Its playoff time around the NHL and the battle of Pennsylvania starts tonight. Tonight the Flyers take on Cindy Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. The teams are very evenly matched both offensively and defensively. This series has all the ingredients needed to make some intense hockey. Look for special teams to play a huge part in who comes out on top of this series. The Flyers have to limit the number of penalties they take and on the flip side; the power play must step up. If the Flyers can do this they should come out on top.

As usual with the Flyers the only uncertainty is which Marty Biron will show up for the playoffs. Last year Biron played extremely well and led the Flyers to the Eastern Conference finals where they lost to the Penguins. All that being said, Biron has played well of late and will look to do so again tonight. If the Flyers stick to their game plan and play a physical game, they should be able to wear down the Penguins.

The goal for the Flyers is simple; take one of the first 2 games in Pittsburgh. If they can do that, home ice is no longer an issue and they will come back to Philly with the edge in the series. Tune into the game tonight at 7. I’ll post an update tomorrow. GET FLYERED UP!

Knuble and the Flyers exercised some of their Devils against New Jersey on Monday

It was yet another great night to be a Flyers fan. They came out and put together 60 quality minutes of hockey. They took on a Devils team that leads the conference and managed to pull out the all important win. The game was intense right from the start. Bodies were flying everywhere and the goaltending was spectacular. The Devils opened up the scoring at 9:42 of the first period when Brendan Shanahan scored his fifth of the year on a pass from Dainius Zubrus. The goal was not impressive and bounced off of Shanahan’s skate. The Flyers answered with the period winding down. At 15:57 of the first, Daniel Briere scored on the power play. The pass came from Kimmo Timonen who had 2 helpers on the night. The period ended with the teams knotted at 1.

In the second period it was the Flyers who struck first. Mike Knuble scored on yet another power play. They assist went to Daniel Briere, who had himself a fantastic game. The Flyers carried much of the play but were unable to stop Jamie Langenbrunner from tying the game with a power play goal of his own. He scored at 9:58 of the second period. The score stayed the same for the remainder of the period and both teams went to the locker room to get ready for what was a fantastic third period.

In the third it was all Flyers. Jeff Carted scored his 40th goal of the season just 55 seconds into the third period. The goal was another power play goal and again it was Timonen with the assist. Gagne got himself a goal at 3:01 of the third on a brilliant feed from Claude Giroux. This was all it would take to bury the Devils. The Flyers were able to keep the Devils of the scoreboard in the third and walked away with a 4-2 win. This is the teams 3rd straight win and they look to continue their fine play on Thursday when they face off against the Florida Panthers.

Sunday afternoon showcased a rival that continues to grow every year. The game had everything you would expect. The hitting was huge; there was plenty of scoring and some fantastic goaltending. The first period was a for the most part equally contested with Martin Biron playing some of his best hockey. He stopped everything that came his way in the period and looked sharp. Simon Gagne opened up the scoring with a power play goal at 5:19 of the opening stanza. He did so with assists from Mike Knuble and Claude Giroux. That was the only scoring in the period and the Flyers took the early 1-0 lead into the locker room.

The second period was more of the same. Both teams looked sharp and goaltender Martin Biron stopped every shot he faced. The Flyers were able to put an early goal on the board at 2:54 of the second period when Scott Hartnell deflected a Jeff Carter pass off his skate and into the net. The period ended with the Flyers leading 2-0.

In the third the Flyers continued to play sound defense and they were again able to score a goal. Pittsburg made the game interesting when Kris Letang scored a power play goal that cut the Flyers lead in half at 10:02 of the third period. That would be all the scoring the Penguins would have. At 19:32 of the third Darroll Powe put the puck in the empty net and sealed the deal for the Flyers. The win put the Flyers 2 points ahead of Pittsburg, who entered the game tied for fourth with the Flyers.

Tune in tonight when the Flyers take on there biggest rivals, the New Jersey Devils. The Devils are on fire lately and look to make the Flyers road to the playoffs difficult.

Post Game Quotes:

“Obviously, (the power play) was big tonight,” said Philadelphia coach John Stevens. “It goes us an early lead, which I thought was important. The penalty kill (also) did an outstanding job.”

“(Daniel Briere) made a good play going wide, fed (Carter), and I don’t know if he tried to shoot it or if he knew I was backdoor and had my stick and my skates kind of angled toward the net and was able to find my skate and go in,” Hartnell said. “I definitely didn’t kick it, so it was a big relief when (the referee) pointed to center ice.”

“The referee didn’t see it,” Gonchar said. “But he cross-checked me, so I punched him.”

“I thought we did a pretty good job carrying the play for most of the game,” Crosby said. “Unfortunately we couldnt execute, but that happens sometimes against a good team. Well just move on.”

“That’s pretty good, you know, to face the top two scorers in the league and keep them to the outside, keep them from shooting the puck,” Hartnell said.

“It’s the regular season; the playoffs are a different beast,” Biron said. “We were tight in the standings, so this was a big game.”

The Flyers proved to be too much for Buffalo, scoring 4 goals in the 3rd Period

The Flyers pulled off a huge win last night against the Buffalo Sabres, lighting them up in the third. They went down early but regained their composure and took it to the Sabres. The Flyers carried the better of the play for most of the period. On the Sabres very first shot of the game they took the 1-0 lead. Maxim Afinogenov scored on a deflection at just 1:52 of the first period. The Flyers got 11 shots in the period, while Buffalo just managed 6. With just 14 seconds remaining in the first period Claude Giroux sent a pass across the net to Scott Hartnell who buried his 23rd goal of the season. It was a power play goal that sent the teams to intermission knotted at 1.

The second period was intense but had no scoring. The Sabres put 12 shots on Biron while the Flyers managed 11. The hits in the period were bone crushing. The Flyers came out banging in the period and landed 10 hits. The Sabres responded with 9 hits of their own. Other than some minor rough stuff, the period was rather uneventful.

In the third the Flyers absolutely took it to the Sabres. They looked like men playing amongst little boys. Carter gave the Flyers the lead just 47 seconds into the third period. The team never looked back. They went on a tear. Next up it was Mike Richard’s turn to light the lamp. He deflected home a Timonen slapper from the point at 4:59 of the final period. Shortly after the Richards tally Carter put his second goal of the game home. It was on a beautiful feed from Lupul and was all the Flyers would need to win the game. The orange and black continued their relentless attack and Scott Hartnell put the icing on the cake with a soccer style goal that bounced off his chest and in the net to give the Flyers a 5-1 lead. With the game out of hand the fighting started. Arron Asham dropped the gloved after being knocked down by Patrick Kaleta and the two went at it. The fight was furious with punched connecting for both fighters. The majority of Asham’s connected with the face of Kaleta while Kaleta’s only seemed to be finding the helmet of Arron Asham. Despite being outshot in the period 19 to 11 the Flyers had the better of the play. Buffalo eventually added 1 more goal with under 2 minutes in the game but the goal was too little too late. The Flyers face off against the always challenging Washington Crapitals tomorrow night in Philly.

Oh yeah for those of you that missed it, ex-Flyer Donald Brashear got knocked out in a fight last night and if you haven’t seen it, I recommend youtubing that one.

Post Game Quotes:

• “This was a fun hockey game,” said Hartnell. “We had to stick with it for 40 minutes, and we did that. It was a hard fought game. In the third period, we were able to start putting some pucks in the net.”
• “Our leadership is very strong,” said head coach John Stevens. “They do big things and lead the way for us.”
• “It was one of those bad bounces that you see sometimes,” said Biron. “I think we responded well to it. We didn’t let it bother us or get us off our game.”
• “I don’t think I’ve been doing anything all that different lately,” said Carter. “If I have chance to shoot it, I’m going to shoot it. ‘Loops’ made a couple of great passes and I was just able to finish them off.”

Trashville couldn't handle the Fly-Guy's on Saturday night

Saturday night was good to the Flyers. They looked like a team that is gaining confidence and ready to put together a playoff run. They ran into a hot Nashville team who was on a 6 game winning streak. That was until they came to Philly and got buried 4-1. The first period was scoreless but the Flyers managed to out-shoot the Predators 11-8. The game was very physical from the start and Flyers goaltender Martin Biron had one of his best games of the year. The best scoring chance of the period came at 7:29 of the first period when Biron dove across the front of the net and blocked a Martin Erat shot with his paddle at point blank range. The save was highlight tape material.

In the second the Flyers came to life. At 0:45 of the second period Mike Richards netted  a one timer on the power play off a gorgeous feed from Simon Gagne. This kicked off the Flyers scoring. Just minutes later it was Lupuls turn to light the lamp. At 4:22 of the second period He Excepted a Jeff Carter pass on the 2 on 1 and put it passed Pekka Rinne. The goal was Lupuls 19th of the season. The team seemed to be gaining momentum as the period went on. At 13:01 of the second the newest Flyer, Dan Carcillo got into the mix by dropping his glove with defensman Greg DeVries. The fight came about after Carcillo landed a huge hit behind the net on DeVries partner, Kevin Klein. The fight was not a great one but it did show just how strong the Flyers newly acquired tough guy really is. On the very next faceoff it was Riley Cote who dropped the gloves and went punch for punch with Wade Belak. The fight was great and the 2 fighters traded blows to the head for what seemed like an eternity. Nashville had more shots in the second but the Flyers put up the goals. Biron played out of his mind and is the reason the Flyers ended the period with a lead.

The Flyers looked good in the third period. Their defense was solid and held back Nashville’s offense for the beginning portion of the period. The Predators did finally get one in at 7:45 of the third with a goal from Martin Erat. The Flyers answered quickly with another goal of their own. It was Lupul again. He stuffed the rebound of a Ryan Parent shot from the point at 8:51 of the third. They lit the lamp again for the icing on the cake with a Giroux goal. The goal came at 16:47 of the third.
All in all the Flyers looked great. It is tough to say if the team made the right moves at the trade deadline. Only time will tell. For now the team looks to win again Tuesday against the Buffalo Sabres.

Post Game Quotes:

• “I thought he was aggressive, square to the shooter, confident and he held onto pucks,” head coach John Stevens said of Biron’s play. “I think we’re seeing a confident Marty.”
• “I was a little late reacting because the first shot was a screen,” said Biron. “I reached out with the stick on the goal line and the puck hit it. It’s one of those saves you sometimes make. It was a good break, but I’ll take it for sure.”
• “Our line has been playing pretty well for the last 10 games or so,” said Lupul. “It was nice to get some pucks to go in.”
• “I did it to get on TV,” Biron quipped about his glove-hand flourishes. “Actually, I don’t like making those kinds of saves because it usually means you’re a little out of position and have to reach out.”

All tough guys to straight for the back of the head punch

The trade deadline has passed and the Flyers have said goodbye to forward Scottie Upshall. Upshall was a talented young player with high energy. He was acquired in the Peter Forsberg deal 2 years ago. Upshall is now a member of Phoenix. For Scotties services the Flyers have acquired Daniel Carcillo and defensemen Kyle McLaren. Carcillo who is only 24 leads the NHL with 174 penalty minutes. He is a notorious tough guy. He has played in 54 games this season, recording 3 goals and 7 assists. Look for Carcillo to bring high energy and quickly become a fan favorite. If the Flyers can keep his head in the game and Carcillo does what he was brought here to do, the Flyers are going to be an intimidating team. Upshall will be missed but the Flyers have plenty of fire power. While this deal was no blockbuster deal, it does change the look of this team. Carcillo will make his debut with the team tonight against Calgary. The game is in Philadelphia so fans will get an immediate look at Carcillo and his high energy play.
Post Trade Quotes:
“Daniel Carcillo is a good player that happens to be tough and aggressive. That’s the bottom line,” said Holmgren in making the announcement. “We think he can play in our top nine, and the fans are going to love him.”

“They were my favorite team growing up, and it’s kind of a dream come true putting on the uniform,” said Carcillo of joining the Flyers.

Last night the Flyers put together a great win against the Eastern Conference leading Boston Bruins. With playoffs right around the corner and the trade deadline looming, teams are starting to make their runs. The game last night had it all. Huge hits, great goals and a bit of the rough stuff. It was the healthiest the Flyers have been all year. It was Danny Briere’s second game back and also marked the return of Timonen to the lineup.
Right from the start this game was intense. Boston started the scoring in the first with a Patrice Bergeron power play goal that gave the Bruins the early 1-0 lead. The goal came with just 5 minutes and 35 seconds remaining in the period on a Zdeno Chara pass. The Flyers had their chances but couldn’t put the puck in the net. The period ended with a Boston 1-0 lead.
The second period was a feisty 20 minutes. Bodies were flying and punches were being thrown after every whistle. The scoring in the period started in just a minute and 49 seconds. Scottie Upshall anticipated a pass in the Boston end of the ice and fired a wrister that tied the game at 1-1. That was the only scoring in the period.
The Flyers came out firing in the third. They scored early and often. Simon Gagne got his first of two goals just 2:22 into the third. He did so with brilliant passes from Andrew Alberts and Mike Knuble. Knuble followed up his assist with a goal of his own. He stuffed home a feed from Gagne and gave the Flyers some breathing room. The goal came at 5:43 of the third. Later in the period Gagne was at it again, this time on the power play. He did so with assists from Mike Knuble and Mike Richards. This line was unstoppable in the third, scoring all 3 of the Flyers goals in the period. With under a minute remaining in the game Sephane Yelle of Boston scored a power play goal that was just too little too late. The game ended with a 4-2 Flyers win.
Keep reading this week for some trade talk. The deadline is today at 3 and the Flyers are involved in a few rumors that could change the look of this team.

Last night the Flyers took on a red hot Washington Capitals team. It is a team the Flyers are very familiar with. Last year the Flyers ended the Capitals bid for a Stanley Cup by beating them in overtime of game 7. The game last night was quite frankly unbelievable! With the Eastern Conference so tight for playoff spots this game took on a playoff like atmosphere. The hits were huge, there were plenty of goals and it came down to the wire.

The Flyers came out slow and within the opening 2 minutes found themselves down a man. On the very first play following the penalty the Capitals scored. It was a Nicklas Backstrom powerplay goal. Flyers goaltender Antero Niittymaki had no chance on the play. The Flyers looked flat the entire period and after 1 period trailed 1-0.

Contine read about the Flyers roughing up the Capitals

It’s that time of year again and the trade rumors are heating up. The slumping Flyers pulled it together over the weekend with a new look in net. Goaltender Marty Biron may have lost himself a job and a spot on the Flyers roster. His 4 consecutive losses were enough to get him benched over the weekend. Back up goaltender Antero Niittymaki carried the lackluster defense on his shoulders and led the Flyers to their overtime win in Boston Saturday. The starter that day was the struggling Biron who again gave up too many rebounds and let in a few soft goals. Within minutes the Flyers went down 3-1 and Biron was pulled after the first period. Niittymaki stepped in saving every shot that came his way and picked up the sorely needed victory for the Flyers. He followed that up with a 3-2 win against the Altlana Thrashers the very next afternoon. It’s beginning to look like the Flyers have found their starting goaltender for the future.

What does this all mean?

“The Flyers are going to try to trade G Martin Biron, who can be an unrestricted free agent July 1, before the trade deadline, according to the Toronto Sun.”

This is just a rumor but don’t be surprised to hear Martin Biron come up in trade talks. Also look for the team to try to find a solution for its struggling defense. For now the team looks to have turned things around and will get a real test on Thursday when they face the Ottawa Senators.

The Flyers played a solid 2 periods before giving in to the Eastern Conference leading Boston Bruins in the 3rd.  They were missing their captain Mike Richards, winger Scottie Upshall and defenseman Braydon Coburn, all out with the flu. The team came out strong.  They out shot the Bruins in first period 14-7 and dominated most of the play.  The score was tied 0-0 after the first.  As the game went on the Bruins slowly took over. Michael Ryder scored at 3:07 of the second period to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead.  It was his 19th goal of the season.  The puck was deflected on a shot from the right circle and beat Biron who couldn’t seem to catch a break. The lead was short lived.  Moment’s later Flyers winger Scott Hartnell scored on a beautiful feed from Joffrey Lupol at 5:24 of the second period.  The goal was Hartnells 19th.  The second period ended tied 1-1.  The 3rd period was not pretty for the Flyers.  They had trouble getting the puck out of their own zone and as a result quickly gave up 2 goals. The first, a Shane Hnidy shot from the point was deflected by Krecil past Biron.  Just 35 seconds later defenseman Dennis Wideman scored his 12th of the season on a shot that deflected off of Flyers defenseman Matt Carle and past Marty Biron.  Biron Made 30 saves in a losing effort and the Flyers were out shot 33-26 for the game.  The Boston goaltender Tim Thomas made 25 big saves and was a huge reason his team came out on top.   The Flyers will try their luck against the first place Bruins again Saturday at 1:00pm.

Post Game Quotes:

• “There’s a reason they’re the best team in the East,” Flyers coach John Stevens said after the game. “They have very committed players and they use their checking game to create offense.”
• “You can’t do that against a team like the Bruins,” said Hartnell. “Even though we killed off the penalties, that’s an area where I’d say we need to get better.”
• “I just carried the puck up from our zone and put it across. I was lucky enough to get it to ‘Harts’ and he made a really nice shot,” said Lupul.
• “We had a couple chances at the other end and then they come back and score,” said Biron.