Ok, so it wasn't vindication for the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals, but tonight's series clinching win for the Flyers over the New Jersey Devils certainly was sweet. After backing their way into the playoffs with a shootout win on the last day of the season, the Flyers are now the first team to advance, and they did so with a shutout to clinch a 4-1 series victory over the Devils.
You could tell things were going to go right tonight from the very start of the game. Brian Boucher, who just about everyone in Philadelphia, myself included, didn't want to have starting in the playoffs, stopped Ilya Kovalchuk's shot a minute into the first period, and it was all Flyers from there. Danny Briere scored on a power play goal three minutes into the game on a pretty pass from Claude Giroux, and it didn't seem like the losses of Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne were going to bother the Flyers very much tonight.
What the absences did do was allow Giroux to get even more ice time than before, and he responded with his best game of the series. In the second period, the young winger scored the final two goals of the series, the final one coming via the power play, to give the Flyers a commanding 3-0 lead. After that, it was all about the defense and Brian Boucher. I can't give the defense enough credit for how well they played during the entire series. Ilya Kovalchuk was frustrated and held in check for all five games, scoring two goals and picking up four assists. It's not what the Devils thought he was going to do once the playoffs got here, and his little victory guarantee showed why some people shouldn't try to channel Mark Messier. Zach Parise managed just a goal and three assists in the five games. Overall, the Flyers just out muscled and out played the Devils on the defensive side of the puck, and they kept that up tonight, clearing the area in front of Boucher and making sure that they picked up all the loose pucks so the Devils couldn't have any easy goals.
They also did a good job blocking shots during the series, but that came at a price tonight as Ian Laperriere got nailed with a pick right above his eye that needed 60-70 stitches to close up. Luckily, the Flyers won't play again for about a week, which should give him enough time to recover at least a little bit. He's a hockey player, he'll be back around. It might not be enough time for Simon Gagne to come back, though. Gagne is likely out for the next three weeks, and Jeff Carter is out for the rest of the season, but if the Flyers keep playing like they did against the Devils, it should be fun no matter who they play. I'm not going to stand up right now and say that the Flyers have a great chance of winning the Stanley Cup. The Devils didn't play well against the Flyers all season, and that continued throughout the playoffs. Brian Boucher turned the clock back about ten years, and the power play and defense were outstanding for Philadelphia. New Jersey fans can whine about the penalties and how they were the better team, but the fact of the matter is that the Flyers took advantage of power play chances, looked like the better team, and knocked out the number two seed in the Eastern Conference in just five games.
The second round opponent is still up in the air, but it's likely going to be the Washington Capitals, who are the top seed in the East. They have a 3-1 lead over the Montreal Canadiens, and have looked very good in their last three wins. If somehow the Caps lose, then it would either be the Buffalo Sabres or Pittsburgh Penguins. It's a good feeling to see the Flyers actually look good in the playoffs and get some time off in between series. Right now, they need it.
It was nice to knock off the Devils in Newark, too. I can't lie about that.
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