The Phils continued their series with the Marlins tonight as they looked to make 2 in a row. Jamie Moyer got the start was roughed up right away, allowing 5 runs on 4 hits in the 1st inning. He was close to getting out of it without too damage, with the 2 on, 2 out, the score still just 2-0, and 2 strikes on Ronnie Paulino, but the ump wouldn't give him strike 3 on his next pitch. Paulino then hit the next one out of the park. From there however, Moyer was just about unhittable, holding the fish to no runs on 2 hits through the next 5 innings. Unfortunately, for the Phils Ricky Nolasco just about as unhittable and he didn't have a bad inning to start things off.
He tossed 8 scoreless innings on just 4 hits and was 1 out away from a complete game shutout before Jayson Werth took him deep to make it 5-1. Raul Ibanez then grounded out to end it. Hard to say who to blame for this one. It was just one of those nights where you have to tip your cap to the other guys. Nolasco was just too good. If even Moyer had gotten out of the 1st with only 2 runs, and then probably gone at least 7, maybe 8(He had only thrown 85 pitches through 6) the Phils would have still have lost 2-1. If nothing else Moyer did the save the bullpen from having to do much work. After Moyer the Phils only had to use Nelson Figueroa for a couple and Chad Durbin for 1 inning to finish the night, much less work than the bullpen had been doing. So that's something positive to take out of this one. Anyway with the loss the Phils drop to 8-3 overall, still tied for the best record in baseball.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Friday, April 16, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
Roy Halladay made his Citizen's Bank Park debut tonight against the Florida Marlins. He was brilliant as usual, allowing just 2 runs on 8 hits while striking out 4 over 8 innings. Meanwhile, the Phils ran up another 8 runs on 12 hits over those same 8 innings. Ryan Howard, Juan Castro, and Carlos Ruiz all singled in the 1st to produce a quick 3-0 lead. In the 2nd inning Placido Polanco lined out a rare solo homer for a 4-0 lead. In the 3rd inning Jayson Werth doubled and scored on a sac fly by Castro for a 5-0 lead. In the 7th inning Chase Utley slammed another solo homer, his 6th of the season thus far, and Werth doubled in a run and scored on a single by Castro for an 8-1 lead.
So after Halladay got out of a jam in the 8th the Phils entered the 9th inning leading 8-2 and on their way to cruising to victory. Halladay reluctantly took a seat on the bench after the 8th and Charlie Manuel gave the ball to David Herndon to close things out. While Herndon did what he's here with the Phils, forcing the Marlins hit groundballs, they got stuck in the rain soaked infield grass and wound up as infield hits instead of ground outs and before you knew it he had allowed 4 runs on 5 hits, 3 in the infield, and the Fish had closed to within 2, with the score 8-6. So Ryan Madson was forced into the game and he finally got Jorge Cantu to ground into the final out. So the Phils move to 8-2, still the best record in the major's.
So after Halladay got out of a jam in the 8th the Phils entered the 9th inning leading 8-2 and on their way to cruising to victory. Halladay reluctantly took a seat on the bench after the 8th and Charlie Manuel gave the ball to David Herndon to close things out. While Herndon did what he's here with the Phils, forcing the Marlins hit groundballs, they got stuck in the rain soaked infield grass and wound up as infield hits instead of ground outs and before you knew it he had allowed 4 runs on 5 hits, 3 in the infield, and the Fish had closed to within 2, with the score 8-6. So Ryan Madson was forced into the game and he finally got Jorge Cantu to ground into the final out. So the Phils move to 8-2, still the best record in the major's.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers and Devils squared off in New Jersey tonight in game 2 of their conference quarterfinal series. Having taken game 1, the Flyers came in looking to go up 2-0 and take full control of the series. New Jersey on the other hand, came in desperate to avoid that fate and they played like it. They were more aggressive, often stupidly with 7 penalties, and played with much more urgency than the Orange and Black. Still, the Flyers fought hard as usual and managed to stay with New Jersey all night long. Unfortunately, they only managed to score on 2 of the 7 power plays and that cost them in the end. Against a team like the Devils that rarely commits that many penalties you have to take advantage of your opportunities when they do or more often than not you'll fall short like the Flyer's did tonight. On their first power play opportunity the Flyers coughed it up entering the New Jersey zone and Zach Parisse broke away and scored on a helpless Brian Boucher.
Thanks to an assist and a power play goal late in period by Claude Giroux the Flyers briefly recovered from that embarrassment to take a 2-1 lead into the 2nd period. 3 scoreless power plays to open the period and Flyers were behind again 3-2. Finally on their 6th power play they cashed in again with Chris Pronger deflecting one in and knotting it back up at 3 , with a little over a minute to play in the period. It stayed 3-3 until with a little over 4 minutes to play, ex Flyer Dainius Zubrus muscled his way in front of the net and somehow slapped one through Ryan Parent and over the glove of Boucher who clearly not saw it coming. After that the Flyers had a couple good chances to tie it up, but Marty Brodeur made lucky save on Claude Giroux and Scott Hartnell loss the handle on a rebound that should have been an easy put back. Not long after that Jeff Carter's stick broke, and he was powerless to stop Ilya Kovalchuck from shooting into the Flyer's empty net to cap a 5-3 Devil's win. So the series is all tied up at 1 now, but that's all right because the series now shifts to Philly where the Flyers will have to take advantage of the home ice.
Thanks to an assist and a power play goal late in period by Claude Giroux the Flyers briefly recovered from that embarrassment to take a 2-1 lead into the 2nd period. 3 scoreless power plays to open the period and Flyers were behind again 3-2. Finally on their 6th power play they cashed in again with Chris Pronger deflecting one in and knotting it back up at 3 , with a little over a minute to play in the period. It stayed 3-3 until with a little over 4 minutes to play, ex Flyer Dainius Zubrus muscled his way in front of the net and somehow slapped one through Ryan Parent and over the glove of Boucher who clearly not saw it coming. After that the Flyers had a couple good chances to tie it up, but Marty Brodeur made lucky save on Claude Giroux and Scott Hartnell loss the handle on a rebound that should have been an easy put back. Not long after that Jeff Carter's stick broke, and he was powerless to stop Ilya Kovalchuck from shooting into the Flyer's empty net to cap a 5-3 Devil's win. So the series is all tied up at 1 now, but that's all right because the series now shifts to Philly where the Flyers will have to take advantage of the home ice.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils completed their series with the Nationals tonight. J.A Happ got the start and was serviceable, in that he got through 5 innings without allowing an earned run. Unfortunately, he did allow an unearned run and he walked 6 batters. So once again Charlie Manuel was forced to pull him after just 5 and 1/3rd innings. Meanwhile, Chase Utley slammed another solo homer, Juan Castro slapped a bases loaded single and Greg Dobbs worked a bases loaded walk to give the Phils a 4-1 lead heading into the 7th inning. Coming into tonight the Phils bullpen had the lowest bullpen ERA in the NL. So you would think that giving them a 4-1 lead would ensure victory, but it wasn't.
Danys Baez had his first poor outing as a Phil, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits to give Washington a 5-4 lead heading into the 9th inning. With 2 out in the 9th, Ryan Madson allowed another 2 runs for a 7-4 Washington lead and that was about all she wrote for the Phils. Shane Victorino did crush a solo homer to leadoff the inning and cut it to 7-5, but with 1 on and 2 out, Jayson Werth popped up to end just the Phils 2nd loss of the season, both to the Nats. Still, at 7-2 overall the Phils have the best record in MLB and should be able to get right back on track tomorrow night with Roy Halladay on the mound against the Florida Marlins.
Danys Baez had his first poor outing as a Phil, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits to give Washington a 5-4 lead heading into the 9th inning. With 2 out in the 9th, Ryan Madson allowed another 2 runs for a 7-4 Washington lead and that was about all she wrote for the Phils. Shane Victorino did crush a solo homer to leadoff the inning and cut it to 7-5, but with 1 on and 2 out, Jayson Werth popped up to end just the Phils 2nd loss of the season, both to the Nats. Still, at 7-2 overall the Phils have the best record in MLB and should be able to get right back on track tomorrow night with Roy Halladay on the mound against the Florida Marlins.
EAGLES NEWS
The Birds re-signed guard Max Jean Gilles to a one year deal today, leaving punter Sav Rocca as the only Eagles restricted free agent who remains unsigned. Last season Gilles did not see the field too much until the last 2 games of the season when he was forced into lineup in place of Jamaal Jackson. He didn't fare too well in either contest, both crushing losses to Dallas, and lot of people didn't think the Eagles should even bother bringing him back. I guess they still believe he can improve into a top lineman. Juan Castillo is arguably the best offensive line coach in the NFL and he thinks it's possible then it probably is.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Nationals tonight as Jimmy Rollins went on the DL with a calf strain. Thus, they were going to need a good start from Kyle Kendrick tonight to have any chance. Unfortunately, Kendrick was rocked again, allowing 6 runs on 6 hits, in just an inning and a third. So the Phils were almost instantly in a 6-0 hole and seemingly headed toward defeat. Remarkably though, they remained unfazed. Newly reacquired, Nelson Figuera, best known as one of the 3 players Arizona sent the Phils in exchange for Curt Schilling, relieved Kendrick and settled things down, allowing just 1 run over the next 3 innings. Meanwhile, the Phils lineup started to turn it on. They actually scored 4 runs of their own in the bottom of the 1st. Then Chase Utley slammed a 3 run homer in the 2nd to totally erase the deficit and put the Phils up 7-6. They never trailed again.
In the bottom of the 5th, Shane Victorino, who had 3 hits and 5 RBIs on the day as the Phils new leadoff man, crushed a 2 run homer for a 9-7 lead. They weren't done yet. Utley homered again in the 6th to make it 10-7. Then in the 7th, Victorino laced a triple with the bases loaded and later scored to push the lead to 14-7 and that finally did it. The bullpen pieced together scoreless innings from there and the Phils had their 7th win in 8 games. Once again the lineup was unbelievable with 14 runs on 14 hits and the bullpen was brilliant allowing 1 run over the last 6 innings. The only problem for the Phils at this point is the starting pitching. Sure Roy Halladay is great, but that's about it. Every other game ends up like this one and that can't continue or the bullpen will be all used up by July. Hopefully when Joe Blanton comes back things will fall into place. They way they are playing right now, if they could just add consistent quality starts into the mix, there would be no stopping the Phils this season. For now though I am just going to enjoy the hitting.
In the bottom of the 5th, Shane Victorino, who had 3 hits and 5 RBIs on the day as the Phils new leadoff man, crushed a 2 run homer for a 9-7 lead. They weren't done yet. Utley homered again in the 6th to make it 10-7. Then in the 7th, Victorino laced a triple with the bases loaded and later scored to push the lead to 14-7 and that finally did it. The bullpen pieced together scoreless innings from there and the Phils had their 7th win in 8 games. Once again the lineup was unbelievable with 14 runs on 14 hits and the bullpen was brilliant allowing 1 run over the last 6 innings. The only problem for the Phils at this point is the starting pitching. Sure Roy Halladay is great, but that's about it. Every other game ends up like this one and that can't continue or the bullpen will be all used up by July. Hopefully when Joe Blanton comes back things will fall into place. They way they are playing right now, if they could just add consistent quality starts into the mix, there would be no stopping the Phils this season. For now though I am just going to enjoy the hitting.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers started their 2010 postseason run tonight in New Jersey in game of their Eastern conference quarterfinals series with the Devils. In the regular season the Orange and Black had the Devils number winning 5 out of 6. Add that to a shootout win to finish regular season and clinch this playoff spot just a few days ago and the Flyers had plenty of momentum to bring into this one. Let's just say they took advantage of it on this night. Brian Boucher was spectacular in the net saving 23 of the 24 shots he faced, and really the one he didn't save was just a lucky bounce. In addition, the Flyers defense was terrific all night long, holding New Jersey to just 23 shots on goal, and killing off all 5 New Jersey power play opportunities. They were just tough and aggressive, never allowing New Jersey to really get set up on offense.
The Devils really had to work for everything they got. In short, the Flyer's simply outDeviled the Devils. The Devil's defense was pretty good too, holding the Flyers to just 14 shots on goal, but they made them count. Halfway through the 2nd period Chris Pronger scored on the power play for a 1-0 lead. Later, with about 3 and a half minutes left in the 2nd, Mike Richards scored off a rare assist from Ian Laperriere for a 2-0 lead. From there it looked like Boucher would finish off a shutout of the Devils, but with about 3 minutes to play Zach Parise threw one the net, which deflected off of Travis Zajac and under Boosh's pads to cut it to 2-1. New Jersey had a few chances to tie it up after that, but Boosh made a few good saves and defense held firm to close out the big 2-1 win. So the Orange and Black continue to have the Devils number as they take the early lead in the series.
The Devils really had to work for everything they got. In short, the Flyer's simply outDeviled the Devils. The Devil's defense was pretty good too, holding the Flyers to just 14 shots on goal, but they made them count. Halfway through the 2nd period Chris Pronger scored on the power play for a 1-0 lead. Later, with about 3 and a half minutes left in the 2nd, Mike Richards scored off a rare assist from Ian Laperriere for a 2-0 lead. From there it looked like Boucher would finish off a shutout of the Devils, but with about 3 minutes to play Zach Parise threw one the net, which deflected off of Travis Zajac and under Boosh's pads to cut it to 2-1. New Jersey had a few chances to tie it up after that, but Boosh made a few good saves and defense held firm to close out the big 2-1 win. So the Orange and Black continue to have the Devils number as they take the early lead in the series.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Orlando tonight for their season finale against Dwight "Superman" Howard and the Orlando Magic. Unfortunately for the Sixers, rather than rest their starters, Orlando brought their A game in this one. Also as usual the Sixer's defense did not show up in this one, allowing Orlando to shoot 59% from the field and 44% from beyond the arc with 11 treys. So the Sixers never really had a chance in this one. They did't play that poorly, shooting 51% from the field and 31% from beyond the arc with 6 treys, but it was no match for the Magic. By the end of the 1st quarter the Sixers were already down by 17. They cut to 13 by the half, but by the 4th quarter they were down by 23 and it was over. With that little pride they had left, they managed a final push in the 4th quarter before losing by 14. It was just that kind of season for the Sixers.
Mo Speights wound up the Sixers' leading scorer on the night with 23. Meanwhile, Sammy Dalembert posted 12, Jason Kapono 10, Lou Williams 10, Rodney Carney 11, and Willie Green 11. So if nothing else they did score a bunch tonight, but as usual it was for naught. If the 14 point loss at the Magic, it's because that exactly the way the Sixers started this season, Funny how things work out sometimes. Anyway with the loss the Sixers finish the season at 27-55 overall, 6th worst in the NBA and 13th in the Eastern conference. That means the Sixers should at least get a top ten pick in the NBA draft this summer, and could possibly sneak into the top 5, but anything more than that would be wishful thinking.
Mo Speights wound up the Sixers' leading scorer on the night with 23. Meanwhile, Sammy Dalembert posted 12, Jason Kapono 10, Lou Williams 10, Rodney Carney 11, and Willie Green 11. So if nothing else they did score a bunch tonight, but as usual it was for naught. If the 14 point loss at the Magic, it's because that exactly the way the Sixers started this season, Funny how things work out sometimes. Anyway with the loss the Sixers finish the season at 27-55 overall, 6th worst in the NBA and 13th in the Eastern conference. That means the Sixers should at least get a top ten pick in the NBA draft this summer, and could possibly sneak into the top 5, but anything more than that would be wishful thinking.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils finally returned to the Bank this afternoon for their 2010 home opener, once again, against the Washington Nationals. Cole Hamels got the start and once again he wasn't as effective as he probably would have liked, allowing 4 runs on 6 hits while striking out 6, in 5 and 2/3rds, but it was solid and good enough to keep the Phils in it. The way they've been hitting lately that's all they need, even without Jimmy Rollins in the lineup, who was scratched late due to a calf injury. In fact by the time he left the mound in the 6th he had the lead and the chance to get the win, thanks to a rally by the Phils lineup in the 4th and 5th innings. Down 4-0 in the 4th, A Ryan Howard single with 2 on and a fielder's s choice cut it to 4-2. Then in the 5th, Juan Castro slapped an RBI double for his first hit as a Phil, Placido Polanco followed with a 2 run single, and Finally Chase Utley slammed a 2 run homer to suddenly put the Phils ahead 7-4.
From there Chad Durbin finished off the top of the 6th, Jose Contreras tossed a scoreless 7th, Dannys Baez followed with a scoreless 8th, and finally Ryan Madson closed the door on the Nats with a 1-2-3 9th. So the Phils took the 7-4 win, their 6th win their first 7 games, better than anyone else in the majors right now. I know Hamels wasn't perfect again today, I think it is too early in the season to worry about him just yet. He has actually been better so far this season then he was last year, and seems to playing with a little more resolve. He's no longer getting rattled after allowing a few runs. He's also striking out a lot of batters. So there's two things right there that bode well for him moving forward. Besides, who cares about pitching when you can hit like the Phils have so far.
From there Chad Durbin finished off the top of the 6th, Jose Contreras tossed a scoreless 7th, Dannys Baez followed with a scoreless 8th, and finally Ryan Madson closed the door on the Nats with a 1-2-3 9th. So the Phils took the 7-4 win, their 6th win their first 7 games, better than anyone else in the majors right now. I know Hamels wasn't perfect again today, I think it is too early in the season to worry about him just yet. He has actually been better so far this season then he was last year, and seems to playing with a little more resolve. He's no longer getting rattled after allowing a few runs. He's also striking out a lot of batters. So there's two things right there that bode well for him moving forward. Besides, who cares about pitching when you can hit like the Phils have so far.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers welcomed the Miami Heat to the Wachovia center tonight for their final home game of the season, that is fan appreciation. Inspired by the halfway decent fan turnout the Sixers actually played well again in this one, with another great shooting night. They went 54% from the field and 48% from beyond with 12 more treys. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, they again failed to do anything on the other side of floor. Miami shot 55% from the field and Dwayne Wade was unstoppable with 30, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. So inevitably in the end after Andre Iguodala missed a 3 pointer at the buzzer, Miami pulled out a 107-105 win, thwarting Sixer hopes of a 2 game winning streak and a win for the fans. Instead there was only more frustration
Other than missing the trey at the buzzer Iguodala had a good night with 14 and 6 assists. Jason Kapono drilled 4 treys for 24, and Jodie Meeks came off the bench to knock down 5 treys for 21. Elton Brand even chipped in with 15, Sammy Dalembert had 10 and 11 rebounds, and Lou Williams added 11 off the bench, but it was all for naught. Although he didn't really score tonight, Jrue Holiday put forth another solid performance with a career high 13 assists. If only they still cared enough to play defense that all might have amounted to something but oh well. With the loss the Sixers drop to 27-54 overall, still 12th in the East.
Other than missing the trey at the buzzer Iguodala had a good night with 14 and 6 assists. Jason Kapono drilled 4 treys for 24, and Jodie Meeks came off the bench to knock down 5 treys for 21. Elton Brand even chipped in with 15, Sammy Dalembert had 10 and 11 rebounds, and Lou Williams added 11 off the bench, but it was all for naught. Although he didn't really score tonight, Jrue Holiday put forth another solid performance with a career high 13 assists. If only they still cared enough to play defense that all might have amounted to something but oh well. With the loss the Sixers drop to 27-54 overall, still 12th in the East.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils completed their series with the Astros this afternoon with the first NL style battle of the Roys, that is the Phils Halladay against the Astros Oswalt. In this case after Jimmy Rollins slammed a leadoff homer and Raul Ibanez doubled and scored in the 2nd for a 2-0 lead, Halladay bested Oswalt. In fact, Halladay bested all of the Astros in a complete game gem, allowing just 1 run on 7 hits while striking out 8. He was really all the Phillies needed today against the struggling Stros. The bullpen never even had to bother warming up. It was Halladay's day all the way.
He did get himself into a couple of jams thanks to his own bad fielding, but he got out of them without much of a problem. There's not really not much else to say. This is simply what you should expect from him the rest of the way.
Unfortunately the Phils streak of 10 + hit games came to end today, as they racked up just 6 hits, but they didn't really need to do anymore. Jimmy Rollins was big star of the day, with 2 hits, 1 RBI, 1 run scored and 5 total bases. Shane Victorino, Ibanez as mentioned, and Chase Utley also collected hits as well. So it was a solid effort all around, at least as solid as you need to be with Roy on the mound. The Phils have now 5 of their first 6 games as they head home for their opener at the Bank tomorrow. Hopefully the good times will keep rolling in front of the home crowd.
He did get himself into a couple of jams thanks to his own bad fielding, but he got out of them without much of a problem. There's not really not much else to say. This is simply what you should expect from him the rest of the way.
Unfortunately the Phils streak of 10 + hit games came to end today, as they racked up just 6 hits, but they didn't really need to do anymore. Jimmy Rollins was big star of the day, with 2 hits, 1 RBI, 1 run scored and 5 total bases. Shane Victorino, Ibanez as mentioned, and Chase Utley also collected hits as well. So it was a solid effort all around, at least as solid as you need to be with Roy on the mound. The Phils have now 5 of their first 6 games as they head home for their opener at the Bank tomorrow. Hopefully the good times will keep rolling in front of the home crowd.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers welcomed the New York Rangers to the Wachovia center this afternoon in the regular season finale for the two teams. Both teams came in with 86 points overall, tied for 8th in the Eastern conference, and needing to win on this day to lock up the last playoff berth in the Eastern conference. In what will go down as the one of the most thrilling games in Wachovia center history, 60 minutes plus 5 minutes of overtime was not enough to decide a winner in this one. So the final playoff berth in the East came down, which normally spells doom for the Orange and Black. Of course the game should never have gotten to a shootout in the first place. The Rangers took early 1-0 lead just 3 minutes into the 1st period after the Flyers messed up what should have been any clear of their zone and allowed Jody Shelley to camp himself in front of the net and deflect one in. After that the Flyers basically dominated for the remainder of the evening and had pretty much all the scoring opportunities the rest of the way, but Henrick Lundqvist was dazzling with 46 saves. Finally, about 7 minutes into the 3rd period Matt Carle slapped a rebound past Lundqvist to knot it up at 1.
In the end the only reason New York was ever in it at all in this one was thanks to Lundqvist. Although he couldn't hang on for the shutout, thanks to the Flyer's tight defense and Brian Boucher's 24 saves, Lundqvist would get his chance to steal this one for the Rangers in the shootout. First up for the Flyers in the shootout was Danny Briere, who went right on in to Lundqvist, and waited until literally the last possible second for slapping one just over his right shoulder for a 1-0 lead in the shootout. Boucher then slapped away Erik Christensen's attempt for Rangers. Next up for the Flyers was Mike Richards but he missed a wrister high and wide to keep it up 1-0. P.A Parenteau then beat a sprawling Boucher to tie it up at 1 and that had to be it right?. There was no way the Flyers would score twice in the shootout was there? Apparently for Claude Giroux there was a way as he beat deked and beat Lundqvist through the 5 hole to score the Flyer's biggest goal of the season thus far for a 2-1 lead in the shootout.
That meant the Ranger's next shooter, Ollie Jokinen, had to score or the game was over. He came in quickly on Boucher, deked and tried to beat him through the 5 hole, but Boosh closed the wickets just in time to preserve the victory. So just like that the Orange and Black clinched their 14th playoff berth in the last 15 seasons. Since the Montreal Canadiens lost in OT yesterday, the win the gave the Flyer's the 7th seed in the East, and a first round date with the New Jersey Devils, whom they have owned this season. So they could very well reach the 2nd round of the playoffs, but after that who knows what could happen. Although I know they probably won't win the cup, I am just glad they got in so I can at least enjoy a little playoff hockey anyway.
In the end the only reason New York was ever in it at all in this one was thanks to Lundqvist. Although he couldn't hang on for the shutout, thanks to the Flyer's tight defense and Brian Boucher's 24 saves, Lundqvist would get his chance to steal this one for the Rangers in the shootout. First up for the Flyers in the shootout was Danny Briere, who went right on in to Lundqvist, and waited until literally the last possible second for slapping one just over his right shoulder for a 1-0 lead in the shootout. Boucher then slapped away Erik Christensen's attempt for Rangers. Next up for the Flyers was Mike Richards but he missed a wrister high and wide to keep it up 1-0. P.A Parenteau then beat a sprawling Boucher to tie it up at 1 and that had to be it right?. There was no way the Flyers would score twice in the shootout was there? Apparently for Claude Giroux there was a way as he beat deked and beat Lundqvist through the 5 hole to score the Flyer's biggest goal of the season thus far for a 2-1 lead in the shootout.
That meant the Ranger's next shooter, Ollie Jokinen, had to score or the game was over. He came in quickly on Boucher, deked and tried to beat him through the 5 hole, but Boosh closed the wickets just in time to preserve the victory. So just like that the Orange and Black clinched their 14th playoff berth in the last 15 seasons. Since the Montreal Canadiens lost in OT yesterday, the win the gave the Flyer's the 7th seed in the East, and a first round date with the New Jersey Devils, whom they have owned this season. So they could very well reach the 2nd round of the playoffs, but after that who knows what could happen. Although I know they probably won't win the cup, I am just glad they got in so I can at least enjoy a little playoff hockey anyway.
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