For Flyers, it's Washington or (hopefully) Boston
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Flyers Report: Broad Street Bull
For Flyers, it's Washington or (hopefully) Boston
Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Flyers can't be took happy that they are going to have to wait an extra day before they start their Eastern Conference semfiinals. They are antsy and eager to continue the momentum they built during their first-round dismantling of the New Jersey Devils.
But, truth be told, they could be VERY happy if they end up facing Boston _ and not Washington _ in the next round.
That became a stronger possibility when top-seeded Washington was jolted by eighth-seeded Montreal, 4-1, on Monday. Jaroslav Halak made 53 saves _ many of which were spectacular _ to highlight the win. It was the fourth-highest save total for a Montreal goalie in the frachise's storied playoff history
Washington will host the Canadiens in Game 7 Wednesday, with the winner moving to the conference semifinals.
Boston, seeded sixth, earned a semifinal berth by ending its series with a 4-3 win over third-seeded Buffalo on Monday.
For the seventh-seeded Flyers, it has come down to this: If Washington wins _ as I think they will _ on Wednesday, the Caps will face the Flyers in the next round.
If Montreal upsets Washington, the Flyers would meet Boston in Round 2.
The Boston matchup is much more favorable for the Flyers. The Bruins finished with 91 points, while Washington finished with a league-best 121 points.
The Flyers, who accumlated 88 points during the season, were 1-3 against Washington and were outscored, 22-13.
The Flyers were 2-1-1 against Boston, including a controversial 2-1 overtime loss to the Bruins at Fenway Park in the Winter Classic. In that Jan. 1 game, Boston appeared to score the winning goal with too many men on the ice.
Peter Laviolette's team will start the next round on the road. Game 1 is tentatively scheduled for Friday.
The Flyers, having not played since Thursday, will be much more rested than their opponent.
"There have been lots of cases where teams have had time off and they’ve won the Cup, and lots of cases where a team has had time off and laid an egg," coach Peter Laviolette said, hoping his team falls into the former category.
.
The Broad St Pansies better hope that it the Capitols, your players can't hit with the Bruins— dropthedamnpuck- I would like to face the Bruins more so than the Caps because the Bruins play a style that is far more similar to the Devils who we just beat. They have tremendous goaltending and a strong defense but especially with all their injuries, their offense can be lacking.— AbsoluteIrish
- I'd rather see the FLYERS face Washington. I don't care what they did in the regular season. Their power play vs. Montreal has been nonexistant, they have serious goaltending problems, and suspect defense. Contrast that with Boston who are playing solid, playoff-style hockey with excellent goaltending. I'd rather see Washington.— NYFootballGIANTS
- Most hockey fans predict the winner of game 7's based on one measurement- goalkeeper. Washington has yet to announce who is starting tomorrow, while Montreal got one of the best performances by a keeper this season. It was right up there with Craig Anderson's performance against the Sharks in game 3 or 4, I forget which game it was. Montrel pulls off the huge upset tomorrow. Semin and Ovechkin appear to be crumbling from the pressure. Tomorrow will be more pressure.— AreaMan
