Flyers win in OT
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Flyers win in OT
Rich Hofmann, Daily News Sports Columnist
That the Flyers went into Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final trying to make history pretty much goes without saying. But there is history and there is history.
And there is this: no team in the annals of North American professional sports -- no team, not one, not ever -- has won a playoff series after losing the first three games, won another playoff series after losing the first two games, and ended up winning the championship in the end.
That is what the Flyers were trying to do.
They dig holes in series. They dig holes in games. They lost the first two games of the Final to the Chicago Blackhawks and they trailed by 3-2 in the third period of Game 3. Down, down, it hasn’t seemed to matter. Truth be told, the Flyers dig and dig and kind of seem to like it underground. While the rest of us wait and watch and look for signs that the canary’s breath is labored, they just keep digging out.
When Ville Leino scored the tying goal in the third period, you thought the roof was going to blow off of the Wachovia Center. As a tense and taut 3-3 game wound down, through the rest of regulation and then into overtime, you wondered if it really might be happening again.
Then, it did:
The Flyers’ Claude Giroux redirected a pass from teammate Matt Carle and scored at 5:59 of overtime and, well, we suddenly have a series after all. With their 4-3 victory, the Flyers now trail the Blackhawks by two games to one in the series.
It keeps happening. The story of the Flyers’ never-say-diedness is so corny that it is becoming embarrassing to type the sentence. But it just keeps happening.
The Flyers got the game’s first goal, from Danny Briere -- who was the recipient of a behind-the-back, diving, falling down pass from Scott Hartnell. The Blackhawks tied it early in the second period on a shot by defenseman Duncan Keith that deflected off of the stick of Flyers forward Jeff Carter.
The Flyers took the 2-1 lead later in the second period on a shot deflected by Hartnell that just barely sneaked over the goal line. The initial call on the ice was no goal, but after a review -- and the viewing of one particular replay that showed just a sliver of white ice between the goal line and the puck -- the goal was counted.
About 8 minutes later, though, the Blackhawks tied it again on a long shot through traffic by Blackhawks defenseman Brent Sopel. Flyers goaltender Michael Leighton barely reacted as it flew by on his stick side. And then, at 2:50 of the third period, Chicago’s Patrick Kane got behind the Flyers’ defense and scored on a breakaway. The Blackhawks had their first lead of the game and the Flyers were staring again at the precipice of 0-3 in a playoff series.
Then Leino, so good with the puck, so patient, was the recipient of a fortunate bounce off of a Chicago defenseman’s skate -- and he didn’t miss. His goal tied the score at 3-3 and then the tense, long ending played out.
The Flyers had the best of the chances in the third period, but Chicago goaltender Antti Niemi -- as he had in the first two games -- played very well as the heat and the tension grew. The Flyers outshot the Blackhawks by 15-4 in the third period, and by 31-25 over the first three periods.
But shots don’t win Stanley Cup games, not by themselves.
At 5:02 of overtime came the close call. Simon Gagne took a shot from the circle to Niemi’s right, and the puck hit the left post and then slithered slowly along the red goal line. It was tight, but referee Bill McCreary correctly ruled that it was no goal, and his ruling was upheld by another video review.
Which meant that everyone had to wait a few more minutes, for Giroux, for another step back out of another hole.
We have the Hawks thinking now. They may start to feel a little pressure, and that pressure will increase substantially when we smoke them in game four. Let's Go Flyers Lets Go!!— piercit- AWESOME !!!! although, i held my breath every time carter touched the puck. it always end up as a hawk rush. he also had quite a few chances to clear the puck unmolested and completely failed. i know he has broken feet, but he made unwise decisions all night.— love park
- parsons51 - almost 50 years since the Hawk's last Cup and you actually comment you don't want to see them win it on Versus? What - they don't run cable out there? The Flyers can win this thing on the Food Network for all I care! Flyers in 6. At least it will be on NBC for you, so get your rabbit ear antennas tuned right!— KDH
best 5-3 OT win ever— Pelti- We need game 4! Let's win one big (stress relief?) and send them back to Chicago doubting themselves. Go Flyers!— flyerphanorange
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I just hope the series isn't won or lost on a play like 5 minutes into OT when the question of weather a whistle was blown or not never entered into the equation. I don't think I could take it. Unless it was the Flyers winning. Find another gear. Crazy. BEAT CHICAGO!- KDH - I get NBC in HD on the Dish out here in Hawaii but I have to watch Versus on the computer. I'll be in Chicago next week so if it goes seven I may see it live. But it's not going seven. It wasn't about Versus as much as it was about lifting the Stanley Cup after all these years in Philly. It just sounds a little cheap. The Madhouse on Madison, as it should be! Next year, I don't care where they win it.— parsons51
- Just keep talking Hawks fans. Outplayed in two of three games (game 1 was almost a wash). We know you're nervous. I know you need this because it must suck living in the midwest but the Flyers want it more.— flyerphanorange
- Just keep talking Hawks fans. Outplayed in two of three games (game 1 was almost a wash). We know you're nervous. I know you need this because it must suck living in the midwest but the Flyers want it more.— flyerphanorange
- Just keep talking Hawks fans. Outplayed in two of three games (game 1 was almost a wash). We know you're nervous. I know you need this because it must suck living in the midwest but the Flyers want it more.— flyerphanorange
- That's the way we FLY guys!— petergou
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- agreed lefty. i hope we get a chance to clinch in philly. this team is why we watch sports.— thinkdontspew
- Mele Kalikimaka, parsons51. I still say Flyers in 6.— KDH
