Questions in face of Flyers' adversity

Skating without two of their top six forwards in Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne tonight at the Prudential Center for Game 5 of their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series against the Devils, the Flyers will undoubtedly be faced with a lot of questions.

Here is how they might answer them:

* How will the Flyers fill the scoring void?

The timing of Carter's injury is unfortunate because Carter had just broken through his six-game scoring slump, scoring his first goals of the series Tuesday before he got hurt again.

Gagne had not scored in the postseason and Game 4 was his 10th straight game without a goal.

Ville Leino, who will be inserted into the lineup tonight, is no slouch. Leino has just six goals this season, but he has some of the best hands on the team and consistently dominates in one-on-one battle drills in practices.

Leino has playoff experience, too. He picked up two assists for Detroit in four games in the Stanley Cup Finals last season, when he also filled in as an injury replacement.

"Everybody wants to play in the playoffs," Leino said yesterday. "It's been tough for me to sit and watch. From what I remember, it was really fun to play in the playoffs. Playoffs are fast."

Leino played in eight straight games at the end of the regular season - and had his best game, coincidentally, against the Devils (on March 28, when he scored the game-winner) - but still found himself in street clothes for the final two regular season games when Carter was able to return from his fractured left foot.

"It's frustrating to stay out, especially if you feel like you've been playing good and producing," Leino said. "It's frustrating but now you want to play against and show what you've got."

David Laliberte, the other replacement, scored in each of his first two NHL games this season.

"I think I'm going to play my game," Laliberte said. "I'm just going to try to jump in and do what everyone else is doing and do my best.

"I learned that I need to be consistent, that is the biggest point."

Laliberte, who will likely skate on the fourth line, finished his season in the AHL with 18 goals and 48 points.

At this point, Mike Richards and Claude Giroux will need to carry the Flyers' scoring load. They also need that secondary scoring from players like Dan Carcillo, defenseman Chris Pronger and other forwards on the third and fourth lines.

James van Riemsdyk also has not scored in the first four games of this series.

* Who will replace Gagne on the penalty kill?

The Flyers will likely fill Gagne's spot on the penalty kill by committee, but Darroll Powe could receive the bulk of the work.

Powe, a speedy but gritty center, has never been afraid to dig for loose pucks along the walls or block shots. His speed could give the Flyers a boost for a possible shorthanded attempt, especially if the Devils use five forwards on their power play instead of three forwards and two defensemen.

Arron Asham could also see time on the Flyers' kill, which has negated 20 of 24 New Jersey power plays. The Devils have scored their only power-play goals in the last two games.

* How will the Flyers manage in the faceoff circle?

Carter had not been operating at peak efficiency on faceoffs since he returned from his injury on April 9.

In the first four games of this series, Carter broke 50 percent in faceoffs just once. In the other three games, he averaged just 40.5 percent efficiency.

Therefore, the onus will remain on the Flyers' other centers - Richards, Blair Betts and Powe - to pick up the slack. As a whole, the Flyers rank 11th of the 16 playoff teams in faceoffs. It could be an integral part of the game if the Flyers are being dominated by the Devils, which could lead to a bevy of defensive-zone faceoffs. Puck possession starts with winning faceoffs.

Richards said yesterday that the playoffs are all about finding "unlikely heroes." For the Flyers to survive this round - and make it through another - they're going to need help from players they haven't counted on much this season.

"You wish you had a healthy lineup and certainly wish they were in there, but they're not. You got to make adjustments," coach Peter Laviolette said. "We've been through this before with goaltenders and other players.

"Life will be about an opportunity tomorrow night for someone to step up and grab some more minutes and make the most of them."

For more news and analysis, read Frank Seravalli's blog, Frequent Flyers, at http://go.philly.com/frequentflyers.