Phil Sheridan: Flyers gain respect, if not next round

The incredible thing, when you stop to think about what we've already seen, is this: Whoever wins this series between the Flyers and Boston Bruins will be only halfway to the Stanley Cup.

This tournament really is that demanding, that grueling, that torturous. It really does require two months of emotional and physical punishment, of bitter disappointment and utter exhilaration.

There is little chance the Flyers will get the chance to complete the mission. NHL teams that are down three games to one in best-of-seven series prevail less than 9 percent of the time, according to WhoWins.com, a website that tracks these things.

Look at the Detroit Red Wings, a team stocked with players who reached the final round the last two years (and won the Cup in 2008). They fell behind San Jose, three games to none, then won Game 4 by an attention-getting 7-1 score. That momentum didn't carry the Red Wings very far. They lost Game 5 in San Jose, 2-1, on Saturday night.

Whatever happens Monday in Boston, the Flyers have accomplished something in this postseason. A confounding, disappointing team for much of the regular season, they have redefined themselves as mentally tougher and more resilient than anyone had reason to believe a month ago.

Back then, they were free-falling through the standings. After losing a win-and-they're-in game at Madison Square Garden on the final weekend of the season, the Flyers needed a shoot-out win at home to qualify for the postseason.

There wasn't much for this team to boast about at that point. They had gotten their head coach, the very capable John Stevens, fired early in the season. They had played well enough during one stretch that their otherwise inconsistent performances were all the more maddening. They struggled after the Olympic break, as if they were the only team that had to regroup after the layoff.

As the regular season ended, the Flyers seemed better at rationalizing their poor play than at raising their game. They seemed more like a team in need of an overhaul than a team that could challenge anyone for a title.

Now? The odds remain long against Mike Richards raising the Cup this season, but these Flyers won some respect over the last month. They played extremely well against the New Jersey Devils, taking control of the series on the road and keeping the pressure on to win in five games. If anything, they were too efficient. The long layoff between rounds contributed to the Flyers' ragged play in Game 1 in Boston.

Along the way, the Flyers lost Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne, Ian Laperriere and now, apparently, Dan Carcillo to injury. Carter was hurt after returning early from a broken foot. Gagne broke a toe blocking a shot, had surgery, and came back in time to score the overtime game-winner Friday.

It was exactly the kind of soul-stirring performance that can carry a team for a couple of games. If the Flyers had just been able to win one of those first three games - and they were in position to win each of them - it would be impossible to pick against them in this series.

But they fell short in those games and now the odds are long, long, long. Adding to their burden, a miracle in this round would send them shorthanded and exhausted into the conference final - likely against their nemeses, the Pittsburgh Penguins. That's some prize.

Back in December, when Stevens was fired, the only question worth asking was whether the change gave the Flyers a better chance of surpassing the Sidney Crosby-led Penguins and Alex Ovechkin-led Washington Capitals. The answer seemed obvious: no.

The Flyers outlasted the Capitals. The way they've been playing for Peter Laviolette, it would be something to see how a full squad would do against the defending champion Penguins. Instead, an injury-depleted Boston squad is likely to see its season ended by Crosby and Co.

The Flyers have gained a very real sense that they can be a contending team next year. There is work to be done: a front-line goaltender would be a good place to start, and it wouldn't hurt to add another, preferably younger defenseman with some presence. But there is enough intel now to believe that a full season under Laviolette would be a winning season.

The longer the Flyers can extend this postseason, the more reason they will give themselves and their fans to believe. A win in Game 5 just might lift them a win at home in Game 6. And then, well, who knows?

They could be halfway on a journey they very nearly missed altogether.