Flyers Devils Game 1 Review

Today the Flyers took game 1 against the Devils winning in OT by a final of 4-3.  While I'm certainly happy with the victory I did notice a lot of things that the Flyers need to work on for game 2.  Here are my pros and cons from game 1.

What They Did Wrong

• The Flyers were extremely sloppy early on.  I wouldn't go so far as to say that they were rusty, but they definitely lacked intensity.  They simply weren't as amped up for the game as the Devils were.  
• The Flyers also gave up way too many shots in the early going.  In total the Flyers allowed 15 shots in the first period.
• Offensively, the Flyers got little to no pressure on Marty.  In fact they didn't get their first shot on goal until mid way through the first period.  The Flyers picked up the offensive intensity toward the end of the period but only managed a total of 6 shots to open the game.  
• The Flyers were just 1 of 6 on the power play.  What's worse is that on a few of their power plays they struggled just to get an extended possession.  
• Overall the Flyers were also very sloppy at times and gave up costly turnovers.  

What They Did Right

• Although the Flyers gave up a lot of early shots, Bryzgalov looked great and stopped most of the shots directed his way in the opening period.  The solid play early on gave Bryz a ton of confidence the rest of the game.  
• The Flyers had just 3 penalties in the game and did an excellent job of staying out of the box. 
• After being out shot in the first period 15-6, the Flyers out shot the Devils 30-11 in the remainder of the game.  
• JVR was a huge bright spot for the Flyers.  In the few games that he played in the Pittsburgh series, JVR was basically a non-factor.  But today JVR had multiple breakaways and even cashed in on a play where Marty got caught being too aggressive. 
• G.  One letter says so much.  G (aka Claude Giroux) was awesome today.  He cashed in on a one-timer power play goal, and overall he really stepped up as a leader today.  
• Danny Briere was the MVP of the game.  Briere had two goals; a breakaway goal and a slap shot in over time that won the game for the Flyers.  Briere was outstanding as he continues to put together an unbelievable post season track record.

Overall the Flyers did a great job of rebounding from an awful first period.  They fought off the rust and were able to outplay the Devils in the remainder of the game.  The Flyers now have an excellent opportunity to take a stranglehold on this series and go up 2-0 on Tuesday night.  

Make sure to heckle my buddy @czm26 on twitter.  He's a Devils fan.

Flyers Devils Game 1 Preview

Today the Flyers will take on the Devils in game 1 of the Eastern Conference semi-finals.  The Devils are coming off a game 7 victory against the Florida Panthers and will look to keep the momentum going today.  The Flyers on the other hand wrapped up their round 1 series against the Penguins last Sunday, and have been sitting around for about a week awaiting their next opponent. The Flyers will definitely have to get amped up for today's game and shake off the rust.  Here are the keys to a Flyers victory.

Shake Off The Rust
Some experts are under the impression that the lay off could be a factor in today's game.  Although the Flyers have been practicing all week in preparation, it's extremely hard to simulate the intensity and speed of a playoff game.  The Flyers will ultimately have to use the juice and excitement of the home crowd to get them motivated for the game.

Bryz's Confidence
Bryz is 3-0 with a 0.29 GAA,  and a 987 save % against Devils this year.  The Flyers defense needs to help him out and help him get confidence against the Devils early.  Bryz needs to find a rhythm and rebound after a somewhat difficult series against the Penguins.

Offensive Firepower
The Flyers scored 30 goals against the Penguins in round 1.  They need to continue to get a ton of shots on goal and try to rattle Marty early and often.  Marty struggled against the Flyers in the regular season going 1-3 with a 2.26 GAA and a .905 save%.  The Flyers have to look for continued success against him today and in the rest of the series.

Special Teams
The Flyers led the NHL in round 1 of the playoffs with a 52.2% power play.  The Flyers power play line will have their hands full as they go up against the Devils who statistically have the best penalty kill in the league.  In terms of the penalty kill the Flyers need to just continue to do what they are doing.

Defense
The Flyers did an excellent job of making Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby non-factors in round 1.  Today the Flyers need to do the same thing against Devils' stars Ilya Kovalchuk, Zach Parise, and Peter Sykora.

Overall I think the first period of today's game is going to be extremely rough.  But if the Flyers can keep it to a 2-0 game after the first or better, they should be in good shape to win.

Derrick Rose Out

Late in game 1 yesterday, Bulls' star point guard Derrick Rose suffered a freak injury and tore his ACL.  Needless to say, Rose will be out for the remainder of the playoffs.

I would like to preface this article by stating that while Rose may play for the team the Sixers are currently facing in the playoffs, you never want to see something like this happen to anyone.  It's bad for Rose and the Bulls, it's bad for the league, and it's bad for the game of basketball.

Having said that, the whole dynamic of this series has now changed with Rose's injury.  After yesterday's game, any chances of winning the series seemed extremely difficult.  The Sixers started the game ice cold from the floor, and really struggled to keep pace with Chicago.  The Bulls took a commanding lead early on, and the Sixers were never able to fully recover.  Every time they would make the game close, the Sixers would then sit back and wait for things to happen.  Instead of consistently keeping their foot on the gas, the Sixers were very sporatic and struggled to find a rhythm in the game.

But looking ahead to game 2, the absence of Derrick Rose makes this a completely different series.  The Bulls proved during the regular season that they can win without Rose, but this injury has to be extremely deflating to a team with such high expectations.

As the number 1 seed in the East, the Bulls came into the playoffs expecting to compete with the Heat for the Eastern conference crown.  Now the Bulls are a far less scary team in the absence of their best player.

So what does this all mean for the Sixers?  The Sixers really can't get too carried away at this point.  The Bulls are still a very strong defensive team even without Rose in the line up.  But with the injury I do see hope for the Sixers.  Without Rose, the Bulls don't have anyone that they can go to when the game is on the line.  If the Sixers can manage to keep games close and then pounce at the end, I think this series could get very interesting in a hurry.

Again the Sixers can't be too focused on Rose's injury.  Right now their main goal has to be taking game 2 on Tuesday night, and returning to Philadelphia with a 1-1 split.  

Sixers Bulls Game 1 Preview

After a very exciting start to the season, the Sixers stumbled down the stretch but were able to finish 35-31 good for the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference.  As the 8th seed the Sixers will take on the number 1 seed Chicago Bulls beginning today in Chicago.  

I personally like this match up as opposed to the Sixers playing the Heat again.  The Sixers can't handle the Heat (no pun intended) and it always seems like they get away from their game when they play them.  But the season series between the Bulls and Sixers is a different story.  

Back on February 1st, the Sixers beat the Bulls 98-82.  The Sixers lost the other 2 games against the Bull during the season losing 96-91 on March 4th, and 89-80 on March 14th.  Simply put the Sixers have shown over the course of this year and last year that they can beat the Bulls. 

For today's game, I think the Sixers are going to keep it close but get burned by Derrick Rose late in the game.  Rose has shown the ability to beat up on the Sixers in the past and I think he will really turn it on today.  

Overall I think the Sixers can make this an interesting series.  If the Sixers were going up against the Heat again, I would predict the Heat to win in 5.  But there is something about this match up against the Bulls that really intrigues me.  I honestly think that the Sixers can make this an interesting series if they start playing defense again like they did at the beginning of the year. 

Overall I expect the Bulls to win this series in 6 games.  But the Bulls shouldn't write off the Sixers who if they can return to their defensive roots, definitely have the ability to pull of the upset.     

Flyers Devils Preview

Coming into the playoffs, all of the experts picked the Penguins to beat the Flyers in the first round.  Some experts even went and picked the Penguins and their high powered offense to win the Stanley Cup.  But the Flyers were ultimately too much for the Penguins to handle, and the Flyers were able to advance in 6 games.  Now the Flyers are a young and dangerous team with a ton of swagger and confidence heading into their round 2 match up against the Devils.

I personally think the Flyers should have no problem taking down Marty and the Devils.  While the season series was an even split, the play of goalie Ilya Bryzgalov against the Devils during the season is an extremely encouraging sign for Flyers fans.  Bryzgalov was 3-0 against the Devils during the regular season with a .987 save percentage and a dazzling 0.29 GAA.  In total Bryz faced 76 shots from the Devils this year and stopped 75 of them.  Those are very impressive and encouraging stats especially when you consider how much scoring took place in the series against Pittsburgh.  If Bryzgalov can have similar success against the Devils in the playoffs the Flyers should be in very good shape.


Marty Brodeur's regular season stats against the Flyers are not as encouraging.  Marty was 1-3 with a 2.26 GAA and a .905 save percentage.  But don't forget that while he may be turning 40 soon, Marty still has that playoff switch that he can flick and has the ability to get extremely hot at any time.  

Another encouraging sign for the Flyers going into this series is that they are now the number one offensive team in the playoffs.  The Flyers scored 260 regular season goals and 30 goals against the Penguins good for a total of 290 goals on the season.  The closest team to the Flyers still alive in the playoffs are the Nashville Predators who had 232 regular season goals and 16 against Detroit in the first round for a total of 248 goals.

New Jersey has a total of 234 goals on the year, and their main scoring threats are Ilya Kovalchuk, Zach Parise, David Clarkson, Patrick Elias, and Peter Sykora.  Kovalchuk, Parise, and Clarkson all had 30 goals or more during the regular season, while Elias and Sykora were both 20 goal scorers.

While the Flyers don't have as many 30 goal scorers as the Devils they feature a much more balanced scoring attack.  11 guys on the Flyers had 10 goals or more while only 7 guys on the Devils had 10 or more.    And the Flyers had a lot more production than the Devils offensively in round 1.  

The special teams stats for both teams are as follows: the Flyers had a 81.8% penalty kill during the regular season, and a 69% kill against the Penguins.  The Devils led the NHL with an 89.6% penalty kill during the year but posted just a 66.7% kill against the Panthers in round 1.  The power play percentages definitely favor the Flyers.  The Flyers were 19.7% during the regular season and a dazzling NHL best 52.2% against the Pens.  The Devils were 17.2% during the season and 20% against the Panthers.  Overall the Flyers definitely have the special teams advantage.  Their power play line is extremely efficient and they had a pretty solid penalty kill against a very dangerous Penguins team.

Lastly the Flyers have a ton of confidence and rest while the Devils just barely scraped their way past the Panthers.  The Flyers have been practicing and resting all week in preparation for round 2 while the Devils are probably still scrambling after their game 7 victory.  Simply put the Flyers beat a very good Penguins team in 6 games while the Devils needed all 7 games to beat a sub par Panthers team.

Overall I think the Flyers will win this series in 5.  I think they will split at home to open the series, and then win 3 straight to close out this series in a hurry.  If the Flyers can put the Devils away early it will be huge considering the fact that I think the series between the Capitals and Rangers will probably turn out to be a long 7 game series.  I was right about the Flyers beating Pittsburgh in 6, and hopefully I'm right about the Flyers in 5 as they attempt to return to the Eastern Conference finals.  

Flyers Devils Season Series Recap

     

In the Eastern Conference semi-finals, the Flyers will take on the New Jersey Devils.  The Devils beat the Florida Panthers in 7 games in the first round, and will meet up against the Flyers in Game 1 Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center.  To get you ready for this series, in this article we will go through the regular season series.

The Flyers were fairly successful against the Devils during the regular season and will look to continue that success in the playoffs.  Here is a quick game by game breakdown.

October 8, Flyers 3 Devils 0 
The Flyers won this game mainly because of the outstanding play of goalie Ilya Bryzgalov.  In just his second game with the Flyers, the Bryz had a shutout as the Flyers cruised to an easy 3-0 victory.  Giroux scored an early first period goal, and Matt Read and Wayne Simmonds both had 3rd period goals for the Flyers.

November 3, Devils 4 Flyers 3 (SO)
Backup Sergei Bobrovsky got the start in this game as the Flyers fell to the Devils 4-3 in a shootout.  Max Talbot scored a late penalty shot goal to tie the game at 3, but ultimately the Devils were able to come away victorious to knot the season series at one game a piece.

January 21, Flyers 4 Devils 1
The Flyers were able to win the game thanks to Scott Hartnell who had 2 goals that were both assisted by Claude Giroux.  Bryzgalov also had a very strong game stopping 30 of the 31 shots that came his way.

February 4, Devils 6 Flyers 4
I think this game is one Flyers fans want to forget about.  The Flyers got burned at home as the Devils cashed in on 6 unanswered goals to start the game.  After allowing 6 goals, Sergei Bobrovsky was quickly replaced by Bryzgalov who kept the Devils off the scoreboard for the remainder of the game.  The Flyers were able to battle back, but ultimately they couldn't climb their way out of the 6 goal deficit.

March 11, Devils 4 Flyers 1
Sergie Bobrovsky surrendered 3 3rd period goals as the Devils won 4-1.  Claude Giroux was the lone goal scorer for the Flyers.

March 13, Flyers 3 Devils 0
Ilya Bryzgalov got the start in the season finale between the two teams and he capped it off with another shutout.  Sean Couterier was able to solve Marty in the second and the Flyers added 2 3rd period goals to secure the victory.

So what does this all mean?  It's simple: in all three games that the Flyers lost, Sergei Bobrovsky was the goalie.  Bryzgalov was the goalie in the three victories, and posted a shutout in 2 of those games.

While I don't like to make too much of the regular season, the Flyers have proven that the Devils are not a scary team and they should be able to beat them.  Stay tuned to the blog over the next few days as I will be posting my complete breakdown and prediction for the series.

Flyers Keys To Game 4

Tonight the Flyers will go for the knock out punch as they attempt to 4 game sweep the Penguins.  Tonight is going to be crucial as the Flyers attempt to not let the Penguins have any sort of life whatsoever.  Here are the keys to yet another Flyers victory.

1. Early And Often  
The Flyers need to jump out to an early lead in tonight's game.  If they let the Penguins hang around for too long, the Penguins could slowly gain confidence and possibly win the game and force a game 5.  The Penguins are currently up against the ropes in terms of confidence, so the Flyers need to knock them out early.

2. Fluster Fleury 
Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has zero confidence right now.  He was pulled in the third period of Sunday's game in favor of back up Brent Johnson.  The Flyers need to pounce and get a lot of shots and traffic in front of him early on to really rattle his confidence.

3. Keep Composure 
The Penguins played with zero class in Game 3.  They let their emotions get the better of them, and ultimately went out trying to hurt people.  If the Penguins do the same thing tonight, the Flyers have to remain focused on trying to win the hockey game and not getting caught up in the fights and scrums.

4. Strong Play From Bryz 
Bryz certainly didn't have his best game on Sunday.  He allowed 4 goals and he just didn't look too comfortable in net.  I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that Bryz is getting beat early in games.  If Bryz can have a strong first period, it could give him the confidence to finish the game strong.

5. Extra Time Off
Finishing off Crosby and the Penguins should be enough motivation for the Flyers to get it done tonight.  But if it's not then hopefully the extra time off will help the Flyers to end this series in 4 games.  A sweep ensures more confidence and of course more time to rest between now and the second round.  

Overall tonight is not the time for the Flyers to sit back and relax.  If they take the Penguins lightly, they could prolong this series and give the Penguins life.  The Flyers need to go for the knock out punch tonight and I think they will blow the Pens out by a final of 6-2.

Flyers Look To Sweep

Jags at practice today.

In 2010, the Flyers pulled off the improbable 3-0 deficit against the Boston Bruins.  By doing so they became just the fourth professional sports team ever to accomplish the incredible comeback.  The Flyers now hold a 3-0 lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins, and they will go for the sweep to ensure that they won't be on the other end of such a comeback this year.

On Wednesday night, the Flyers need to fully finish off the Penguins and not allow them to have any life in this series.  The Penguins led the NHL in scoring during the regular season and they are still a very dangerous team that can't be taken lightly.

After the Game 3 victory, Scott Hartnell remarked on the difficult task of winning Game 4:

"Our group is real solid right now," Hartnell said. "We’re playing together, we’re focused, but the hardest game to win is the fourth game of that series. If we think that’s going to be easy in Game 4 in Phialdelphia, we have another thing coming. They’ve got a lot of professionals over there who have faced elimination games in the (2009) Stanley Cup Finals against Detroit and have come back and won, so it’s not going to be easy.”

The Flyers definitely don't want to travel all the way back to Pittsburgh for Game 5.  The Flyers want to finish this thing off as soon as possible and get some well deserved rest before the second round.  The extra time off could also enable the Flyers to get some key guys back including JVR and Andrej Meszaros.

According to an April 14th article on csnphilly.com, JVR recently skated with the team and is very close to returning.

“I’m excited to get a little closer [to playing],” JVR said. “It’s pretty brutal when you’re sitting at home and missing all these exciting, big games.  You’d do anything to get out there with them. It’s a good step in the right direction to be on the ice with the guys.”

Andrej Meszaros is another guy that could be back in the lineup soon.  According to Flyers beat writer Sam Carchidi, Meszaros could be back in round 2.


Overall the Flyers need to finish things up tomorrow night because they can't let the Penguins have any sort of life, and extra time off would really serve the Flyers well come the second round.  I think that what we are going to see tomorrow night is a Penguins team that has basically given up.  A couple goals by the Flyers early on could be all that is needed to completely shake the Penguins confidence, and overall send them back to Pittsburgh and out of the playoffs.

Crosby Is An Absolute Joke

Susie Crosby in the box where he belongs.

Before this series, I never really understood the venom that was directed toward Sidney Crosby by Flyers fans.  I thought that Flyers fans disliked him mainly because he was one of the best players in the league.  But after Game 3 it has become obvious to me that Crosby is an extremely dirty player.  He started the scrum in the first period, the scrum in the third, and overall he forced his team mates to fight his battles for him.  

The first fight started by Crosby came in the first period.  The Penguins were down 3-1, when Bryzgalov covered up the puck.  From there Crosby proceeded to jab away at Bryzgalov's glove, and was eventually stopped by Claude Giroux who pulled him away from Bryz.  From there a whole series of scrums opened up all due to Crosby. The fighting eventually died down until Crosby kicked away Jake Voracek's glove as he was bending down to pick up. 

When asked after the game why he did that Crosby responded:

 "I do not like any guy on their team.  It [his glove] was near me and he went to pick it up and I pushed it."

Directly after, Crosby surprised Kimmo Timonen who eventually had to fight Kris Letang.  Giroux tried to take care of Crosby but the refs weren't willing to let Crosby and Giroux really go at it.  But Crosby wasn't done.

In the third period, Crosby grabbed Scot Hartnell from behind and dragged him into the boards.  Scott Hartnell retaliated, but was forced to fight Craig Adams who landed a bunch of cheap shots on Hartsy and eventually ended up pulling his hair.  Again another fight started by Susie, and another fight that he himself didn't actually fight. 

At this juncture of the game, Flyers color analyst Chris Therien was directly calling out Crosby for his dirty tactics.  While Crosby is almost always given a pass because he is the "golden boy" of the NHL, yesterday he was exposed as a dirty player.  

Scott Hartnell put it perfectly:

“It’s not fun to play with that kind of stuff.  You ask the best player in the world, Sidney Crosby, what they were thinking out there and he said ‘well, that’s playoff hockey,’ For me, that’s not playoff hockey. It’s dangerous hockey, it’s trying to hurt some people out there and it’s scary, you’ve got to keep your head up at all times. Crosby comes in and grabs me from behind and another guy [Craig Adams] comes and throws about eight bombs at the back of my head." 

Hockey is a violent game.  Players on both sides get frustrated, and fights do happen in hockey.  If you are frustrated that your team is losing both the game and the series, don't resort to childish games such as jabbing at the goalie's glove, kicking away someone's glove, or grabbing someone unexpectedly from behind.  

Crosby wasn't the only player who resorted to dirty tactics in the game.  After Brayden Schenn made a nice perfectly legal hit, Aaron Asham responded by cross checking him in the throat and punching him when he was down on the ice.  And when the puck wasn't even near Sean Couterier, James Neal came over and laid a ferocious blind side hit on the young star.  Both players will have disciplinary hearings tomorrow and I expect the league to come down extra hard on Neal who left the ice when making his hit on Couterier.  

Overall Crosby and the Penguins played with zero class in yesterday's game.  It was an absolute joke to watch as they used every dirty tactic they could think of to try and frustrate the Flyers.  But in reality the plan back fired and they ended up only frustrating themselves.  On Wednesday night, I hope the Flyers are able to land the knock out punch and send the Penguins packing for an early vacation.  

Flyers Go Up 3-0 Over Penguins

In this exciting series between the Flyers and Penguins, each game gets a little more entertaining.  Today was arguably the most entertaining, as it featured lots of scoring and fast action once again.

The first period was extremely exciting.  The Penguins again scored first, but the Flyers quickly responded with another short handed goal from Max Talbot.  Danny Briere then scored the next two goals of the game to give the Flyers a 3-1 lead.  The first period ended with the Flyers leading 4-2.

In addition to a lot of goals being scored in the first, both teams were extremely physical and there were a lot of extra curricular activities and scrums around the net.  The most prominent scrum between the two teams came when Bryz covered the puck up, and Susie Crosby proceeded to chop at the covered up puck.  From there a whole series of fights erupted and Kimmo Timonen and Kris Letang were both given game misconducts.

In the second period, the game seemed to calm down a little in terms of fights.  But in terms of goal scoring, the second period saw a lot of goals from both teams once again.  The Penguins scored mid way through the period to make it a 4-3 game.  With about 6 minutes left in the period, the Flyers were awarded a power play.  On the man advantage, Jagr sent a beautiful cross ice pass through the defense to Matt Read who one timed it home.  Roughly a minute later Jordan Staal scored to cut the lead back to 1.  Toward the end of the period with time running out on their power play, Braydon Coburn passed it ahead to Wayne Simmonds who put one past Fleury to make it a 6-4 game.

In the third, Marc-Adre Fleury was replaced by backup goalie Brent Johnson.  The Flyers made quick work against Johnson.  Jagr made another beautiful pass, this time to Giroux who scored to give the Flyers a 7-4 advantage. The game eventually ended in a 8-4 Flyers victory.  

Overall a huge win for the Flyers who now hold a commanding 3 games to none advantage in the series.  The Flyers again fell behind early but were able to fight back.  The goal scoring for the Flyers has been amazing so far in this series and it continued today.  Not only were the able to score, but they were able to score timely goals today as well.

Bryzgalov gave up 4 goals in the game but he didn't look as good as he did in prior games.  But credit is still due to Bryz who ultimately kept the Flyers in the game and didn't give up too many easy goals.

Briere once again had another big game.  He notched 2 goals and did a great job of properly setting up and getting in good position to score on offense.  Matt Read was the young star of the game.  Read was relatively quiet in the first two games of the series, but he came through with 2 goals today.  Simmonds, Giroux, scored and Talbot scored twice against his former team.

One thing is extremely obvious after today's game: the Flyers want it more.  They are skating faster, hitting harder, and ultimately out working the Penguins.  It always seems like just when the Penguins think that they are back in the game, the Flyers always quickly respond with a timely goal.

Through out the entire game, the Penguins let their frustrations and anger get the better of them and took it out with cheap shots on the Flyers.  Brayden Schenn and Sean Couterier were both victims to cheap shots.  Toward the end of the game, the Penguins also took some shots at Giroux which resulted in another big scrum in the middle of both benches.

Both teams will get two well deserved days off as Game 4 is set for Wednesday night.  The Flyers will go for the knock out punch on Wednesday as they attempt to end it in Philly instead of traveling back to Pittsburgh.  

Flyers Keys To Game 3

After an unbelievable Game 2 on Friday night, today the Flyers will have the opportunity to go up 3-0 in the series.  The Flyers can't sit back and be satisfied with what they have accomplished so far in this series.  The Flyers have to keep their foot on the gas and try and take a 3-0 lead today.  Here are the keys to a Flyers victory.

1. Timeout Before Game
I'm not kidding about this.  In the first two games of this series, it took a Peter Laviolette timeout to get the Flyers going.  So for today, the Flyers should go out for the opening puck drop and just before the game officially begins, Laviolette should call a timeout.  There is something magical about a Lavy timeout, and the Flyers would be better off using it before the game instead of when they find themselves behind 2 or 3 goals.

2. Young Gun
In my game 2 preview, one of my keys was for one of the young guys to step up.  Sean Couterier did just that, taking Evgeni Malkin out of the game and notching three goals himself.  Today, the Flyers need either Couterier or another young player to have similar success.

3. Special Teams
The Flyers were sent to the box on 5 separate occasions on Friday night, and the penalty kill allowed just two goals. What's even more impressive is the Flyers scored two short handed goals and were 1 for 3 on the power play.  The Flyers have to continue to be aggressive on special teams.

4. Bryzgalov
If someone who hadn't watched any games of this series took a quick look at the box scores, they would probably come to the conclusion that Bryzgalov is struggling.  But the box scores certainly don't tell the whole story, and in reality Bryzgalov is playing extremely well.  He is flashing leather and playing at the top of the crease which says to me that he has all the confidence in the world right now.  Bryz needs to continue to play well this afternoon.

5. Home Ice
The Flyers didn't have a dazzling home record during the regular season, but I think that playing at home today is going to really play to the Flyers advantage.  Returning home with a 2-0 lead against the hated Penguins is a recipe for an absolutely electric crowd at the Wells Fargo Center.  I expect the Flyers faithful to be completely Flyered up today.

The first two games of this series were two of the best hockey games I've ever seen.  In my mind, Game 1 ranks up there with Game 7 against the Bruins in 2010.  But the Flyers can't be satisfied with how they played out in Pittsburgh.  While they certainly did a lot of things right, they also have a lot of things they need to work on to be victorious today.  Ultimately I think the crowd at the Wells Fargo Center is going to propel the Flyers to another victory.  I think the Flyers will fall behind by 1 early on, and then respond with 4 unanswered goals to win the game 4-1.  

Flyers Take Commanding 2-0 Series Lead

Bryz robs Kris Letang.

2 hat-tricks, 2 short handed goals, another early deficit overcome, and a final score of 8-5.  If you told me these things before the start of Game 2, I probably wouldn't have believed you.  But after a crazy back and forth game, the Flyers again came away victorious winning by a final of 8-5, and some of the individual performances in Game 2 are still hard to believe.

The Penguins again got out to an early lead.  The Flyers attempted a 5 man change after the opening face off, but the Penguins were able to beat the Flyers in transition thanks to a Susie Crosby goal.  From there the Penguins added a power play goal to take a 2-0 lead.  Max Talbot scored a shorthanded goal halfway through the first to make it a 2-1 game.  The Penguins then added a late first period goal to go up 3-1.

The second period can be described in three words: back and forth.  The Flyers tied the game at 3, but the Penguins quickly reclaimed the lead mid way through the period.  Sean Couterier added a late second period goal to tie the game at 4 heading into the final period.

The Penguins scored early in the third period, but that would be it.  From there the Flyers scored 4 unanswered goals to close out the game.  Couterier tied the game at 5, Jagr gave the Flyers a 6-5 advantage, and Couterier and Giroux both scored to close out the game.

It was truly an unbelievable game.  While it's tough to pin point one main turning point, I would say Couterier's second goal which tied the game at 5 was a real tough goal for the Penguins to take.  The Penguins had just taken the lead and had to be feeling pretty good about their chances of winning the game.  But then Couterier came back just a few moments later and tied the game up, completely robbing any momentum the Penguins may have built.  The Penguins look depleted after the goal and were simply unable to respond.

Offensively Couterier and Giroux both had hat-tricks. Talbot and Jagr also scored against their former team.  Overall the Flyers never quit on offense and continued to work hard even when they were behind.  It was amazing to watch them continue to fight and continue to find ways to score.

And although Bryzgalov gave up 5 goals, he still had an amazing game.  Bryz had some fantastic saves throughout the game, and was able to really buckle down in the third and keep the puck out of net.  Bryz was flashing the leather all night and robbing people left and right.

The Flyers now have a commanding 2-0 lead as the series shifts to Philadelphia.  On Sunday, the Flyers will have a great opportunity to really put the Penguins away in front of what is sure to be an absolute electric crowd at the Wells Fargo Center.  The first two games of this series have been extremely entertaining and I can't wait to see what is in store for Game 3.

Flyers Keys To Game 2

Early and often boys, LET'S GO!

Game 1 was fun, exciting, and very memorable.  To come back from a 3 goal deficit in the opening game of the playoffs is something that very few teams can accomplish.  But Game 1 is now a thing of the past, and tonight the Flyers have to be entirely focused on taking a 2-0 lead in the series.  Here are tonight's keys to a Flyers victory.

1. Hot Start
The Flyers have fallen behind early in games all year but they can't continue to do so in the playoffs.  Everyone likes an exciting comeback, but the Flyers need to do a better job of coming out with a lot of intensity in the first period.  It shouldn't take a 2-0 deficit and a Peter Laviolette timeout to get these boys going.

2. G, Jags, Hartsy
Not to say that this line played bad in Game 1, but I would definitely like to see some more production from them tonight.  Danny Briere can't be relied upon to score all of the goals for the Flyers.  Other guys, namely Giroux and veterans Jagr and Hartnell need to get involved offensively.

3. Long Possessions
The Flyers dominated the Penguins in the second and third periods on Wednesday mainly because they were able to sustain long offensive possessions.  The Flyers were diving and making plays just to keep the puck in the zone and give the offense more opportunities to score.  Tonight the Flyers need to continue to keep the puck in Pittsburgh's zone.

4. Traffic In Front
This kind of goes without saying, but getting traffic out in front of Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury is going to be key tonight.  Brayden Schenn and Jakub Voracek both scored on Wednesday by getting out in front of the net and trying to make things happen.

5. Bryzgalov
After allowing 3 goals in the first period of Game 1, Bryzgalov was perfect in the remainder of the game.  But giving up 3 goals in the first period of a playoff game puts a lot of pressure on the goalie, so Bryz needs to come out focused and ready to play strong early on.

6. Young Gun
Brayden Schenn was the outstanding rookie of the game on Wednesday night.  In Game 2, another rookie needs to step up and have a big game.  I think that either Matt Read or Sean Couterier could have a big game tonight.

7. Forget About Game 1
Game 1 is a thing of the past.  The Flyers need to build off of what they did well on Wednesday, but they can't get over confident and relaxed.  The Flyers have a great opportunity to take a 2-0 lead in this series.  If they are still celebrating Wednesday's victory, this series could very easily return to Philadelphia tied 1-1.

It should be a very entertaining game tonight.  I think the Flyers will jump out to an early 2-0 lead, but the Penguins will battle back and tie the game at 2.  Ultimately I think the Flyers will win by a final of 3-2 and bring a 2-0 series lead back to Philadelphia.

NHL Full Playoff Preview

Here is a complete breakdown of the 2012 NHL playoffs.  Scroll down to the bottom of the article for a link to my Penguins Flyers preview.


Western Conference Series 1: #1 Vancouver Canucks vs #8 Los Angeles Kings

Canucks

The Canucks finished first in the west with 111 points.  Roberto Luongo is going to have a lot of pressure on him.  Luongo had 31 wins with a 2.41 GAA and a .919 save percentage.  But backup goalie Cory Schneider had 20 wins and a 1.96 GAA and a .937 save percentage, so Luongo is going to be on a very short leash. Offensively Vancouver finished 5th in the league in scoring so they can definitely put up some goals.

Head coach  Alain Vigneault is going to have to do a good job of balancing the goalie situation.  Vigneault will also be under the pressure due to the fact that the Canucks have won their second straight President’s trophy and anything short of the Cup will be a major disappointment.

Kings

Goalie Jonathan Quick will literally have to carry the Kings if they want to make it out of the first round.  Quick had a monster year notching 35 wins and a 1.95 GGA to go along with .929 save % and a league best 10 shutouts.

But Los Angeles finished second to the last in the NHL in scoring.  Three top scorers were Anze Kopitar, Justin Williams, and Dustin Brown who all had over 20 or more goals a piece.  Former Flyer Mike Richards was their fourth leading scorer with just 18 goals and 26 assists.  Kings lost 1-0 6 times during the regular season, and were shutout 10 times.  Overall failed to provide Quick with support. Kings should get offensive support with Jeff Carter’s return.  

Prediction: Canucks win in 5.

Western Conference Series 2: #2 St. Louis Blues vs #7 San Jose Sharks

Blues

Blues finished second in the west with 109 points.  Ken Hitchcock has done an amazing job with this young Blues team.  Hitchcock took over in early November and took a 6-7 team to a legit contender.  Brian Elliot and Jaraslov Halak were a solid goalie duo in the regular season and will have to continue to play well in the playoffs. Blues need to focus on keeping games close, high scoring games could get them into trouble.

Sharks 

Sharks are 29th in the league in penalty kills.  Joe Thornton is going to be key for the Sharks to be a leader and a spark.  San Jose is probably more of a threat offensively, but the Blues have the better goaltending and defense in front of them.

One thing to watch out for is the play of goalie Antti Niemi.  Niemi played in 22 playoff games for Chicago in 2010, and 18 last year as the Sharks went to the conference finals. Niemi is a very good playoff goalie.    Sharks need balanced scoring in order to win the series.

Prediction: Blues in 6.

Western Conference Series 3: #3 Phoenix Coyotes vs #6 Chicago Blackhawks

Coyotes

Goalie Mike Smith had an amazing year for the Coyotes 38 wins 2.21 GAA and .930 save % and 8 shutouts.  Great big goalie, players play with confidence in front of him.

Blackhawks

Chicago had 106 points, more than the Coyotes 97.  Goalie situation is shaky.  Crawford and Ray Emery failed to really get starting spot, but Crawford will get the nod in the series.  Chicago can put up some goals but will definitely have their hands full with Mike Smith in goal.

Prediction: Chicago in 7.

Western Conference Series 4: #4 Nashville Predators vs #5 Detroit Red Wings

Predators 

Very strong goaltending in Pekke Rinne.  Rinne had 43 wins this season. He also posted a 2.39 goals-against average and .923 save percentage.  They have two strong defenders in Shea Weber and Ryan Sutter, great powerplay as well.  

Red Wings

Have had a lot of injuries and struggles this year.  Great at home during regular season but will have to get it done on the road as they don’t have home ice advantage.  Red Wings can be described as a team searching for an identity right now.  Goalie Jimmy Howard also had a very strong season.

Prediction: Detroit in 7.

Eastern Conference Series 1: #1 New York Rangers vs #8 Ottawa Senators

Rangers

Finished first in the east with 109 points.  Goalie Henrik Lundqvist is an absolute stud.  He has the ability to steal games for the Rangers with his great play.  Coach John Tortorella was fined for his comments about the Penguins, but he should have no problem pumping his team up.  Rangers can’t get cocky and overlook Ottawa.  Rangers have to pounce early, not let Ottawa think that they have a chance in the series.  

Senators

Jason Spezza will have to play extremely well for Senators to have a shot at taking down the Rangers.  Ottawa came in fourth in the league in scoring and if they can keep games close, they can definitely win some games with their great offensive ability.

There will be a lot of pressure on goalie Craig Anderson.  2.84 GAA, 33 wins, and .914 save %.  If the Senators can get solid play from Anderson and lots of scoring from offense, they could make this an interesting series.

Prediction: Rangers in 6.

Eastern Conference Series 2: #2 Boston Bruins vs #7 Washington Capitals

Bruins

Tim Thomas literally carried the Bruins to a Stanley Cup title last year.  He will have to play extremely well again if the Bruins want to go deep into the playoffs.  Bruins feature 6 20 goal scorers.  Tied for second in the NHL for scoring.  Boston has great defense and deep and balanced scoring which will make them tough to beat.

Capitals

Ovechkin, Backstrom, Semin and Green all have to play well at the same time. Nick Backstrom’s return is crucial for the Caps.  He compliments Ovechkin nicely and makes them a much more dangerous team.

Prediction: Boston in 5.

Eastern Conference Series 3: #3 Florida Panthers vs #6 New Jersey Devils

Panthers 

Finished with 94 points.  Very tough first round matchup in the New Jersey Devils.  Struggled down the end of the season.    Jose Theodore will have to come up big for the Panthers as they really aren’t that much of an offensive threat.  Finished 27th in the NHL in scoring.

Devils

Kovalchuck, Parise, and Clarkson 30 goal scorers, led the Devils to a 102 point season.  They have a veteran goalie in Marty Brodeur who will soon turn 40.  3 time Stanley Cup champ. He still has potential left to play amazing.  Defense can be good, but can also be inconsistent.  Overall, offense will have to carry the Devils to the second round. Kovalchuck has to stay hot, and Brodeur has to be better than he was during the regular season.

Prediction: Devils in 5.

Click here to read my prediction for the Penguins Flyers series.

Flyers Penguins Series Preview

The experts and analysts are drooling over Penguins stars Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal.  They aren’t even giving the Flyers a chance and it’s very frustrating for Flyers fans.

I will say this about the Penguins: they are healthy with the return of Crosby and other players.  Their goalie Marc-Andre Fleury is a Stanley Cup champion and can be very difficult to beat, especially in the playoffs.  The Penguins depth also creates a lot of match-up problems for the Laviolette and the Flyers.

While the Penguins certainly have depth, the Flyers have a lot of depth as well.  Hartnell, Giroux, Simmonds, and Read all scored over 20 goals.  The Flyers also feature 8 players with 40 or more points and as a team the Flyers finished second in the NHL behind the Penguins.  And while the Penguins are healthy, the Flyers are also working their way back to full health.  Danny Briere and Nicklas Grossman both skated today and are expected to be in the Game 1 lineup for the Flyers.  Goalie Ilya Bryzgalov should be fully healthy and ready to go for the playoffs as well as he finished out the season nursing a foot injury.  

It’s safe to say that Bryzgalov is going to play a huge role in this series.  The Flyers are only going to go as far as Bryzgalov wants to take them.  If he can return to his form of March in which he went 10-2-1 with 4 shutouts and a 1.43 GAA, the Flyers can very easily go deep into the playoffs.

If Bryz struggles early in the series, his confidence, along with the confidence of his teammates, could be greatly shattered.  If he flourishes early, the Flyers can and will rally around him and play confidently in front of him.  If he lets in some cheap goals early in the series, it could have disastrous results for the Flyers.

This series is going to be an extremely physical and heated series.  I really like the Flyers chances because of their physical play and swagger.  I don’t like to get into regular season results when it comes to playoff predictions, but the Flyers definitely have confidence and some swagger against the Penguins.  The Flyers went 4-2 against the Pens during the season and won 2 out of 3 in Pittsburgh.  Again one can’t base too much off of the regular season, but winning 2 out of 3 in the other team's building is always good for confidence.  With former Penguins Max Talbot and Jaromir Jagr seeking revenge, I really think the Flyers can rally and spark their way into the next round.

One thing the Flyers have to be extremely careful of is falling behind early in games and early in the series.  If they come back to Philadelphia down 0-2, obviously this doesn’t bode well for the men in orange and black.  They need to pounce early, and if possible, try and steal both games in Pittsburgh which could give them confidence, and help them set the tone for the entire series.

Last year the Flyers got swept out of the playoffs by the eventual champion Boston Bruins.  After 2010’s wild run to the Cup, it’s safe to say that last year was a big disappointment.  But the Flyers orchestrated a massive roster overhaul over this past offseason, and what they have been able to accomplish this year is simply amazing.  Even though this year has been pretty successful thus far, the Flyers still want more and they know that while they may be young, they have the talent to make another run at the cup.

While the Penguins are favorites to go deep into the playoffs with Malkin and Crosby leading the way, a lot of people are counting out the Flyers and not even giving them a chance.  Personally, I feel that the role of underdog is a great place for the Flyers to be in as they attempt to knock off the Penguins.  A bunch of young guys with a good mix of veterans who all have a lot to prove is a recipe for success if you ask me.

But this series isn’t going to come down to statistics, regular season match-ups, or even who has the better goalie.  This series is going to come down to the team that has more heart and whoever wants it more will be the victor in this series.  I know that sounds kind of corny, but when you consider the heated rivalry that has been brewing between these two teams in recent years, it's very true.  These two teams don't like each other, and whoever plays more physically and with more confidence will win this series.

Prediction: Flyers in 6.  Win first two in Pittsburgh, split at home, drop game 5, and win the series at home in game 6.

Tune into my radio program tomorrow as my co-host and I will be doing a special playoff preview show, and giving you our predictions for the entire NHL playoffs.  We will start the show at roughly 3 PM. 

Breaking Down The Phillies Starting Rotation

Opening Day is less than 24 hours away! Today, I will bringing you a complete breakdown (last years basic stats, my projections, a scouting report, and what to be concerned about for each of the starting five for the Phightins!) of the Phillies 2012 Starting Rotation! Let's get started! 

      Opening Day Starting Rotation: 

          1. Roy Halladay

          2. Cliff Lee

          3. Vance Worley

          4. Cole Hamels

          5. Joe Blanton

Roy Halladay: 

2011 Stats:  

Wins: 19

Losses: 6

ERA: 2.35

Games Started: 32

Complete Games: 8


2012 Projections:
Wins: 20
Losses: 7
ERA: 2.42
Complete Games: 9

Scouting Report:

Halladay is a two time Cy young award winner almost winning his third last season, he is 8 time all star and has been an all star both seasons he has been a Phillie. He is what you call a workhorse, he has pitched over 220 innings every season for the last 6 seasons, including 250 innings two years ago, his first year with the Phillies. He has one of the best strikeout walk ratios over the last couple seasons. He does not allow many homeruns only giving up 10 home runs last year down from 24 in the 2010 season. Most outs that are in play outs occur as ground-ball outs and he knows how to attack hitters with strikes, he also makes it difficult for hitters to run up his pitch count. He has 35 complete games over the last four seasons. Halladay has a four pitch repertoire containing, a sinker,cutter,a curveball, and a splitter/change. His sinker has been around 92 mph over his career. His cutter is one of the best in the game and comes in about a half a mile or a mile per hour slower then his sinker. His changeup is usually been in the mid eighties, though during the 2011 season, the gap seemed to grow even larger at almost an impressive nine miles per hour slower. Halladay's  curve is usually in the high 70's around 76-79 mph. Halladay has great comand with all his pitches, and has great stamina being able to throw many complete games this season. Be sure to watch every game you can if he is pitching because you are going to be watching a future HOF member at work.

Concerns:

There is a reason they call Roy Halladay "Doc", thats exactly what he is when he steps onto that mound. Over his career he has an amazing win-loss record of 188-92 over his 14 year career and 66 complete games. There is no concerns for Halladay in any of the departments, injury,ERA, and etc.  No concerns for Halladay this year. 

Cliff Lee:

2011 Stats:

Wins: 17

Losses: 8

ERA: 2:40

Games Started: 32

Complete Games: 6

2012 Projections:

Wins: 18

Losses: 9

ERA: 2.39

Complete Games: 5

Scouting Report:

Cliff Lee also has a 4-pitch repertoire like his teammate Roy Halladay. Lee has a fastball which has been clocked in the low to mid 90s, an outstanding cutter usually in the high 80s, a mid 70s curveball, and a great change-up usually in the low 80s. Lee is known for his outstanding command on his 1st pitch strike percentage which is above 70% which is outstanding and having a swing and a miss rate around 10%. Here is an AL scout  assessment on Lee: "He's a hard-nosed pitcher who expects to go nine innings every time he pitches. He has the ability to pitch back to front [part of the plate] as well as side to side. He has pitchability more than overwhelming stuff, as he's capable of using his mix to a lot of locations in the zone and sequence [of pitches] is not at all to be expected." (qoute courtesy of http://www.dallasnews.com/)

Concerns:

The only concern for Lee is leaving the ball in the zone too much, last year he gave up many hits because he left the ball in the zone too much. This is the reason, that will be one of the very few reasons Lee will have bad games now and then. This is not a major concern either though so I would still expect Cliff to be an elite pitcher as he has been the last 4 years.

Vance Worley: 

2011 Stats:

Wins: 11

Losses: 3

ERA: 3.01

Games Started: 21

Complete Games: 1

2012 Projections:

Wins: 13

Losses: 5

ERA: 3.21

Games Started: 29

Complete Games: 2

Scouting Report:

Worley has a nice repertoire of pitches, not as great as Halladay's,Lee's,or Hamel's but a pretty nice repertoire for a 2nd year starter. Worley last year surprised the Phillies and the MLB going 12-4 last season in 25 games. Worley's fastball is around an average MLB fastball in the high 80s to low 90s and features some good secondary pitches. His secondary pitches contain, a cutter, a curve, a slider, and a change-up. He may wow you  now and then with some of his pitches but don't expect anything amazing with his pitches. Worley does have great command for a 24 year old pitcher, he also can change speeds on his pitches very well and is able to move his pitches up, down,left, and right. He throws strikes and you will find him ahead in the count most of the time. He is also like pitching great Greg Maddux in a way by have three variations of his fastball but none of them are considered straight fastballs. Worley does not have a pitch right now that would be considered a "put away pitch" but it is probably safe to say he's trying to find one. Worley loves throwing his fastball, last year through his first 6 starts he threw his fastball 65% of the time, that is a very high percentage and is very dangerous especially at the MLB level. Watch for Worley to throw a little less of his fastball this year but still throw it alot and use it effectively. 

Concern:

The major concern with Worley is his fastball as I said above, if Worley is able to throw his fastball less and use his secondary pitches more effectively he should be good to go this season. Worley should be able to have a decent season this year, I wouldn't expect anything spectacular this season but nothing shorter than at least 10 wins.

Cole Hamels:

2011 Stats:

Wins: 14

Losses: 9

ERA: 2.79

Game Started: 31

Complete Games: 3

2012 Projections:

Wins: 18

Losses: 6

ERA: 2.49

Complete Games: 4

Scouting Report:

Cole Hamels is entering his age 28 season, its amazing to think he's already been a Phillie for 6 years entering his 7th season. Hamels was nothing short of amazing last year, even though his record might not showing it only winning 14 wins and having 9 losses, Hamels did not get any run support during many of his starts last year, if he would have gone run support he would have won 16-18 games easily. Expect the same out of Hamels this year as he should win 16-18 games easily this season. His ERA showed his improvement from the 2010 season in which he had an ERA of 3.09 . It might only be a .30 of a difference but every point of a ERA counts. Hamels a nice repertoire of pitches containing a fastball which is in the high 80s to low 90s, he has one of the best if not the best change-up in the game that is usually in the low 80s. He also throws a curve-ball which is usually in the mid 70s and a cutter in which he recently added to his repertoire, his cutter is usually in the high 80s and low 90s. 

Note: Hamels is going into his contract season, he is also a favorite to win this years NL Cy Young award.

Concerns:

Like Halladay and Lee, threre is not much concern with Hamels, if anything it will be if he leaves his fastball over the middle of the plate or his curve ball hanging over the plate. Another thing to watch with Hamels is his mental ability to forget about hits and homeruns. In 2009, Hamels had his worst career season because of his mental focus, the last two seasons he has shown he could stay mentally tough. Hamels should have another great season statistically and mentally.

Joe Blanton:

2011 Stats:

Wins: 1

Losses: 2

ERA: 5.01

Games Started: 8

Complete Games: 0

2012 Projections:

Wins: 10

Losses: 8

ERA: 4.53

Complete Games: 0

Scouting Report:

Blanton is going into his 31 year old season, he's a former 1st round pick in 2002 out of University of Kentucky, and is going into his 10th major league season; he was traded to the Phillies in 2008 and was solid when he first got here but has been ok the last three seasons. Blanton does know how to throw strikes though and has what experts call a very compact delivery. He throws a league average fastball which is in the high 80s to low 90s range and will throw it on both sides of a plate, he also has a slider which is usually in the low 80s, a curve in the mid 70s and a change-up in the low 80s. Over the last two seasons he was showing a cutter now and then which was in the high 80s. His two best pitches have been his slider and change-up. He is known as a fly-ball pitcher but is prone to giving up the long ball as he has shown with his time with the Phillies. Though he still has some problems now and then Blanton is a league average 3rd or 4th starter but in this rotation he is a 5th starter and when Blanton is on his game, he is a solid 5th starter for our Phillies.

Concern: 

There is some concern coming into this season with his injury last season, seeing if he will be able to come back and be a pitcher the Phillies could rely on every fifth day. Another concern is his ability to give up the long ball over the last 3 seasons with the Phillies, Blanton has allowed 62 home runs. If Blanton can not hold down the fort every fifth day watch for long reliever Kyle Kendrick to take over in the fifth spot of the rotation.

Overall :


Last year the Phillies rotation was the best in the majors, I would not expect anything less than that this year. The Phillies starting pitching won over 70 games last season, I would definetaly expect between 65 and 70 again this season. They will need Worley and Blanton to step it up this year, since the Marlins and Nationals have gotten more talented and better, the NL East will be one of the toughest if not the toughest in the NL. I would not be surprised if Halladay, Lee and Hamels combine for 40-50 wins this season. The starting rotation will be holding down the fort this year as the Phillies offense is not as strong and powerful as it would be with Utley and Howard. But as a fellow fan, all we can do is sit back and watch this rotation do the best they can do. Go Phillies!