This does not bode well for Boston Bruins and forward Marc Savard.

Savard signed a seven-year contract with the Bruins on Dec. 1 that pays him $28.05 and a yearly cap hit around $4 million. However, the NHL seems to now have a problem with these types of front-loaded contracts and will be looking at Savard, among others, to determine whether or not they can be deemed valid. Other players being looked at are Chris Pronger (7-years, $4.9 cap hit), Marian Hossa (12-years $5.2 cap hit) and Roberto Luongo (12-years, $5.3 cap hit).

If the NHL does indeed go back and nullify these contracts it would be a big move not only for the NHL, but the world of sports. To void a contract that the league has already approved will likely not go over to well, so it would be an edgy move for Gary Bettman (5-years, $WAYTOMUCH cap hit) to pull.

For the Bruins, who sit $3 million above the cap are certainly looking for a way to free up some room would not want to go back to the negotiating table with a guy they were recently (and still are) shopping. If the contract voided the odds of Savard remaining in Beantown aren’t good. Savvy stated that if the Bruins were going to trade him, he would like to go to a team in Southern Ontario to be close to his family. So that means the Bruins would be sending their top playmaking centre to a division rival in the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators with no return.

Having Savard back in form for the 2010-11 season is big for the Bruins. This is a guy who only missed eight games since 2005, before missing Xx games this past season. In all likelihood, second-overall pick in this year’s draft Tyler Seguin will make the team out of training camp and having Savard for him to look up too would be brilliant for the kid’s maturation in to a legitimate NHLer.

The Bruins have a lot of depth at the centre position, with Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Dan Paille, not to mention Joe Colborne and Zach Hamill waiting for their chance at the big club. But you cannot go wrong with a wily veteran like Savvy, who brings grit, tenacity and magic hands to each and every game he plays in.

With the recent addition of Nathan Horton from the Florida Panthers, it once again gives Savard the goal-scoring winger to play with. Horton may not have the game breaking shot of Phil Kessel, but he is a big body that knows how to put the puck in the net.

Pending the league’s decision, if the Bruins do have to move forward without number 91 in their lineup, you will see Krejci move in to the role as number one centre. Before suffering a playoff ending injury off the Mike Richards hit, Krejci stepped his game and showed everyone why the Bruins are excited about this kid. He quickly developed chemistry with UFA Miroslav Satan and gave glimpses of the playmaker he can be.

I would like to see Savard stick around, because it could be another season or two before Krejci is ready to step in to the number one centre role. There is also Seguin to think about, because one has to think that he will quickly rise up the depth chart in the coming years. To think that if the Bruins keep their centre core together in the coming years that Patrice Bergeron would be fourth on the depth chart boggles my mind.

It shouldn’t be too long for the league to come to a decision on the front-loaded contract situation. They will have to give enough time for the teams to renegotiate before the season begins.

Its just one big sticky mess that’s also know as the National Hockey League.

Brandon Macdonald
NHLHS Boston Bruins Correspondent
bmacdonald@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter @bMacdonald8

With youngsters like James van Riemsdyk and Claude Giroux and playoff upstart Ville Leino, the Philadelphia Flyers do not have a shortage of players that could possibly have a breakout season in 2010-11.

But perhaps the player that appears to have the best chance of scoring the biggest breakout season is free agent acquisition Nikolai Zherdev.

While the 25-year-old winger has already had NHL seasons of 27 and 26 goals, it is the general opinion of the hockey world that Zherdev has only scratched the surface of his immense potential.

Drafted fourth overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, Zherdev’s work ethic and desire have been questioned over the course of his five NHL seasons.

Fears of GMs were so strong that after his contract expired with the New York Rangers following the 2008-09 campaign, he fielded no legitimate NHL offers for last season.  And this after maybe his most complete year, as he finished with a plus rating (+6) for the first time in his career.

After Zherdev played for Mytishchi Atlant of the Kontinental Hockey League in 2009-10, Philly GM Paul Holmgren rolled the dice and inked the 6′ 2″, 203 pound right winger to a one-year deal.

And it just might be a perfect fit.

The Orange-and-Black are loaded with defensive-minded forwards, so if Zherdev decides to take the occasional offensive gamble, it shouldn’t hurt the team in their own end.

With the opportunity to play with the likes of centers Mike Richards, Giroux, Danny Briere and Jeff Carter, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that Zherdev could top the 30-goal plateau.  Especially with the likelihood that he may see extensive time on the Flyers top power play unit.

Projection:  35 goals, 35 assists, 70 points

David Strehle
NHLHS Flyers Correspondent / NHL Writer
dstrehle@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @PhilaDAVEia

After the final horn went to officially end game five, the tell tale signs were all there that this may finally be the end of the line for the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Flyers players looked tired.  Despite outhitting the Chicago Blackhawks, 45-35, Philadelphia took the more punishing checks for a good portion of the night.

Mike Richards looked gassed.  As did Claude Giroux, Simon Gagne, and just about every other Flyer, for that matter.

Chicago forward Dustin Byfuglien laid several bone-crushing hits, particularly on Philly defenseman Chris Pronger.

Those hit appeared to take a toll on Pronger, and the defenseman finished the game a career-worst -5.

Philadelphia left the ice a defeated team Sunday night.  Chicago had beaten them in nearly every aspect of the game, and the Blackhawks needed just one more win to lock up their first Stanley Cup in 49 years.

When you have a team in this spot, you don’t do anything to provoke them.  Let a sleeping dog lie.

You use the tactic that Philadelphia Eagles coach Dick Vermeil employed back in the 1980 NFC Championship game.

Up against a tough and talented Dallas Cowboys’ team, Vermeil used the media to stroke the egos of the Cowboys players and organization during the time off leading up to the game.

By the time the contest started, Dallas thought all all they had to do was show up and they would be well on their way to the Super Bowl.

The Eagles ran all over the Cowboys for the entire 60 minutes that day, easily beating an overconfident Dallas team.

I have never forgotten that moment, and wondered why more teams haven’t used it themselves.

These past two days were the perfect time for Chicago to use Vermeil’s example, to say all the right things and hope that the Flyers went quietly into the night on Wednesday.

But instead, the struggling Chicago Tribune took the exact opposite approach and decided to publish this photo centerfold in hopes of more sales:

There is a difference between taking good-natured shots at players and crossing the line into cheap shot classlessness.

It’s rather ironic that the Tribune basically forgot about the Blackhawks, much like the rest of Chicago, during their years of futility.

Now that the team has been rebuilt and stands on the threshold of greatness, a bad sideshow was not what Chicago wanted to portray.

Pronger couldn’t have cared less:  ”I don’t read what you guys write.  Good or bad.  I really don’t care, to be honest with you.  I’m worried about playing this game.”

Perhaps the biggest disappointment in the whole situation is that the Blackhawks coach and players weren’t even involved.

Joel Quenneville must be furious.  Trying to finish off the fourth and final win in a Cup Finals is difficult enough, a task that could become even more arduous with the cheap shot.

Do you really want to anger the opposing player who has been the best on the ice for much of the series?

And if there is any justice, the hockey gods will give Pronger and the rest of his teammates a strong second wind.

And maybe even give Pronger the opportunity to do a curtsey at United Center’s center ice on Friday night with Lord Stanley raised above his head.

Worst-Kept Secret “Revealed”, Leighton Probable Starter in Game 6

Since the end of game five on Sunday night, it has been amazing to see all of the media outlets pondering which goaltender would be manning the Philadelphia crease on Wednesday night for game six.

Incumbent starter Michael Leighton was pulled after the first period of game five trailing 3-0, having given up three goals on 13 shots.

Leighton’s goals given up were not horrendous.

The first, scored by Blackhawks’ defenseman Brent Seabrook, was a deflection off of defenseman Chris Pronger’s skate.  It changed direction just enough to keep the puck away from Leighton’s waiting right pad, and ended up as a seeing-eye goal that went just between the Philly net minder’s right skate and the goal post.

That one play seemed to shift every player on the ice into a different gear.

The players in the red home team uniforms, already moving faster than their opponents, kicked it into overdrive.

And conversely, anyone in the road whites seemed to downshift into first gear.

The second goal was probably the one that Leighton would like to have back.  On a delayed Philadelphia penalty call, David Bolland’s flip banked off of Leighton’s right skate, which he didn’t get up against the post, and trickled into the net.

And Leighton played down the effect of being hit on the knee by a shot in warm ups prior to game five.

“It’s just a bruise.  It didn’t affect the way I played.  Once you get on the ice, you don’t really think about it.”

Laviolette’s pulling of Leighton in favor of Brian Boucher has been done before, most-recently in game one in Chicago.

Some even took Laviolette’s decision not to name a game six starter as a sign of not having confidence in Leighton.

But as Laviolette stated today, “Our goaltender has the best numbers in the playoffs, I didn’t think I’d have to announce it.”

Leighton has been this team’s best goaltender over the course of the entire season, and there is no reason to change that now.

Sporting an 8-2 record with a 2.34 goals-against average, Leighton has earned the right to play Wednesday night.

End of “story”.

David Strehle
NHLHS Flyers Correspondent / NHL Writer
dstrehle@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @PhilaDAVEia

And through the years, the Philadelphia Flyers have been involved in their fair share.

In the 1985 Stanley Cup Finals, Philly goaltender Pelle Lindbergh, battling dehydration, asked that a water bottle be placed on top of the net so that he could drink at stoppages.  Edmonton Oilers’ head coach Glen Sather saw it as a ruse, and wryly commented:  “What are they going to want up there next, a bucket of chicken?”

Officials allowed the bottle to be left on the net, and has since become a fixture for all goaltenders.

In the 1987 Wales Conference Finals, the Flyers took exception to a ritual of shooting the puck into the opposition’s net after everyone had cleared the ice after the pre-game warm ups by Montreal Canadiens’ forwards Claude Lemieux and Shayne Corson .

Prior to game six, Lemieux and Corson again stayed on the ice, waiting for all the players to exit after the warm ups.  But this time, Philadelphia’s tough defenseman Ed Hospodar and backup goaltender Glenn “Chico” Resch remained on the ice.

As Corson and Lemieux gathered the puck and readied to fire it into the empty Flyers cage, Resch slid his goal stick in an attempt to block the puck from entering the net, and Hospodar grabbed Lemieux and started throwing punches.

What ensued was a 15-minute donneybrook with no officials on the ice to break it up.  Players spilled back onto the ice from their respective locker rooms.  Flyers’ enforcer Dave Brown was shirtless, with just suspenders holding up his hockey pants.  Defenseman Doug Crossman was in flip flops.

The result was over $42,000 in fines for numerous players, and a suspension for Hospodar.

This season has been no different.

With the Flyers making it to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1997, some shenanigans should have been expected.

Pronger gives a not-so subtle smirk during press conference

As most NHL enthusiasts know, a winning goaltender usually likes to snatch the game puck and take it as a souvenir.

Chicago’s Antti Niemi is no different, and wanted to collect the pucks when time expired after games one and two.

After Philadelphia dropped a one-goal decision in Chicago to the Blackhawks in game one, defenseman Chris Pronger took it upon himself to pick the puck up off the ice and disappear with it into the Philadelphia locker room.

When Pronger repeated the act after game two, Blackhawks forward Ben Eager took exception and said something to the Flyers defenseman.

Pronger shot a towel at Eager, and the two got into a heated verbal exchange.  Both players received 10-minute misconducts for their troubles.

When Eager was asked what happened, he said:  “He’s been picking up pucks after the game, and I just told him he can keep it.”

When Pronger was asked what Eager said to him, he responded:  “I don’t speak that language, whatever he was speaking.  I couldn’t hear him.”

So surely Pronger would let us know what he did with the pucks when he carried them off the ice.

“It’s in the garbage.  Where it belongs.”

Ouch.

Flyers’ coach Peter Laviolette seemed amused by the entire affair.  “So what is it they’re going to do?  What added incentive do they have?  They’re angry?  It’s the playoffs.  We’re going to compete like hell (Wednesday) night.  I promise you that.  I don’t know what else they can do because we stole the puck.  I think it’s comical.”

Mike Richards added:  “I don’t have a problem with it.  If he wants to get the puck, give him the puck.  I’m not going to tell him not to.  Eager can tell him not to take it if he wants.”

Fans in the Philadelphia area have even gotten into the mix, making up their own satirical takes, even in this listing on CraigsList:  http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/clt/1770129512.html

Whichever side you take on this issue, one thing is clear.  Pronger is trying to distract the Blackhawks players, and somehow give the Flyers an edge.

And really, that’s all Pronger cares about.  Giving Philadelphia any kind of edge, no matter how small, to help break through and give his team a window of opportunity to climb back into the series.

“I don’t know.  Apparently, it got him (Eager) upset.  So I guess it worked, didn’t it?  It’s too bad.  I guess little things amuse little minds.”

And so it goes as the Blackhawks move into Philadelphia tonight to play game three against the Flyers.

Have the Philly players gotten into the Blackhwaks minds at all?  That remains to be seen.

But it isn’t for a lack of trying, especially on the part of Pronger.

David Strehle
NHLHS Flyers Correspondent / NHL Writer
dstrehle@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @PhilaDAVEia

May 24, 2010 marked the end of a dream for many a Montreal fan. What had seemed destined to happen, the Habs winning the cup that is, crumbled like Jericho after only having been circled five times. The Flyers out-hit, out-played and out-passioned Les Glorieux, and it showed in almost every game but game three. Mike Richards said about game three that the Habs delivered “a good, old fashioned ass kicking”, but the Flyers delivered the same thing pretty much every other game of the series.

If you followed the series, you would be aware that in the first three wins by the Flyers, the Habs managed to score a whooping ZERO goals, whereas they were scored on 12 times. In five games the Habs scored seven times, so unless your team is called Bruins, Devils or Sabres, there’s no way you can win with so few tallies.

Now I’ve decided not to write this piece following the typical post-loss format, i.e. analyzing what went wrong, who’s to blame, what plays need to be fixed, etc etc.

The season is over, no different strategy can be applied to win, unless you count calculating if you should try to drive over a bunch of trees to land straight on the green, or play it safe and hit it in two shots but keep it on the fairway, a strategy worth discussing for the Habs. Instead, I’m just going to shoot out anything that comes to mind about the Habs and the series in general.

• * For the second series in a row, the team opposing the Flyers successfully made Michael Leighton look like Jacques Plante or Patrick Roy. Sure Leighton has come up with some great saves, but rarely did he carry the game on his shoulders the way Halak had in series one and two.
• * Habs fans are relieved to see that for once, one of the players they drafted actually has potential. And a lot of it. I’m talking about P.K. Subban of course, who was one of the most poised and calculated players for Montreal during the conference finals, seldom making a bad play and rarely allowing himself to retaliate on a bad Flyers hit.
• * I still can’t figure out which fan base is more stupid. On one hand, we have Flyers fans who destroy Montreal journalists’ valuable equipment and vandalize their personal belongings for absolutely no reason, whereas the fine folks of Montreal go out and ransack their OWN stores and police cars for absolutely no good reason. I should have a poll on this.
• * I believe that after what he did during game 5, there will be many more of this type of caller on Montreal Radio stations. A lot of people are very frustrated with Roman Hamrlik right now. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-D6JMg1e4DM&playnext_from=TL&videos=fT37m9INqko . (*Note this is actually a real caller on Team 990 am.)
• * The Tomas Plekanec that Montreal had come to love and worship died during round two and three, and for this Habs fans are unforgiving. Just as Marco Sturm disappeared for the Bruins (goal wise, not injury wise) and Martin Brodeur disappeared for the Devils, the Canadiens’ leading point getter during the season saw his star dwindle magnificently in the eyes of the city dwellers.
• * On the other hand, the advantage of Pleky pulling a Houdini is that he’s going to be hard pressed to ask for five million a year when his contract expires soon, now that he can’t say that he can score when it counts.
• * AK and SK are dead to all Canadiens’ fans. Dead to all except one of my friends, who was suckered into buying a SK jersey last year.  Now he’s forced to wear the jersey with a sense of shame mixed in with his pride of the Habs, and it’s quite understandable. The Kost. brothers have been dead-weights to the team all year, and frankly, I’m quite sick of reading about how Sergei missed another team bus or how he stormed into the GMs office to no avail in the daily Metro newspaper.
• * As the series ended, I caught myself wondering: “can Jaroslav Halak actually carry this team the whole season next year?” Of course, his playoff run was nothing short of brilliant, and he has definitely shown that he has some worth, but inevitably the question must be asked: “was this season only a fluke?” I think it’s important that people don’t forget Halak’s past records, which have seen loads of soft goals and blowout games on his part. So, is this really Halak’s emergence, or will he re-become the league’s most detested second goalie next season?

This is where my brain stops popping up epic one-liners (according to me, anyways) so I will end this blog here. The Habs showed their worth, their determination, and a lot of resilience, and for that they deserve kudos from fans all over the league.

It was a good run.

Christopher Nardi
NHLHS Canadiens Correspondent
cnardi@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @drangonlancehuma

Back in the mid-1970′s, when the Philadelphia Flyers won their two Stanley Cups, there was a forward line that played for the Buffalo Sabres called the “French Connection”.

The threesome consisted of Hall-of-Famer Gilbert Perreault, centering wingers Rene Robert and Rick Martin, and is still one of the most prolific scoring lines in NHL history.

While Philadelphia doesn’t have an entire line made up of French-Canadian players, their playoff run thus far still has had very much of a ”French Connection”.

Quebec natives Danny Briere and Simon Gagne have definitely had a major impact on the good fortune surrounding the Flyers.

As a matter of fact, the Flyers have taken a 2-1 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals over the Canadiens and play in Montreal one more time  for game four, for the time being.

And while some of the French-Canadians on the Flyers’ roster are visiting their hometowns, there has been be no overall warm welcome for them from “La Belle Province”.

Other than the usual boos that rain down from the Bell Centre faithful every time a Canadien falls to the ice and does not result in an opposition penalty, Briere receives a healthy chorus from his detractors every time he touches the puck.

The city of Montreal never forgets when it feels that it has been betrayed.  The wounds from Briere’s decision to sign as an unrestricted free agent in Philadelphia rather than with the Canadiens in the off-season prior to the 2007-08 season still stings.

“We all know about all the boos, that has been going on the past few years.  That’s extra motivation when you jump on the ice.  As soon as I found out that we were playing Montreal, I got real excited about it.  I’ve always said I wanted to experience what it was to play against Montreal (in the playoffs) at least once in my career.  This is my second chance.  I’m just grateful for the chance to play here in the playoffs.”

When Briere was growing up, hockey’s most storied franchise was his favorite team.

“Obviously, I grew up a Montreal Canadiens fan.  To come back in this building is always a little easier motivation, I guess.  The history of the team.  We have all of our family and friends watching from even closer now.  It makes it easier to find that motivation.”

Gagne’s situation was a little bit different during his hockey-rooting years as a child.

“I was a Quebec Nordiques fan, not a Montreal fan.  Every time the Nordiques and Montreal Canadiens were facing each other, it was almost the Stanley Cup Playoffs.”

But Gagne made it perfectly clear about how it feels to be able to play in this series against Montreal, especially after missing the 2008 second round matchup because of an injury.

“I can’t lie to you.  It’s a little more special playing Montreal.  That was tough two years ago for me to not be able to be in that series.  I was hurt at that time and you have no idea how hard it was for me to be in the stands watching my teammates play against Montreal.  That’s something when you grow up, you know, it’s almost a dream to play against Montreal Canadiens in the Playoffs.”

And there is no doubting the incredible importance of the contributions of both players over the course of this postseason.

The 33-year-old Briere has been one of the steadying influences in the Flyers locker room.  Just before the postseason began, he was telling anyone who would listen that he really had a good feeling about a Flyers team that he felt was “built for the playoffs.”

Excuse the Philadelphia media contingent for doubting, but anyone who watched the Flyers over the course of a very mediocre regular season had some real issues with this team.

Briere added “We’re built as a playoff team.  We’re warriors.” After that comment, one prominent Philly-area scribe penned that he wondered if Briere had said “worriers“.  It was looking that bad at the time.

But Briere, through both his words and his play, has everyone believing now.

Briere leads the team with nine goals, and is tied for the lead in points (18) with Mike Richards.

After going pointless in the first three games against the New Jersey Devils, Briere has recorded 18 points in the last 12 Philadelphia playoff games.

Included in those totals were some huge points in the Flyers’ incredible come-from-behind, three games to none series win over the Boston Bruins.

He scored on a beauty of a length-of-the-ice dash in game one to send the game into overtime.  There was the game-winning goal in game six, and the game-tying goal and assists in the second period of game seven after the team had fallen behind 3-0 in the first.

He has also notched three power play markers, and maybe most importantly of all, Briere leads the entire NHL with four game-winning goals in the playoffs.

And what can you say about Gagne?

Here’s a guy who suffered through an early-season injury that required surgery, then struggled to find any kind of offensive rhythm until after the midway point of the Flyers’ calendar.

Gagne had notched just seven goals in his first 36 games played.  The worst part about it was that he wasn’t even getting any high-percentage scoring chances.

But everything seemed to change for him in the back end game of a home-and-home series with the Devils.

On February 10th in New Jersey, Gagne made a nice move to come off the boards with the puck and got into a scorers area in the slot, and scored the game-winner against Martin Brodeur in overtime.

The home-and-home set featured the first two times all season long that the team was able to overcome a two-goal deficit to win a game.  It did wonders for the team’s fragile chemistry, and also seemed to bolster Gagne’s confidence level.

After the NHL Olympic break, Gagne would go on to score 10 goals over the course of the remaining 22 regular season games, much more the pace that we have become accustomed to expect from number 12.

After recording just two assists in the first four games of Philadelphia’s first round series with New Jersey, Gagne blocked an Ilya Kovalchuk slap shot.  Like so many Flyers have done through the postseason, Gagne ended up getting injured in the process.  He had a non-displaced fracture in his right foot, and would require surgery.

The Flyers would finish off the Devils, but found themselves down 3-0 to the Boston Bruins.  What would follow next will be the subject of Flyers’ folklore for generations to come.

Gagne, not far-removed from crutches, returned earlier than expected for game four in Philadelphia.

When a back-breaking, last-minute goal by Mark Recchi tied the contest at 4-4 and sent the game into overtime, the Flyers were only one Bruins’ goal away from being swept by Boston and sent home for an abrupt end to the postseason.

After killing off a Darroll Powe penalty, Philadelphia was pressing with offensive-zone pressure.  Richards slipped a pass over to defenseman Matt Carle, who spotted Gagne at the far side of the Bruins’ cage.  Carle slid the puck across to Gagne, who deftly deflected it past Tuukka Rask.

Gagne’s overtime marker helped the Flyers stave off elimination, and his two goals in game five in Boston gave Philadelphia much-needed momentum.  The comeback was under way.

In the epic game seven, who else but Gagne would score the series-winning goal?   Midway through the third period, Gagne picked the far corner over Rask’s blocker side shoulder, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Both Briere and Gagne have continued their exceptional play.

Gagne is currently on a four-game goal-scoring streak, and has tallied seven goals in the seven games since his return from injury, including a goal in each of the first three games of the Eastern Conference Finals against Les Habitants.

Briere scored a goal in each of the first two contests against Montreal, and now has scored goals in nine of the last 12 games.

Where this historic playoff run comes to an end for the Orange-and-Black is hard to say.  But rest assured, Philadelphia’s “French Connection” will have a great deal to do with their ultimate success.

David Strehle
NHLHS Flyers Correspondent / NHL Writer
dstrehle@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @PhilaDAVEia

The Philadelphia Flyers have had some special teams through the years, teams that hold a place in the heart of the Philly faithful.  Even teams that have not won the Stanley Cup are held in high esteem, right up there with the Cup-winners of 1974 and 1975.

The 1980 team that went 35 games without a loss, setting a standard that still stands for all North American sports.  The 1985 Mike Keenan-led group that immediately went from also-rans to an appearance in the Finals.  The 1987 Ron Hextall-led club that took the greatest team of all-time, Wayne Gretzky and his band of Hall-of-Fame-bound Edmonton Oilers, to an incredible seven game Final series.

There have been a few others since then, but the 2010 version of the Orange-and-Black may yet be making plans for a special place in the heart and soul of Flyers fans.

It has been a strange, roller coaster-type of year in South Philadelphia.  The team has been very good for stretches, but at other times has looked like they just couldn’t wait for the season to finally and mercifully come to an end.

The one constant has seemed to be injuries, especially to their netminders.  One by one, they have fallen at different times.

Ray Emery began the season as the starter, but twice went down with injuries that were serious enough for surgery.  His hip ailment suffered in late-February brought on season-ending and possibly even career-ending surgery.

Emery’s backup to begin the year, Brian Boucher, was pressed into starting duties with Emery’s first surgery back in November.  The team was floundering, and Boucher was injured on December 21st when he suffered a lacerated finger against the Florida Panthers.

Enter waiver wire pickup Michael Leighton, who took over the surprise starting role when Boucher went out.  Leighton impressed and Philadelphia played their best hockey of the year in front of him.  Leighton would go a very solid 16-5-2 over the course of the regular season.

But Leighton’s regular season would end on March 16th in Nashville, when he suffered a high ankle sprain on a freak play against the Predators.

It was now Boucher’s team, and as the Flyers continued to ride the roller coaster down the stretch, Boucher would have to beat Henrik Lundqvist and the New York Rangers in a shootout on the final day of the regular season just to get Philly into the postseason.

Boucher caught fire in the first round, going 4-1 in dispatching the New Jersey Devils in five games.  He led all NHL goalkeepers with a 1.59 goals-against average and a .940 save percentage.

By the time the second round with the Boston Bruins began, Leighton was again skating and even began practicing with the team.

The Flyers and Boucher would lose the first three games.  Each contest was close, but Philly would fall in the end.

Things looked bleak, but the Flyers were able to pull out game four in overtime on Friday night to avoid a Boston sweep.  Simon Gagne, in his first game back after surgery to repair a fracture in his right foot suffered when blocking an Ilya Kovalchuk slap shot in game four against New Jersey, would score the game-winner in the extra period.  And Gagne’s return was ahead of schedule at that, as he was not supposed to be back during this round.

Once again facing elimination in game five on Monday night in Boston, Philadelphia refused to surrender without a fight.

Two goals by Gagne, and one each from Ville Leino and Scott Hartnell (his first in 21 games), provided plenty of offense for the Orange-and-Black in a 4-0 blanking of the Bruins.  And in doing so, Philly forced a game six, which will be Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m. at the Wachovia Center.

But once again, it would not be easy, and another goaltender would fall to injury.  Boucher started the game and Leighton dressed as the backup for the first time since his injury in Nashville in mid-March.

And once again, he was needed.

Early in the second period and with Philadelphia clinging to a 1-0 lead, Boucher dropped into the butterfly to make a save.  As he stretched backwards for the rebound, defenseman Ryan Parent fell across his legs.  Boucher immediately threw his blocker from his right hand in agony, as it appeared that both of his knees were possibly hyper-extended.  After he was helped from the ice, “Boosh” was diagnosed with MCL sprains in both knees.  He will undergo an MRI examination when the swelling in his knees subside.

Is it just coincidence that this was the first night that Leighton dressed since his injury?  Maybe, but then again, maybe there is something going on that is bigger than anything these players can imagine.

Fate can be a very fickle thing, but the way these Flyers are able to be plugged into a situation and excel when another is injured seems to suggest that something extremely special just may be going on here.

This was the first time ever that Philadelphia avoided elimination in a game five after they had trailed a series three games to none, going 0-6 all-time before Monday night.  They are 0-14 in franchise history in series they have trailed 0-3.

And the Boucher-Leighton combined shutout was the first in an NHL playoff game since 1955 and just the second in league history.  The only other was a Jacques Plante-Charlie Hodge effort for the Montreal Canadiens against, you guessed it, the Boston Bruins.

Gagne comes back early from a right foot fracture just in time to score the overtime winning goal in a possible elimination game, then scores two more in the next game.

Inspirational winger and penalty killer-extraordinaire Ian Laperriere is struck above the right eye by a Paul Martin slap shot and suffers a mild concussion and a brain contusion in game five of the Devils series.

Enter Adirondack Phantom forward Andreas Nodl to take his regular shift, and Mike Richards, Claude Giroux, Darroll Powe and Blair Betts get increased time on the PK, and it doesn’t miss a beat.  Boston is just 3-16 with the with the man-advantage in the series after using the power play as a lethal weapon in round one against the Buffalo Sabres by going 6-22.

Tonight was yet another rough game and in addition to losing Boucher, there were also other player banged up during the contest.  Forwards Giroux (possible concussion after being boarded by Steve Begin), Richards (tangled late in the game with both Marc Savard and Milan Lucic), and Danny Briere (hit with a thunderous, clean open-ice hit by Vladimir Sobotka), and defensemen Pronger (tripped into the boards awkwardly by Blake Wheeler), and Braydon Coburn were all feeling the effects after the game.

Forward Daniel Carcillo was questionable before the game tonight, but ended up playing in a game-time decision.

There are whispers starting that if Philly can somehow get this series to a seventh game, team leading goal-scorer Jeff Carter, who also fractured his right foot in the same game as Gagne when he was hit with a Chris Pronger slap shot, may possibly be available to play.

So if any of the above-mentioned forwards cannot go if a game seven becomes a reality, Carter may be able to fill another vacancy.

It’s the textbook definition of “team”,  not just having one superstar that they cannot succeed without in their lineup.  Instead, they have player after player step up at the right time, night after night, especially when so many are unable to play.

With like amounts of desire, grit and determination, this team has gone from making the playoffs on the last day of the regular season to an improbable postseason run that could be destined for something big.  In the process, this 2009-10 version of the Philadelphia Flyers are taking a mediocre regular season and turning this postseason into something to remember.

There is still much work to do, and they haven’t won anything yet.  Truth is, it’s very rare that a team that is down 0-3 even forces a game seven, let alone pull off what just two teams in the entire history of the NHL have accomplished.

But whether last night’s victory over the Bruins was just a desperate team playing the perfect, disciplined road game and only delaying the inevitable, or if there is an incredible comeback yet to be witnessed, these Flyers, much like that 1987 team that forced a game seven against Edmonton in the Finals, are showing the heart and soul that the fans clamored for all season.

And maybe, even as the Versus Network commercial campaign suggests, “History Will be Made”.

Stay tuned…

David Strehle
NHLHS Flyers Correspondent / NHL Writer
dstrehle@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @PhilaDAVEia

Philadelphia Flyers by Dave Strehle

The Philadelphia Flyers were the first team to finish off their first round opponent.  And the eight days of rest between series will come in handy as the team limps into round two against the Boston Bruins.

Philadelphia held a 2-1-1 mark against Boston during the regular season.  The Flyers’ two wins against the B’s were early in the regular season, and Boston beat the Orange-and-Black in the NHL Winter Classic on New Year’s Day, as well as a 5-1 thumping at the Wachovia Center in March.

During their regular season set, goaltender Brian Boucher won his only start, and defenseman Kimmo Timonen led the team in scoring with two goals and three points.  Boston outscored the Flyers 11-9.  Philadelphia’s power play was 1-9, and the Bruins were 2-9.

With forwards Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne and Ian Laperriere all out with injuries sustained against the New Jersey Devils, the team will need other players to step up and fill the void left by their absences.  Mike Richards (2 G, 8 P) Claude Giroux (4 G, 6 P), Chris Pronger (2G, 5 P) and Danny Briere (2 G, 5 P) will all need to continue their high level of play exhibited in the first round ouster of New Jersey.  Boucher (4-1, 1.59 GAA, .940 save %) outplayed living-legend Martin Brodeur, and another strong showing will be needed as Boston’s Tuukka Rask has been stellar since taking over the reigns as the number one for the Bruins.

Additional offensive contributions from forwards Scott Hartnell and James van Riemsdyk would also be very helpful.  Both forwards registered just one assist in the first round.

One thing the Flyers must do is be patient and play with a disciplined aggression.  They can ill-afford to be shorthanded as many times as they were in the series with the Devils, especially with the Bruins power play coming to life in the series against the Buffalo Sabres.  And with news that slick-passing center Marc Savard has been given medical clearance to play round two, that aspect is even more important.

To fill Laperriere’s spot, coach Peter Laviolette hinted that he may give van Riemsdyk, and even newly inserted injury-replacement Andreas Nodl, time on the penalty killing unit, with Giroux and Darroll Powe seeing increased time when a man short.

Expect an extremely physical, tight checking, low-scoring, grind-it-out, long series.  And if the Flyers can play a disciplined, defensive brand of hockey where they wait for turnovers to create offensive chances, Philadelphia could make a return trip to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in two years.

Boston Bruins by Brandon Macdonald

They were the last NHL team to secure a spot in the postseason, but the first to move on to the second round.  And even though they have no idea which team they will face in round two at this juncture, the Philadelphia Flyers are enjoying their break between series.

Especially with such gut-wrenching games over the past two weeks.  They had to battle for their very postseason lives down the stretch, clinching a spot with a shootout win over the New York Rangers on the last day of the regular season.

For some teams, such a layoff in between series could be a disruption of their momentum.  But this may just be a blessing in disguise for the Orange-and-Black.  It’s a time to nurse the injuries for the walking wounded.

Forwards Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne both are out for at least round two with right foot fractures.  Ian Laperriere is still nursing a non-displaced fracture over his right eye after taking a Colin White slapshot to the face.  When we last saw Arron Asham during the series-clincher in New Jersey on Thursday night, his right eye was swollen to the point of almost not being able to see out of it.

The team finds this break a welcome relief, and it could end up being a week between series for the Flyers.

The opponent is most likely going to be the Washington Capitals.  If they win their game tonight in Montreal or game seven back in Washington against the Canadiens, Philadelphia will open up against the Capitals later in the week.

But if the Canadiens can pull off a miracle by taking the last two remaining games and upset the President’s Trophy-winning Capitals, there are two other teams the Orange-and-Black could end up facing.  Depending on the certain scenarios, they could play either the Boston Bruins or the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The only team they cannot face in round two is the Buffalo Sabres.

But the other scenarios all depend on a Washington loss in addition.

Should Washington and the Sabres both lose, Philadelphia would play Boston.  Should Washington and the Bruins both lose, the Flyers would play Pittsburgh.

The only two certainties at this time are that Philadelphia will open their next series on the road, and if Washington wins tonight, they are the team’s second round foe.

But whichever team ends up being their next opponent, the Flyers are all too aware that they cannot afford any more injuries.

With Carter and Gagne out, head coach Peter Laviolette plugged Ville Leino and David Laliberte into their spots in the lineup.

Though neither ended up on the score sheet in Thursday night’s game, both fit in nicely.  Leino played almost 15 minutes and Laliberte 5:32, and both even saw some time on the power play unit.

The beautiful thing about this team is the depth at the forward position.  While the prospect of playing this series without Carter and Gagne isn’t pleasant, the Flyers have the scoring to survive.

With Mike Richards and Danny Briere playing increased time, and a revitalized performance from youngsters Claude Giroux and James van Riemsdyk, Philadelphia could still be alright offensively.

But it is imperative that they the team gets continued health and Herculean efforts from their defensive corps, especially stalwarts Chris Pronger and Kimmo Timonen.  Matt Carle and Braydon Coburn have also been seeing increased ice time, both having played over 23 minutes each in Thursday’s series-clincher against the Devils.

As long as the top four defensemen continue playing as well as they have been, and with a repeat performance by goaltender Brian Boucher, the Orange-and-Black should be in good shape for whatever team comes knocking at week’s end.

The Gift of Gab – What They’re Saying:

Peter Laviolette:  “I think a couple days of rest, with the grind we had down the stretch to get into the playoffs and then go through the first five game, we’ll take advantage of days like yesterday and today (Friday and Saturday) where you get a little bit of rest and a little bit of practice.”

Chris Pronger:  “For us, we’re pretty banged up. It gives guys a chance to catch a breather and get healthy.  Also, today was a good practice day.  We haven’t had a whole lot of practice time over the last month or month-and-a-half.  It was a pretty up-tempo, hard skate out there.  We had a pretty grueling stretch drive.”

Danny Briere:  “It’s definitely welcome at this point.  Lots of guys have been playing with lots of different injuries that we didn’t have a chance to let heal because games were so important.  With the break here, it certainly is going to help us.  I enjoyed myself watching the games last night. It’s an exciting time of the year.  Once you get eliminated it’s a lot tougher to watch, but last night and today again it’s going to be a lot more enjoyable watching other teams beat each other up while we’re waiting for our next opponent.”

David Strehle
NHLHS Flyers Correspondent / NHL Writer
dstrehle@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @PhilaDAVEia

In what has been discussed time and time again, the National Hockey Leagues second season, also known as the Stanley Cup Playoffs, is all about goaltending.

Jonathan Quick of the Los Angeles Kings, Brian Boucher of the Philadelphia Flyers, Roberto Luongo of the Vancouver Canucks, Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins, Ilya Bryzgalov of the Phoenix Coyotes, Ryan Miller of the Buffalo Sabres, Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators, Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils, Evgeni Nabokov of the San Jose Sharks, Marc-Andre Fleury of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Antti Niemi of the Chicago Blackhawks, Brian Elliot of the Ottawa Senators, Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings, Jaroslav Halak of the Montreal Canadiens, Craig Anderson of the Colorado Avalanche as well as both Jose Theodore and Seymon Varlamov of the Washington Capitals have not only stepped up to make some amazing saves but have been able to keep each and every series even or close enough to it.

On top of their in-game play, there have been some sensational saves throughout the opening round of these playoffs.  Boucher, Luongo, Quick and others have been outstanding, Anderson has set new records but Pekka Rinne’s stop on Chicago’s Patrick Sharp is one that stands out the most. Although the Hawks beat the Predators yesterday, that series remains up in the air with no clear cut favorite at this point.

Yes, as I mentioned, Craig Anderson made 50 saves in regulation yesterday, which has become the new record for saves in regulation time for a playoff game.  He is the backbone to the Avalanche advancing and so far, so good.

Sidney Crosby and Braydon Coburn have both played “hero” in saving their netminders and team by stopping goals as well.  Crosby slid across the crease with the puck standing on the goal line to keep the Senators off the score board. Another stand out moment during these playoffs.

We also were able to witness two hat tricks in one game when Montreal’s Andrei Kostitsyn and Washington’s Nicklas Backstrom did so in game 2 of their Eastern Conference playoff series.

Henrik Zetterberg of the Detroit Red Wings also has a three goal game to his credit in this first round. Evgeni Malkin has a goal per game for his Penguins.  Mike Richards has been a man possessed for the Philadelphia Flyers. And the list goes on.

In these playoffs, outside of goaltending, it all rests on the players that take their game to the next level. In that game 2 between the Canadiens and Capitals, Nicklas Backstrom was on player who truly took his game up a notch.  Showing people Peter Forsberg like skills, Backstrom had a four point affair helping the Capitals gain a much needed victory in what was likely the most important period and game of their season.

It has been a wild and crazy start to the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs, to say the least.

Joe Depto, a writer here at the hot stove as well as one part of the brand known as The Hockey Guys, called yesterday “Separation Sunday”.

The Colorado Avalanche, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Phoenix Coyotes all took control of their series; at least by the series records.

With that, if yesterday was any indication to what is in store for us tonight you better have your jersey on tight and your seat prepared in front of your television sets.  It’s only going to keep getting better.

What is YOUR favorite moment from these playoffs so far?

Anthony Curatolo
NHLHS Senior Writer
acuratolo@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @HockeyGuy_AC