After playing one game in 12 days, the Flyers have gotten back into the swing of things at home. Going into their long layoff, they had dropped two in a row, and it didn't get much better in their lone game during that 12 day span, as they coughed one up to the Panthers, 4-2. Fortunately, some time on home ice has been exactly what they needed to get back on the winning track.
The Flyers started by proving that they actually can win shootouts, as they defeated the Boston Bruins by a final of 4-3. Despite letting the game go to a shootout, the Flyers looked sharp for a team with a lot of time off. They outshot the Bruins 39-26, and Ray Emery didn't look bad in goal. Chris Pronger, Arron Asham and Darroll Powe each tallied goals for the Flyers, before Claude Giroux scored on a pretty deke move to give Philadelphia the win in the shootout. Both teams played disciplined hockey, with each getting just two chances on the power play. The Flyers did allow a power play goal, but other than that, they didn't look bad against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference from a year ago.
Last night, they got a chance at a little revenge against the Florida Panthers. The game itself was great, as the Flyers took Florida down 5-1. Jeff Carter had two assists, Danny Briere scored twice and had an assist, Chris Pronger had two assists, Simon Gagne scored his first goal of the year and James vanRiemsdyk scored and had an assist. Overall, it was a very good game for the Flyers, who once again looked like the team that started the season 3-0 for the first time in a decade.
Of course, that's not what everyone is talking about today. What they are talking about is what happened near the end of the second period. Flyers captain Mike Richards knocked out Florida left wing David Booth with a huge hit that left him down on the ice for seven minutes. Richards was nailed for a game misconduct, and the league is looking into the hit. Now, I've watched the hit over and over again, and while Booth did pass the puck before he was hit, it happened within a split second of the impact. Booth was also skating with his head down, and Richards did not leave the ice to make the hit. It seems to me that the hit was a lot like the one Scott Stevens put on Eric Lindros during Game 7 of the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals. As far as I'm concerned, it was a clean hit that just had an unfortunate result. Booth is a good young player, and you hate to see this happen to anyone, so I hope he recovers quickly from this.
All in all, the Flyers played very well last night. Their offense was back on top of things, scoring two power play goals, and the defense was great as well. The Panthers only managed seven shots in the last two periods, and Ray Emery made 17 saves on the night. Florida also went 0-5 on the power play, and the Flyers handled them like they should have the first time these teams played this year. The schedule speed picks up again, as the San Jose Sharks are in town for a game tonight. Hopefully, this high level of play can continue.
UPDATE: Mike Richards will not be suspended for the hit on David Booth from last night. The word has just come down, as reported by Tim Panaccio of CSNPhilly. That's good news for the Flyers, and it validates what most Philadelphia fans were saying-it was a clean hit, just with a bad side effect. Players have to keep their heads on swivels in the NHL, that's just the way it is. I hope Booth gets back on the ice soon.
CSNPhilly: Richards Cleared in Hit on Panthers' Booth
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