Oh (and 1...) Canada

Well that was fun. Before I take off my #18 Flyers jersey I'm going to say that if this game had been played under the rules the rest of the NHL is subject to, Philadelphia wins 3-1 and takes a 1-0 series lead. Unfortunately referees miss calls and the Flyers have been hated by the rest of the league since their inception into the NHL in 1967, and the Montreal Canadiens won game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals 4-3 in overtime. But come on. Saku Koivu scored a shorthanded goal on a clear high stick, and the replay went to the league offices in Toronto, where the Flyers have had enough of their own problems this season, and the high stick goal was allowed for the second time of these playoffs. Then, with 1:49 left in the third period, good guys protecting a 1 goal lead since Joffrey Lupul scored the go ahead goal on the power play, 19 seconds into the third, Mike Richards lays a great hit on a dangling Alex Kovalev and is called for kneeing after Kovalev made a move and took a fall as if Richards had taken him knee-to-knee, although it was clear the Flyers' assistant captain had cleanly lowered his shoulder into the Montreal star. And you know the rest. Habs get a powerplay, Carter breaks his stick on a face off, game gets tied up, goes to OT and some fourth-liner buries his own rebound behind Biron, Montreal takes the 1-0 series lead.
But, as I've just watched the post game interviews on Comcast SportsNet and the players who just got jobbed are not complaining or making excuses, so too must I move on with the analysis. The Orange and Black are down a game in the best-of-seven semi-finals and need to bring the series back to Philadelphia at 1-1, plain and simple. The Flyers just came out of a grueling seven game series and cannot afford to be trailing 0-2 to a faster and better defensive team when the series comes back home for games three and four. During the game Bill Clement and Jim Jackson ran a stat showing that 70% of game one winners in the second round go on to take the series. But the Flyers were in this situation last series. They blew a two goal lead in game one at Washington and were able to win the next three and eventually the series. And to their credit the consensus in the Philadelphia locker room is that this was just one game, and now it's time to look toward winning four times before Montreal can win three more.
There were a lot of positives that Philly can extract from this (travesty of a) game and put what they learned tonight into the rest of the series. After coming out shaky, the Flyguys adjusted well to the Canadian's superior speed. The power play, despite a turnover that resulted in Koivu's aforementioned short-handed high-stick goal, generated several good scoring chances after the Flyers figured out how to work through Montreal's aggressive style of penalty killing, and Lupul managed to score what, for all intents and purposes, should have been the game-winner if not for the questionable officiating mentioned above, on the man advantage. And Philadelphia may have found the chink in rookie goaltending sensation Carey Price's armor, as he dropped and fought off pucks with his glove all night. The heavy shots of Braydon Coburn and Jeff Carter should be difference makers if the goalie's inability to catch the puck cleanly continues.
But the true difference makers will be the players who can counter the speed and size of Montreal. Coburn, who stands 6'5" and can skate with the league's top burners will be an asset. In the offensive zone the players who can skate with the Canadians and use their strength to dominate down low and not allow easy breakouts will be the key to this series. R.J. Umberger was rewarded for his efforts this post season with a fortunate bounce that resulted in a goal. His size and great first step will be huge. Carter, who has been a scoring-chance machine, will need to use his strength along the boards to create mismatches and his athletic ability to escape defenders and whip shots at Montreal's net. Scott Hartnell's contributions will be needed, as his ability to get up and down the ice and create traffic in front of Carey Price will really pay off. A healthy Mike Knuble would be a great asset to the Flyers, but health has not been a luxury the Flyers have enjoyed this season. Steve Downie may be the wild card of this series. He played a horrendous game seven in Washington and was benched for much of the third period and overtime. But tonight he was back to dominating the puck down-low tonight and created a goal with that skill, getting the assist on Jim Dowd's slap shot that gave Philadelphia the 2-0 lead. If Downie can continue to shrug off defenders and stay out of the penalty box, that will go a long way in wearing down the more skilled Montreal Canadiens.
And that is what this series is going to come down to, who will wear down first. Both teams have very balanced scoring and received great production from their checking lines in game one. Philadelphia battled injuries and roster uncertainty all year but benefitted from their depth. But Montreal's roster has just as much talent, top-to-bottom, maybe more. Both teams are coming off a seven game series in which they at one point lead 3-1. The Canadiens had an extra day to prepare and home ice advantage, the perks of being the Eastern Conference's top seed. Who will wear down first? That question could be answered Saturday in game two. Getting down 0-2 will be a tough hole to climb out from, and only the concussed Simon Gagne was a Flyer the last time Philadelphia came back from such a deficit (the 2000 semi-finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins).
Judging by tonight, this series is going to be entertaining as hell. The teams played back-and-forth fast hockey all the while taking every opportunity to pummel each other, and, aside from one absolutely ridiculous call that eventually decided the game, the referees let them play and put their whistles in their pockets. So for at least three more games the boys in Black and Orange will give us everything they have, and just as every playoff series has done, so far, deliver exciting hockey.