We've gone from seeing our top line kicking some serious butt to completely sucking in no time flat. What's different? Jeff. Carter.
Look, I know how difficult it is to keep a 30-goal scorer out of the lineup. In the natural, it just doesn't make any sense. But you watch last night's game and you have to wonder, is Carter really in shape to be playing right now? He had 17 1/2 minutes of ice time last night and was a minus-2 for the game. He looked lazy on many shifts, made numerous bad passes, and had a number of turnovers... some which lead to quality scoring chances for the Hawks.
Oh yeah, and he scored on Michael Leighton.
But all that aside, I'm really not trying to hate on Carter. He deserves to have his name on the Cup as much as anyone on this Flyers squad. Right now, I think the bigger question is whether he's helping or hurting the team... and, ultimately, their chances at winning Lord Stanley.
It's abundantly clear now that, if we're going to get maximum benefit out of Danny Briere, we need him at center. He's been sensational in the playoffs since returning to his natural position on the ice. With him commandeering the second line, Ville Leino is playing out of his mind and even Scott Hartnell has rediscovered himself. It would be criminal to even think of touching that line right now.
As for Richards, he's publicly stated that he likes having Carcillo out there on his wing to do the dirty work. History tells us the same thing. Playmaker Captain Richie flourishes when he's got a true goal scorer in Gags on his wing with a grinder to compliment their talent. You just have to look at how Knuble filled that role last year. It took a bit for them to find their rhythm, but Carbomb has provided that grit as the season and playoffs have progressed.
Even with all his temperamental problems, Carcillo compliments Richie and Gags well. Replacing him with Carter creates a completely new dynamic on that line and restricts the other two players.
The Facts...
Carter is a goal-scorer. As a goal-scorer, he's inherently selfish. For example, in just 9 playoff games, he has 38 shots with a 10.5% scoring percentage. That's right about his average for the season. Compare this to the team scoring leader for the playoffs, Danny Briere, who has 59 shots and a 18.6% scoring percentage in 20 playoff games. Carter's MO (modus operandi) is to take lots of shots, miss the net a lot, and try to pile up goals by playing the percentages. It's sorta like blackjack. You're gonna hit jackpot eventually if you keep trying.
Richie and Gags out of whack. With Carter in the mix, Richie now has to get his nose dirty more. He can't pick his hits and spots as selectively and, essentially, has to completely change his game in order to accommodate for Carter's "touches" (how many times he gets the puck). The same goes with Gags. Simon is as much of a goal-scorer as Carter, but Gagne scores at a much higher clip (over 15% of his shots go for goals). The less shots you give him, the less goals. With Carter out there hogging up the chances, Gags is turned into more of a playmaker, which is not his natural inclination.
Carcillo relegated. Where's that leave Carbomb? He's suddenly reduced back to an enforcer role that is essentially unnecessary in the playoffs. In his few minutes of ice time, he can only wreak so much havoc before he gets sat for the entire 3rd period. Some people don't mind this, but Carcillo has shown earlier in the playoffs that he can play within himself and be a valuable and consistent contributor.
So what do you do with Carter? That's a question that Peter Laviolette should be asking the rest of his coaching staff. First off, you gotta get JVR back with Giroux... Giroux needs more talent around him than Powe can offer... so somebody has to sit. You could sit Carcillo... but he's needed on the 1st line... or Powe... but Powe has been gobbling up valuable penalty killing time.
So... Carter isn't a fit on Line 1... and you don't mess with Line 2. Change line 3?
One option is to move Giroux to the wing on a line where Carter centers with either Asham or JVR. That could work, but you lose all the creativity and talent Giroux brings. Plus, Commander Claude doesn't take shifts off like Jeff the Disappearing Magnifico. You boil down this option and it isn't much of one.
And you're not going to sit your best faceoff man in Betts. So I won't even go there.
Again, the problem exists... what do you do with Carter? The tough answer is, sit him. The Flyers are this close to the Cup and it's no time for selfishness.
Gags and Carts are close friends. Everyone says they're happy to have him back. Ok. But do you lose the Cup because of one guy's need to be on the ice. The finish is in sight, tough decisions will have to be made.
(of course, Carter can nullify this whole post if he can start making things happen. Please go prove me wrong. I'll be overjoyed.)
Claude Giroux should expect to be sanctioned today for crumbling the internet with his overtime winner last night. The immediate impacts would have been felt on social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and PantsSearch, but the tremendous weight of all the Wordpress drafts that were prematurely awarding the Cup to the Blackhawks combined with the new articles that frame the Flyers as the comeback kids should cause delays today.
Let's get this right out there in the open.
Good Game: Michael Leighton, Chris Pronger, Kimmo Timonen, Braydon Coburn, Matt Carle, Ville Leino, Daniel Briere, Scott Hartnell, Blair Betts, Darroll Powe, Claude Giroux
Bad Game: Daniel Carcillo, JEFF CARTER
Non-existent Game: Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, Arron Asham, Ian Laperriere, Lucas Krajicek
I have not seen a 2 foot floater like that from Jeff Carter in decades. He was awful. Awful decisions, awful execution on those decisions, awful effort after those decisions. And we can now consider Richie to be in a slump. Nothing more nothing less. Him missing that open net on the PP in the 2nd was exactly the type of play that a guy who is trying too hard muffs. But just like we couldn't with Kane & Toews, the Hawks won't be able to keep him off the board for the next 4 games (see what I did there?).
As overtime approached I was thinking about how, regardless of who scored it or even which team, we were about to see a goal that we should be prepared to watch over and over again for the next century. The almost goal by Simon wouldn't have been very cool to rewatch even though at the time it was very cool to see as I thought the Flyers had won. This Giroux goal was made for slow motion, speed up as it goes through Niemi, back to slow motion as it crosses the crease, speed up celebrate, and then slow motion on the wonderful, black-eyed terror that Claude's Giroux's 14 year old face unleashes on the Wach crowd during his celebration.
Here's time number 8 of 1,134:
If you're a Chicago fan checking us out during the Finals the answer is 'Now.' Now is the time to start worrying. A goal in that OT and you would have all but won the Cup. Now you have to win 2 before we win 3. If we start capitalizing on all the chances we've scored on in previous series the score on Friday will be about 9-3. 9-3 fly-ERS!
Just like we helped Sam of The Committed Indian sell over 1 million copies of his publication on Monday, Sam was willing to answer some of our questions for the benefit of both of you. Rather than ask the 15 questions about goaltending and puck grabbing that associated members of the Del-Co Times or Inquirer would ask in symphony, we sought to find out a little bit more about what it's been like to be a hockey fan in Chicago over the past decade. Worst part is that all his answers made me not hate them even less. But I will feel bad for them when we steal the candy right out of their baby. Enjoy:
1. What's the feeling in Chicago about a possible Championship. You had the Sox not to long ago and the Bulls dynasty, does the city really need this one? In Philly the atmosphere changed when the Phillies won - that broke the 100 season curse. If the majority of Chicagoans could chose whether the Hawks won this year or the Cubs, they'd go Cubs right? Well obviously if the Cubs won a World Series this town would pretty much sink into the lake. That said, with the fountain of mediocrity that is the sports landscape in Chicago at the moment, the Hawks really have taken hold. Sure, it's a hell of a lot of bandwagon jumpers who are just looking for an excuse to drink, but that happens in any city. As far was what it means? Well, this is a pretty shitty basketball town too so I don't know how much those six titles are appreciated. The White Sox are definitely the #2 baseball team here, so that was only a brief respite, But having the two longest droughts in baseball for so many years and the longest one in hockey I think has given this town a psychosis, and we've always had an inferiority complex, we are the "Second City" after all, and I'm not sure that'll ever change.
2. Was there any Flyers representation in the Windy City over the weekend. I didn't even really see the required "Cut to stunned fan shot" when the Hawks would score. If there were some what were they treated like? In Philadelpehia on the concourse you'd get so many insults you wouldn't even be able to make out the individual ones, not that that's 'cool' but I guess it is the Finals. Well, from my perch outside from when the gates open, I saw a fair amount of people in Flyers gear. Not as much as you'd see if we were playing Scum (Wings), but certainly more than we saw in Sharks gear last round and probably slightly more than Canucks. How were they treated? From what I saw they saw their fair share of light-hearted trash talk outside, but I haven't heard any reports of fights or thrown items. Generally, Hawks fans are pretty accepting of visiting fans (except for the aforementioned Scum) as long as they don't go provoking. From what I could tell, your Flyers brethren that are either transplants or made the trip were pretty well behaved. Though that happens when you lose, doesn't it?
3. Not to punch a dead horse, but how bad, really, was it to be a Hawks fan over the past decade (aka make us feel sympathetic towards your team's possible destiny)? In Philly it was bad in the 'we just can't get over that hill' sort of way, no management or personal issues really, except for 2006-07. We were never perennially bad. But in Chi-Town? If I could make a Philly fan sympathetic toward anything than my next trick will be turning water into funk! Here's the way I'll put it; it's one thing when a team is just perennially bad. God knows we've dealt with that here in town many times (have you seen the Bears lately?). It's quite another for an organization to actively chase away it's fans. It's not just incompetence at work here. It was genuine apathy. Our home games weren't on TV. Any talent we had was traded or not re-signed when they wanted more than $10. We couldn't make a decent draft pick or free agent signing because Wirtz the Elder wouldn't pay for them. They never, ever marketed the team in any way. Past players were ignored. It was the perfect way to destroy a fanbase and franchise. We drew 5k a game. As sick as some might think it is, Bill Wirtz kicking it was the best thing to happen to this franchise, ever. And it's not even close.
After an action-packed start to this Stanley Cup Finals, your Philadelphia Flyers find themselves in a 2-0 hole to the Chicago Blackhawks. The scene shifts to Philly as the Flyers find themselves playing in the most important game of their season, and the most important game since 1997. Being down is nothing new to this club. Can they pick themselves up one last time? We'll certainly find out tonight.
Watching Ben Eager do that to Michael Leighton made me throw up on my expensive, Italian, baby-whale leather couch. (Yes, bloggers get paid like crazy, yo!) And as the horn sounded and Chelsea Dagger began raping my ears once again, I started worrying. The worry of being down 2 games to none to a team as strong and talented as the Hawks. The worry that this feels like 1997 all over again. The worry that this awesome ride was coming to an end. I then realized that I was worried for myself, more than my team. Truth is, I don't feel worried at all....yet. I think the Flyers battled just as hard as the Hawks, if not harder at the end of Game 2. Simply put, they need to carry that third period over into a full 60 minutes tonight.
The Flyers have done a good job of negating the Buff/Toews/Kane line, as well as limiting the damage Keith and Seabrook are doing in the offensive zone. They're doing a good job of forechecking. That sadly, is kinda it. They NEED to do a better job of getting pucks on Neimi...who has looked good, but hasn't really looked amazing to me yet. They NEED better goaltending from Leighton. And finally, they NEED their stars to shine. The Flyers depth isn't as great as the Hawks depth, so their star players need to contribute tonight. I think they do just that. The extra juice they need will come from the home cookin'. Carcillo & Sons. Demolition Crew just signed a 2 game contract with the Wachovia Center, freeing up some beautiful shooting lanes. Everybody will be there, and everybody shows up tonight. The place will be deafening, faces will be melted, and the shit will be shoved straight up Adam Burish's ass. I can't even sit still anymore, and I haven't had my 4 afternoon coffees yet. If my heart leaps out of my chest and starts doing pushups, please call me an ambulance.
Once more into the breach, dear friends, once more. Tonight the Orange Crush and the ghosts of Flyers past come alive. The Stanley Cup Finals return to Philadelphia, and it feels like an old lover just invited you to her hotel room for a midday bang. Tonight, a 2-0 series lead means nothing. Tonight we show an original 6 team what it means to be old school. Tonight, the Hammer and the Hound replace Vince Vaughn & John Cusak. Tonight, the Philadelphia Flyers battle like they've got nothing left to lose. They really have no choice. Make these fuckers see Orange. Let's Go Flyers.
Chris Pronger Picking Up the Puck It's definitely weird, but who the shit cares.
Chicago Fans Cheer Through the Anthem I swear if Philly fans adopt this in an attempt to one-up Chicago in the same vein that they used the Ole chant to mock the Habs fans, I'll turn off my tv, shut down the blog, and stop supporting all Philadelphia sports right then.
Flyers Are Down 2-0 You want to know how important a win tonight is? Besides the fact that only 3 teams have every come back from a 3-0 deficit in NHL playoff history, 13 years ago the Flyers came out and got buried in Game 3 after two close losses. And then we got Darren McCarty'ed. Don't believe me? Take a look:
The Stanley Cup Finals are Getting Good Ratings Yeah, no shit. You have two great sports cities - one prominently featured in movies like Rocky, Invincible, and The Chris Coste Story and the other in Christmas Vacation.
The Hawks Have to Come Face the Flyers Crowds Eh, not really. The crowd will mostly just be sitting around the outside of the ice, yelling and cheering. But, if during the inevitable Pierre McGuire mid-game Quenville interview someone could hold up a sign behind Quenville's head with a thought bubble that says "I bet Pierre wants a mustache ride…" he'll win a free lifetime subscription to this site.
Hossa's Back Hossa never left. Seriously, he's the bar local that's growing moss. He's one of the premier forwards in the NHL. This is his third conference finals in a row. He has 90 points in 116 career playoff games. However, that celebration pictured above reminds me of Marc Savard's after the Bruins won Game 1 in OT - weak. Not a fan of the double fist crouch.
Mike Richards is not the Captain We Thought I made that one up. But for lack of anything better to say, if the Flyers lose Richards will fall from icon to captain who needs to mature a bit in the public eye as people reguritate what they've read all over Old City. Just because there won't be much else to talk about.
Here's a little background on the guy that Daniel Carcillo should have been all over instead of that Slovak Kopecky, who has 2 career fights.
Adam Burish is an American from Wisconsin who was drafted out of the USHL and then spent 4 full years at the University of Wisconsin. It just so happened that the year after he graduated the BlackHawks sucked (which is why they got the first overall pick in the draft...) and even though Burish was only an average scorer with the Norfolk Admirals of the AHL he still got to play 9 games in the Show the same year the Flyers dressed 317 players. The next season he was on the Varsity squad all year and finished 3rd in PIM in the league behind Daniel Carcillo and a couple minutes ahead of Riley Cote - the college boy decided to Major in agitating and Minor in fighting, finally. This season he missed 65 games after requiring knee surgery. But he appears to be back in full effect.
He was involved in this disagreement with Sheriff Ian Laperriere 2 years ago:
Sad to say Burish seems like a quality 4th line guy who is just trying to stay in the NHL. He's got ok size and plays with a lot of buzz, just like any 27 year old just trying to stay in the league should. I wish he'd go with Carcillo tomorrow night to set the stage but he's a Talbot, an Avery. Why I can stand Carcillo's antics is that whatever goofy shit he does he will still always go with a guy. And not just try to get the fight over with, he'll put on a full out battle. Burish is a bit weasely, not a great fighter, but a quality 4th line contribution none the less.
When your players are running into each other it's a bad sign. And I'm not just talking about the Flyers biggest hit of last night's game, because it happened in our D zone during Game 1 too. What it means is that the other team has your team running around. Like a really good squash or tennis player who just stands in the middle of the court but has you working like a dog to get to both sides of the lines/walls.
The only player who really showed some composure last night was Big Ville Style, I think just because he loves having the puck. Richards attempted cross-Blackhawk pass to Carter on the PP is something he sometimes tries to force, but rarely to that extent. And never cross crease from side boards to a player who's not even really at the backdoor yet. I think that's a sign that the Flyers are a little too aware that they're in the Stanley Cup Finals, but how could they not be, right?
That energy, however, wasn't enough to come even close to matching the Hawks in real, big time hits - especially in the first. The Hawks D-men and forwards were smacking the shit out of every Flyer on the ice.
The series is far from over, but the Flyers need to conjure up some of that Philadelphia magic that they've found at other times during the 2010 playoffs. As much as I'd like to think the Flyers will be the first team ever to come back from 3-0 twice in a single post season I just don't know if that's possible. Especially with Kane and Toews preparing to pop off at some point, probably when most needed.
Claude Giroux needs to pick it up. Mike Richards needs to return to hero form and score on that breakaway in the first, even if the puck is rolling. He needs to make more 'History.' He needs to be more Steve Yzerman except go out there and steal the Con Smythe. Jeff Carter needs to get some wristers on net and Laviolette might need to figure out a revolutionary new defensive pairing system where it goes something like this, no matter who Quenville puts on the ice:
When needed just go 2 pairs back to back. It's a Herculean task but this is their destiny! Dress JVR for kamikaze shifts, or maybe Carcillo.
Speaking of D-men, Braydon Coburn deserves all the credit that Eddie O. and Pierre le Tortue were giving him last night. He played a monster of a game, controlling the puck, containing the Hawks, laying the body on the opposition and even giving up his own when he needed to make a play. If we can get a couple more guys to have monster games all on the same night we will win those games.
The Flyers obviously need to win one of these next two games or there's going to be an unwelcomed celebration in the Wach, preferably the first if you please. But from what I've seen so far I won't be shocked, surprised a bit but not shocked, if the series is tied 2-2 at about 11PM on Friday night. Might even take an OT game, but knowing you can come back from the impossible, having that fresh in your memory, is a powerful ace up your sleeve.
It'll be nice to see those toxic Orange Jerseys again.
I can't believe you're reading this. From the bathroom at a B-B-Q no less. Good for you. If there are cans you should shotgun one, if there are only bottles then congrats for making it into Donald Trumps' inner circle of friends.
By now you surely know that Oskars and Daniel are in, Ryan and Rabbit are out. Earlier today I asked myself some questions, much in the same form as The Committed Indian asked us, and here's the best I could do. Not that Sir Anthony J. SanFilippo of Pennsylvania cares much for that:
1. Can Anthony J. SanFilippo suck his own penis (Sorry Aunt Ellen if you're reading this but this writer really low-balled a kid today)?
No, but not for lack of trying. He is the definition of someone doing something just because that's the way it's always been done. A Fucking Hack. Delta.
2. What do you think of JVR getting scratched?
Great move. He might turn out to be John Leclair, but even John Leclair wasn't John Leclair until he was, and then he was John Leclair.
3. Will Carcillo scrap tonight?
If Eager or Burish have the Spanish cajones. But they'll most likely just try to goad him into a penalty and nothing will happen. Except him scoring. Dan Carcillo is going to score.
4. If you had Anthony J. SanFillipo's job would you use it to shit on players who were trying to do their best?
No, I would spend most of my time examining my own NHL career and comparing that to the sportsmanship trophy I won on the freshman football team.
5. Will Mike Richards show up tonight?
Richie will at least run someone illegally if he doesn't contribute to the scoreboard in the first.
Joseph Pulitzer probably had no idea that journalism would reach its pinnacle on Sunday May 30th, 2010. He definitely didn't know it would be Anthony J. SanFilippo who would take it there in an online post in which he scornfully broke up with an athlete who could never reach SanFilippo's level of greatness. The 'paragraph' that will go down as the greatest in the history of journalism: Let me set it for you straight. The change is coming on defense. Ryan Parent is done. Presumably for the playoffs, if not his Flyers' career. He likely will be playing elsewhere next season. Good riddance. He has two left hands - ergo he can't carry the puck without losing it. It was nice knowing you pal.
What a fucking joke that guy is. Mike Richards should Stone Cold Stun him. Not sure if Parent owes SanFillipo money or just took the last cupcake at the organization's most recent birthday party, but SanFillipo really comes across as the consummate professional when taking pot shots at the Flyers young, struggling defenseman. Yes, I wrote the Flyers because he is still on the team, a team that is in the Stanley Cup Finals.
g
Kudos to SanFillipo for using his resources and audience to publicly attempt to humiliate a 23 year old member of a team that he has to talk to for the rest of the playoffs, if not for the remainder of his hopefully short career recounting games that everyone already saw. A bully with a laptop, all he's missing is the basement.
I'll be honest, I didn't like game one very much at all. It's not that the Flyers lost, though certainly that doesn't help. It's just that I felt I was watching a completely different team on the ice than what we've seen all playoffs. Neither team looked sharp but the Flyers didn't look anything like the Laviolette coached team we've seen the past few months.
So let's hope they've gotten the jitters out and are ready to get down to business.
It looks like Leighton will get the start again tomorrow night. I think it's a good move by Lavi and for the team. In as much as I love Boosh, the team seems to play better in front of Leighton (minus last night). If the team is playing defense, then Leighton will be just fine. It was still good to see Boosh come in and settle things down the way he did. I'm comfortable with either one in net.
Much will be made about Game 2. Sure, it will be nice for the Flyers to win it, steal home ice, and bring the series back to Philly tied 1-1. If it doesn't happen... guess what... it's not the end of the world. The Orange and Black are a tough home team and I have full confidence that they can climb out of any hole.
Needless to say, a win in Chitown tomorrow night would be incredible... and would set the Flyers up in good shape for the rest of the series.
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The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 
