 |
| POWER
PLAY |
2ND
- 21.8 |
| PENALTY
KILL |
12TH
- 83.2 |
| FORWARDS |
| MIKE
RICHARDS |
28-47-75
(+14) |
| DANIEL
BRIERE |
31-41-72
(-22) |
| VACLAV
PROSPAL |
33-38-71
(0) |
| DEFENSEMEN |
| KIMMO
TIMONEN |
8-36-44
(0) |
| BRAYDON
COBURN |
9-27-36
(+17) |
| RANDY
JONES |
5-26-31
(+8) |
| GOALTENDERS |
| MARTIN
BIRON |
30-20-9
(5 SO)
2.59 GA
.918 PCT |
|
| ANTERO
NITTYMAKI |
12-9-2
(1 SO)
2.91 GA
.907 PCT |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
Philadelphia
vs Washington |
|
|
SCHEDULE |
|
1 |
APR.
11 |
PHILADELPHIA
4 - WASHINGTON 5 |
SEED
6 |
2 |
APR.
13 |
PHILADELPHIA
2 - WASHINGTON
0 |
SEED
3 |
42-29-11
(95) |
3 |
APR.
15 |
WASHINGTON
3 - PHILADELPHIA 6 |
43-31-8
(94) |
| |
4 |
APR.
17 |
WASHINGTON
3 - PHILADELPHIA 4 (2OT) |
|
| |
5 |
APR.
19 |
PHILADELPHIA
2 - WASHINGTON 3 |
|
| |
6 |
APR.
21 |
WASHINGTON
4 - PHILADELPHIA
2 |
|
| |
7 |
APR.
22 |
PHILADELPHIA
3 - WASHINGTON
2 (OT) |
|
| Philadelphia
Wins Series 4-3 |
|
SERIES
PREVIEW |
|
|
Philadelphia
Flyers
The Flyers have virtually lived off of their power play
for the most part this season. Philadelphia finished the
season second overall behind Montreal scoring at a 21.8
percent rate. The Flyers were third overall at home and
third overall on the road.
The Flyers were sixth overall in scoring while the Caps
finished eighth, and the Flyers were eighteenth in goals
allowed while the Caps finished nineteenth overall.
Mike Richards and Daniel Briere led the Flyers offense
with 75 and 72 points respectively. In fact, the Flyers
set a team record with seven players with 20 or more goals
scored on the season and this was without last season’s
40 goal scorer Simon Gagne who the Flyers will not have
for the series.
The Flyers had two other players with more than 10 goals
(R.J. Umberger and Scottie Upshall), and came close to
having two more players (Braydon Coburn and Kimmo Timonen)
hit the 10 goal mark. Needless to say the Flyers have
the kind of balanced attack that could cause problems
for the Capitals.
The defense is the Flyers Achilles’ Heel. Jason Smith
and Derian Hatcher, who should be back later in the series,
don’t have the foot speed that can match the Capitals
offense. Both players will need help standing up the ‘Caps
forwards at the blueline. That is where Randy Jones and
Coburn’s size must come into play in order for the Flyers
to withstand the Caps offense.
This season the Flyers have had trouble keeping opponents
shots on goal count down having been outshot in more games
than the Flyers have outshot their opponents. Alexander
Ovechkin has killed the Flyers in recent years and if
it is one thing that Ovechkin and company are great at
is getting their shots off.
The key to the Flyers success will have to be Marty Biron.
Fortunately for the Flyers Biron is playing his best hockey
at the right time. Biron has two straight shutouts in
his last two games. That’s good news for Flyer fans.
Washington Capitals
No playoff team has come further in a shorter period of
time than the Capitals, who became the first team in the
NHL’s 30-team era to go from 14th or 15th place in its
conference to the postseason. Much of the credit goes
to coach Bruce Boudreau, who installed a more aggressive
puck pursuit system after replacing Glen Hanlon on Nov.
22. Boudreau not only fostered a winning attitude in the
dressing room but managed to coax career years out of
some of his former charges with the AHL Hershey Bears,
particularly center Brooks Laich, who tallied 21 goals
and 37 points playing in all 82 games.
Of course, the Capitals’ fortunes are inexorably tied
to Alex Ovechkin, who should be a lock for league MVP
after a 65-goal, 112-point season. Shift-by-shift, hit-by-hit,
Ovechkin is the most energetic player on the ice and should
thrive in his first Stanley Cup playoffs. The left wing
skates with Swedish rookie phenom Nicklas Backstrom and
veteran Viktor Kozlov on the first line. Alexander Semin
and Sergei Fedorov round out a talented top five group
of forwards.
Arguably the Caps’ best player during the seven-game,
season-ending winning streak that propelled them into
the playoffs was goaltender Cristobal Huet, who was acquired
at the trade deadline from Montreal and immediately installed
an extra measure of confidence in the team’s end. As valuable
as Olie Kolzig has been to the Washington franchise, Huet
does a better job covering up some of the team’s deficiencies
on the blue line with clutch saves and an unflappable
style. His nine-game winning steak at the end of the season
was the team’s longest since Pete Peeters pulled the feat
in 1987. Huet has a lot to prove heading into unrestricted
free agency and with a pretty thin record of playoff accomplishments.
The Capitals will have to stay out of penalty trouble,
because their 80.5 percent PK was sixth from last in the
league. Boudreau also may have to stress more positional
play in the neutral zone to cut down on odd-man rushes.
With the man advantage, however, the Caps have a pretty
respectable 18.8 percent power play, helped by blueliners
Tom Poti and Mike Green, who finished with 18 goals and
56 points. |
|
| Game
1 |
Philadelphia
4 -Washington 5 |
|
by Adriel Bettelheim - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Washington
Leads Series 1-0 |
Washington
- Regular season or playoffs, it's safe to expect Alex Ovechkin to play the hero.
Ovechkin’s first career goal in the postseason capped a dramatic third-period comeback to gave the Washington Capitals a 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in game one of their Eastern Conference first-round series on Friday night.
Ovechkin had not been much of a factor until he stole a casual outlet pass by Flyers defenseman Lasse Kukkonen with 4 1/2 minutes remaining in the third period and roofed the game-winner over Flyers goaltender Martin Biron. An ecstatic Ovechkin jumped into the glass, then skated down to the Capitals’ end to celebrate with goalie Cristobal Huet.
Until then, it had been a frustrating night for the league’s leading goal scorer, who found himself boxed in by aggressive Flyers checking and the victim of a few borderline cheap shots. Philadelphia staked out a 4-2 lead at the end of two periods as Daniel Briere and Vaclav Prospal each registered a pair of goals. Washington’s goals came off the sticks off two of the team’s grinders, Donald Brashear and Dave Steckel.
But in the final frame, the Capitals showed the resilience that had been a hallmark of the team’s dramatic playoff run. Defenseman Mike Green, who led NHL blueliners with 18 goals in the regular season, converted a backhand feed from Sergei Fedorov 1:50 into the third period. He repeated the feat less than five minutes later, snapping a shot past Biron while Briere was off serving a high-sticking penalty and while Flyers winger Patrick Thoresen lay on the ice, writhing in pain after blocking an Ovechkin shot.
That set the stage for Ovechkin’s heroics, which set off chants of “M-V-P” from the sellout crowd at Verizon Center. The win marked the Capitals eighth win in a row and 12th out of their last 13, continuing a remarkable run under first-year coach Bruce Boudreau, who took over from Glen Hanlon in late November with the team dead last in the league standings, at 6-14-1.
Game two of the series will be played in Washington on Sunday afternoon. |
|
| Game
2 |
Philadelphia
2 - Washington 0 |
|
by Adriel Bettelheim - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Series
Tied 1-1 |
Washington
- It took just 48 hours for the Philadelphia Flyers to deflate the Washington Capitals' playoff ambitions.
Martin Biron made 24 saves and the Flyers rode first-period goals by R.J. Umberger and Jeff Carter to a 2-0 blanking of the Southeast Division champions Sunday afternoon at Verizon Center, tying their Eastern Conference first-round series at 1-1. The series resumes Tuesday in Philadelphia.
Biron was at times spectacular, stopping an Alexander Semin breakaway in the second period with the handle of his stick and thwarting Alex Ovechkin all afternoon. Biron was helped by a relentless Philadelphia forecheck that shut down the Capitals offense and ended Washington's eight-game winning streak.
Defenseman Braydon Coburn sprang Umberger on an odd-man rush to begin the scoring 5:53 into the game. Umberger split the Washington defense and put a high wrist shot past Caps goalie Cristobal Huet. Carter got an insurance goal at 15:17 of the opening frame, chipping in a rebound of a Mike Knuble shot after Knuble gobbled up a turnover at center ice.
From there, it was Biron's show. The Flyers goalie, who ended the regular season with back-to-back shutouts, stopped a Matt Cooke blast from close in with his mask and repeatedly controlled his rebounds to deny Washington quality second chances, in spite of six power plays. Three of his big saves came on Ovechkin shots in the first period, including one in which he lost his stick while trying to cover up the puck.
Washington was noticeably less energetic than in its dramatic 5-4 playoff opening victory Friday night and suffered from poor puck support, creating numerous turnovers. The Capitals went more than 10 minutes in the second period without registering shot, and only got eight shots on net in the third period.
The Flyers were sharp on defense, clearing bodies in front of the net and denying the Capitals' talented forwards chances from close in. Scottie Upshall was particularly effective, getting in Ovechkin's face all afternoon and drawing several retaliatory penalties. |
|
| Game
3 |
Washington
3 - Philadelphia 6 |
|
by Brian Jennings - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Philadelphia
Leads Series 2-1 |
Philadelphia,
PA - It might be a tad early to start
thinking about the Conn Smythe trophy given to the MVP
of the Stanley Cup playoffs, but Daniel Briere is definitely
making a case for himself should the Flyers win the Stanley
Cup in June.
Briere scored two goals and added an assist to propel
the Flyers take a 6-3 win over the Washington Capitals.
The win gives the Flyers a 2-1 series lead.
With the scored tied at one late in the first period on
Eric Fehr’s goal at 17:21, the Flyers scored twice 17
seconds apart on goals by Scott Hartnell and Sami Kapanen,
giving the Flyers a 3-1 lead they would never relinquish
the rest of the game.
Both teams traded power play goals in the second period,
to give the Flyers a 4-2 lead heading into the third period.
Briere’s power play goal to the right of Christobal Huet
with only 10 seconds left in the second period assured
that.
The Capitals made things interesting at 15:26 of the third
period a controversial goal by Brooks Laich whose stick
was clearly over the cross bar, but the replay officials
deemed that replay was inconclusive and did not overrule
the call on the ice.
Washington continued to pressure Martin Biron but Mike
Richards went in on a breakaway and was pulled down from
behind. Referee Don Koharski awarded Richards with a penalty
shot, Richards went in on Huet and beat him five hole
to give the Flyers a 5-3 lead.
Mike Knuble scored an empty net goal with 1:05 remaining
to seal the Flyers victory.
Contact the author at Brian.Jennings@prohockeynews.com
|
|
| Game
4 |
Washington
3 - Philadelphia 4 (2OT) |
|
by Brian Jennings - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Philadelphia
Leads Series 3-1 |
Philadelphia,
PA - If anyone who is still not a hockey fan all we can say to you today is we have a prescription for you: Watch the replay of last night's game between the Washington Capitals and the Philadelphia Flyers, check your pulse at the end of the game, and ask yourself: Are you still not a hockey fan?
If that answer to that question is still no, than do yourself a favor, go to the nearest hospital, and ask to be admitted, because last night's game was an instant classic.
Jeff Carter had two goals and one huge assist on Mike Knuble’s game winner in double overtime to give the Flyers a 4-3 win and a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. Daniel Briere continued to ravage the Capitals picking up the game-tying goal at 3-3 midway through the third period that set the stage for Carter and Knuble’s heroics.
The evening started off as though overtime was going to be the last thing that would happen on the night when Carter scored the first of his two goals 42 seconds into the game on a nice backhand shot in front of the Caps net to give the Flyers a 1-0 lead.
Washington poured on the pressure the rest of the game and bounced back on power play goals by Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin, whose goal was scored on a 5-on-3 power play, to give the Caps a 2-1 lead.
Carter would return the favor with 1:27 left in the first while having most of the net to shoot at. Fortunately for the Capitals, the goal didn’t faze them, and came out with the same energy and tempo that got them into the playoffs in the first place out shooting the Flyers in the second period scoring the only goal of the period by Steve Eminger, giving the Caps a 3-2 lead heading into the third period.
Briere once again made the Capitals pay on a gift power play that was made thanks to a too many men on the ice call. Briere, while off to the right of goaltender Christobal Huet, put the puck into the net off of a nice feed from Mike Richards to tie the game at three. The most interesting part of the play was how alone Briere was. It was Briere’s fifth of the playoffs.
From there on in the goaltenders took over. Huet made what might have been the save of the year on Joffrey Lupol diving in midair to stop Lopul’s shot while on a break to keep the Caps in the game. Flyers goaltender Martin Biron came up with two great saves of his own on Dave Steckel and Viktor Kozlov to prevent a 'Caps comeback.
In the first overtime, both teams had 11 shots on net, proving once again that overtime hockey is still the most exciting action in sports.
In the second overtime, it was all Flyers outshooting the Caps 7-1, but no shot was as important as the seventh. Knuble, after a made scramble around Huet, finally took a pass from Carter who was to the right of Huet, lifted the puck over Huet’s shoulder at 13:20 to send the Wachovia Center into an insane frenzy.
"If I'm not around the net, I don't have much chance scoring goals," said Knuble after a hard fought win. "That's my identity as a player. Some days, they come to you and some they don't. What a huge thrill just to hear the building explode. It's an unbelievable feeling. You wish you could bottle it up for next time."
For Flyers fans they better hope that next time is in Game Five so they can wrap up the series in Washington. As fun as this game was, Knuble acknowledged coming back to south Philly was not as option.
“We don’t want to come back here. We want to end it down there.”
And that is music to any Flyers fans ears. |
|
| Game
5 |
Philadelphia
2 - Washington 3 |
|
by Brian Jennings - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Philadelphia
Leads Series 3-2 |
Washington
- The Washington Capitals had a strong first two periods,
but had to hang on in the third for a much needed 3-2
win over the Philadelphia Flyers setting up another must
win for the team Monday night in south Philly.
The 'Caps played arguably their best period of the playoffs
in first period outshooting Philly 12-4, and prevented
the Flyers from getting off a shot in 15 minutes of the
period, not to mention outhitting the Flyers 22-9. It
was also the first time in the series that the Caps held
a lead after the first period.
The second period didn’t appear as though it would get
any better for the Flyers as Sergei Fedorov scored on
a nice backhand shot to give the Caps a 2-0 lead. Nicklas
Backstrom got the Caps first goal on a gift 5-on-3 power
play. The Flyers however received a gift 5-on-3 power
play of their own and scored on a nice feed from 'Caps
killer Daniel Briere over to Vaclav Prospal to get the
Flyers within one 2-1.
The Flyers came out of the gates in the third period with
a vengeance, but both referees felt the need to call the
Flyers three times on very questionable calls, while deciding
not to call the 'Caps for any infractions. It would cost
the Flyers dearly as the Caps took advantage of a Scott
Hartnell hooking penalty.
Alexandre Semin took a wrist shot that got past a screened
Marty Biron to give the Caps a seemingly unsurmountable
3-1 lead. The Flyers did not give up however and continued
to pressure Christobal Huet the rest of the game. Derian
Hatcher skated in alone down the middle of the ice and
put a shot past Huet to make the 'Cap fans nervous to
make the score 3-2. The Flyers out shot the Capitals 21-6
in the third period but could not score the rest of the
game.
Game note - Mike Knuble left the game in the second period
and according to media reports most likely will miss Game
6 Monday night.
Contact the author at Brian.Jennings@prohockeynews.com
|
|
| Game
6 |
Philadelphia
2 - Washington 4 |
|
by
Brian Jennings - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Series
Tied 3-3 |
Philadelphia,
PA - The Washington Capitals erased a
2-0 deficit as Alexander Ovechkin finally had the kind
of playoff game great players were meant to have in the
playoffs scoring the final two goals of the game as the
'Caps came from behind for a 4-2 win. The series, now
tied at 3-3, shifts back to Washington for Game 7 which
will be held Tuesday night.
The Flyers did exactly what they wanted to do in the first
period and a half by getting off to a 2-0 lead on power
play goals by Mike Richards and Daniel Briere, but for
some reason the Flyers stopped doing the things that got
them the lead. Maybe it should not have come as a surprise
as the Flyers leading up to the playoffs made a habit
of blowing two-goal leads. The Flyers lost Game 1 in similar
fashion as tonight’s game, but this time, when it matters
most, it just might finally catch up to the Flyers.
Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin tied the game at
two in the second period, and all of a sudden the Wachovia
Center crowd rained down boo’s from the stands. The game’s
momentum had turned, and the Flyers faithful knew it.
The Flyers came out of the gates in the third period with
a vengeance, but a breakaway goal was scored by Ovechkin
who lifted the puck over Martin Biron’s left shoulder
to give the 'Caps their first lead of the game. The Flyers
had a huge chance to still tie the game with a 5-on-3
power play, but could not convert.
That’s when the energy left the building, but never more
so when Ovechkin scored his second goal of the game thanks
to a bench minor penalty for too many men on the ice.
The game was unofficially over at that point, NHL rules
state they play the rest the game. The Caps played the
rest of the game with all the momentum of a speeding truck
going downhill and now look to repeat history.
The Flyers have lost twice in team history when blowing
a 3-1 series lead, once to the Capitals in 1988 thanks
to Dale Hunter's overtime goal to win the game 5-4.
No one in the Flyers locker room remains from when that
happened, but you can bet fans and media alike will bring
it up nonstop between now and game time tomorrow night.
Will history repeat itself? Stay tuned for at least one
more night anyway to find out.
Contact the author at Brian.Jennings@prohockeynews.com
|
|
|
Game
7 |
Philadelphia
3 - Washington 2 (OT) |
|
by Tom Schettino - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Philadelphia
Wins Series 4-3 |
Washington
- The Capitals’ storybook season ended in the most disappointing fashion imaginable Tuesday night – killing off a penalty in overtime of a Game 7.
Philadelphia’s Joffrey Lupul backhanded a rebound past Washington goalie Cristobal Huet at 6:06 of the extra frame to give the Flyers a 3-2 victory, clinching the teams’ first-round playoff series, 4-3.
The winning play came as defenseman Tom Poti was finishing sitting out a tripping penalty. Defenseman Kimmo Timonen fired a point short that Huet stopped, but Lupul was left near the doorstep and casually slid the puck past the fallen netminder
The Capitals, trying to come back from a 3-1 series deficit, were repeatedly thwarted by Flyers goalie Martin Biron, who played his strongest game of the series, stopping 39 shots. Alex Ovechkin figured in both Caps’ goals, assisting on Nicklas Backstrom’s tally 5:42 in the first period, then snapping a wrist shot past Biron at 15:29 of the second period to tie the game, 2-2.
Philadelphia got goals from Scottie Upshall and Sami Kapanen to stake out a 2-1 lead.
Washington was making its first postseason appearance since 2003 after a remarkable run in which the team rebounded from a 6-14-1 start to capture the Southeast Division. The turning point came after Glen Hanlon was replaced behind the bench by career minor league coach Bruce Boudreau, who installed a more up tempo system.
The Capitals have not won a playoff series since 1998, when they advanced to the Stanley Cup finals, and are 1-5 in Game sevens.
The Flyers continued their own comeback from last season’s league-worst record, winning their first playoff series since 2004. They go on to meet the top-seeded Montreal Canadiens in the Eastern Conference semifinals. |
|
|
 |
|
 |
| POWER
PLAY |
9TH
- 18.8 |
| PENALTY
KILL |
25TH
- 80.5 |
| FORWARDS |
| ALEXANDER
OVECHKIN |
65-47-112
(+28) |
| NICKLAS
BACKSTROM |
14-55-69
(+13) |
| VIKTOR
KOZLOV |
16-38-54
(+28) |
| DEFENSEMEN |
| MIKE
GREEN |
18-38-56
(+6) |
| TOM
POTI |
2-27-29
(+9) |
| JEFF
SCHULTZ |
5-13-18
(+12) |
| GOALTENDERS |
| CHRISTOBAL
HUET |
32-14-6
(4 SO)
2.32 GA
.920 PCT |
|
| OLAF
KOLZIG |
25-21-6
(1 SO)
2.91 GA
.892 PCT |
|
|
|
