Flyers on a roll at the casino we call hockey

When we last left our Flyers here back in 2009, they had just lost to the Penguins in the playoffs in the first round.

Well now it's 2012, and the Flyers just beat the Penguins in the first round. Hooray! Vengeance later! Victory is ours!

It just goes to show, if you stay at the table long enough, you'll win eventually for sure! Just like at a casino!

Have you ever thought about how much NHL betting is like casino betting? I have recently. I think they're really similar. I think they're exactly the same, actually. And just like you can find out more about hockey online, you can find out more about online casinos.

Man I love online casinos.

Until Next Season...

.
..because sometimes a 3-0 lead just isn't enough.

World Penguin Day

World Penguin Day is an annual "holiday," celebrated every year on April 25th. Yes, this April 25th. The day the Flyers fight for their playoff lives against the Penguins. Not real penguins, though. Just hockey players with pictures of penguins on their chests.

Playing real penguins would be kinda fun. They're good on ice, and would probably try to hatch the puck or something. And they're all about Daniel Briere's height, which would be fun for him.

It could be the last day of the Flyers' season, and this is the mind-blowing stuff I come up with. It's impressive, I know.

Hartless

Following in the footsteps of Angelina Jolie and Madonna, anthemist extraordinaire Lauren Hart is off to Africa to get herself a baby. Which is fine.

What's a little questionable about this is the timing. Lauren decided the best time to go grab said baby is in April, ie playoff time, ie the time when she gets to sing "God Bless America" with a video recording of a dead woman.

So instead of a duet between a dead, absent woman and a live, present woman, the Flyers will open Game 6 with a duet between a dead, absent woman and a live, absent woman who apparently values babies over Jared Ross & Co.

How do you feel about Lauren Hart's priorities?

Six is a Magic Number

Since the lockout, the Flyers have been a tough knockout. No team has been able to close out the Flyers in an elimination game if they didn't build up a lead of at least six goals. Six.

So in this Game 6, the Penguins theoretically will need to put in at least six goals.

Not gonna happen.

ECQF Game 5: Flyers 3 @ Penguins 0 - Penguins Lead Series 3-2

3

@

0

That's more like it.

• It was an odd, unfamiliar feeling having bounces go the Flyers' way.
  
• As those of you who read The FF frequently should know, I have ALWAYS been an ardent defender of Daniel Carcillo, who has proved me right by being one of the Flyers' best these past two games. He got assists on the first two goals to finish a game best +2. Added to his goal in Game 4, he's picked it up nicely after that suspension.
• One person I actually have been advocating for is Arron Asham, who again showed off some offensive chops with a laser of a shot to open the scoring, a goal that stood up to be the game winner.
• That first goal held up because Martin Biron did what he needed to do. He didn't really even look his best, but nothing got past him (except Evgeni Malkin's kick-in). Tough to complain too much about a shut out.
  
• Every Flyer forward except for two have scored. Those two? Joffrey Lupul and Danny Briere. Not to say their not earning they're pay (they aren't), I'm just thinking a little pride should kick in when Jared Ross is out-tallying you...
• I realize he scored tonight, but Mike Knuble hasn't been much better than his two aforementioned goalless teammates. Hopefully that late goal gets him back on track.
• I guess it makes sense to keep trying, so good on 'em, but anyone else think it was a little odd that Bylsma pulled Marc-Andre Fleury with just over a minute left, down by three? Can't say I've seen that before.
• The Pittsburgh fans were quiet the whole game, and deserted their team halfway through the third. The Igloo didn't look more than half full with five minutes left, which is pretty disgraceful for a playoff game, no matter the score.

The action now shifts back to The Wach for Game 6, on Saturday at 3 PM on NBC and CBC. The Penguins haven't outplayed the Flyers since Game 1. That was more than a week ago.

Good things can and will happen.

Let's go Flyers.

ECQF Game 4 Review: Penguins 3 @ Flyers 1 - Penguins Lead Series 3-1

Oh well.

• I've been saying Marc-Andre Fleury was the key to this thing the whole time, and Game 4 certainly proved this. Flyers dominated this game and had nothing to show for it.
• What really killed the Flyers was not getting a goal real early. The Flyers came out blazing in the first ten minutes, while the Pens and even Fleury looked a little flat out of the gate. Getting an early goal woulda been huge, but Pittsburgh weathered the storm, got a super crappy goal from Sidney Crosby putting himself in the net before the puck, and they never looked back.
• With Daniel Carcillo of all people scoring (finally), the stage really was set for a huge goal in those waning minutes of the third. The Flyers played their worst hockey of the game inconveniently after Biron got pulled, which made for a pretty anti-climactic end to what could have been a pretty epic comeback.
  

This is what it must have been like for Montreal fans last year, watching your team dominate games and doubling up the other team's shot count, hitting post after post, not being able to score any damn goals while the opponent takes advantage of seemingly every opportunity they get. It's not fun.

There's no doubt in my mind that the Flyers "deserve" a lot better than to be down 3-1 at this point. One of those post shots goes in from Game 4, Carter buries that empty net in Game 2, and it's a whole different series.

Which is why I'm fairly sure the series is over, but Game 5 certainly isn't. The Flyers have not been outplayed at all since Game 1, and seem to know it. They get some bounces to finally go their way, and this thing could very easily be headed back to Philadelphia for a Game 6.

Let's Go Flyers.