The Flyers welcomed the Chicago Blackhawks to the wachovia center tonight as they looked to rebound from an embarrassing loss to the Boston Bruins in their last game. Chicago came in with the 2nd best record in the western conference, so the chances of the Orange and Black getting back on track tonight seemed slim. That's why they play the games though. For the first 2 periods neither team could get on board, as Cristobal Huet and Micheal Leighton both made some incredible saves down the stretch of the 2nd during a 4 0n 4. A litte over a minute into the 3rd period Simon Gagne finally broke through for a 1-0 lead. A couple minutes later Kris Versteeg answered on the power play to tie it at 1. With a little under 9 minutes to play Marian Hossa scored to put Chicago up 2-1. It was still 2-1 with about 2 minutes to play as Kimmo Timonen fired a pass for his own end all the way down the ice to an open Scott Hartnell who muscled one in to tie it at 2.
From there both goaltenders looked too sharp to keep the game from going into overtime, but with about 15 seconds to play the Flyers started one last rush into the Chicago zone. Claude Giroux took the puck zone with Scott Hartnell and Chris Pronger in front of him. He held it for a minute then flicked a perfect pass to Pronger, who in one motion slapped a high shot passed a diving Huet, and into the net for the scoooooooooorrrrrrreeeee!. So just like that the Orange and Black got themselves a thrilling 3-2 win over the Blackhawks. On the whole Leighton had an outstanding night with 39 saves out of the 41 shots he faced. Sure 41 shots is a lot and the Flyer's defense could definitely have been a bit better, but if Leighton can keep playing like that they won't need to be better. Besides, they did at least hold the Hawks top scorers, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Jonathan Toews to a combined 7 shots and no points.
For Kane it was the first time in 9 games that he failed to register a point. So in that sense it was a good defensive effort for the Orange and Black and one heck of a memorable win. With the win the Orange and Black now have 76 points overall and remain 6th in the Eastern conference.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
J.A Happ as impressive today, tossing 4 shutout innings, allowing 1 hit and striking out 3 in a 5-4 win over the Minnesota Twins. I know it is still early, but boy does the Phils starting pitching look good this year.
Friday, March 12, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers welcomed Lebron and the Cavs to the Wachovia center tonight as they looked to snap a 2 game losing streak. Surprisingly they almost did against the team with the best record in the NBA, but it wasn't to be. Instead of settling for jumpers they actually attacked the basket for a change and wound up with 66 points in the paint against the taller, stronger Cavs. They even outrebounded Cleveland 44-36, and they turned the ball over just 9 times, much better then their last couple games against weaker competition. In the end, while the Sixers did play some much improved basketball, Cleveland also didn't offer their best effort and they didn't have to. Otherwise this one probably wouldn't have been close. Instead thanks to their conceited effort to attack the basket, Andre Iguodala had 30, 5 assists, and 7 rebounds, Elton Brand dropped in 24 and 9 rebounds, Thad Young chipped in with a big 15 off the bench, and the Sixers kept things close until the end.
They actually led by 1 heading into the 4th quarter, but it wasn't long before Cleveland was safely ahead again. Still with 9 and then 6 minutes to play the Sixers were still within 5 and with 24 seconds left they were within 3, at 98-95. Unfortunately, on the ensuing Sixer's possession, Jrue Holiday drove to the basket and threw the ball away. It was only his 4th turnover of the night, against 8 assists, but an obvious rookie mistake. Cleveland then hit its free throws and hung on to win by 5, 100-95. So it was a pretty good effort for the Sixers' tonight against the NBA's best, but its hard to know what to make of it. It makes you wonder why they don't play this attacking game more often. It really is there best often and if their effort tonight is any indication it could easily bring wins against all those teams in the Eastern conference and the rest of NBA for that matter, who aren't nearly as good as Cleveland.
On other hand this hole night was really made possible more by Cleveland not putting out its best effort than by the Sixers putting out their best. So maybe playing this attacking game and putting this kind of effort every night won't make much of a difference anyway. Who knows? All I know now is that Sixers are now just 23-42 overall, still somehow as high as 11th in the East, and now a full 10 games out 8th.
They actually led by 1 heading into the 4th quarter, but it wasn't long before Cleveland was safely ahead again. Still with 9 and then 6 minutes to play the Sixers were still within 5 and with 24 seconds left they were within 3, at 98-95. Unfortunately, on the ensuing Sixer's possession, Jrue Holiday drove to the basket and threw the ball away. It was only his 4th turnover of the night, against 8 assists, but an obvious rookie mistake. Cleveland then hit its free throws and hung on to win by 5, 100-95. So it was a pretty good effort for the Sixers' tonight against the NBA's best, but its hard to know what to make of it. It makes you wonder why they don't play this attacking game more often. It really is there best often and if their effort tonight is any indication it could easily bring wins against all those teams in the Eastern conference and the rest of NBA for that matter, who aren't nearly as good as Cleveland.
On other hand this hole night was really made possible more by Cleveland not putting out its best effort than by the Sixers putting out their best. So maybe playing this attacking game and putting this kind of effort every night won't make much of a difference anyway. Who knows? All I know now is that Sixers are now just 23-42 overall, still somehow as high as 11th in the East, and now a full 10 games out 8th.
EAGLES NEWS
The Birds stayed busy today adding another weapon to their offense, or should I bringing one back. That's right the biscuit is back in the Baskett, that is Hank Baskett is back with the Birds. I don't think I have to tell you what kind of player is or how he can help the already loaded Eagles' offense. He's back basically because the Eagles never wanted to give him up. They did so only because they couldn't get rid of Reggie Brown until now and obviously there wasn't room for both of them last year. I am not sure if I am happy he's back, but I would rather have him than Reggie, so I guess that's something.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils would have continued with spring training today but they got washed out by the same storm that is in our area now.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers welcomed the Boston Bruins to the Wachovia center tonight as they looked to put together back to back wins. Unfortunately, tonight just wasn't their night. They just almost totally collapsed on defense, allowing 37 shots on goal, many at point blank range. As a result, before the 2nd period was even 12 minutes old, Boston was up 4-1 and Micheal Leighton was out of game and watching from the bench for the rest of the night. Brian Boucher didn't fare much better than Leighton allowing a 5th goal late in the 3rd period to cap off a embarrassing 5-1 loss to the Bruins. The lone bright spot of the night for the Orange and Black was Jeff Carter, whose power play goal tied things up just a few seconds into the 2nd period. It was all Boston there on out though.
You're just not going too win many nights, playing Defense like the Flyer's did tonight. They have got to figure out what's been going on with their defense since returning from the Olympic break or they won't be in a comfortable playoff position for much longer. I mean you know your defense was very good, when you committ one penalty all night long, kill it off, and still manage to allow 5 goals. The Orange and Black had won 5 in a row coming in, so this loss really hurts the momentum they had built up on home ice. With the loss the Flyers drop into a tie for 6th in the Eastern conference and are now just 2 points up on the 8th place Bruins, not nearly as comfortable a position as they were in just a few days ago. I guess that's what losing does to you sometimes, huh.
You're just not going too win many nights, playing Defense like the Flyer's did tonight. They have got to figure out what's been going on with their defense since returning from the Olympic break or they won't be in a comfortable playoff position for much longer. I mean you know your defense was very good, when you committ one penalty all night long, kill it off, and still manage to allow 5 goals. The Orange and Black had won 5 in a row coming in, so this loss really hurts the momentum they had built up on home ice. With the loss the Flyers drop into a tie for 6th in the Eastern conference and are now just 2 points up on the 8th place Bruins, not nearly as comfortable a position as they were in just a few days ago. I guess that's what losing does to you sometimes, huh.
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles added another free agent today, signing ex Air Force reciever/returner Chad Hall to a 2 3 year deal. Hall is a versatile offensive weapon, who played a running back, reciever, and returner for Air Force. With Reggie Brown out of town finally, the Birds needed someone to replace him. Hall, could be the guy to do so. Plus, you can never have too many weapons on offense.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Detroit Tigers. In his 2nd start of the spring, Joe Blanton tossed 4 scoreless inningsen route to a 4-0 Phils win. Not a bad day for Joe if I may say so myself.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers welcomed the Charlotte Bobcats to the Wachovia center tonight, as they looked to avoid their 2nd loss in a row. Coming in Charlotte sat 7th in the Eastern conference, 7.5 games ahead of the Sixers. If the Sixers were still planning to a playoff push, this was one they needed to have. Unfortunately, they never really stood a chance. Charlotte was too strong defensively, forcing another 20 Sixer's turnovers, and holding them to just 41% shooting from the field and just 20% shooting from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Charlotte shot 50% from the field and 38% from beyond the arc, while turning the ball over just 16 times. Thus, not surprisingly, Charlotte jumped out to a big 14 point lead after a quarter of play. They then went up by 18 at the half and finally a whopping 27, heading into the 4th quarter. The Sixers finally woke up in the 4th quarter, outscoring Charlotte by 12, but it was too late, as the Bobcats still hung on to win easily by 15, 102-87. Ultimately, it was just a totally dominant Charlotte team on this night, and they deserve to get their first playoff birth later this season.
The Sixers on the other hand don't look like a team that deserves anything right now. Sure Elton Brand was solid with 11 and 9 rebounds, as well as Andre Iguodala with 13, Jrue Holiday with 13 and 8 rebounds, Lou Williams with 10, Thad Young with 12 and Rodney Carney with 14. Other than that there really wasn't much to be positive about for the Sixers on this night. I mean what else can you say about a loss like this. It just goes to show what good defensive play will for you. If Sixers could only have played defense like this during season, they might have actually had something to work this year. There is just nothing for the Sixers to work with now. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 23-41 overall, which incredibly is still good enough for 10th in the East, now 8.5 games out of 8th.
The Sixers on the other hand don't look like a team that deserves anything right now. Sure Elton Brand was solid with 11 and 9 rebounds, as well as Andre Iguodala with 13, Jrue Holiday with 13 and 8 rebounds, Lou Williams with 10, Thad Young with 12 and Rodney Carney with 14. Other than that there really wasn't much to be positive about for the Sixers on this night. I mean what else can you say about a loss like this. It just goes to show what good defensive play will for you. If Sixers could only have played defense like this during season, they might have actually had something to work this year. There is just nothing for the Sixers to work with now. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 23-41 overall, which incredibly is still good enough for 10th in the East, now 8.5 games out of 8th.
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles finally signed a free agent today, agreeing with ex-Colts CB, Marlon Jackson, on a 2 year deal worth up to $5.5 million deal if he plays and starts most weeks. Jackson is the rare DB capable excelling at CB and safety. Thus, he'll have the chance to compete for a starting safety position, most likely along side Quintin Mikell. Jackson has proven to be a good player in the past, most notably in 2007 when he was 4th on Colts in tackles with 112. Since then he has torn his ACL twice and played only 11 games in the last 2 seasons. If he is healthy now though he could be a nice fit at safety for the Birds. It could be well into training camp though, before we know just what condition he is in and what impact he'll be able to make for the Birds. So the Eagles may still want to look at a safety in the draft. At any rate it should be interesting to see how things pan out.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Toronto Blue Jays. Cole Hamels got the start opposite ex-Phils phenom Kyle Drabek, recently traded to Toronto, for Roy Halladay. Both Hamels and Drabek looked good. Drabek went 2 scoreless innings and Hamels went 3 and 2/3rd's innings, allowing just 1 run on 1 hit. In the end it was the Phils who came out on top, with John Mayberry Jr. , knocking in his 5th run of the spring, while Greg Dobbs doubled twice, and Cody Ransom slammed a homerun in a 4-2 win.
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers welcomed the New York Islanders to the Wachovia center tonight as they looked to make it 2 in a row after an easy win over the Mape Leafs in their last game. Coming in they had defeated the Islanders in 14 straight contests. A win would give them a Flyer's record 15 straight wins over the Isles. Early on though it looked like New York might deny the record. Goals by John Tavares, early in the 1st period, and Kyle Okposo late in the 2nd period, gave the Isles the early 2-0 edge. Then with about 8 minutes to play in the 2nd period, the Orange and Black went to work. With an assist from Danny Briere, Jeff Carter scored at that point in the 2nd period to cut it to 2-1. Early in the 3rd period Claude Giroux scored off the power play to knot it up at 2. Finally with a little over 6 minutes to play, Simon Gagne scored another power play goal, with an assist from Giroux, for a 3-2 lead. Micheal Leighton, who saved 23, then made sure it held up the rest of the way, to clinch the Flyers record breaking 15th straight win over the Isles.
It was a particularly gruesome win for the Orange and Black with James Van Reimsdyk, Lukas Krajicek and Dan Carcillo, all leaving the ice bloodied and beaten at one point in the 1st period. Fortunately, all three toughed it out and returned to the ice before the game was over. However, their absence early on, explains why the Flyers fell behind in this one in the first place. This was just 2nd win of the season for the Flyers, when trailing after 2 periods. They're going to need a few more of these, if they hope to reach the playoffs with a decent seeding. Ultimately, it was once again, perhaps not the Flyers best game, but they found a way to win, and that's really all that matters at this point. With the win ,the Flyers with 74 points overall now, remain 6th in the East, just 5 points behind 5th place Ottawa and 4th place New Jersey, and a comfortable 7 points clear of the 9th place Rangers.
It was a particularly gruesome win for the Orange and Black with James Van Reimsdyk, Lukas Krajicek and Dan Carcillo, all leaving the ice bloodied and beaten at one point in the 1st period. Fortunately, all three toughed it out and returned to the ice before the game was over. However, their absence early on, explains why the Flyers fell behind in this one in the first place. This was just 2nd win of the season for the Flyers, when trailing after 2 periods. They're going to need a few more of these, if they hope to reach the playoffs with a decent seeding. Ultimately, it was once again, perhaps not the Flyers best game, but they found a way to win, and that's really all that matters at this point. With the win ,the Flyers with 74 points overall now, remain 6th in the East, just 5 points behind 5th place Ottawa and 4th place New Jersey, and a comfortable 7 points clear of the 9th place Rangers.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Indiana tonight as they looked to make it 2 in a row, after a stirring win over the Raptors in their last game. Coming in the Pacers were well behind the Sixers in the Eastern conference standings and without their best player, Danny Granger, whose nursing an injury. So it was going to be easy pickins for the Sixers tonight right? Oops. Unfortunately, the Sixers did not shoot nearly as well tonight as they had in their last game, at just 45% from the field and only 31% from beyond. Moreover, they turned the ball over a whopping 20 times which will just kill your chances of winning every time. Indiana didn't necessarily play all that much better than the Sixers, but they shot better from beyond and did not make anywhere near as many mistakes, with only 10 turnovers. Thus, after a tepid 1st quarter, it was Indiana who pushed to a 2 point lead at the half and Indiana that extended to a 9 point lead heading into the 4th quarter, before hanging on to win by 11, 107-96.
Andre Iguodala had a particularly horrid night with just 5 points, while Elton Brand contributed just 7 and 3 rebounds. I mean what happened to those guys out there tonight. It's no wonder the Sixer's lost. Meanwhile, Sammy Dalembert was great with 16 and 11 rebounds, Jrue Holiday was impressive again with a Sixer's high 21, Lou Williams was solid with 11 and 6 rebounds and finally Willie Green was the only bright spot of an otherwise listless bench effort, with 13 and 4 rebounds. Even he turned the ball over twice though. It was just one of those nights where the Sixers killed themselves with mistakes all game long, and they're just good enough right now to get away with nights like that. Not that it matters at this point anyway as it seems the Sixers are beginning to give up on any hopes they might have still had of making the playoffs for the 3rd year in a row. With the loss the Sixers drop to 23-40 overall, still barely good enough for 10th in the East, but now 8.5 out of 8th.
Andre Iguodala had a particularly horrid night with just 5 points, while Elton Brand contributed just 7 and 3 rebounds. I mean what happened to those guys out there tonight. It's no wonder the Sixer's lost. Meanwhile, Sammy Dalembert was great with 16 and 11 rebounds, Jrue Holiday was impressive again with a Sixer's high 21, Lou Williams was solid with 11 and 6 rebounds and finally Willie Green was the only bright spot of an otherwise listless bench effort, with 13 and 4 rebounds. Even he turned the ball over twice though. It was just one of those nights where the Sixers killed themselves with mistakes all game long, and they're just good enough right now to get away with nights like that. Not that it matters at this point anyway as it seems the Sixers are beginning to give up on any hopes they might have still had of making the playoffs for the 3rd year in a row. With the loss the Sixers drop to 23-40 overall, still barely good enough for 10th in the East, but now 8.5 out of 8th.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Atlanta Braves. Roy Halladay got his 2nd start of the spring tossing 3 scoreless innings and striking out 5, and the Phils racked up 13 hits on their way to a 7-4 win. Jayson Werth hit a 2 run homer, Ryan Howard collected 2 hits and, in his first game of the spring Shane Victorino collected a hit as well.
Monday, March 08, 2010
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles were busy today at last. First they restructured o lineman Stacy Andrew's contract so he'll earn less next season. At the same time they also traded Reggie Brown to Tampa Bay for a 6th round pick. Finally with all that done and some extra cap space available the Eagles re-signed Jason Avant to a 5 year deal. So this offseason isn't a total loss for the Birds. At least they are taking care of their own players, albeit while ignoring all those available as free agents, and I guess that's better than doing nothing at all.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Yankees. Kyle Kendrick got the start and was impressive once again, tossing 3 scoreless innings, while allowing just 1 hit. Unfortunately New York eventually came up on winning end of the box score, with a 7-5 win. Still Kendrick continues to make it tough for the Phils to select a 5th starter.
Sunday, March 07, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers went for the Toronto sweep tonight as they took on the Maple Leafs back at the Wachovia center, not long after the Sixers demolished the Raptors in Toronto. They Orange and Black were also coming having lost 2 in a row so they really needed this to break their losing streak. Thanks to another solid night from Micheal Leighton, with 27 saves out of 28 shots faced, Jeff Carter's 30th goal of the season, and Dan Carcillo's restraint in early in the game which led to a bunch of early power plays for the Flyers and Carter's goal, the Orange and Black were able to match the Sixers with a win and a snapped losing streak. Carter's scored gave the Flyers the early 1-0 lead in the 1st period. After Toronto tied it at 1 early in the 2nd period, Simon Gagne and Danny Briere both scored within a minute of another to push it to 3-1 Flyers. From there Leighton ensured there would be no Toronto comeback with some key saves down the stretch to preserve the Flyer's lead.
While it was nice to get the win, considering how poorly Toronto had played this season coming in, the Flyers should have been able to win much more easily than they did. Hey, a win is a win though. The Flyer's defense was much better today, holding Toronto to just 28 shots on goal and no power play tallies. It much easier to win when you know your D is in control of things so it will be key for the Sixers to continue with defensive efforts like these. Other than that they seem to be in pretty good shape right now. With the win they currently have 72 points overall, still good for 6th in the East and only 5 games out of 5th. So they are right in the thick of things now, with an easy section of their schedule coming up. Hopefully they'll take advantage of this lenient stretch to put together a winning streak and secure their playoff positioning.
While it was nice to get the win, considering how poorly Toronto had played this season coming in, the Flyers should have been able to win much more easily than they did. Hey, a win is a win though. The Flyer's defense was much better today, holding Toronto to just 28 shots on goal and no power play tallies. It much easier to win when you know your D is in control of things so it will be key for the Sixers to continue with defensive efforts like these. Other than that they seem to be in pretty good shape right now. With the win they currently have 72 points overall, still good for 6th in the East and only 5 games out of 5th. So they are right in the thick of things now, with an easy section of their schedule coming up. Hopefully they'll take advantage of this lenient stretch to put together a winning streak and secure their playoff positioning.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Toronto tonight for a date with the Raptors as they looked to snap a 5 game losing streak against the current number 6 seed in the Eastern conference. Given how poorly the Sixers had played against the Eastern conference's best thus far this season, the prospects of snapping the losing streak on this night were not high. Still, as usual the Sixers put forth maximum effort and this time it payed off. While their defense struggled again allowing Toronto to shoot 51% from the field en route to a 101 points and their offense was red hot. They shot 55% from the field and a whopping 75% from beyond the arc with 9 treys. They matched Toronto shot for shot early on and in the end their firepower proved to be too much for the Raptors to handle. The two teams were tied after a quarter of play, but by the half they had pulled ahead by 8, then 14 heading into in the 4th quarter and finally finished off the night with a 13 point, 114-101, victory. You just wonder whether this comes just in time to save the Sixers from giving up on the season or just too late to make a difference.
The man of night for the Sixers was Thaddeus Young who posted a career high 32 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals to fuel the Sixers to the win. Jrue Holiday was also impressive with 21, 6 assists, and 7 rebounds and Andre Iguodala was solid as always with 16 and 10 assists. Meanwhile, Elton Brand added 12 and 9 rebounds and Lou Williams posted 12, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Even Samuel Dalember, who came off the bench for the 1st time this season, was a solid contributor with 8 and 3 rebounds. So it was another total team effort for the Sixers and one of their best in some time. They're really going to need a lot of more those if they still have designs on a playoff run and at this point, event if they do a lot more efforts like these, that's still a pretty big if. So with the win the Sixers move to 23-39 overall, which keeps them 10th in the East, now within 8 games of the 8th.
The man of night for the Sixers was Thaddeus Young who posted a career high 32 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals to fuel the Sixers to the win. Jrue Holiday was also impressive with 21, 6 assists, and 7 rebounds and Andre Iguodala was solid as always with 16 and 10 assists. Meanwhile, Elton Brand added 12 and 9 rebounds and Lou Williams posted 12, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Even Samuel Dalember, who came off the bench for the 1st time this season, was a solid contributor with 8 and 3 rebounds. So it was another total team effort for the Sixers and one of their best in some time. They're really going to need a lot of more those if they still have designs on a playoff run and at this point, event if they do a lot more efforts like these, that's still a pretty big if. So with the win the Sixers move to 23-39 overall, which keeps them 10th in the East, now within 8 games of the 8th.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Tampa Bay Rays. J.A Happ got the start and went 2 and 1/3rd shaky innings in a 5-3 loss. Despite loss there was plenty to be positive about for the Phils. Top prospect Dominic Brown had 3 hits in the game and top pitching prospect Phillip Aumont worked 2 and 1/3rd scoreless innings in relief. As for Happ, again it is just way too early in the spring to be worried yet.
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