Flyers one win away from Philly sports lore
Philadelphia Flyers news on Philly.com
Flyers one win away from Philly sports lore
Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer
The 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs. (Loud applause, please.)
The 1975 New York Islanders. (Chico Resch was the man.)
The 2004 Boston Red Sox. (Still can’t believe it happened.)
They are the only three professional sports teams to ever win a playoff series after losing the first three games.
The Flyers, amazingly, will try to become the fourth.
“You know it’s certainly not a path that you would like to choose. You’d rather have done things differently through the course of the year and then the playoffs,” Flyers coach Peter Laviolette said after his team outlasted the Boston Bruins, 2-1, at the reverberating Wachovia Center on Wednesday to even the made-for-theatre series at three games apiece.
Game 7 is Friday in Boston.
“Like I said two days ago, the players deserve a tremendous amount of credit because they won't quit,” said Laviolette, whose seventh-seeded team would face eighth-seeded Montreal and get the home-ice advantage in the conference finals if it wins Friday. “Every time they are pushed, they push back. They are a very resilient group out there; they won't go away, and it’s become a strength of ours.
“I think based on things that have happened throughout the year, down the stretch and through the first round _ the adversity we’ve faced _ I feel like we are conditioned to it now.”
Goalie Brian Boucher suffered knee injuries in the second period of Game 5 on Monday, and was replaced by Michael Leighton, who made 14 saves to complete the Flyers’ 4-0 win in Boston.
On Wednesday, Leighton was superb, stopping 30 of 31 saves and looking in peak form _ even though it was his first playoff start ever….and his first start since March 16.
Laviolette was asked if part of his job was to keep the team grounded and not overconfident for Game 7.
“Well I think that’s been the message…..and that’s been the road we've been going down,” he said. “About being grounded, we are going have to play a better hockey game. I am going to be honest with you. Our game will have to be better in Boston than it was tonight.”
The Flyers found a way to win despite winning just 39 percent of the faceoffs, and managing just 43 shots (27 on goal) compared to Boston’s 79 (31 on goal).
They won because they blocked 30 shots, because Mike Richards and Danny Briere continued their playoff magic, because Leighton looked like the guy who went 16-5-2 in the regular season, and because they outscored the Bruins, 1-0, in special teams.
And because they continued to show the grit that, with a win in Game 7, will make them a part of Philadelphia’s rich sports lore _ even if they don't win the Stanley Cup.
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For continual Flyers updates, follow me on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/BroadStBull.
MichaelZoe- "the Pronger Effect"...I remember a couple of months ago when that meant "creating divisions in a locker room." Holmgren brought in Timonen, Briere, Coburn, Asham, Carcillo, Lapperiere, Hartnell, Boucher, Leighton, Pronger, Carle, etc...You may have criticized every one of them for an individual mistake,,,I think they have played well lately. Aren't the playoffs what matter? The team has been built for the Stanley Cup. I would much rather a gritty team that battles for every inch of ice, than have the San Jose Sharks who notoriously coast through the season, and then coast out of the playoffs.— Hexy4GM
dedhed-Sounds like an excuse, but JVR is playing in a game way over the amount of games previously played. I am actually excited that he will be better next season with better strength. He is playing well, though. Not superstar (PKane) level, def a top 6 forward. Game 7 is gonna be tough. The first five minutes will be huge. Take out the crowd, and get a lead please! go flyers!- Hey ChrisM---- I'll tell ya where all the Boston fans are.... They are in the fetal position up there on the Boston Globe Comments section...lol. They Love me up there....LMAO... Seriously tho--- The comments are sad. Pathetic. Weird--actually. The fans have just---given up! In fact---their boards are so depressing... You would feel bad leaving a nasty message. BUT.....be sure....they will be crawling out of the moldy woodwork if the Bruins win tonight. Anyuway...if you wanna get the pulse of wtf it is all about up there...hit the Boston Globe message boards. Seurat— Neno
- This has been a fun ride, all the way back from making the playoffs on one save in a shootout on the last day of the regular season to being on the brink down 3 games to none. Whatever the outcome tonight, it's been a fun last 6 weeks. Thanks FLYERS!— kozykoz26
- Look at all the comments all of the sudden. I watched and read all year long. Dont hurt yourselves falling off the bandwagon, its a long drop.— Jack Hammer
- To the idiot---Jack Hammer.... an't you tell people are excited. Of course more on here now. Especially in light of history about to be made. Go away dude. You just don't get it...and...I'm glad you don't. The likes of you and your thought process...is such a negative mentality. I pity your wife/GF/BF, whatever... You sound like such a plebian. That'll send ya to the dictionary...huh, idiot?...lol. I scrape things like you off the bottom of my shoe. Seurat— Neno
