Oh yeah, I have a blog

As you might have noticed, I haven't been around recently. Mostly due to job interviews, general frustration over not being able to see all of the Flyers playoff games, and other such things. Since I've been gone, the Flyers pulled off the win over Washington with an overtime win in Game 7 and are currently up two games to one against Montreal. In fact, it's 1-0 in the second period.

I should be able to do a recap for tonight's game, but the rest of the week and next week may be hectic. I'll keep you updated...

That's my boys...Flyers 2, Capitals 0

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Flyers 2, Capitals 0

That's right, zero. A goose egg. Nada. The first Flyers shutout in the playoffs since Robert Esche in 2004.

There were stretches in Game 1 where the Flyers dominated the Caps. They clogged up the passing lanes, forced Washington into turnovers, and held them without a shot on net for long periods of time. Today, the Flyers did all that and more. R.J. Umberger and Jeff Carter each scores in the first period, and Martin Biron absolutely stood on his head today as the O&B come home with a 2-0 win and a split in the series.

This game was fantastic from a Flyer point of view. The Caps, who got some ridiculous power play chances early on (and benefited from blown calls by the refs), couldn't find a way past Biron or sustain any pressure in the Flyers' zone. The defense, particularly Braydon Coburn and Randy Jones, kept the Caps away from the net, though Mike Green and Dan Steckel had some good chances. Any time the Caps wanted to break out, the Flyers stayed in the lanes and didn't allow any long passes through the center, which forced Washington to get all fancy-like and try to skate the puck in. The more the Flyers shut down the Caps, the more frustrated they got.

John Stevens, who I blamed partly for the loss on Friday, did a great job of matching up Richards and Coburn with the Caps' top line. Alexander Ovechkin had almost no support, since he couldn't get an open pass in anywhere. Green and Alexander Semin had some shots, but other than that, the Caps looked like a young team in the playoffs - dejected, outworked, and outplayed by a veteran team.

Game 3 at the Wach is going to be insane. If the NHL bigwigs think the Verizon Center is loud, wait until Tuesday night. I will say that one of the good things about this first round series is that the teams don't have to worry about travel since it's only a couple hours between the cities. It's not like playing two games in Florida, then flying back to Philly to play the next day.

Let's keep this up, gentlemen!!!!!

Unacceptable

(Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

Unbelievable.

I had a feeling the Caps would jump out early on us tonight. Playing at home in front of a energetic crowd would get any team amped up. So when the Flyers fell early, I didn't worry. And sure enough, they tied it later in the period on a goal by Vaclav Prospal. Caps took the lead again, Flyers got it right back and scored two more for a 4-2 lead heading into the third.

Here's where I got nervous. I figured that we needed two more goals to end the game and take the lead in the series. All we had to do was control the neutral zone, limit the turnovers, and get shots on net since Cristobal Huet looked shaky. And guess what? None of that happened. Terrible turnovers, lousy play in the defensive zone, poor shot selection, and three straight Washington goals added up to a 5-4 defeat. To make matters worse, the media's new darling Alexander Ovechkin scored the game-winner. Prospal and Daniel Briere each scored two a piece, and Martin Biron didn't look too bad in his first playoff start, though he let in a softie on the short-side.

This loss is not sitting well with me for a number of reasons. The first, obvious reason is the simple fact that YOU DO NOT GIVE UP A TWO GOAL LEAD IN THE PLAYOFFS, ESPECIALLY ON THE ROAD!!!! Sorry for shouting. We're the veteran team, we have guys who have been in playoff situations before. The players knew they had to button up and didn't. Which leads me to the second reason I'm so frustrated. When you give up the lead, call a timeout. John Stevens needed to calm his team down and break up the momentum the Caps had built up, not to mention quiet the crowd down. He failed to do so. Third, Jaroslav Modry and Jason Smith were a combined -6 on the night, with Modry clocking up a -4 on his own. Why put them out on the ice with the game on the line? Unbelievable.

It's only Game 1, and there's still a lot of hockey left. No sense getting all worked up over this one. Besides, the Flyers have a history of losing the first game only to win the series, plus they still have two games coming up in Philadelphia. Still...unacceptable.

Keep on talkin'

According to every major sporting publication and TV network in the industrialized world, the Flyers have zero chance against Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals, who have suddenly become this year's Cinderella team. Every analyst on TSN, with the exception of Maggie the Monkey, picked the Flyers to lose. Scott Burnside of ESPN, who's an idiot, jumped on the Caps bandwagon something fierce in his "expert analysis", going so far as to claim that the Verizon Center is one of the most intimidating places to play. Which is news for those of us accustomed to watching games in Philadelphia...or Montreal, Calgary, Minnesota, Carolina, New York, etc...

Look, you all know I think Ovechkin is the best player in the league, far better than Sidney what's-his-name out there in Pittsburgh. He's got raw talent, he absolutely loves playing the game, and he can score at will. The boy did put up 114 points this season, which is no small feat. However, the Caps do have the advantage of playing in the Southeast division, the weakest division in the NHL. "But, but, they have two Stanley Cup winners!!!" Yeah, they do, but a lot of things had to fall into place for both Carolina and Tampa to win championships. Plus, there's no way you can convince me that the Hurricanes and Lightning are the same teams they were when they won their Cups. They're not. Tampa Bay is a shell of its former self, and the Hurricanes just seemed to give up after leading most of the season.

There is nothing we like more in Philadelphia than to be labeled the underdog. As far as I see it, the Flyers can enter this postseason with little to no pressure on them. It's basically a win-win situation for us. We lose, everyone's prediction comes true, the new media darlings move on, and we go from worst in the league to a first-round playoff exit. Not bad. We win, defeat mighty Ovechkin, go from worst to conference semi-finalist, and suddenly we become the team no one wants to face. Just ask Pittsburgh, who threw that final game just to avoid us and play Ottawa. Let the media fawn over the Caps, let them fill the heads of those young players with over-confidence, and let them believe the series is already over.

I'll be back Thursday to break this series down by position.

2008 Eastern Conference quarterfinal: Philadelphia vs. Washington

OK, now that the regular season is over (I still feel like it went by too fast), the Flyers have locked up the 6th seed in the East and will face the Southeast champion Washington Capitals in the first round. The 3-6 matchup was supposed to be, according to the "experts" on TSN and ESPN, the most favorable of the playoffs, since the 3rd seed in the East was usually the weakest of the division winners. And normally, that's the case. However, the Capitals have been on a roll recently, going 9-1 in their last ten games and riding a huge emotional wave since winning the division. I really think Alexander Ovechkin should win the Hart trophy this season, especially since Washington wouldn't even have a fan base, let alone a franchise, if he wasn't there. He's already got the Art Ross wrapped up, so go ahead and give him the double.

The Flyers kinda won the season series against the Caps, going 2-1-1 if you include one of those shootout thingies. Of course, we haven't seen the Caps since February, so a lot has changed. There is no doubt that the Flyers will have major problems with both Ovechkin and Sergei Federov, who's been playing well recently. Other than that, we have a deeper line-up, more players with playoff experience, and won't have to worry about coming down from an emotional high like Washington. This will be Marty Biron's first playoff game in his career, but the last two shutouts should help his confidence. Add in the fact that we're getting healthy at the right time (there's even talk of Derian Hatcher coming back for the postseason) should equal a first-round series win.

The Caps certainly earned their division championship, but I think the Flyers will prevail.

Flyers win the series 4-2

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)

Suffer through the worst season in franchise history?
Check.
Clear out the old guard (Clarke, Hitchcock) and bring in new management?
Check.
Sign and trade for new players (Briere, Smith, Biron, Lupul, Prospal, etc.)?
Check.
Have everyone think you'll be mediocre for years?
Check.

Make the playoffs anyway? Check.

What's up, son.

Flyers 3, Devils 0.

Oh, for the love of...

So, remember all that stuff I said earlier about the Flyers' playoff picture, and how all we had to do was beat Pittsburgh and hope the Carolina Hurricanes drop an unlikely two points to Tampa? It's all in my last post, so if you forgot, go ahead and read it now. I'll wait...

...

You done? Good.

Apparently the Flyers didn't get the message, as Pittsburgh won the Atlantic (for which they'll probably have a parade and sell T-shirts) with a 4-2 win on Wednesday. Sidney what's-his-name scored two goals. The Flyers simply couldn't keep pace with the Pens, although they did get juiced up when Riley Cote threw down with Big George Laraque. I will admit, when Laraque popped Cote's helmet off with a punch, I was impressed. Reminded me of the old rock 'em sock 'em robot game back in the day.

Anyway, tonight the Devils are in town. If there was ANYTIME to get a regulation win against New Jersey, now would be a good time. Washington took over the eighth spot by beating Tampa Bay last night, and the Rangers clinched a playoff spot with their win over the Islanders. This means that only four spots remain in the Eastern conference. I'm still holding to my prediction that Washington will win the Southeast, but sixth place may be a stretch for Philly. Ottawa needs a point tonight against Boston to clinch up a place, Buffalo was eliminated by Montreal, and Carolina needs a win and help.

I'm not asking for the world, guys. Just hockey in April.

Preview - Flyers vs. Penguins

Well, this is it. Last three games of the year for the Flyers, and I think it goes without saying that this is the wrong week for the boys to let up. The O&B have gone 5-0-1 in the past two weeks, with their only blemish being the URSO loss to New Jersey. It looks like R.J. Umberger will be back in the lineup this week after being out with a sprained knee. I don't think he'll see a lot of ice time, but it's nice to get him back.

After last night's games, here are the latest standings for the Eastern conference:
1. Pittsburgh* 100 pts.
2. Montreal* 100 pts.
3. Carolina 90 pts.
4. New Jersey* 95 pts.
5. NY Rangers 93 pts.
6. Ottawa 92 pts.
7. Boston 91 pts.
8. FLYERS 91 pts.
9. Washington 90 pts.
10. Buffalo 88 pts.

I'm thinking that Washington is going to end up winning the Southeast division, which will knock the Hurricanes back into either the 7th or 8th spot. The Flyers, assuming all goes well, should end up at no. 6, with Boston and whoever finishes second in the Southeast getting the last two spots. I tell ya what, it wouldn't surprise me to see Ottawa crash out of the playoffs. This was a team that people had penciled in to head back to the Cup finals, and now they're setting up for the biggest choke job since the '07 Mets.

The Flyers have to come out with some jump tonight. Pittsburgh would love nothing more than to make life difficult for us, so if we can get a quick lead, push some people around, and make the Penguins worry more about keeping their players healthy than winning the game, I think we got it.

UPDATE - According to the always trustworthy news scroll on ESPN (I shouldn't be watching TV, but the Arsenal-Liverpool Champions League match is on), if the Flyers can beat Pittsburgh and Carolina loses to Tampa Bay tonight, we clinch a playoff spot. I'm not too certain about Carolina losing to the Lightning, but the Flyers should beat the Penguins on the road. If we can get in tonight, it'll make the rest of the week much better.