Flyers Search for the Cup: Game 1-Bobs was good, but the offense was cold as ice

No, that's not just a bad pun in the title. The Flyers peppered Buffalo's Ryan Miller with 35 shots, but he stopped them all as the Sabres won 1-0 and took a 1-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

You can say what you want to say about how Sergei Bobrovsky finished the regular season, but last night, the rookie goalie was excellent. Bobs stopped 24 of 25 shots he faced and got the early playoff jitters out of the way as quickly as possible. He looked more like the goalie that had a surprising start to the year and forced Michael Leighton down into the minor leagues than the goalie that scuffled so much throughout most of March and April, and that's a good sign. For the Flyers to get anywhere in the playoffs this year, they're going to need to have good work from both Bobs and Brian Boucher in net.

Of course, they're also going to have to score a few goals along the way as well. Last night was just more of the same from the offense of late, as the Flyers failed to score on five power plays, including a game changing five on three chance that the Sabres were able to kill off. Despite the effort from Mike Richards and James van Riemsdyk, the Flyers just couldn't get anything going for very long in the offensive end. The power play failure might be where the Flyers are missing Chris Pronger the most right now, because Pronger is excellent at getting the man advantage set up and keeping the puck in the offensive end. With him out, the power play has been one of the worst in the NHL and is showing no signs of getting any better any time soon, and that's a big problem for this Flyers team.

Hopefully, the Flyers can get Pronger back for at least part of this series, because that could be a huge momentum shift for this team. They need to get something going on the power play, because those failures were the primary reason that the Flyers lost the first game of this series. They didn't look horrible last night. In fact, they looked a lot better than they had over the past few weeks when they squandered the top seed in the Eastern Conference away. However, just looking better against one of the hottest teams in the NHL coming into the playoffs isn't going to get anything done. All it's going to do is get this team sent home for the summer that much quicker.

Last night's game was a step in the right direction, but it wasn't a win. The Flyers need to come out tomorrow night for Game 2 with more fire, more passion and a game plan that will ensure that this series is tied going up to Buffalo for Games 3 and 4. Bobrovsky was excellent, and it wasn't really his fault that the Sabres were able to score, but he needs to do more of the same as well. Ryan Miller is one of the best goalies in the NHL when he's hot, and right now, he's very hot. This isn't going to be an easy series to win, but the Flyers showed a lot of heart in last year's playoffs. Now, they just need to find it again.

Game 2 is tomorrow night in Philadelphia. Hopefully, the Flyers can break through and get this series tied. If not, it might not even come back to the Wells Fargo Center.

Not a good night for Philly sports

Last night was a full slate of action for Philadelphia sports fans, with the Phillies, Sixers and Flyers all playing at about the same time. However, by the time the night was over, it was one of the worst sports nights of the year as all three teams ended up taking bad looking losses. I've already posted my thoughts about the Phils, but I've got a little bit to write about the other two losing teams from last night.

For the Sixers, a loss against the Celtics isn't really unexpected, since Boston has the second best record in the Eastern Conference, but what the 17 point loss does do is move the Sixers down towards the New York Knicks in the battle for either the sixth or seventh seed in the East. The Knicks have won four in a row, and are starting to gel after the Carmelo Anthony trade, while the Sixers have dropped their last two and five of their last ten games.

Don't get me wrong, the Sixers have surprised a lot of people this year. With two more wins, they'll clinch their first winning season since the 2004-05 season, and that's something that no one thought could happen this year, especially after this team lost 55 games last season. Elton Brand is actually looking like the player the Sixers spent all that money on, and Thad Young is really stepping his game up of late. Jodie Meeks has been a very pleasant surprise, and while Evan Turner is looking a bit like a bust, when he does get extended playing time, he's not too bad. Last night was one of those situations, as Turner led the Sixers in scoring with 21 points off the bench.

The Sixers have already clinched a playoff spot, but can they win an opening round series against the Miami Heat or Boston Celtics? The popular notion is that they can't, and I'm just about to side with that, but that doesn't mean that it's impossible. They might not win their first round matchup, but they'll scare whoever the hell they end up playing. Last night's loss not withstanding, the Sixers usually play very well against the top teams in either conference. Remember, this is the same team that held the San Antonio Spurs, the best team in the NBA, to 71 points not that long ago. While the odds of them beating Boston or Miami in a seven game series are going to be very high, it should at least be fun to watch. Think of this team like the Oklahoma City Thunder from last year. The Thunder scared the hell out of the Lakers in the first round, and they're even better this year. The same thing could happen with the Sixers.

The Flyers are making me slightly more nervous, and with good reason. There seems like there have only been two outcomes for the Flyers of late, and those are to lose in regulation or lose in a shootout. Last night was more of the same, as the Flyers dropped a 5-2 game on the road to the Ottawa Senators. If just losing the game to the 14th ranked team in the East wasn't bad enough, the loss dropped the Flyers out of first place in the Eastern Conference and cut their lead in the Atlantic Division to just a single point over the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Flyers can still clinch the division with a win and a single Pittsburgh loss, but right now, this team is getting dangerously close to the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference, which seemed almost impossible just a month ago.

The Flyers have done little to impress lately, save for a huge 5-2 win over the Penguins in their final matchup of the season. The loss of Chris Pronger is still being felt, and the power play has been almost invisible lately. The Flyers have converted on only 16.6% of their chances throughout the season, and that number is even worse of late. The defense has been non-existant at times, and both Brian Boucher and Sergei Bobrovsky have been struggling as well. Bobrovsky has been the real question mark, losing six of his last ten starts, even though some of those haven't been his fault.

Even with the questions in goal, the Flyers have just as many issues on the offensive side of things. Yes, they have six players with 20 or more goals on the season at the moment, but that doesn't do this team a single bit of good right now. Kris Versteeg was brought in to make the offense even better, but the offense has actually gotten worse since the trade that brought him to Philadelphia. Against teams that they should beat, like Ottawa and Atlanta, the Flyers can't get going on offense. They've missed chance after chance, and with the problems on defense, those missed chances are coming back to hurt them. Whether they come in the form of a poor power play or turnovers in the offensive zone, opposing teams are now doing what the Flyers did for most of the season: they're making the Flyers pay for each mistake.

The season isn't lost though, not by any stretch. The Flyers are still one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference, and with just two games to play in the regular season, can clinch the division with a win and a loss by Pittsburgh. The Penguins play their next game against the Islanders on Friday before closing out their season with one last game against the Atlanta Thrashers on Sunday. The Flyers play a potential playoff opponent in the Buffalo Sabres on Friday night, then finish things with a game against the Islanders on Saturday. If they manage to fall to the fourth seed, expect to see even more panic from the Philadelphia fan bases.

Chris Pronger needs hand surgery

Just when you thought that things couldn't get any worse for the Flyers after their "let's give up five goals in about 23 minutes worth of hockey at home against the Thrashers" game on Saturday, they just did. Word came out today from the Flyers that Chris Pronger will need surgery to fix a fracture in his hand and will miss the next three to four weeks. The surgery will take place on Tuesday, with Pronger hopefully getting back right at the end of the regular season.

Things haven't been going as well for the Flyers of late, as they've gone 4-4-2 in their last ten games. They're now just one point ahead of the Washington Capitals for the first overall seed in the East, and three points up on the Pittsburgh Penguins for the Atlantic Division lead. Without Pronger in the lineup for about the next month, the rest of the now struggling defense is going to have to step up, and with three straight road games, followed up with games at the Wells Fargo Center against Pittsburgh and Washington, things aren't going to get any easier.

The plus side to all of this is that the Flyers are going to be in the playoffs once again this year. They already have more points than they did all of last season, and there will be no last game shootout to determine whether or not the playoffs happen this year. The next 14 games are all about playoff positioning and trying to lock up the number one spot in the Eastern Conference. Doing that without Pronger, especially with the Capitals and Penguins both surging right now, is going to be very hard. Hell, it was going to be hard with Pronger in the lineup. Instead, the Flyers have to go without their best defenseman at a time when they need him the most.

It's not the offense that has been a problem with the Flyers of late. What's been going on is a problem with the defense and goaltending, and more often than not, it's happening in the third period. Throughout the first half of this season, the third period belonged to the Flyers. When they had a lead going into the third, the game was over. You could tell. The Flyers had fresher legs and just looked better than their opponents. Now, it's the other way around. The Flyers are being skated around in the third period, and when the defense can't catch up to the opposing offense, the goalie is going to look bad as well. That doesn't take Brian Boucher or Sergei Bobrovsky off the hook, however. Each of the two goalies has let in their share of soft goals during this little slump, and things need to improve in a hurry. There can't be any more seven goal games, or four goal third periods. The game against the Thrashers on Saturday needs to be the last straw for this team.

You do have to look at the bright side of this injury as well. The Flyers are going to likely get to 100 points in the regular season once again, and Pronger being out will give the rest of the defense a chance to gel and see what they can do. While that might not be a good thing, there's nothing wrong with a little ice experience for the rest of the defense. Pronger leads the Flyers in ice time this season, so getting a few other players a couple more minutes per game isn't horrible. None of them are going to be on the same level as Pronger, but then again, very few defensemen in the NHL are.

This is a big blow for the Flyers coming down the stretch, but with the playoffs already secure, it's not the end of the world. This team goes through slumps every season, and this year is no different. The only thing that's different this time around is that the slump is happening in March, not December. Peter Laviolette is too good of a head coach to let this one injury finish off the season for the Flyers. Things will be ok, just wait and see.

By the way...hockey's back!!

So, the Philadelphia Flyers had the first game of the season last night, as they opened up their defense of the Eastern Conference Championship against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Everything was set to go Pittsburgh's way. The Penguins were one of the best teams in the regular season last year, they were opening up their new arena and the Flyers were starting an untested rookie in goal in place of Michael Leighton.

Well, things didn't exactly go the way that the Penguins wanted them to, did they? Despite getting 15 shots on goal against rookie Sergei Bobrovski, Pittsburgh couldn't find the back of the net, and three minutes into the second period, Danny Briere showed a bit of his playoff glory from last year with the first goal in Consol Energy Center history. That's right. A Philadelphia Flyer, not a Pittsburgh Penguin, has the first goal in the new Pittsburgh arena's history. Pittsburgh has to live with that forever, and that's so worth it even right there. However, the Flyers weren't done yet, and they even got away with a win.

It wasn't perfect last night, but it was a good win for the Flyers. Claude Giroux left the game late with an ankle injury, but he also had an excellent short handed goal that turned out to be the game winner. As long as Giroux is healthy, plays like the one he had last night should start to become even more common, which is just something more that Flyers fans have to look forward to in the next few years. The first line of Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Dan Carcillo didn't do much, but when the next two lines can pick up their game like they did tonight, it's not always necessary for the first line to do everything. Besides, it was only the first game of the season and the Flyers won, so there's nothing to complain about on that end. Things well improve with them as the season goes along.

You also really have to like how well Sergei Bobrovski played last night. He shut down the Penguins for two periods and kept Sidney Crosby off the board for the entire game, and only gave up two tough goals in the third period. There's still room for improvement for the rookie, but for his first start against a rival, you can't get much better than how he played last night. Things are going to improve for him as he gets more experience and when Chris Pronger gets back, so that's something else to look forward too. He and Brian Boucher will more than likely split time in net as Michael Leighton recovers from his back surgery over the next two months. If Bobrovski gets more time in net than Boucher, hopefully he can show that he deserves it, but only time is going to tell about that. For now, at least, he's looking like a decent option in net. Things certainly aren't perfect in terms of the goalie position, but when have they ever been in Philadelphia?

All in all, you can't complain about how the Flyers started the season. They went to Pittsburgh and faced the Penguins in their home opener in a brand new arena. They started a rookie goalie, were missing their best defenseman and have the expectations of winning the Eastern Conference Championship last season. Instead of playing doormat for the Penguins, they came out and beat Pittsburgh, making them the first ever winners at their new arena. That's around forever, and that's what's going to stick with the Pittsburgh fans. Just like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers opened Lincoln Financial Field against the Eagles, the Flyers are always going to have that first win against the Penguins at their new arena. It feels so good.

Oh, did I mention that Michael Leighton is going to be out for almost two months? He is, by the way. I hope you're ready to see a lot of Sergei Bobrovski in goal. As long as he plays close to how he did last night, though, it's not going to be a bad thing.

We'll miss you, Gagne

It shouldn't have been like this. Not after ten years, and especially not after he came back from his broken foot to help get the Flyers to the Stanley Cup Finals. However, it did happen this way. Today, the Philadelphia Flyers traded Simon Gagne to the Tampa Bay Lightning for defenseman Matt Walker and a fourth round pick in next year's NHL Draft.

From a player for player perspective, the Flyers lost out on this trade big time. Gagne has been a proven player in this league for years, while Walker is tough defenseman, but contributes little on the offensive side of the puck. In seven NHL seasons, Walker has a total of four goals and 26 assists. That's not exactly the kind of production that the Flyers need to replace Gagne. This move reeks of a salary cap dump, and that's exactly what it is, because earlier in the month, the team made a move that made trading Gagne almost necessary.

On July 9th, the Flyers signed Nikolai Zherdev to a one year, two million dollar contract that put them over the salary cap for next season. With Gagne's contract still on the books, the Flyers had to make room for Zherdev, who was the fourth overall pick in the 2003 Draft. Zherdev has talent, but he's never shown the maturity and leadership that Gagne has shown on the ice in his career. It's going to take a lot for Flyers fans to accept him over Gagne, you can believe that much. Considering Zherdev has already played for two NHL teams, and one KHL team in Russia, you have to wonder how much his heart is into the game. When you look at Gagne, you don't have to question his heart. You know what you're getting the second he steps onto the ice.

Honestly, this doesn't look like a great move for the Flyers right now. Gagne was one of the biggest reasons that they made it to their first Stanley Cup Final since 1997, and Zherdev has shown little to prove that he can replace him in every way, shape and form. Gagne was a leader on the ice as well as off it, and his toughness is going to go down in Flyers history. I have no idea what Paul Holmgren was thinking with this move, save for it being to save salary cap space, since Matt Walker can't hold Gagne's jockstrap out on the ice. To see Simon Gagne go, in this manner, really hurts. He deserved better. He really did. Now, the Flyers are left without one of their leaders and with expectations that they can make it back to where they were last season. This upcoming season isn't going to be that fun, but that's just how I feel about it right now.

I wish you the best of luck, Gagne. It's rough to see you leave, especially in a trade like this.

CSNPhilly: Gagne traded to Lightning

Now, it's a three game series

At the beginning of this week, who would have thought that Stanley Cup Finals would be coming down to a best of three series? The Blackhawks had gotten past the Flyers in two one goal games in Chicago, and were headed to Philadelphia with a 2-0 lead in the Finals. Plus, the Blackhawks had that lead despite getting little production from their top line. It seemed like only a matter of time before the Flyers just got out of the way, and Chicago won their first Stanley Cup in 49 years.

What a difference a few days makes. After two games in Philadelphia, the Stanley Cup Finals are now tied at two games a piece, with the Flyers now having all the momentum after a 5-3 win last night. The two goal difference marks the first time in this series that either team has won by more than a single goal, and honestly, it shouldn't had been as close as the final score shows. Chicago scored twice in the final eight minutes, but Jeff Carter finished things off with an empty net goal to let the fans in the Wachovia Center breathe easy, knowing that the potential Stanley Cup clinching game would be back in Philadelphia next week.

After struggling in the first three games of this series, Mike Richards got things going last night early in the first period. His steal and power play goal just five minutes in set the entire tone for the night and let the Blackhawks know that this team wasn't going to go away. For much of the first period, the game went back and forth, with each team having chances. Michael Leighton was solid in goal throughout the game, having perhaps his best effort in the Stanley Cup Finals. Later in the first, Matt Carle would score his first goal of the playoffs, and despite Chicago scoring just four minutes later, the Flyers had yet another answer. Claude Giroux snuck through the Blackhawk defense and when Kimmo Timonen took a great pass from Scott Hartnell, he fould Giroux open right next to the net. Fifty seconds after Chicago had cut the lead to one, the Flyers had a 3-1 lead at the end of the first period.

It was a quiet second period, but the Flyers did what they had to do to maintain their lead. Chris Pronger continued to stone Dustin Byfuglien, while Leighton made some key saves to keep the Orange and Black up by two goals. After taking a punishing hit earlier in the game, Ville Leino came back in the third period and scored just six minutes into the third to put the Flyers up 4-1. From there, Chicago would dominate the period, scoring first on a five on three power play, and then again just three and a half minutes later to cut the score to 4-3. Luckily, the Flyers showed the same determination that they've had all playoffs long and buckled down. The Blackhawks had their chances, but once Jeff Carter found the back of an open net in the last minute, this game was decided. The Flyers had ensured that there would be one last home game for them this season, and it might be for the Stanley Cup.

Once the dust had settled on the first two games of this series, I said that all the pressure was with the Flyers. They had dropped back to back one goal games, and looked like they couldn't keep up with the Blackhawks at key times during the games. Both Games 3 and 4 were considered must win, and the way things were going, I wasn't sure that the Flyers would be able to win both games. Sometimes it feels very good to eat crow. The Flyers looked like a different team in Game 4, moving past the Blackhawks with fresher legs and putting more pressure on Antti Niemi than he's seen during the entire postseason. Chicago lost back to back playoff games for the first time this season, and now the pressure is back on the Blackhawks. Their first line has been next to useless in this series, combining for one goal and four assists in four games. A lot of the credit has to be given to Chris Pronger and the Flyers defense, which has played with the same speed that Chicago has shown in the last two games. As long as the Flyers can keep up the pace that they've had in the last two games, then Game 5 is going to be another close, physical game that could certainly go either way.

For all the talk about Antti Niemi before this series, the Chicago goalie has certainly looked a bit normal during the Finals. Some of that might be due to the fact that he is a young goalie playing in his first Stanley Cup Finals, but a lot of credit has to be given to the Philadelphia offense as well. The Flyers have scored four or more goals in three of the four games so far, and their lines are moving with speed and skill, which is great to see this late into the season. Add to that the fact that Mike Richards scored his first goal of the series last night, and Claude Giroux and Danny Briere are playing on another level right now, and the Flyers just look like the hotter team right now. I can't say enough about Ville Leino and how he's picked himself off the scrap heap during the playoffs. The same can be said for Scott Hartnell, who's looked nothing but impressive over the last two games especially.

During this entire postseason run, I've compared the Philadelphia Flyers to Jason Voorhees. Every time you think that the Flyers are dead, whether it's at the end of the regular season, being down 0-3 against Boston or this series against Chicago, they've come back. Each time you think that you've lost them, you turn around, and they're standing there, waiting to finish you off. This team has been through more pressure situations than any other Flyer team that I can remember, and for the first time in my lifetime, it seems like this team has a real chance to win the Stanley Cup. This series is a best of three now, with Game 5 in Chicago tomorrow night. You know that Chicago is going to come out playing their best hockey of the series, and they're going to have to. The Blackhawks don't want to come to Philadelphia down 3-2 in the series.

There might only be two or three games left in the NHL season, but this has been one hell of a run for the Flyers. Let's see how it ends now.

We've got a series now: Flyers win Game 3 in OT

Even if the Philadelphia Flyers weren't actually participating in the Stanley Cup Finals this year, I would consider this one of the most entertaining final series in quite some time. For the third straight game, both Chicago and Philadelphia played each other very close, with neither team able to get more than a one goal lead. In the end, it was another one goal win, but this one came in overtime and was in favor of the Flyers. Claude Giroux found the back of the net just six minutes into the overtime period to give the Flyers the win and ensure that this series, at the very least, will not be a repeat of 1997.

For the second time in the series, the Flyers would come out in the first period and take the lead. Last night, it was Danny Briere who did the honors, scoring on the power play off of a great pass from Scott Hartnell. After the power play scored twice in the first two games of this series, the Flyers kept up the pressure on the man advantage last night, as Hartnell would do the honors in the second period, scoring off a re-direct on a long shot by Chris Pronger. The officials would need to go to replay to make sure that the goal counted, and even though the puck only made it about 2 inches past the line, it still counted as a goal, and the Flyers were back on top in the second period. For Scott Hartnell, who had a down season this year after scoring 30 goals last year, to have two goals and three assists in three games against Chicago is great to see. Everyone in Philadelphia knows that he can play well, but his season this year just didn't go the way that anyone wanted it to. However, since the Stanley Cup Finals started, Hartnell has been in another world, and it's good to see.

As has been the case throughout this series, the Blackhawks did not go away after the Flyers struck. Chicago was kept off the scoreboard in the first period, but struck twice in the second. Duncan Keith scored three minutes into the second to tie the game, and after Philadelphia took the lead again on Hartnell's power play goal, the Blackhawks came back late in the second period on a slap shot goal from Brent Sopel. Sopel's goal came right after Chicago won a faceoff in the Philadelphia zone, which can never happen late in a period. Players are looking for shots right off of a draw, especially if the goalie isn't set, and that's exactly what happened here. Michael Leighton never ever saw the shot, and by the time he knew where it was, the puck was behind him. The bad luck continued early in the third period, as Patrick Kane finally got on the board with a breakaway goal that came just three minutes in. It was Kane's first goal of the series, and it seemed like the Flyers were about to go down again.

This team just did what they've done all season when their backs have been against the wall: they came out swinging. On their first offensive possession after the Kane goal, Ville Leino put the puck past Antti Niemi for another tie. From that point on, as was the case in Game 2, the Flyers started an all out assault on the Chicago goalie. For the second game in a row, Philadelphia won the shot battle in the third period by double digits, and Niemi was up to the task once again. This time, though, the game was tied, so the Flyers were headed to overtime with their season on the line. In the overtime, it looked like Chicago had fresher legs, but the Flyers kept coming. Simon Gagne looked to have the game winner five minutes into overtime, but the play was whistled dead before the puck crossed the goal line, so the goal was not allowed. Just 60 seconds later, Claude Giroux would make sure that replay wouldn't be needed for a third time, as he took a pass from Matt Carle and re-directed it past Niemi for the overtime winner. Just like that, the Flyers had life once again, and their first win in the Stanley Cup Finals since May 28, 1987. To put that in comparison, my 23 year old brother was exactly four months old when that game too place.

This Flyers team has more heart and determination than any other Flyers team that I can ever remember watching. They could has easily given up after losing two one goal games on the road and allowing Patrick Kane to score his first goal of the series early in the third period last night. Instead, Ville Leino, who this team got for spare parts, continued his amazing playoff run with a goal just 20 seconds later. That's what this team has done since the playoffs started. Even with Kane's goal last night, Chicago's first line still just has that one goal so far in three games, and Chris Pronger has effectively shown that the hype around Dustin Byfuglien was just that. Byfuglien was called for two penalties last night, and has been completely ineffective against Philadelphia's number one defenseman. Sure, Mike Richards and Jeff Carter haven't been that effective either, but considering the play from Danny Briere, Ville Leino and Claude Giroux, they haven't always been needed. Carter didn't have the best game last night, but one poor showing after coming back from a broken foot just a month ago isn't enough for me to want him gone. Instead, this team needs to focus on the positives, which are the fact that this is now a series that is going back to Chicago for at least one game, and that they've played on the same level with the Blackhawks for three straight games. This series isn't even close to being decided yet.

It is really, really hard to believe that the Flyers were the last team to make it into the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year, because the way that they've been playing since they got in is at another level. They rolled through the Eastern Conference, albeit with some good breaks, and have played the Blackhawks tight in all three games of the Stanley Cup Finals. With a break here or there, it could easily be the Flyers up 2-1 or even 3-0 in this series. However, it's not, and the team has to realize that as well. Game 3 was a must win, and the Flyers did just that. Now, they have to come out with the same fire in Game 4 to make sure that this series comes back to Philadelphia for one more game this year. Game 4 is Friday night, and if you thought the Wachovia Center was loud last night, wait until tomorrow.

Not as much offense, but the same result: Flyers down 0-2.

After the scoring frenzy of Saturday night's Game 1, just about everyone expected a much more defensive game for Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Well, they were right. The Flyers and Blackhawks played with the same speed as they had on Saturday, but both goalies and defenses looked much, much better. The only problem was that the Blackhawks had Antti Niemi in net, and after Michael Leighton allowed two goals within 30 seconds of each other, Niemi did the rest. The Chicago goalie stopped 32 of 33 Philadelphia shots, including 14 of 15 in a very quick third period to put the Flyers down two games to none in the Stanley Cup Finals.

The first period showed the phsyical play that both teams wanted to unleash last night. Both teams had some heavy hits, and though the Flyers were outshot 9-3, it seemed like they had taken the best punch that Chicago could throw, but they hadn't seen anything yet. The second period was more of the same until very late in the period. The Blackhawks crowded the net in front of Michael Leighton, and Marian Hossa put back a rebound to give Chicago the first goal of the game. As had been the case in Game 1, the Flyers were unable to gain control of a puck in front of their own net, and the Blackhawks took advantage, scooping up the trash and putting it back in for the lead. On the ensuing faceoff, Dustin Byfuglien stole a pass away from Philadelphia and found Ben Eager, who then fired a shot over Leighton's glove for another goal. In just 30 seconds, a 0-0 tie had become a 2-0 lead for the Blackhawks, and they had all the momentum.

The third period belonged to the Flyers, but Antti Niemi was up to the task. Simon Gagne put Philadelphia on the board with a power play goal with 14 and a half minutes to play, and from there, it seemed like most of the game was played in the Chicago zone. The Flyers got chance after chance at Niemi, but they couldn't put another puck past him. You have to give Niemi credit, because a lesser goalie would have folded under that pressure, especially after giving up five goals in Game 1. However, Niemi took control of the game and kept Philadelphia from scoring again. His effort and a solid defensive showing by the Blackhawks, who blocked several Flyer shots and kept Niemi from facing even more pressure.

Now comes the big question: Can the Flyers come back from an 0-2 hole in the Stanley Cup Finals? What this loss last night did was turn both Games 3 and 4 into must wins now for Philadelphia. If they drop either game, they give Chicago a chance to close the series out in five games back in Chicago, and I don't even want to talk about what could happen if the Blackhawks win Game 3. The Flyers have shown that they can in fact play with Chicago, as they did in Game 1, but the Blackhawks are a different creature than any team the Flyers faced in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. Against the Devils, the Flyers shut down Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk, and did the same to Marc Savard of the Bruins and Mike Cammalleri of Montreal. In each series, the Flyers were able to shut down the top scorers of their opponents. The funny thing is, they're doing it against Chicago as well. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews still don't have a point in the series, but the Blackhawks are doing something no other team had been able to do to the Flyers so far, and that's find someone else to pick up the slack. The role players for Chicago have done a good job in scoring so far, but you have to think that it's only a matter of time until the Flyers break through with a big game.

The Blackhawks are a good team, no doubt about that. They're the first team the Flyers have faced in the playoffs that are as fast as them, play as physical as them and can execute on offense as well as they've been doing in the playoffs. Not only that, but Chicago has the hottest goalie in the postseason, and he's coming off of possibly the game of his life last night. All the momentum seems to be pointing towards Chicago, but there's no reason to give up hope yet. This Flyers team has more heart than the 1997 team, so you don't have to worry about a repeat of that Finals performance again. However, Game 3 has to be the best effort that the Flyers can give, because if they lose that, then they'll be down 0-3 for the second time in these playoffs. While they were able to come back once, coming back from a second 0-3 hole is something no team has done, and against a team like Chicago, it seems very, very unlikely.

For now, the Flyers just have to take it one game at a time. Game 3 is tomorrow night back in Philadelphia, and you know that crowd is going to be crazy.

It was a fun game, but it had the wrong result: Flyers drop Game 1

If you had said before the start of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals that the Flyers would score five goals, and keep Chicago's top line from registering a single point, I would have told you that a victory was at hand. Instead, the Flyers allowed six goals, looked slow at times on defense and pulled Michael Leighton in the second period as they dropped the first game of the series against Chicago.

There's nothing bad that can be said about the way the offense played last night, save for the fact that Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne and Claude Giroux didn't notch a point between the three of them. Danny Briere continued his excellent play with a goal and three assists, Scott Hartnell had a goal and two assists and even Arron Asham picked up a goal and an assist. It was that kind of night for the Orange and Black in the Chicago end as they peppered Antti Niemi in the early going, hitting him with the type of pressure that he hadn't seen yet in the playoffs. It was the first time during the playoffs that Niemi had allowed more that four goals in a game, and he did that in the first two periods. Unfortunately for Philadelphia, he stopped the Flyers in the third and kept them from doing any more damage. Regardless, the offense did it's job.

Where the Flyers were sloppy last night was both on defense and in the net. For the first time in the playoffs, Michael Leighton looked like a backup goalie and was struggling on the ice. Maybe it was the nerves of playing in his first Stanley Cup Final game, but he didn't look like the same goalie that helped get the Flyers past Boston and Montreal in the Eastern Conference Finals. In those two series, Leighton was excellent at keeping rebounds controlled, but last night, he couldn't do that. Chicago played a physical game in front of the net, and Leighton couldn't pick up the trash when he needed to, which led to a few easy goals for the Blackhawks.

Of course, the defense needed to help out there as well, and they couldn't do much right at all last night. They couldn't pick up the trash in front of the net either, and there were a few times where any defender for the Flyers not named Chris Pronger just looked slow against the Chicago attack. Some bad puckhandling and slow pursuit on a power play in the first period ended up as a shorthanded goal for Chicago, and when the Flyers needed to make stops on defense to keep Leighton from getting in trouble, they couldn't do it. Eventually, Leighton was pulled after giving up five goals in 20 shots, and Brian Boucher made his first appearance since Game 5 against Boston.

Now, Boucher didn't necessarily look much better than Leighton did, but he also faced less pressure. In his 24 minutes in net, Boucher faced 12 shots, while Leighton faced 20 in 35 minutes. There shouldn't be a goalie controversy now, and there's not. Head coach Peter Laviolette stated today that Leighton is going to start in Game 2 for the Flyers, and that's the right move. Leighton got some bad breaks last night, and the goal that Boucher allowed was softer than any of the five that Leighton had go past him. It wasn't a good performance last night by either of the goalies, but that's why hockey has a best of seven format. One bad game isn't going to kill your chances, but two or three certainly don't help.

The Flyers did prove a lot last night. They showed that, for the most part, they can keep up with how the Blackhawks play. Though there were some lapses in defense for both teams, the Flyers hung tough with a team that a lot of people said would blow them out of the United Center in the first two games. They also played phsyical with Chicago, which is something that no Western Conference team was able to do in the first three rounds of the playoffs. By keeping Patrick Kane, Dustin Byfuglien and Jonathan Toews from scoring, the Flyers sent a message that the Blackhawks are going to need other people to score to win this series. That's what Chicago got last night, but over an entire seven game series, I don't know if they can keep that performance up. Scoring six goals doesn't happen every night, and while the Blackhawks looked great last night, the Flyers matched their speed and performance on the ice for most of the night. Being down in the Stanley Cup Finals is never fun, but the Flyers have already come back from an 0-3 hole in these playoffs, so being down one game isn't a big problem. Hopefully, they can take Game 2 and even the series as it heads back to Philadelphia.

Game 2 is tomorrow night, so get your BBQing and such out of the way early so you can watch the game.

There's your answer: Flyers take 3-1 lead in Eastern Conference Finals

As the dust settled on Game 3 and that 5-1 beating that the Canadiens put on the Flyers, there were some questions floating around. Could Montreal keep up the momentum, now that they had finally scored a goal in the series? Would the Flyers be able to bounce back after losing their six game winning streak? How would Michael Leighton fare in his second biggest game in the playoffs? Who would be coming back from injury for the Flyers? Today, all of those questions were answered, and then some. Both Jeff Carter and Ian Laperriere returned from injury, and while both played well, it was the defense and Claude Giroux that did the heavy work today, with Giroux scoring twice and the defense keeping Leighton from having to do much in a 3-0 victory for Philadelphia.

For the first time since Game 1, the Flyers looked totally in control of Montreal. The Canadiens managed just 17 shots on goal, compared to 25 for Philadelphia, and the Flyers won 20 more shutouts than the Canadiens did. Even though the first period ended without a score, there was an air to the game that the Flyers were going to score soon, and they did just that. Claude Giroux scored five minutes into the second period to give Philadelphia the lead, and the game was in the hands of the Flyers from there. The defense was incredible, allowing Montreal to only get one shot on goal during the second period while the Flyers would score twice. Chris Pronger bounced back from his poor showing in Game 3 and found Ville Leino with an excellent pass that Leino took into the Montreal zone to score the second goal of the period. It's still amazing that the Flyers got Leino for nothing more than a song from Detroit at the trade deadline. If this run continues for Philadelphia, that trade, and subsequent playing of Leino in the playoffs, is going to loom large.

The third period was more of the same from the Flyers today. The defense continued to choke the Canadiens when they had chances in the Philadelphia zone, and the Flyers tried to build on their lead, but couldn't take advantage of many chances until the Canadiens pulled Jaroslav Halak. It was then that Claude Giroux scored his second goal of the game and his eighth of the playoffs on an empty-netter that put the game out of reach. For the third time in this series, the Flyers had worked a shutout against Montreal, and that might be the most amazing part about this entire series at the moment. Aside from Game 3, the Canadiens have been outscored by Philadelphia by a 12-0 margin. Michael Leighton has all three shutouts, and while the credit for the first two can be given to him, this one should be placed on the defense more than anything else.

Today, the Philadelphia defense was excellent. Matt Carle, Chris Pronger, Braydon Coburn and Kimmo Timonen were at their best today, just dominating the Canadiens when they brought the puck into the Philadelphia zone. When you can hold a team to just a single shot in a period, then you're doing something right. That's what the Flyers did today, and they held Montreal to just 17 shots in the entire game. After the offensive storm that the Flyers had to face in Game 3, coming out and playing defense like they did today sent a clear message back to Montreal. The Canadiens dominated Game 3, and this game was going to be key in how the rest of the series was going to go. The Flyers took the beating that they dealt with the last time they hit the ice and just showed that the poor play from Friday night wasn't going to happen again. Chris Pronger was much better, and the team as a whole looked much, much better than they did in the previous game. After taking a four goal loss in Game 3, this was possibly the best game that the Flyers could have played. Now, they hold all the cards going back to Game 5 in Philadelphia.

This series isn't over yet though, not by a long shot. The Canadiens came back against Washington in the first round of the playoffs after being down 3-1, and they came back against Pittsburgh after being down 3-2. However, the Flyers seem to having something going for them that both of those teams did not. They have all the momentum, having come back from being down 3-0 against the Boston Bruins, and the physical play that they're throwing at Montreal seems to be too much for them at the moment. The Canadiens have played over 100 games this season, and that's going to start to take its toll. In the three losses that the Flyers have handed the Canadiens, Montreal has looked like the slower team, and Philadelphia has taken advantage of that. If they can play like they have in any one of their three wins, then this series will be over in five games.

Ten years ago, the Flyers had a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals. That was the last time that they were this close to the Stanley Cup Finals. They then lost the next three games against the New Jersey Devils for one of the worst moments of the last decade. Now, they have a chance to undo a little bit of history. I really don't think that it's going to happen again, but you never know. This team though...it just feels different. Jeff Carter and Ian Laperriere are both back, and it seems like everything is coming together at the right time. Game 5 is Monday night, back in Philadelphia. We'll see what happens then.

Well, Game 3 could have gone better...

No one really expected the Flyers to sweep Montreal right out of the way in the Eastern Conference Finals, did they? Even after the Flyers took care of business against the Canadiens in the first two games in Philadelphia, they still had to go to Montreal for the next two games, and you know that Canadien fans had their sights set on this game since Game 7 of the second round came to a close. Tonight, Montreal was the better team as they finally figured out how to get a puck past Michael Leighton and stop the Philadelphia attack at Jaroslav Halak, as they cruised to a 5-1 victory that cut the Flyer lead in the series to 2-1.

Over the past two games, the Canadiens have said that they need to get more people in front of the net to create chances while they're on offense. Tonight, they were able to work that plan with extreme precision from their very first goal on. Mike Cammalleri finally got his first goal of the series in the first period to start things off for Montreal, and it was all downhill for the Flyers after that. Tom Pyatt added a second goal in traffic later in the first to put Montreal up 2-0, and the Canadiens weren't done yet, scoring twice more to put the game out of reach by early in the third period and then adding one final goal as the final period came to a close.

This game wasn't all on Michael Leighton, though. To be honest, he played well and never gave up. He made several good saves, but when there's traffic in front of the net, and bounces are going the wrong way after going the right way for the first two games, there's not much you can do about that. It also didn't help that Chris Pronger's turnover in the first period allowed Montreal to take a 2-0 lead into the first intermission and gave them even more momentum heading into the second period. All in all, it was just a poor game from the Flyers, who have shown much more than what they did tonight in the playoffs.

In the long run, this game didn't really prove anything. Most people knew that the Canadiens weren't going to go down without a fight, because they've done just that in the first two rounds of the playoffs. They came back from a 3-1 hole against the top team in the Eastern Conference and a 3-2 hole against the defending Stanley Cup Champions. Montreal is a tough team to finish off, and they showed that again tonight. This series isn't going to be an easy one to finish for either team.

On the opposite side of the coin, the Flyers clearly aren't as poor of a team as they were tonight. They didn't get the bounces tonight, and they allowed Montreal to create traffic in front of Michael Leighton, which were two things that they had going their way in the first two games of this series. However, just as most people knew that Montreal wasn't going to go away, those same people knew that the Flyers weren't going to win every game in the Eastern Conference Finals by shutout and they would have to play with their backs against the wall at some point and time. Tonight wasn't pretty for Philadelphia, but I think they needed it. The Canadiens came out at home for the first time in ten days and hit the Flyers right in the mouth. Now, the ball is back in Philadelphia's court. Game 4 is Saturday afternoon, and a win by the Flyers gives them a chance to close out the series in Philadelphia in Game 5.

I think the Flyers would love a chance to close things out that way, and I certainly wouldn't mind seeing it, either.

Now that's how you start a series: Flyers dominate Montreal

Coming into the Eastern Conference Finals on the heels of the greatest comeback in team history, most people were anxious to see what the Flyers could bring to the table in Game 1. After all, the Flyers got just a day off in between beating the Bruins and starting the Conference Finals against the Canadiens, and Montreal seemed like destiny's darling, having knocked off the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games. What the fans at the Wachovia Center got tonight was an effort fitting of a team that had just finished an historic comeback, as the Flyers pounded Montreal, scoring four goals in the first two periods and just piling on after that for a 6-0 win and a 1-0 series lead.

Braydon Coburn got things started in the first period with an early power play goal that gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead, but the rest of the first period played more into the hands of Montreal. The Canadiens outshot the Flyers 13-6 in the first period, but Michael Leighton did more than enough to make sure that Montreal was unable to tie up the game or even take the lead. Ever since the first period of Game 7 against the Bruins, Leighton hasn't given up a goal, and has looked every bit like the goalie that was playing so well before he was injured towards the end of the season. After the first period, the offense made things a lot easier for Leighton.

Even with a 1-0 lead, the Flyers had been outplayed by Montreal for much of the first period, but that quickly changed in the second. James van Riemsdyk, Danny Briere and Simon Gagne all scored within the first ten minutes of the second period, chasing Montreal goalie Jaroslav Halak from the game and putting things out of reach early. For van Riemsdyk, it was his second goal in as many games, and the rookie looks like he's waking back up again after being in a funk for most of the Boston series and the entire New Jersey series. For those of us who wanted Danny Briere off this team, he's making us eat our words tonight. His goal in the second period was his eighth in ten games, and he has really picked things up for the Flyers on the offensive side of the ice. Meanwhile, Gagne has scored five goals in his last five games, and the Flyers have yet to lose since his return from injury. I really don't think that's a total coincidence, because Gagne is one of the heartbeats for this Flyers team.

The third period was more of the same for the Flyers, as they added two more goals against Carey Price. The suddenly hot Scott Hartnell added his third of the playoffs, and Claude Giroux did the honors in finishing the scoring, putting in his sixth goal of the postseason to finish off the Game 1 demolition. This was the exact kind of showing that the Flyers could have dreamed about after the Boston series, and they got it tonight. The offense was on point, even in the first period, and the first two goals were scored right in the crease, taking the skill set of Halak out of play. It looked similar to the Boston series, where the Flyers crashed the net in front of Tuukka Rask. To beat skilled goalies, sometimes you have to get physical with them, and the Flyers are certainly capable of that.

They also played Montreal much more physically than either Washington or Pittsburgh did for much of either of their series against the Canadiens. Philadelphia is a physical team first and foremost, and it showed tonight. Chris Pronger was on Mike Cammalleri from the word go, keeping the hottest player in the playoffs from picking up more than a single shot during the game, and he did his job against the rest of the Canadiens as well, helping to kill four Montreal power plays. The Flyers did their job when they had the man advantage, too, scoring twice on power plays and once right after a power play ended.

Considering everything that the Flyers went through last week, it was good to see them come out and treat this as a completely fresh start. That was exactly what needed to happen, and the Flyers looked like the fresher team tonight against an overworked Montreal team. It's still way too early to be thinking past the next game, but tonight was certainly a message that was sent by the Flyers. They aren't the Capitals or Penguins, and they're going to play Montreal tougher than any other team in the playoffs has yet. Nothing is ever decided in Game 1 of a series, but to have that first win is a big step in the right direction. Now, the Flyers have to put this game behind them and come out for Game 2 on Tuesday night with the same kind of fire and intensity that they had tonight. If they can do that, then they'll go to Montreal with a 2-0 series lead and all the momentum that they should need for this series.

Regardless, I'm not going to celebrate until the Flyers finish this series. The Canadiens are a damn zombie team this year. They should have died twice, but they're still around. Nothing is over yet, not by a long shot.

Flyers stay alive again, but lose Boucher

The Flyers were once again staring elimination in the face tonight against the Boston Bruins, and having never forced a Game 6 after being down 0-3 in a playoff series, things didn't look good for the Flyers. Even though they had a 1-0 lead going into the second period, things got even worse when Brian Boucher went down with an injury after ending up at the bottom of a pile early in the second. Michael Leighton, who Boucher replaced in early March when he went down with an injury, came into the game for his first playoff time of the season. Boucher had to be helped off the ice, and the Flyers now had their backup-turned starter-turned backup due to injury goaltender in net.

Luckily, Leighton managed to find that magic that he had during the regular season and kept Boston off the board while the Flyers increased their lead. Scott Hartnell scored his first goal of the playoffs in the second period, and then Simon Gagne took over, scoring on a power play goal late in the second period and once again late in the third period to cap the scoring. Just like that, the Flyers had a 4-0 win and the series is coming back to Philadelphia for a Game 6 on Wednesday night. This isn't over yet, not by a long shot, but the injury to Boucher looms large tonight.

For everything that people, myself included, had said about Boucher during the regular season, he had been great so far in the playoffs. He did have a few moments where he relapsed into his old ways during this series with the Bruins, but you can't take away from the fact that the Flyers wouldn't have made it this far without him. He was the one that made that stop against the Rangers that got the Flyers into the playoffs on the last day of the season, and he was the one that stopped the Devils time and time again during the first round of the playoffs. Now, it's unlikely that he'll be available to play during at least the rest of this series, but more is sure to come out tomorrow. As of this moment, the injury is being called an ACL sprain to both knees. That's bad news for anyone and even worse news for a goalie, who needs his knees in perfect shape to be at his best.

It's a shame that Boucher is going to be out for at least the next game of this series, and possibly longer. Now, the burden falls on the man he replaced, Michael Leighton. Leighton looked good tonight in backup of Boucher and played well during the regular season before being knocked out due to an injury himself. Regardless, Leighton is going to be the man in Game 6 for the Flyers, and he's going to have to be at his best. The Flyers have already fought elimination off twice while down 0-3 for the first time in franchise history, and now they have to force a Game 7 after their starting goalie goes down early in Game 5. Stranger things have happened, but I don't know if I can think of many off the top of my head. At least Game 6 is in Philadelphia. If this is the last home game the Flyers have this year, the fans will be able to say that the Flyers went down swinging and knocked the Devils out of the playoffs.

In NHL history, only two teams have come back from 0-3 holes to win the series. Toronto did it to Detroit in 1942 and the New York Islanders came back against Pittsburgh back in 1975. That's it. Can the Flyers do it? The way this season has gone, I wouldn't put it past them, but they still have to win Game 6 first. One game at a time, boys. One game at a time.

So that's what was missing from the Flyers...Simon Gagne!!!

It didn't look good for the Flyers tonight, did it? After taking a 3-1 lead on the Boston Bruins in a do or die Game 4 in Philadelphia, the Flyers let Boston creep back into the game, and when former Flyer Mark Recchi scored with just 31 seconds left in the third period, it looked like the Flyers would be swept out of the second round of the NHL Playoffs. However, Simon Gagne's return to the ice couldn't have come at a better time, as he scored the game winning goal and forced Boston into a Game 5 back on their home ice on Monday night.

For the first time in this series, the Flyers seemed to have control over most of the game. After Recchi scored the first goal of the game, Philadelphia rattled off three straight goals in the first and second periods. With the lead on their side, however, the Flyers got sloppy, and allowed a Michael Ryder goal and a power play goal by Milan Lucic to tie the game in the third period. Ville Leino gave the Flyers the lead late in the third period, but Recchi's second goal of the game was enough to push the potential deciding goal into overtime.

I really like how the Flyers were able to play in the overtime period. Even when they went down on the Boston power play halfway through the period, the team was able to stand strong and keep the Bruins from completing the sweep. While the Flyers were outshot in the game, and couldn't score a single power play goal, they didn't look too bad against the Bruins, who had outplayed them at several key chances during the series. Tonight, it was time for the Flyers to catch key breaks and outplay the Bruins in the overtime, which was all that they needed on this night.

Then, there's Simon Gagne. After missing the rest of the second round after toe surgery, Gagne comes back tonight and scores the game winning goal, in overtime. You couldn't have written a better ending to this game, unless the Flyers were up 3-0 on the Bruins. Then, it would have been even better. Regardless, Gagne gave the Flyers their first win of the series, and prevented Philadelphia from being swept out of the playoffs for the first time since the 1997 Stanley Cup Finals. Gagne didn't even look like he'd missed a beat, putting seven shots on goal during the game. He looked solid throughout, but there's always a chance that he might not play on Monday, but I doubt it. With the season on the line, Gagne is going to be out there.

At least the Flyers aren't dead yet. They came close tonight, but when all was said and done, they still have life. It would be the most improbable series win in franchise history if they were able to pull it off, but if any team could still manage to make up a 3-0 series lead, I'd put money on the Flyers.

Ok, the Flyers wanted their backs against the wall...right?

Back in Philadelphia for their first home game in almost two weeks, the Flyers came out tonight and looked energized, taking a quick 1-0 lead just two and a half minutes into their Eastern Conference semifinal game against the Boston Bruins. However, the next 57 and a half minutes belonged to the Bruins, who scored four unanswered goals to put the Flyers down in a huge 0-3 hole going into Game 4.

To put things simply, this is the exact thing that the Flyers wanted to avoid. I said that they needed to get a win in Boston to keep the series going past Games three and four, and right now, it looks like I was right. While the two games in Boston were one goal affairs, tonight, the Flyers were outplayed and outclassed by the Bruins, who had an answer at every turn. Tuukka Rask stopped 34 shots for Boston, while Brian Boucher could only stop 16 for the Flyers. It was Boucher's worst showing of the playoffs, and it couldn't have come at a worse time. Now, thanks to a very poor game on all fronts, the Flyers find themselves in a win or die situation for the next four games...if they get that far.

Honestly, I still think anything could happen in this series, but the odds are clearly stacked against the Flyers. Before coming back to Philadelphia, Game 3 was a must win for this team, and now, they have no ground left to give. Tonight, the Bruins completely outplayed the Flyers for most of the game, despite Philadelphia having a lot more chances at Tuukka Rask than Boston had at Brian Boucher. The fact of the matter is that Boston made their chances count more than the Flyers, and that's why Boston is a win away from the Eastern Conference Finals. The power play has been a serious problem for the Flyers, who are clearly missing Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne and Ian Laperriere. Without those three, the team just doesn't go as well as it should, and right now, it's clearly showing. I doubt that the Flyers can come back from these odds, but right now, as bad as it sounds, this team just has to take things one game at a time. Nothing is over until the final buzzer sounds, and the Flyers aren't dead yet.

Even if they do go down against the Bruins, at least they took out the Devils and made it look easy. Man, that was fun, wasn't it?

Oh, and ten years and two days ago, this happened. My number five moment of the past decade. Enjoy watching the Flyers beat the Penguins. I know I will.

Second verse, same as the first: Flyers down 0-2

Stop me if you've heard this one before. The Flyers were able to get back into a game against an opponent on the road in the playoffs, only to fall on a late goal by someone that hadn't scored during the postseason. If that sounds a lot like Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, then you've been paying attention, because that's exactly how the Flyers dropped Game 2 of the series to Boston tonight.

For the second straight game, the Flyers found themselves down early, as Johnny Boychuk scored just five minutes into the game. However, they would bounce back later in the first period as Mike Richards scored his fourth goal of the playoffs to tie the game. The Bruins would take the lead again in the second period on a goal by Miroslav Satan, but Danny Briere scored with just 25 seconds to play in the second frame to tie the game again. For most of the third period, neither team could get much going, but the Bruins would strike late in the final stanza. Milan Lucic scored the game winner with just under three minutes to play, and that would be all for tonight. Just like that, the Flyers are down 2-0 in the series, with the next two games becoming must wins in Philadelphia.

The fault on this game begins with the defense, which just wasn't there tonight for Brian Boucher. Boucher stopped 24 of 27 shots and looked solid out there again, but his defense just wasn't playing up to the same level that they were in the first round. In the first round, the defense was blocking shots left and right and clearing out the loose pucks in front of the net. Tonight, the Bruins won on a puck that managed to get loose in front of the net and passed back to Milan Lucic. Those were the kind of things that weren't happening in the first round for the Flyers. The injuries might have something to do with it, but that's not a good excuse. The fact of the matter is that this team needs to do better when it comes to cleaning up the trash than they've been doing so far in this series.

I can't place much blame on the scorers in this game, as they did all that they could. They pressured Tuukka Rask with the same amount of shots that Brian Boucher faced, and save for the third period, where Boston took control, the number of shots were almost even in both periods. The only problem is that the Flyers are allowing the Bruins to take control of a period or two in each game so far, and that's been the difference. In the first game, Boston ran wild in the first period and the overtime, and tonight, they controlled the third period. In both games, that time that Boston had with control was enough to push them past the Flyers, and that has to stop if Philadelphia wants to advance to the Conference Finals. This team has to stop playing sloppy hockey and get aggressive at all times, like they were against the Devils in the first round. They also need to get their power play working again, as they are 2-10 in the series. Hitting just 20% of your power play chances isn't enough in the playoffs. They have to do better.

With that being said, this team can still come back against Boston. Despite dropping the first two games of the series, which I had pegged as a key, the Flyers can still tie things up with wins in the next two games at home. The Wachovia Center crowd is going to be rocking for the Flyers during Game 3, and I think the home ice is going to give the team a bit more of an edge that they've been lacking in the last two games. While things don't look good right now, they can certainly get better, and I think they will when this series comes back to Philly. You can't give up hope yet, not with this team.

Well, the NHL Playoffs just got interesting, didn't they?

So much for that second round matchup between the Flyers and Washington Capitals, eh? With three straight wins, the Montreal Canadiens became the first number 8 seed to come back from a 3-1 hole against the top seed in the conference, and just like that, the Flyers are headed to Boston for a second round date with the Bruins. This is certainly an old school matchup, as these two had their scraps in the 1970s, and haven't met in the playoffs since 1978.

For both teams, the key to this series might be injuries and how each team responds to them. For the Flyers, Jeff Carter and Ian Laperriere are likely both out for the the entire series with injuries, while Simon Gagne might be able to make it back towards the middle of the series. In Boston, the Bruins are going to be bolstered by the return of Marc Savard, who has been out of action with a concussion for almost two months. Savard's return is going to give the Bruins a boost, as will the fact that they are the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference, yet they have home ice advantage in the second round, due to the seven and eight seeds winning their series. Things happen that way some times.

The Bruins are a lot like the Flyers in that they play a physical type of hockey, and they don't have one player that they lean on to help them win by himself. Boston didn't have a single player with over 55 points during the regular season, but Patrice Bergeron, Miroslav Satan, David Krejci and the ageless Mark Recchi all had five points in their series against Buffalo, and the Bruins also boast the biggest player in the NHL in 6'9" defenseman Zdeno Chara. Chris Pronger is going to have his hands full with that lineup, and the Flyers are going to have to play well to get past Chara. Rookie goaltender Tuukka Rask had some average showings against the Sabres, but came up big when he needed to, and can easily match Brian Boucher stop for stop in this series. He is one of the big reasons why the Bruins were able to come back in three of their four wins against Buffalo. Without Rask in goal, Boston doesn't make it to the second round, it's that simple.

For the Flyers to win this series, they are going to have to play just as well as they did against the Devils in the first round of the playoffs. Unlike their series against New Jersey, the Flyers don't have the regular season edge to lean on heading into this scrap, as the two teams split their season series this year, with Boston taking the last two, including the Winter Classic on New Year's Day. It is going to take a great effort from Mike Richards, Claude Giroux and Danny Briere on offense, as well as Chris Pronger on defense and Brian Boucher in net. I do think that the Flyers have enough to advance to the Conference Finals for the second time in three years, but I can also see the Bruins moving on as well. It's just a matter of which team can keep up their physical play longer.

Philadelphia just has to keep playing like they did against New Jersey, and that includes Brian Boucher in net. No one thought that Boucher could stop the Devils as well as he did, and there are still people out there that think he's going to go back to his old ways against the Bruins. Could it happen? Of course it could, that's what makes the NHL Playoffs so interesting. However, with the time off and the confidence that Boucher has now going into the second round, I don't think it's going to happen that way. In fact, I think the time off has done nothing but help the Flyers, as they've been able to rest and get healthy. Simon Gagne should be back for part of this series, which would be a big boost for the Flyers. For Philadelphia, the key is going to be winning one of the first two games in Boston, just as they did against the Devils in their last series. If they can take home ice away from the Bruins, then they have a very good chance to take the series. If they don't, then things could get very interesting. However, I think that Boucher will continue to play well, and the Flyers will continue their hot streak into the Conference Finals. They caught a break when the Caps went out, and they're going to take advantage of it.

Pick: Flyers in 6