable 4-3 lead with less than a minute and half remaining. But he couldn't elevate the puck, Niemi made a terrific play and the game went to overtime.
Listen, the Flyers didn't even deserve to get to OT. Chicago was the better team. But that's a goal you have to score. That's a goal the Flyers needed. This was Jeff Carter's chance to make up for all the terrible games he's had in this series, to make up for his awful performance last night. The game was on his stick. He should have buried it. A guy who scores as many goals as he does, hurt feet or not, should not miss that chance. Ever. 100 times out of 100, he needs to score that goal. But he didn't, just adding to his horrific series. It was just like last season against the Penguins, when he missed a wide open net that would have sealed a victory early in the series and generally played like shit in that series. His playoff history is not too great.
Still, the Flyers had all the momentum in the world finally. For 50 minutes, the Blackhawks were the far superior team, but the Flyers hung around. And for the last 10 minutes of regulation, they finally showed the desperation and desire you'd expect. They stepped it up and took over. When Carter failed to convert, it was deflating, but the Flyers were rolling all the sudden. And they carried that into overtime as well, getting some great chances early and spending most of the time in Chicago's end.
Then the goal happened, and the season ended. In a horrible, depressing way. On a soft, weak goal. It was numbing. And stunning. And it hurt.
This team had gone through so much. It couldn't really end like this, could it? Well, yes, it did. This is Philadelphia after all. What's a season without an ending thanks to some shoddy goaltending?
I don't want to harp too much on Michael Leighton. The guy saved the Flyers' season not once, but twice. He was outstanding in the regular season and even better against Boston and Montreal. He put up some ridiculous numbers, made some tremendous saves. But I have a feeling his run was more of a fluke than anything else. After all, the guy is a 29-year-old journeyman goalie, a guy who was waived time and time again and came to Philadelphia during a desperate time with a goals against average north of 4. Yes, the Flyers would never have gotten to the Stanley Cup Finals without him. But they also couldn't rely on him once they got there.
He looked overwhelmed and shaky in game 1, ultimately getting pulled in a tough loss. He looked even more overwhelmed and even more shaky in game 5, getting pulled again after a first period in which he gave up three goals on three shots that were very, very savable. And last night, even with some great saves and strong early play, he let in two softies, one the Cup-winner on perhaps the shot that could have arguably been the easiest one to stop all night. As much as I respect the guy and am thankful for the guy, I don't think he's the true answer in net. Maybe he's earned a shot. I couldn't really argue that he didn't. But I don't think that should be set in stone.
The Flyers clearly need to make a few changes, this run notwithstanding. They must, absolutely must get a guy who can dominate in the faceoff circle. They have to. It's been three years or more since this team has had someone like that. And Richards, Carter, Briere, Giroux, they should all bust their ass this offseason to get better in that area. It's essential. The team needs to find a goaltender, whether it is within or from the outside. If that means a trade, so be it. They have offensive depth to spare, no matter how painful it may be to see some guys go. The only untouchables up front I can even envision are Richards, Giroux and now Leino. Everyone else is fair game, in my opinion. That doesn't mean I necessarily want to see anyone go, but if you can get get a truly elite goaltender (highly unlikely) and the price is a Jeff Carter and a JVR, I think you'd have to consider it. Doesn't mean necessarily do it, after all, 40-goal scorers don't grow on trees, and 2nd-overall picks don't come around that often for your squad either.
I think Scott Hartnell endeared himself greatly with his tremendous play down the stretch. Same thing with Danny Briere, who was an assassin with the puck this postseason. Ville Leino became the most unlikely hero out there. And guys like Dan Carcillo, Ian Laperriere, Blair Betts, Darroll Powe and Arron Asham all did their jobs well. I'm sure some will be back and some won't, but the Flyers always seem to do a good job getting those kind of players to perform well, and I expect Laviolette will have no trouble motivating these guys.
The team could obviously use a little more depth on the blue line as well. Ryan Parent and Oskars Bartulis looked overmatched quite a bit in the postseason. Lukas Krajicek is a body, but nothing spectacular. And Kimmo and Pronger aren't getting any younger. They could use a little less ice time. Braydon Coburn rebounded from a horrific season to play very solid in the playoffs, and Matt Carle had some brilliant moments to go along with some awful ones. Those two aren't likely to go anywhere, two young, fast, offensively talented blue liners, but they both have to work on their consistency and defensive responsibilities, specifically cutting down on turnovers. We'll see what they can do, what Paul Holmgren has in store, what Peter Laviolette's plans are going forward.
I know this much, it was a fun ride along the way, a true roller-coaster. It began way back when, with the Flyers making the blockbuster trade of all blockbuster trades, sending a bunch of draft picks, Joffrey Lupul and Luca Sbisa to Anaheim for Chris Pronger. Then it came with the controversial and ultimately pointless signing of Ray Emery (remember him?) in net. Then there was the slow, terrible start, falling all the way to 14th. John Stevens finally getting fired. Emery going down. Laviolette taking over. Boucher going down. Leighton reviving the team and the Flyers tearing up the league before the Olympic break. Then another slide, Leighton going down, Carter going down, the team faltering. Finally, it looked as though all was for naught, that the team was going to be better off (in some people's eyes) not making the playoffs at all. Then there was the shootout victory to get in on the last day, the dominance of the Devils in the first round thanks in large part to Brian Boucher recapturing his rookie form, only to lose Gagne and Carter and Laperriere to injury. Then they fell behind 0-3 to the Bruins, done and ready to go home, with Boosh getting injured in game 3. Then all they did was make history. Leighton saved the day again, Simon extended the series in his first game back, and the Flyers somehow won four straight, advanced. Then they dominated the Canadiens, and made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final, played toe to toe with the Blackhawks out in Chicago but found themselves in an 0-2 hole. Then they tied it, and made a series out of a matchup many people thought could be lopsided.
Ultimately, they came up short, ending that roller coaster with a jerking halt. It was just a little bit too short, a little off from the greatest ride of our lives, but it was fun while it lasted nonetheless. Let's hope the Flyers can build an even bigger and better coaster next year, this one just a little bit longer and a lot more fulfilling. The Cup was in the building. Next year, we don't want it to leave with the opposition.
The Flyers and Blackhawks don't see each other very often. In fact, being in separate conferences, the two Stanley Cup Finalists only clash once every regular season. If you recall, this year's game ended in fantastic fashion:
The Flyers won that contest on March 13, 3-2, in a dramatic way. Simon Gagne, Scott Hartnell and of course Chris Pronger scored for the Flyers, while Kris Versteeg and Marian Hossa tallied for the Blackhawks. But the man who stole the show was none other than Michael Leighton, who stopped 39 of 41 shots against the high-octane Hawks.
While one nail-biting game is hardly anything to go off of when it comes to this championship series that begins on Saturday, these teams are more familiar with one another than you might think. And it starts with the man who stood out more than any other the last time these two teams hit the ice against one another.
Michael Leighton
Rest assured, you will hear plenty about the MIchael Leighton-Chicago connection throughout this series. The Blackhawks selected Leighton in the 6th round of 1999 NHL draft, 165th overall. In the 2002-03 season, the 21-year-old got his first shot in the NHL for Chicago, playing in 8 games, starting 6 while posting a 2-3-2 record with a 2.82 goals against average, .913 save percentage and one shutout. Not bad for a fill-in rookie.
The next season, Leighton had the opportunity to compete for the starting job, a job he wound up not holding on to. He started 33 games that season, played in 34, but just couldn't buy a win. His record was a pretty awful 6-18-8, and his numbers slipped to a 2.99 goals against average and .900 save percentage, though he did manage two shutouts. Still, Leighton was a young goaltender who showed some promise … promise the Blackhawks didn't think was worth their time. Leighton never played another game for Chicago again, toiled in the minors before the Flyers picked up him in 2006-07, where he played in four games and was nothing short of awful — 2-2 with a 3.70 gaa and .882 save percentage — before the Flyers sent him packing and Nashville scooped him up … for all of one game.
Then it was off to Carolina, where Leighton put up pedestrian (at best) numbers as a backup to Cam Ward, but also where he developed a relationship with Peter Laviolette. The rest, as they say, is history.
And the intriguing stories and familiarity in this series don't stop there.
Patrick Sharp
Better known as the one who got away. Drafted in the third round (95th overall) of the 2001 NHL draft by the Flyers, Sharp was a superstar for the AHL Philadelphia Phantoms, chomping at the bit to get a shot with the big club. In the 2002-03 season, he finally got a taste, playing three games. But 2003-04 was his big break, playing in 41 games for the Flyers.
Stuck on a talented roster, Sharp struggled to find ice time. He was basically relegated to the fourth line, limiting his chances. But it was pretty clear that Sharp had something special in his game. Problem was, he wasn't afforded the opportunity to display it. After just 5 goals and 2 assists in 41 games, and a minus-3 rating, both the Flyers and the fans were ready to see Sharp break out in 2005-06. But with the arrivals of guys like Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, R.J. Umberger, et al, it was the same old problem for Sharp. There just wasn't enough ice time to go around, so the Flyers traded Sharp to the Blackhawks during the season along with Eric Meloche in exchange for major flop Matt Ellison and a 2006 third-round pick.
All Sharp has done since then is become a four-time 20-goal scorer and big-time leader for this young, talented Chicago team. He's an assistant captain on the squad, and in his four full seasons in Chcago has put up 35 (20 goals), 62 (36 goals), 44 (26 goals, in just 61 games due to injury) and 66 (25 goals) points. He finished a plus-24 this year and a plus 23 in 2007-08. He's become one of the better players in the NHL, and big, big reason Chicago has had a hockey renaissance. Trading Sharp goes down as one of the worst trades in Flyers history. Like I said, the one who got away.
Ben Eager
Believe it or not, Ben Eager was drafted 23rd overall in the 2002 NHL draft by the Phoenix Coyotes. I say believe or not because Eager has never shown a particularly keen scoring touch in the NHL, the type of thing you expect from a forward picked in the first round. Eager has always been more of a Todd Fedoruk, Dan Carcillo type. He certainly was when he was in Philadelphia, which is where he got his first taste of NHL action.
Eager was somewhat of a fan favorite here in Philadelphia, a tough guy who wasn't afraid to go with anyone. He regularly ran people over and racked up the penalty minutes. In 2005-06, he played in 25 games, scoring 3 goals and 5 assists while garnering 18 penalty minutes, showing some promise as a big hitter who could also score a little bit. But in 2006-07, he really began to mold into the player he is today. In 63 games, he scored 6 goals and added 5 assists … while heading to the sin bin for 233 minutes. He also was a minus-13. Eager liked to hit and liked to fight, so that's what he did.
In 2007-08, however, Eager just couldn't stay in the lineup. He played just 23 games, not registering a single point, finishing a minus-8 with 62 penalty minutes before the Flyers shipped him off. No one ever questioned his hustle or desire, and fans loved to see him hit and fight, but Eager was more than expendable. He wasn't fitting in with the direction of the Flyers, so they traded him to Chicago.
Since, Eager has continued to be aggressive physically, but he's channeled his energy much better, becoming a key contributor to this team. At 6'2, 230, he's one of the bangers on this team, one of the guys who helps create a little space for the superstars. The past two seasons he's scored a combined 32 points and been a plus-10. And he's the leader of the fourth line that helps wear down the opposition with a punishing forecheck. He'd probably fit in really well under Peter Laviolette's style. Now he'll be showing the Flyers what he's capable of as a mature 26-year-old for the Blackhawks.
Mike Richards/Jonathan Toews
No, Mike Richards never was a Blackhawk and Jonathan Toews never a Flyer. In fact, both players were drafted by their current teams, and both became captains at a very young age — Richards was the third-youngest captain in Flyers' history, and Toews was the youngest Blackhawks captain ever and third-youngest in league history. Oh yeah, and they played together on a line for gold-medal-winning Team Canada in the Olympics.
That's right, just a few short months ago, Toews and Richards weren't just teammates, they were linemates. And often, this duo was part of Canada's best line, definitely the team's best defensive line. Now they're facing each other as the respective faces of their franchises in the Stanley Cup Finals. And you can bet your ass they'll be matched up against one another quite often on the ice, with the trio of Toews, Patrick Kane and Dustin Byfuglien going against Richards, Simon Gagne and Jeff Carter. Talk about a battle between heavyweights. This should be a war.
Toews and Richards are very similar players. The past three seasons, Richie has posted 75, 80 and 62 points; Toews has put up 54, 69 and 68. They are both very sound defensive players and the undisputed leaders of their teams. The key difference in my book, and the reason I believe Richards is the superior player, even if only slightly, is in the physicality department. Richards hits like Ben Eager. He defends like a top-notch defenseman. And he's one of the best penalty-killers in all of hockey. He'll have to be all of that against Toews and company. This is a matchup I can't wait to see.
Chris Pronger/Duncan Keith/Brent Seabrook
More teammates of Mike Richards and Jonathan Toews for team Canada. Pronger was part of the blue line along with Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. Seabrook didn't see much time for Canada, but he was on the roster. Pronger and Keith, on the other hand, were defensive stalwarts for Canada. Pronger began the tournament playing alongside Drew Doughty a little bit, with young and old sharing the ice, while Keith played a bit with Scott Niedermayer. But that didn't last long. Keith joined Doughty and that duo became the most dynamic on the blue line for Canada, while Pronger teamed with Niedermayer to form the old man pairing that simply shut down the world's best.
Pronger and Keith are two very different defensemen. Both are excellent, no question about it, but their similarities end there. Keith is a 26-year-old blue-liner with swift skating ability and tremendous skill. At 6'1, 196 pounds, he's more of a finesse type defender who also isn't afraid to go into the corners. Think a younger, faster Kimmo Timonen. The guy is a plus-73 for his career, and this season he played in all 82 games, scoring 14 goals and registering 55 assists for 69 points. He's good.
Pronger, meanwhile, is a 35-year-old veteran who is by any account slow-footed, however can cover a lot ground with his long strides and even longer reach. While not a freight-train who looks to hit anything and everything, Pronger is very much a player who relies on his smarts and his physicality. He will hit you and hit you hard. He'll also score, evident by his 10 goals and 45 assists, good for 55 points and plus-22 rating this season. For his career, he's a plus-175, and he's seen it all, been a captain, and won a Cup.
Now, he's playing better than any defenseman in the NHL. Even better than the supremely talented Keith. Pronger has been incredible all year, and taken his game to even greater heights this postseason. Even at 35, he's logging 30 minutes a game, rarely wasting energy. He shuts every opposition's best players down. Every one of them. His outlet passes, tremendous point blasts and even screening acumen have been huge assets to the Flyers on offense. His shot-blocking, positioning, size and strength, not to mention his ability to clear the porch in front of the net, have been key reasons why this defense is so good. Quite simply, he's been awesome. And he'll need to be yet again, for one more series.
It will be a great matchup, Kimmo Timonen and Chris Pronger leading Philadelphia's defense corps against the pairing of Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith. Obviously, with Timonen and Pronger not playing together most of the game, Braydon Coburn and Matt Carle will be key as well. Should be fun to see the veteran Pronger compared to the younger Keith.
Brian Campbell/Danny Briere
This duo is as familiar with one another as they come. Danny Briere and Brian Campbell were teammates together in Buffalo for four seasons, from 2002-03 to 2006-07. That duo combined to post 352 points in those four seasons (230 for Briere and 122 for Campbell). They both became offensive forces together for the Sabres, with Briere the team's most lethal offensive forward and Campbell the team's most potent offensive defenseman.
Campbell and Briere were two of the driving forces behind Buffalo's emergence this decade into an Eastern Conference power. They both became all-stars, made names for themselves, and signed lucrative deals to try and help teams take the next step. For Briere, that was his big contract he signed in Philadelphia, where said contract has been a topic of huge discussion — but Briere has been fantastic when he plays, especially in the playoffs. Without him this year, the Flyers wouldn't be close to the Cup Finals, just as they wouldn't have made it to the Eastern Conference Finals a couple years ago without him. Campbell signed with the Blackhawks after being a rental for San Jose, and in his two seasons in Chicago, he's been good, but not to the point of justifying his contract in many people's eyes, just like Briere. However, Campbell is an important part of Chicago's blue line, if for nothing more than his offense (because he sucks defensively), and he's helped the Blackhawks get here as well, providing a calming, veteran influence on this young team.
Now the two former teammates will duel for the ultimate prize, and you can bet they'll be one-on-one with one another quite a bit. Should be fun.
Patrick Kane/James van Riemsdyk
Two players that will forever be linked. Coming off the worst finish in franchise history, the Flyers were looking to get the first overall pick and select the consensus No. 1, Patrick Kane. However, the Blackhawks, who finished with 15 more points than the Flyers but finished near the bottom in the Western Conference, won the lottery coin flip. As a result, the Blackhawks selected Kane No. 1 overall, while the Flyers settled for the second pick, which they used to take James van Riemsdyk.
There's no question who has come out ahead thus far. Kane took his spot in Chicago's lineup from day one, playing in 82 games in 2007-08, putting up 21 goals and 51 assists. He hasn't scored less than 70 points since, following that up with 70 points (25 g, 45 a) last year and 88 points (30 g, 58 a) this year. He is one of the game's stars, playing alongside Toews.
Van Riemsdyk has been slower to develop. Instead of jumping right into the NHL, or even the AHL, like Kane, JVR went to college. Finally, he joined the Flyers late last year, and this season as a rookie posted 15 goals and 20 assists in 78 games for 35 points. Those numbers are hardly in Kane's territory, though van Riemsdyk has shown many flashes of brilliance this year. He's big, he's strong and he's incredibly fast, especially with the puck on his stick rumbling through the neutral zone. He has a long way to go to catch up to Kane, but he has a really bright future playing alongside Claude Giroux. I expect big things from him, but there's no doubt that he will forever be linked to Kane. It's a tough spot for JVR. As much potential as he has, there isn't a Flyers fan alive who wouldn't rather have Kane. But those are the breaks.
At least JVR will forever live in Flyers lore, scoring the one goal Peter Laviolette begged for in the awful first period in Philadelphia's dramatic, improbable come-from-behind game 7 win in Boston to complete the epic 3-game-to-none, 3-goals-to-none comeback.
Brian Boucher
In case you forgot, and I wouldn't blame you if you did, the goaltender who came to the rescue after Michael Leighton Part 1 and before Michael Leighton Part 2, the guy who began as a rookie for the Flyers by leading the team to the Eastern Conference Finals and within one win of the Stanley Cup Finals some 10 years ago, spent a season a Blackhawk.
In 2006-07, Boucher was Chicago's backup netminder, playing in 15 games and starting 13. He was beyond terrible, posting a 1-10 record with a 3.27 goals against average and .884 save percentage. But for the Flyers, well, they wouldn't be anywhere near where they are without him. After struggling initially, he played tremendous down the stretch for Philadelphia, coming up with the biggest penalty-shot save in franchise history and doing the chicken dance to boot:
If Brian Boucher doesn't outduel Henrik Lundqvist in that shootout, the Flyers never even make the playoffs, let alone the Stanley Cup Finals. Then he dominated against the Devils, and played admirably against Boston before getting injured. Now, Boucher is hoping to return as the backup to Leighton for this series. Two former Blackhawks goalies out to prove they're better than Chicago thought.
Kim Johnsson
Johnsson has been scratched throughout the playoffs for Chicago, but he is on the roster. At 34, he's not the player he once was. But when Johnsson was with the Flyers — coming over from New York in the Eric Lindros trade — he became the best defenseman on the team. A smooth-skating blue-liner who moved the puck with the best of them, I always liked Johnsson. I always felt he was underappreciated, much the way Kimmo is nowadays. Though Johnsson was never as good as Timonen. But he was very, very good, putting up 147 points and finishing as a plus-player every season in his four years as a Flyer. I doubt we'll see him in the Stanley Cup Finals, but he is on the team.
So there you have it. Two teams that face each other all of one time each season are more familiar with each other than you might expect. Should make for an interesting series, and if their one matchup this season is any indication, quite an exciting one too. Let's hope the outcome is the same as it was back in March.
The Flyers have gone through a lot the past few years -- from an upstart, young team that made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals to underachieving squad bounced in the first round to an injured, uninspired club that cost its coach his job to a struggling team failing to find its footing to hot, then not, to the team that took a shootout victory on the last day of the season just to get into the postseason, a team that upset the No. 2 seed but lost key players, a team that came back from down 0-3 in the series and 0-3 in game seven, to now, Eastern Conference Champs. Through it all, Mike Richards has been the pulse of the team -- from future star and captain in waiting to given too much responsibility too soon to unfit to be captain to the leader behind this surge.
Well tonight, Mike Richards was every bit what you want your captain to be. He led by example. He busted his ass every shift, every second. He could smell the Stanley Cup Finals within his reach, and he was ready to go through hell to make sure he got there. Mike Richards was the best player on the ice, no two ways about it. Way better than anyone else that laced them up. Perhaps better than anyone has been in one game all postseason long. Offense, defense, hustle, physicality, Richards stood out the most in all those areas. He is the captain, the rightful captain, and he was determined to lead his team to the promised land.
Montreal came out expectedly strong, laying it all out on the line, playing like there was no tomorrow (which for them, there wouldn't be, not this year). In the game's first minute, Chris Pronger attempted one of his patented long stretch passes, a thing he has mastered in his career. Only on this occasion, Montreal was ready for it. Roman Hamrlik read it, cut it off and got the puck to Brion Gionta. Gionta pushed it ahead to his former New Jersey Devil teammate Scott Gomez and headed to the net. The normally very defensively responsible Blair Betts read the play wrong and went toward Gomez, who was already being marked by Matt Carle, instead of bearing down on Gionta, who found himself wide open. Gomez wasted no time, slipped a pass through Gionta and the Montreal winger beat Michael Leighton five-hole just 59 seconds in.
Definitely the not the start the Flyers wanted. Not in a closeout game at home. Now the desperate Canadiens had a pulse, had life, had a belief. That's the last thing the Flyers wanted. To compound things, Kimmo Timonen let his emotions boil over just a little over a minute later, getting called for roughing on Gomez, who had been taking little cheap shots at Kimmo all series. That left the Flyers shorthanded and already down 1-0. That's when Mike Richards said enough is enough, tiem to take this game over and demoralize his native country by putting forth one of the single greatest shifts my eyes have ever seen.
A bonecrushing hit to start an odd-man rush, a great pass to set up Braydon Coburn for an excellent chance, great work defensively, and just all-out hustle off an outlet by Claude Giroux, beating both Roman Hamrlik and Jaroslav Halak, who inexplicably came rushing out of his net despite having a defenseman coming back, to the puck, poking it by with a dive, getting up and calming depositing it in for the shorthanded goal, tie game. That's when I knew they had them. This series wasn't going back to Montreal. Mike Richards had that extra something in his game, the type of step and determination that makes you remember just how incredible he is.
Sometimes people like to question whether or not Mike Richards is a true superstar. All-star and tremendous player, no doubt. But he's not flashy, not the fastest guy i the world, not a 50-goal scorer, so sometimes he just doesn't come across as remarkable, as a superstar player. Everyone seems to take for granted all the little things he does -- killing penalties, winning puck battles, playing sound defensive hockey, not mention his scoring acumen. Then Richards goes out and has a game like this, and makes anyone who questions his superstar status look foolish. There is no debate, none whatsoever. Mike Richards absolutely is a superstar, absolutely is captain material, absolutely is a leader and a winner. He is one of the best two-way players in hockey, and his desire, his will is second to none. He drove that point home with an exclamation point tonight.
The Flyers started to get their game going again, and then after a sloppy start to the second, Arron Asham found himself all alone with Halak for the second time on the night. Asham, who looked faster than he ever has as a Flyer, was all over the ice from the start. He was jumping on loose pucks, breaking away from defenders, stickhandling like Jaromir Jagr. Clearly playing with Claude Giroux is rubbing off on him. After already beating Halak on a breakaway with a nasty move only to fire the puck over the crossbar, this time Asham didn't miss. Matt Carle, who had an up-and-down game (some really bad turnovers, but also this play), kept the puck in and fired it right to Asham, who made a filthy move to beat Halak and make it look effortless while doing it.
A little less than a minute and a half later, it was Richards back at it. Jeff Carter, who looked a little less impressive than he did in game 4 but still good, made a great handoff pass to Timonen, who jumped in from the point. Kimmo quickly fed it behind the net to Richards, who one-touched it to the front to Carter, who then one-timed it off the elbow to put the Flyers ahead 3-1, tic-tac-toe.
Another tremendous play by Richards in a game full of tremendous Mike Richards plays. That was all she wrote for Montreal. The Canadiens weren't coming back from two goals against this team in Philadelphia. Not with Mike Richards playing the game of his life. Not with the unexpected hero Michael Leighton in net. Not with Kimmo Timonen and Chris Pronger locking things down defensively. Not with Blair Betts, Darroll Powe and Ian Laperriere checking their hearts out. Not tonight. The Flyers were going to the Stanley Cup Finals, no question about it.
Though it wasn't easy. Montreal wouldn't just lay down and quit the way the Devils did in round one. If they were going to go down, they were going to make it interesting. And that little gnat Scott Gomez jumped on a puck that caromed off the boards past Coburn and right on Gomez's stick. He buried it with a sniped shot past Leighton, one-goal game. Even then it didn't matter. Not when Montreal went on the power play, not when they put the pressure on.
Darroll Powe and Blair Betts were relentless on the PK, as were the defensemen -- Chris Pronger, Kimmo Timonen, Braydon Coburn, Matt Carle and even Ryan Parent when Pronger and Kimmo were in the box. Powe in particular had a great game, winning every single battle along the boards and getting the puck out time and time again with the one-goal lead. Richards and Giroux also manned the top of the PK, and were tremendous. Besides hooking up on the first Flyers goal shorthanded, they were smart and effective killing penalties, highlighted late by Giroux's incredible shift, ragging the puck with two and three guys on him to kill off the final 20-plus seconds of a late penalty, something Giroux has made an artform of. They killed off a four-minute high sticking penalty by Chris Pronger, one of their PK mainstays on the blue line, thanks to a helping hand by Ryan Parent. They killed off a penalty by their other defensive stalwart, Kimmo Timonen. They killed them all.
And just when Montreal was looking to make one last push, pulling Halak, the captain rose up and wouldn't let them, relentless pursuing the puck, stripping Tomas Plekanec, throwing it toward net as he tumbled to the ice, where Carter pounced on it and buried it in the empty net to ice the game.
It was yet another insanely awesome effort by Richards. You could tell he wanted this, that this team wanted this. And boy did he and the Flyers earn it. Every single one of them. From Ray Emery's early solid play, to Michael Leighton's regular season heroics to Brian Boucher morphing into Bernie Parent, only to go down and have Leighton return ... and morphing into Bernie Parent. Danny Briere and his sharp-shooting. Ville Leino for never getting down on himself when he was a regular on the scratch list to becoming a playoff standout. Scott Hartnell for putting a terrible season behind him and finding his game again in the postseason. Dan Carcillo and his overtime goal, tenacity and agitation. Simon Gagne and his returned scoring touch. Jeff Carter for coming back and looking like he's never missed a beat. Ian Laperriere for sacrificing life and limb, almost losing an eye, and then coming back with a couple huge, key shot blocks tonight. Blair Betts and Darroll Powe for their yeoman's work. Andrea Nodl for filling in admirably. JVR scoring the biggest little goal of his life. Arron Asham pulling off moves no one knew he had. Claude Giroux continuing to amaze and awe and turn into something special. Kimmo Timonen and ihs understated warrior play. Matt Carle elevating his game. Braydon Coburn finding consistency. Ryan Parent and Lukas Krajicek not getting overwhelmed. Chris Pronger playing more minutes than anyone and playing each and every one of them better than any other defenseman in this postseason. And Mike Richards, doing everything you can ask a hockey player to do, leading his team in points, killing penalties, throwing huge hits, winning faceoffs, winning battles, defense, offense, special teams, you name it Richards did it. He has been the catalyst. He has been the man throwing himself around like there's no tomorrow. He is the epitome of what a captain should be. Let he never be questioned again.
And Peter Laviolette, boy, what can I say about Peter Laviolette. Master technician, master motivator, master coach. He is the Flyers right now. He's the perfect coach for this franchise, for this team. He's pushing all the right buttons. Now he's pushed this bunch of former underachievers to the precipice of greatness. The Flyers are Eastern Conference Champs. They weren't afraid to touch the Prince of Wales trophy, much the way the Penguins weren't last year. Not after this season, not after all this team has been through and overcome. Mike Richards went right up to that thing and grabbed it by the horns, just the Flyers have grabbed this opportunity and have run with it. Now they need just four more wins. Just four more.
Things really couldn't have started out any better this weekend. Friday night saw the continued re-emergence of the World Fucking Champion's fallen ace.
Going against a vaunted (if underachieving) Boston Red Sox lineup to kick of interleague play, Cole was back to his old, awesome self. He threw seven masterful innings of three-hit, one-run ball, striking out 8 and walking just one. His only flaw was a two-out solo home run surrendered to Victor Martinez in the first inning. From there on out, Cole was in complete control, thanks in no small part to his devastating changeup.
Over the past year-plus, when Cole went through more struggles than he ever has in his life on the mound, Hamels tended to shy away more and more from his out pitch, his changeup. The same pitch that he used to make major league hitters look foolish time and time again, most especially in the 2008 postseason, started to be put on the back-burner. All the attention seemed to go on getting his velocity up on his fastball or developing better command of his hit-or-miss curveball. And let's not even get started on the cutter. All of this tinkering came at the expense of his changeup, which truly is one of the best pitches in all of baseball. On an 0-2 or 1-2 count, he stopped trying to put guys away with his out pitch as much. And he got burned. But on Friday, Hamels broke out the changeup all game long, and the results speak for themselves. He outdueled the supremely disappointing John Lackey, who gave up four runs on six hits and five walks in just five innings of work and now has an ERA of 5.07. Apparently it's a lot tougher to pitch in the AL East than the AL West. No Yankees or Rays out there.
Anyway, Cole was awesome, Howard and Werth homered and the Phils began the series with a victory. Though David Herndon and J.C. Romero did decide to turn a 5-1 lead into an adventure in the ninth, but no harm, no foul. J.C. got the unnecessarily eventful save for the 5-1 win. But not all was well. Jimmy Rollins, fresh off the DL earlier in the week, pulled up lame, re-injuring his calf, and was put back on the disabled list. Not good. Just when we thought the Phils were finally getting back to 100 percent, down goes Rollins again. That's a tough blow, even with the way Juan Castro has played this year. Jimmy is the catalyst for this team, and his defense at short is second to none. With Rollins getting older, you have to worry about something like this. The potential for the injury to linger looks likely, considering it's the second time he's been sidelined with it. That's not good for a guy who relies a lot on his speed to create things on the base paths. Here's hoping Jimmy recovers quickly … and completely, so we can put this scare to rest for the home stretch.
Even with Jimmy's injury, it was a nice way to jump-start the weekend. A good win against an American League team. I was feeling great, and the night was still young. Silver fox and a friend headed down to my house with a bottle of booze in tow, we drank quite heavily and then headed out … where we drank some more. All was going well. That is until we hopped in a cab.
I've had many cab experiences here in Philadelphia, and the majority of them are good. Funny stories, interesting drivers. Friday night was not one of them. We told our cabby our destination, and he had no idea where it was. How that is possible when your entire job revolves around knowing where things are and how to get there is beyond me, but whatever. I told him the whereabouts. Then he proceeded to drive … and drive … and drive. I repeatedly kept telling him to turn left and head toward where we were going. He repeatedly ignored my requests, taking more than a half hour to make a 10-minute drive. I was pissed, literally fighting with the guy for not listening to me. He was meter-running like an asshole. We gave his a shit tip, which should have been way shittier, and he started yelling an honking. That's when I got in a bit of a shouting match with him myself, after repeatedly in the cab trying to get him to go where we wanted to go, then telling him it was taking forever and complaining that he was the worst cab driver ever. I hope that guy drives off the Walt Whitman. What a douche.
Luckily, we survived the remainder of the night without further incident, ate cheesesteaks and headed home for some rest. As nice as the Phils' win on Friday night was, it really wasn't even close to being a blip on my radar of importance this past weekend. It was all about Saturday, all about the Flyers and Canadiens. Game 4 had wide-sweeping implications. After beating the Canadiens 9-0 in the first two contests, Montreal dominated on Thursday night, owning the Flyers in every conceivable way en route to a 5-1 ass-kicking that brought the series to 2-1.
With that loss, I tried to find the silver lining, chalked it up to one bad game and hoped the Flyers would bounce back. I thought what happened in game 4 could be determined in first 20 minutes. The Flyers hadn't played a good, complete first period in a long, long time. If they did Saturday, I had a feeling that would go a long way toward taking a 3-1 series lead.
When I finally gathered myself to get set for the game, I was surprised to here that not only was Ian Laperriere playing, but so, too, was Jeff Carter. And even more surprising, Dan Carcillo was the one who got scratched along with Adreas Nodl.
I was a bit stunned to say the least. First, that Carter actually was going to play. And I have to say, when he took the ice, he looked all sorts of good Saturday. That was a great sign. He created a ton of chances, looked confident with his foot and basically looked like Jeff Carter. Great sign. But I was surprised Carcillo got scratched. Though not stunned. After his huge goal against Jersey, Carcillo has cooled down offensively. He has done a great job drawing penalties and playing disciplined, but with Arron Asham (the guy I would have considered scratching along with Carcillo) playing so well alongside Claude Giroux and James van Riemsdyk, it would be hard to scratch Asham. Some suggested Daroll Powe, but I knew he wouldn't really be considered, for two reasons: 1. He's tailor-made to play in Peter Laviolette's system, a straight up and down forward who hits anything that moves and defines his game by his forechecking; and 2. His great penalty-killing throughout the playoffs, especially in Laperriere's absence. Even with Ian back, it would be too much to ask Laperriere to log as much PK time as he had prior to his injury, and Powe and Blair Betts have developed a great chemistry in the month since Ian last took the ice. That left Carcillo. Tough thing to have to do, scratch a fan favorite who has worked his tail off and become a better and smarter player all year long. Laviolette said as much. But at this time of year, you gotta do what you gotta do. Laviolette did.
Shortly before the puck was to be dropped, in walked uncle jellyfish into our humble abode, case of beer in hand. We were all set to go as we watched the bilingual Canadian national anthem being sung. The screen panned to Claude Giroux listening intently, moving his skates every so slightly. When the camera got on him, I turned to uncle jellyfish and Adam EatShit and said, "That guy is going to score a goal today. I can just feel it." He had that look about him, the look of a player ready to go out and take over. And boy did he ever.
The Flyers came out and played their best overall first period of the series. Yes, they had led after one in the first two games, but the energy wasn't the same. On Saturday, the Flyers kept the Canadiens at bay, surrendering no real threats, and took the Montreal crowd out of it. They ground out a choppy, uneventful period, just what you want to do on the road. The forecheck was established, despite being outshot 7-5 through one, the Flyers started to take control in the offensive zone in the latter half of the opening stanza.
And then the second period happened. Montreal, lulled into a haze with an uneventful first period and gaining no advantage with the home crowd energy, was spent. The Flyers, who were so awful in game 3, regained their form and looked energized. And from then on, they just completely took over. Every shift took place in Montreal's zone. No Canadien could find time or space with the puck. The Flyers clogged the neutral zone, took away space, didn't let Montreal do anything. And conversely, the Flyers used their size and strength and speed to wreak havoc on Montreal. The Flyers won every puck battle, cycled, forechecked, hit, hell, they even won damn near every faceoff. It was all Flyers right out of the gate.
But Jaroslav Halak, who regained his confidence in game 3, was playing well. Really well. So well you had a bad feeling about another 50-something save performance to steal the show. That is until Claude went and scored one of the most awesome goals ever.
Boy did he make me look smart. Claude just left Josh Gorges flat-footed, blowing right by him on the outside, cut in alone on Halak and top shelved him with a wicked, ridiculous shot. Broken strap or not, Gorges was going to be made a fool of. Claude is the fucking man.
With Giroux breaking through, it was all Flyers. From that moment on, Montreal didn't even sniff a chance at winning. Not one. The Flyers were better at everything. And I mean everything. Faceoffs. Hitting. Passing. Transition. Offensive zone time. Cycling. Puck battles. You name the aspect of the game, and the Flyers were winning it, no dominating it. They completely took over, answered the bell, and came back with a huge statement following the debacle in game 3. The Flyers outshot the Canadiens 13-1, thirteen to one, in the second period. And Chris Pronger made sure to put his stamp on it and make it clear that game 3 was an aberration, firing the most perfect cross-ice, bad-angle, blue line to blue line pass right on the tape to Ville Leino, who knew exactly what to do with it.
That was all she wrote. Sure, it was only a 2-goal game, but that didn't matter. The Flyers were in complete control. They were the ones doing the ass-kicking this time. And with a 2-0 lead, they played a damn near picture-perfect defensive third. Short shifts, smart plays, get the puck out at all costs. Nothing dumb. The Flyers just clogged the neutral zone time and time again, stood up at the blue line and simply wouldn't let the Canadiens get anything going. Nothing. At all. It was as good of a defensive period as I've seen them play all season long. It wasn't flashy, wasn't exciting, it was just perfect, sound hockey. The only mistake came when Matt Carle shoveling the puck over the boards in the defensive zone early on, a truly atrocious play considering he had much more time and space to make a simpler, smarter play, but it was Carle's only real miscue of the game. He and Pronger rebounded nicely.
Michael Leighton went largely untested thanks to his team's tremendous defense, facing just 17 shots. But he did stop all 17 of them, recording his third shutout in four games of this series. That's just ridiculous, no matter how he got them. And just in case any Montreal fan was suckered into thinking a miracle comeback could happen down just two, Claude put that to rest with another tremendous play, showing the desire and hunger to take care of business by simply worker harder than the opposition to win a race for the puck and place it in the empty net.
The game was a nearly flawless performance by the Flyers, even with "sandgate" (if you don't know, you didn't watch). Jeff Carter looked not just good, but great, save for the fact he didn't actually bury one of the several great chances he created for himself. Laperriere brought his energy, shield or no shield. Claude was the best forward on the ice. Ville continued his playoff emergence. Pronger and Carle bounced back to be the best two defensemen on the ice. Kimmo and Coburn continued to play awesome. And the rest of the guys, led by Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, Blair Betts and Daroll Powe, played about as well as you can possibly play defensively. The Flyers are now just one win away from reaching the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1997, five wins away from hoisting Lord's Stanley Cup.
That made a near no-hitter by Dice-K Saturday and the first truly bad performance by Roy Halladay in red pinstripes yesterday much easier to take. The Flyers are five wins away from drinking from the Cup. Five more wins.
