Missed chances doom Flyers in loss to Penguins

Eight power plays compared to five. Forty six shots against 26. From those numbers alone, the Flyers should have easily won against the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight. It was not to be, though. Philadelphia missed chance after chance, while the Penguins managed to take advantage of the few chances they had to capture a 3-1 victory in Game 4, and a 3-1 lead in the playoff series. It's do or die time now for the Flyers, and they're going to have to do better than they did tonight if they want the series to come back to the Wachovia Center.

Over the first few games of the series, the focus was on the officiating, as it often is when the Penguins are in a series. While there could have been a case for some questionable calls in the prior games, tonight, the Flyers were given more chances on the power play, and they simply couldn't take advantage of them when they were presented. Marc-Andre Fleury was simply sensuational in goal for Pittsburgh, making several stops that could have resulted in goals for Philadelphia. You can't take that away from Fleury, especially after the way he had been peppered in Game 3. It takes a very good goalie to come back after giving up six goals in the prior game, and with the way Fleury played tonight, you can certainly say he is a very good, if not great, goalie.

You can also make a case for the first goal that the Penguins scored, as it was a fluke that managed to bounce of of Sidney Crosby and into the net as Simon Gagne made a solid defenisve play to take Crosby out of the play. However, the other two goals were more than legitimate, and since the Flyers only managed to get one puck past Fleury the entire game, that first goal for Pittsburgh was inconsequensal. Unfortunately for Philadelphia, and it seems like a common element tonight, but they just couldn't do anything when they had the chance.

So what does this mean for the Flyers? Certainly, Game 5 is a must win, but that goes without saying. Jeff Carter, Mike Knuble, Mike Richards and the rest of the 20 goal scorers for Philadelphia are going to have to find a way to get to Fleury again, because if he is able to play like he did tonight, it's going to be the end of the season for Philadelphia come Thursday night. On the same mindset, the Flyers are going to have to play better on defense. While they didn't give up any power play goals tonight, they still allowed three full strength goals. Sidney Crosby is going to have to be contained, and they're also going to have to contend with Evgeni Malkin. It's a double edged sword for the Flyers, and it's certainly not a good thing. The only thing is, they're going to have to take on that double edged sword, as well as the athleticism of Fleury, if they even want to get past Game 5. Do I like their chances? I can't say that I do, but stranger things have happened. Teams have come back from a 3-1 hole before, so it can happen. Just keep your fingers crossed, it might be possible.