Sweet...Flyers 4, Penguins 3

(AP Photo/Rusty Kennedy)

All you heard going into this game was how much the Penguins would stink without Sidney Crosby. If I played for Pittsburgh, I'd be a little ticked off, to be honest. It's not like they don't have other players who can step up (you know, like Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal and, um...Colby Armstrong...and...), but that's what happens when you hitch your entire franchise to one player. Hey, we did it with Allen Iverson, so we're not without fault. Anyway, Philly made it 4-for-4 against the Yintzers with a 4-3 win. The highlight of the evening was Georges Laraque absolutely crushing Steve Downie into the boards headfirst, no doubt sending fans in Canada into fits of joy. Downie got up, went to the locker room, came back out, beat the snot out of some poor Penguin who happened to be the first person Steve saw, and was given a match penalty for not having his shirt tied down.
Let me repeat...he got a game misconduct for his jersey not being tied down. Slashing someone hard enough to break bones is a two minute minor, but not having your jersey tied down means ejection. Hmm. In other news, the NHL has announced its new TV contract with the Style Channel. Games will be shown in HD so long as the two teams are color-coordinated.

The Philadelphia Flyers, who ended last season with 22 wins and 56 points, now find themselves in second place in the East behind Ottawa (kudos to Daniel Alfredsson for his seven-point night) and tied for first in the Atlantic with New Jersey. The Flyers have the top ranked PP at 24.9% and a respectable 80.7% on the PK. In short, this organization has pulled a complete 180 from last season's disaster, and right now has to be in the conversation for Stanley Cup contenders. If the Flyers had ended this season in 8th or even 9th place, I would have been satisfied. I didn't put too much hope into this season given what we had to come back from. To be in the running for the playoffs, let alone the Cup, is nothing short of outstanding. Even if we lose in the playoffs (most likely at the hands of the Devils), this season will be seen as a success. And that's fine with me.

Devils 7, Flyers 3

(AP Photo/Rusty Kennedy)


This photo pretty much says it all. We got owned, plain and simple. I thought this might be our most difficult game this week and I nailed it. Johnny Oduya, who was non-existent on the power play until last night, had a four point evening as the Flyers got run out of the rink last night by a score of 7-3. That's all I got.

Pittsburgh tomorrow and then the All-Star break. I'll do a first-half recap this weekend, providing I can find the time...

Game on

(AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)

I was all set to recap Saturday's game against the Islanders, but who cares about the Islanders? Honestly. This week is perhaps the biggest week of the season for the Flyers, and it kicked off last night with a 6-1 beatdown of the Ottawa Senators. This game had been hyped for months after Steve Downie laid out Ottawa's Dean McAmmond during the preseason. Sens fans even went so far as to call for swift retribution against young Downie, with some knuckleheads actually wanting to see his career end (I will never understand that level of stupidity among sports fans, Philly included). And wouldn't you know it, less than five minutes into the game, Riley Cote and Brian McGrattan dropped the gloves at center ice. McGrattan hurt his shoulder, both got five for fighting, and Ottawa pretty much gave up after that. True, the Senators were without their top two scorers, with both Dany Heatley and Daniel Alfredsson out due to injuries. That's why you need more than one scoring line, kids.

Sunday's win moved us into a temporary tie for first place in the Atlantic division with Pittsburgh and New Jersey (temporary because the Penguins picked up a loser point tonight against Washington). The reason why this week is so important is because both the Devils and Penguins are up next for the Flyers, with the Devils in town tomorrow and the Pens on Thursday. I'm not too worried about Pittsburgh; we seem to be in their heads and Sidney Crosby is out for a month with an ankle injury. It's the Devils I'm worried about. Win against New Jersey and we set the tone. Lose and the Devils keep a firm psychological hold on us going into the second half.

Notes from the farm...

Now, usually I would do my own, in-depth hard-hitting analysis when it comes to our prospects. This time, however, I'll let someone else handle it. This article by Flyers beat writer Bill Meltzer is posted up on hockeybuzz.com, and it's a pretty good look at what we can look forward to. It is comforting to know that we have so many talented young players in the system, unlike some other teams who just rely on big name free agents and aging veterans (cough**TORONTO**cough). Whether or not players like James vanRiemsdyk or Mario Kempe will ever make it to the Wachovia Center is still up in the air, but at least they're getting good playing time...

The Phantoms are still on top of the East division with a record of 27-12-1. They got blasted by the Manchester Monarchs 6-2 in their last game, with goals from Alexandre Picard and Triston Grant, but still look to be in good position to make the Calder Cup playoffs. The biggest story surrounding the Phantoms, however, is that their current home may soon be demolished. Yes, the Spectrum, the original home of the Flyers and Sixers, the arena that housed the Broad Street Bullies and saw the Flyers defeat the Bruins in '74 and the Soviet Red Army two years later, will be knocked down by Comcast. In its place, Comcast-Spectacor will build cheesy retail stores, restaurants, and sports bars. Now, I'm all for progress. But the Spectrum? Expect some serious protests from a lot of people on this one...

(I still remember my first Flyers game. Flyers vs. Vancouver, December, 1984. The Flyers won 7-4. I went with my dad and my best friend from school. We sat in the upper level of the Spectrum and I remember complaining because I couldn't see over the two fat guys in front of us. The lighting at the Spectrum was entirely focused on the playing surface, whether it was ice or hardwood for basketball. All you would see was this gleaming sheet of ice, but since there was no light shining on the seats, it looked like the ice was suspended in mid-air, surrounded by 16,000 voices in the dark. And they were LOUD voices. Loud, drunk, psychotic voices. And I loved it. And now they're going to knock it down for a Ruby Tuesday's. Sigh...)

Week in review (because I'm lazy)...

The Flyers came back home from their six-game road trip with a record of 5-1, the only loss being at New Jersey. Since the Toronto game (more on them later), the boys posted a win in Atlanta, finally got one against the Rangers in New York by a score of 6-2, and lost 4-3 in OT at home yesterday against Boston. Antero Nittymaki started every single game this week, prompting a bit of debate as to whether or not we had a goaltender controversy brewing. Now, goalie controversies are as common in Philly as potholes, but I don't think there's anything to this. For starters, we needed the wins badly, and you might as well go with the hot goalie while you can. Plus, this gives Marty Biron a bit of a rest, though he was complaining to the Daily News that he didn't like sitting on the bench. And who can blame him? He was brought in to be the No. 1 and he wants to be the No. 1. I kinda like the fact that he doesn't like sitting out - it gives him a bit of fire going into today's tilt in Washington...

The Class 2 felony on skates, a.k.a Steve Downie, has himself four points (2 G 2, A) in the last two games, as well as a bit of drama to go with it (I know, shocking!!). During a scrum with Toronto's Jason Blake, Downie reached out after the two were separated and landed a punch right to Blake's eye, causing it to swell and blacken. The Toronto fans called for Downie to be arrested, TSN wanted a ten-game suspension, and former GM Bob Clarke told everyone to shut up about it. Here's the deal - what Downie did was stupid. He has to know by now that his actions will lead to more time missed and possibly team punishment as well. This is when you miss a guy like Keith Primeau on the team. Prims would have pulled him aside and told him to cool it down, but we don't have that leadership on the team anymore. THAT BEING SAID, it's a hockey fight. There are punches thrown after the refs step in all the time. If Downie had hit Blake on the shoulder or somewhere else in the face that didn't bruise up, this is a non-story. I personally think Toronto blew this way out of proportion to take some of the attention away from the fact that their season is pretty much done. Say what you want to about our style of play, at least the Flyers are trying to win...

Looking at the Eastern Conference standings, the O&B find themselves in sixth position with 49 points. Only ten points separate 4th-placed Pittsburgh (53 pts.) and 12th-placed Florida (43 pts.), so every point is huge. Fortunately, the Flyers are getting guys back from injury, especially Simon Gagne, who scored a PP goal against New York in his first game back. If he can get back to form and reconnect with Danny Briere, this team has the potential to go on a good run in the second half. And now there's rumor that Peter Forsberg is looking to come back. Nice...

GAME UPDATE - Flyers lead Washington 2-1 with two Mike Knuble goals. The newest multi-millionaire Alexander Ovechkin (welcome to the club, son!!!) has been held scoreless so far. Must be that fat wallet slowing him down...

UPDATE - Flyers beat the Capitals 6-4 in DC today. Knuble scored twice, Jim Dowd, RJ Umberger, Kimmo Timonen, and Mike Richards all got a goal apiece, and Marty Biron stopped 28 shots to get the win. And yes, Ovechkin scored. Next up, Florida at home on Wednesday.

Flyers 3, Maple Leafs 2

(Photo by Dave Sandford/Getty Images)

Nothing like going to Toronto to get back to winning.

Mike Richards scored the game-winner, Jeff Carter got me a goal for my fantasy team, and Steve Downie scored his first NHL goal Saturday night as the Flyers beat the Leafs in Toronto. Along the way, Antero Nittymaki saved 54 out of 56 shots, with Mats Sundin the only scorer for Toronto, who are imploding right now. Of course, this being Toronto, the game was not without some controversy. Downie straight up sucker-punched Jason Blake right in the eye, prompting many Torontonians to ask for the death penalty. Derian Hatcher, in a terrible impersonation of a hockey player, somehow found it useful to launch himself into a Maple Leafs player, taking out teammate Joffrey Lupul in the process. Lupul now has a slight concussion and a spinal injury. Seriously...

Downie had a conversation with both Paul Holmgren, Flyers' GM, and Colin Campbell, the NHL commissioner of playing nice, and apparently left with a pretty decent warning. I saw the punch and it came after the linesmen had both players separated. Steve Downie does have talent, and if he ever learned to control some of his temper, could become a decent NHL player. Unfortunately, he isn't at that point yet. Holmgren was more upset that his actions led to a power play for Toronto that resulted in a goal by Sundin. And I have to say, I agree with him. Anytime you put your team at a disadvantage over something stupid like that, you need to step back and think about your actions. I don't want Downie to simply skate away from fights or not protect his teammates (people conveniently forget that Steve went after Blake after he ran Nittymaki). Just show some restraint and some level-headedness next time...

Rumor has it that Nitty is getting the start tonight against Atlanta, though I don't think this is the start of yet another goalie controversy in Philly. Nitty has been playing lights out when he's gotten the chance (see: Panthers, Florida) and they might as well ride a hot goalie for a while. Plus, this could give Martin Biron a nice little break. Lupul, Sami Kapanen, Jason Smith, Simon Gagne, and Scottie Upshall will miss the game with injuries, though Gagne may be back by Thursday against New York...

Time to get two much-needed points on the road. Let's go boys...

AARRGH!!!...Devils 3, Flyers 0

(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Boy, I am getting sick of seeing this...

There must be something in the water in North Jersey, because for some reason the Flyers simply cannot beat the Devils on the road. Martin Brodeur, who is not one of my favorite people, won his 40th game against us while recording his 96th shutout, which is impressive to say the least, but I don't care. The Flyers are a combined 1-1-14 against New Jersey after last night. 1-1-14. Are you serious???I can understand why the boys get up for playing Pittsburgh, since the Pens rubbed it in our faces last year and no one east of Harrisburg likes Sidney Crosby. But Pittsburgh is not the team we should focus on beating if we want to make a playoff run. New Jersey has been the best team in the Atlantic for years, and the Flyers have always been right there with them. If they want to prove that they belong with the top teams in the league, they will have to start winning these games. The Flyers owned the second period last night, got numerous PP opportunities, and still couldn't score. We had the Devils back on their heels and still couldn't score. Maybe the Devils simply know how to beat us. Maybe we go into complete brain-fart mode against them. Who knows...

Tonight - Flyers head up to Toronto to play the Leafs. They better win this game by at least four goals to get the Devils game stinker out of their heads...

The Winter Classic on New Year's Day was fantastic. I didn't know what to expect, and I really don't particularly care for the Sabres or Penguins, but I was thoroughly impressed. The snow, the fans, seeing little Darren Pang avoid hypothermia, it was a good time. Now every team wants to play one outside, it seems, which makes sense if you have natural ice in the winter. I'm thinking Boston, Detroit, New York, Chicago, Denver, St. Paul, and anywhere in Canada (though Vancouver may be iffy) could host. There's been some talk that the Flyers may want to host a game at Penn State, but I don't know if PSU will allow it...

Simon Gagne announced this week that he should be ready to go in a matter of days. After being out so long, I don't know how effective he'll be. However, he does have very good chemistry with Danny Briere, so I'll take anything to get this team going.

Game is at 7:00.