Boucher could backup in Game 1
Daily News Flyers blog
Boucher could backup in Game 1
Two weeks ago, Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said that Brian Boucher’s season was likely over.
Boucher left Game 5 in Boston with MCL sprains in both his right and left knees – and he needed help to be carried off the ice. At that point, the Flyers trailed the Bruins, 3-2, in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Now, Boucher is back practicing with the Flyers – his fourth or fifth time skating since the injury – with hopes that he will be in uniform on Saturday in Chicago for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
“Nobody told me that the season was over for me,” Boucher said. “It wasn’t like I didn’t think I had a chance. I guess this is about where I thought I’d be. For me, I just wanted to work – and there were some hurdles I needed to get over to get to this point.
“Knock on wood, there weren’t any setbacks. So it’s nice to be around the guys again.”
Boucher said there is a chance he could be ready to backup Michael Leighton on Saturday.
“I think there is a chance, yeah,” Boucher said. “I think today was a day to get through, and it went very well. My goal is to be good enough to go for Game 1 and help in any way.”
Since returning to the ice, he’s had to overcome the mental anxiety of re-injuring himself and dealing with the pain at the same time – which doctors said will linger for “at least another month,” Boucher said.
“It’s very methodical. You’ve got to think about your movements. You don’t want to put yourself in a situation where you might hurt yourself. Today, there was less thinking and it was more just about stopping the puck and moving in situations where I would in a game.”
Boucher was 6-4 for the Flyers in the playoffs this year with a 2.33 goals against average and a .920 save percentage.
For the latest updates, follow Frank Seravalli on Twitter (http://twitter.com/DNFlyers).
booch will be back. hey 9th if you got bridges, go jump off one. booooshhhhh!!! you can't honestly say leighton has been more valuable to this team then boucher— chrissays- ok everybody, lets take a deep breath here. I am as big a Flyers fan as anyone but Boosh was nothing more than an adequate goalie behind a great defense for the run and I still can't see where his play was masterful down the stretch. Their record was only 9-6 in their last 15 games of the season, hardly Venzia worthy. That being said I'd love to see him as backup for the Cup finals.— djembe323
- I'm afraid the minute they decide to dress Booooosh, Leighton will get injured in the second period! That's just the way things have been going all year long.— Pelle31
Leighton's on a roll at the moment. Let him Roll. I'd love Boosh to be in it too. Remember Leights wasn't 100% when he came in but thank god he did. Both of these guys need to be on the Cup if we win.— flyler- I agree he's not Vezina worthy, but he is the most durable netminder the Flyers have had this year. Was an unfornate time for him to go down with injury. Boooouch! With that said, Leighton continues to get the job done.— Marty Riley
- Leighton giving up 4 in period against the hawks is not a reach. This team has an offense. He's not going to be in a bubble anymore.— eagle1971
- eagle, I think that both of our guys have that potential, though, don't you? Boosh has had his share of bad stretches as any goalie does. But I can't imagine that two MCL sprains aren't going to be a limiting factor in his movement. Plus, when we get down to it, we're talking about pulling a goalie who has three shutouts in his past three games. I mean, that sounds kind of nuts! I agree that Leighton (like Boucher) has really benefitted from the defense we've been playing, but the thing about Leighton is that he's so frickin' big he blocks a lot of tough shots (and deflections) simply due to his size. The one thing I worry about is that he seems kind of slow adjusting to the puck moving from one side of the net to the other. A couple of the Montreal goals were like that, and it seemed like Leighton's a bit slow in adjusting to those kinds of "puck-behind-the-net" plays. Personally I think each guy is best when coming in and "saving the day." Boosh did it in a big way when Leighton went down, and now Leighton's just returning the favor!— elpel
- Shoot. I meant three shutouts in his past five games. Proofread, elpel, proofread!— elpel
- Riley...really? A "perfect" scenario for you would be for the Flyers goalie, Leighton, to let in ...nit just 1 but 4(!!!!) goals...in the first period???!! Perfect?? Do you root for the villains in movies, too?— mebphila
- As the backup— hmitch
- Wow I bet the Hawks are shaking in their skates with this news.— 5_4_Fighting
- I don't want Boucher anywhere near the net. If he didn't get hurt the season would be over.— bobbyd24
- Booosh can backup if he's fit, but Leighton should play unless he gets hurt. Having a hot goalie is one of the key ingredients to winning a Stanley Cup and no one is hotter then Leighton right now. You just don't take a hot goalie out this time of year.— Jangocat
- Leighton is our goalie. He has earned it. It will be great to have Boucher available just in case. There is room in the spot light for both and they both deserve credit, but Leighton has been excellent and you have to go with the hot hand.— thephan
Boooosshhhh!!!!— Inchon
