Outside TD Garden, they unveiled a statue of Bobby Orr in the afternoon. Game 5 is tonight. Elimination stares at the Flyers again, and now Orr. So...
1) Dan Carcillo. Hampered by what has been reported to be a knee problem (which the club has declined to confirm), Carcillo missed much of Game 4 on Friday night. At the skate before Game 5, though, he looked just fine. What gives? "Game-time decision," Carcillo said. Asked if he needed a doctor's OK, Carcillo said, "Ultimately, it's up to me." Based upon that, most expect him to play.
2) A fast start. This is a recording, but the Flyers desperately need to show up at the beginning of this game. Both of these teams are beat up and tired at this point in the series, and the Bruins -- who have every reason to feel good about themselves, up 3-1 in the series and coming home -- will have the early adrenaline. The Flyers will need to match it. When someone asked Flyers coach Peter Laviolette about the importance of the first 10 minutes of the game, he countered, "First 5 minutes." The start is that vital.
3) Protecting leads. You may have noticed that -- with the exception the Bruins in the third period of Game 3 -- neither team has been able to hang onto a lead for anything. The most recent example was Game 4, when the Flyers blew a 3-1 lead in the second period and a 4-3 lead in the last minute of regulation time before winning in overtime. Asked about why both teams have been so inept when in front, Laviolette said, essentially, "I don't know." Maybe it is simply what happens when a No. 6 seed plays a No. 7 seed.