Ice Hockey: NHL Playoffs

As the game is being played, here's the comments coaches have been making...link

Well the Flames were doused last night. The Flames and there no-class fans came unglued at the end of the game. I expected much better from them. Sore losers,I guess. They thought they were going to sweep the Sharks. Nope not going to happen. I still don't think they can beat the Sharks 4 times.

Well nyeff, our teams are both down 2 games to 1 but I'm sure you feel as confident in your team as I do in mine. Tomorrow's game is a must-win for the Flyers, they have to respond like they did after losing game 1.

GO FLYERS!!!!!!!!

Sorry PA, after getting trounced by the Flyers the Lightning responded with a 4-1 win. The Boulinwall seems to rebuild after falling to pieces. It will be very tough.

As far as SJ and Calgary, I was a little dissapointed in the fans. That type of behavior is not warranted no matter what happens. Nabokov showed up for the Sharks, that was the difference. He will have to continue to play well for SJ to win the series.

[Edited on 5/15/2004 by crayon]

Flyers win to pull 2-2

Keith Primeau is playing his best when the games matter most.

Primeau scored one short-handed goal and set up another, leading the Philadelphia Flyers past the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Saturday to tie the Eastern Conference finals at two games apiece.

Mark Recchi and John LeClair also scored for the Flyers, who improved to 7-1 at home this postseason.

Fredrik Modin and Vincent Lecavalier had goals for the Lightning, who lost for the first time in six road playoff games.

Game 5 is Tuesday night in Tampa.

Playing in front of a sellout crowd of 19,872 that was decked in orange T-shirts reading, "Orange Crush," the Flyers scored two goals in a span of 1½ minutes to erase a 1-0 deficit.

Robert Esche, coming off a poor outing in which he allowed two soft goals, stopped 28 shots, helping the Flyers overcome seven power plays for the Lightning.

Lecavalier scored a power-play goal with 32.9 seconds left, but Primeau helped the Flyers control the puck the final 30 seconds.

Left off Canada's roster announced Saturday for the World Cup of Hockey, Primeau has been perhaps the NHL's best player in the playoffs, scoring seven goals and adding four assists in 15 games.

The Flyers' captain scored three goals to lead Philadelphia to a 7-2 victory over Toronto in Game 5, and he's been a dominant physical force throughout the postseason.

Just 33 seconds after Vladimir Malakhov went to the penalty box for crosschecking, Primeau gave the Flyers a 3-1 lead midway through the second period. Catching the puck in the Flyers' zone after Dave Andreychuk turned it over, Primeau put it down, broke in with Simon Gagne, forced defenseman Dan Boyle to slide toward Gagne and wristed a shot past Nikolai Khabibulin and just under the crossbar.

Recchi had made it 2-1 with 1:40 left in the first period, deflecting a slap shot by Mattias Timander off Khabibulin's glove and into the net.

Soon after the Flyers killed off consecutive penalties, LeClair tied it at 1 with his second goal in three games. Primeau set it up by picking up a loose puck along the left boards, skating in and dropping a perfect pass for LeClair, who one-timed it past Khabibulin.

Tampa Bay's Modin opened the scoring with a power-play goal in the first period. Less than a minute after Gagne received a double-minor for high-sticking, Modin put in a rebound off a slap shot by Pavel Kubina.

Keith Primeau has been unbelievable!!






GO FLYERS !!!!





Did anyone see the game today? The crowd was awesome, they were loud and everyone had on their orange, beware of the "Orange Crush"! It looked pretty wild.








Look behind you Khabibulin, it's in the NET!!!!


Here's Robert Esche with a split save, ouch.

I didn't get to see the game, I was out in the woods, so special thanks for the pics, PA. That's a real cool shot of the arena, with everyone in orange!
Glad to see them even the series.

I like the orange. I like that they handed them out to everyone that showed up. But when I 1st turned the game on, I thought they were empty seats. It was one of those far away views and alll the orange seemed like empty seats.

I was pretty stoked watching the Flyers beat up on Tampa. I think that game may be the turning point in the series. Tampa really looked down after the game. I think the Flyers have finally gotten into Tampa's mind. And the Flyers hard hits will start to take a toll on Tampa.

Originally posted by nyeff
I like the orange. I like that they handed them out to everyone that showed up. But when I 1st turned the game on, I thought they were empty seats. It was one of those far away views and alll the orange seemed like empty seats.

I was pretty stoked watching the Flyers beat up on Tampa. I think that game may be the turning point in the series. Tampa really looked down after the game. I think the Flyers have finally gotten into Tampa's mind. And the Flyers hard hits will start to take a toll on Tampa.

Hope so, man, I hope so.

Originally posted by nyeff
But when I 1st turned the game on, I thought they were empty seats. It was one of those far away views and alll the orange seemed like empty seats.

Thats funny you say that, I've been there about 100 times and know the seats aren't orange but I thought the same thing when I turned it on, looked like empty orange seats.

Anyway, tomorrow night's game in Tampa is HUGE, obviously the winner has a tight grip on the series. I would love the Flyers to win in Tampa and then clinch back here in Philly. I hope everyone shows up ready, I know Keith Primeau will. He has been unbelievable with his highlight goals and thunderous checks, one announcer described him as a "bull in a china shop".

Right now the Flames lead the Sharks 3-0 after the second period, I hope the Sharks can put together a strong 3rd period and pull this thing out although it will be tough against a gritty Calgary team who's goalie is playing great tonight. I'm still hoping for a Flyers-Sharks cup finals.








Iginla's breakaway goal


[Edited on 17-5-2004 by ProudAmerican]

Good-bye Sharks, better luck next year. The Flames just wanted it more.

I remember a sign I saw during the Wild-Avs series last year:
It's not how good you are, its how badly you want it. Go Wild!

Oh yeah, the Wild beat the Avs in 7, comming back from a 3-1 defecit.

Don't forget the Flames had 94 points and were in the toughest division in the West, the Northwest, and San Jose had only 1 more win than Calgary.

[Edited on 5/20/2004 by crayon]

Just wanted to check in before heading to Game 6 of the Flyers-Lightning series, I hope we kick some a$$ and force a Game 7. Look for me on TV, I'll be the one wearing orange.

The Flyers have already packed their suitcases for the trip to Tampa for game 7, I'd say they're pretty confident. They need to come out strong and get the first goal and dont look back. I'm looking for another huge game from our captain Keith Primeau and Esche needs to be on top of his game as well.

Well gotta go now, to the store for more beer and then to the Wachovia Center.

GO FLYERS !!!!!!!!!!

PA, i think I saw you, weren't you sitting next to a couple of people in orange, also
Great game, i only caught the last few minutes of OT, but that's all I needed to see, right?

Going to be a great game 7 who moves on?

Originally posted by crayon
Good-bye Sharks, better luck next year. The Flames just wanted it more.

I remember a sign I saw during the Wild-Avs series last year:
It's not how good you are, its how badly you want it. Go Wild!

Oh yeah, the Wild beat the Avs in 7, comming back from a 3-1 defecit.

Don't forget the Flames had 94 points and were in the toughest division in the West, the Northwest, and San Jose had only 1 more win than Calgary.

[Edited on 5/20/2004 by crayon]

You are 100% right. The Sharks just thought they were going to win. They did not play like they have all year. They thought showing up would be good enough. I would have thought the Ron Wilson would have done a better job of keeping them away from that mindset. He also should have played Scott Parker, and Mark Smith. Two of the biggest and strongest forwards. They great all season at softening up defenses. I just don't get it.

I am so stoked for Philly. YaaHoooooo.
I just can't get that interested in the the Cup if its Tampa and Calgery. Blah........

Oh my, what a game!!!

It's a good thing I'm typing this because I have absolutely no voice left. I think TB outplayed the Flyers in the first 2 periods but the Flyers, like everytime they've had they're back against the wall, weren't going to go away.

Primeau scored a highlight goal with 1:49 left in the third period to tie the game and send it to overtime. The Flyers flat out dominated the Lightning in the overtime and Simon Gagne finally buried the puck with 1:42 left in the first overtime. Unbelievable!!!

I hope we can carry all that momentum to Tampa for Game 7 on Saturday night, it's going to be tough to win a Game 7 down there but if anyone can do it, this team can.

Right now the playoffs look like the Keith Primeau and Jarome Iginla show and I really think it would be justice for them to meet for Lord Stanley's Cup.




GO FLYERS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gagne's OT game winner

Keith Primeau saved the Philadelphia Flyers' season. Simon Gagne gave them at least one more game.

Gagne scored his second goal with 1:42 left in overtime, leading the Philadelphia Flyers to a 5-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals Thursday night.

Game 7 is Saturday night in Tampa. The winner will play the Calgary Flames in the Stanley Cup finals, beginning Tuesday.

"I need everybody around me to help. I got that tonight," said Primeau, who scored twice, including the tying goal with 1:49 left in regulation.

The Flyers are seeking their eighth trip to the Cup finals, and first since getting swept by Detroit in 1997. The Lightning, in the playoffs for just the third time in the franchise's 12 seasons, have never reached the Cup finals.

Primeau, the Flyers' captain, has been dominant in the postseason, scoring nine goals in 16 games after getting nine goals in 110 playoff games coming into the year.

Now, the injury-depleted Flyers, playing without defensemen Eric Desjardins and Marcus Ragnarsson and forward Radovan Somik, are one victory away from playing for the Cup.

sports.espn.go.com...

Keith P. Hell of a player. A lot of people up here are pissed that he didn't make Team Canada, myself included. We've Mario L. What's up with that. Not only do you have to have a seat on the bus for him, you also need space for his walker and doctor.

"I am so stoked for Philly. YaaHoooooo.
I just can't get that interested in the the Cup if its Tampa and Calgery. Blah........"

Depends on what you're looking for. Cal. & Philly, a bangem up series, that's good. Cal. & TB, two quick teams, that's good too. I'm just looking forward to the final, I think we are going to see some good hockey.

I think it's going to be TB though, weak Philly goaltending. He did make a stellar save in overtime though.

Originally posted by truenorth
I think it's going to be TB though, weak Philly goaltending. He did make a stellar save in overtime though.

We'll see tonight. I'm thinkin Philly is gonna knock them on thier collective a$$