Flyers use 16-man advantage to score rare power play goal
The Flyers put an end to their power play drought on Sunday by taking advantage of a 20-on-4 situation during the third period.
Andreas Nodl tied the game up with his seventh goal of the season after fighting off teammates Matt Carle, Danny Briere and Brian Bouche for a wide open shot.
“Having that extra 15th man out there was crucial for us,” said head coach Peter Laviolette. “I thought we had let another power play opportunity slip by but those 20 guys out there worked together to find the back of the net.”
Jeff Carter hopes NHL still around by the end of this contract
Moments after signing an 11-year contract extension with the Flyers, Jeff Carter said he was “optimistic” that the NHL wouldn’t be bankrupt and long forgotten when his contract expires in 2022.
“There’s risk involved in signing such a long-term deal,” said Carter on Monday. “You have to weigh things like ‘Can I support my family if the NHL has to start paying me in food stamps?’ or ‘What if I show up to work one day and they’re turning the place into a Walgreens?’ You just roll the dice and hope for the best.”
The Flyers also agreed to a contract extension with Claude Giroux, who had a similar faith that the NHL would still exist when his deal expires in three years.
87 Disallowed goals prevent Flyers from embarrassing ‘Canes
A record-shattering 87 disallowed goals by the Flyers prevented an 8-1 win over the Hurricanes from really getting out of hand on Thursday.
“The ‘Canes caught quite a few breaks out there,” said Jeff Carter, who had to settle for his second career hat trick after 51 of his goals were erased throughout the contest. “We had, what, eight goals actually count for us? It seemed like every time we had the chance to really really step on their necks, we couldn’t capitalize.”
The Hurricanes also had a goal disallowed late in the third period, missing a golden opportunity to cut the lead to six.
Sources: Flyers won’t shut up about being in first place
A five-game win streak has propelled the Flyers into first place in the Eastern Conference and Shop Rite sources are now reporting that players won’t shut up about it.
“Hey, how about that weather? Sure is getting chilly out there,” Scott Hartnell said to Shop Rite cashier Lisa Dierkes in a desperate attempt to steer the conversation to his team’s place in the standings. “It just makes you want to go inside and watch the Flyers, who are in first place by the way.”
CVS Pharmacy sources are also reporting that if Hartnell doesn’t stop talking about his stupid haircut, they are going to flip out.
Flyers impressed with Bobrovsky’s ability to say ‘Bobrovsky’
Following a strong debut against the Penguins on Thursday, rookie goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky continued to impress Flyers coaches and players with his ability to remember and correctly pronounce his last name, something the rest of his teammates continue to struggle with.
“Yeah, what’s-his-face was awesome,” Flyers captain Mike Richards said of Bobrovsky. “Not gonna lie…I totally forgot his name again. It’s something like ‘Botox’, but I feel like there’s a ‘ski’ or ‘sky’ in there somewhere. Whatever it is, he says it like a damn pro.”
While the Flyers are plenty high on Bobrovsky, the team did express concern over the Russian’s ability to pronounce words like ‘Philadelphia’ and ‘hockey’.
Walker cheaper than Gagne in preseason debut
Making his first appearance for his new team last night, former Flyer Simon Gagne scored 3 points but Matt Walker, the man who came to Philadelphia in exchange, was cheaper on the ice all night long.
“We felt like he was especially thrifty in his own end tonight,” commented head coach Peter Laviolette. “His ability to cost less than his predecessor was really impressive.”
Some Flyers fans wondering how hockey was back already lauded Walker’s economic play and ability to take regular shifts without costing an arm and a leg. Walker is expected to begin the season in Adirondack with the Phantoms, but team representatives say they are excited to have the recession-friendly defenseman on their blue line in 2010-11.
Pronger skates off with Stanley Cup while no one’s looking
Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger has bucked hockey tradition once again by swiping the Stanley Cup Trophy while everyone was either celebrating or too wrought with devastation to notice.
Pronger, who also nabbed the game pucks at the end of Chicago’s first two wins of the Stanley Cup Final, downplayed the incident following the Flyers 4-3 overtime loss to the Blackhawks on Wednesday.
“It’s just a cup. I don’t know what everybody’s so worked up over,” said Pronger. “If they wanted it so bad, they should’ve taken it instead of celebrating like jackasses.”
When asked what he did with the 108-year-old Holy Grail of sports trophies, Pronger replied, “it’s in the garbage…where it belongs.”
Remaining Tribune subscriber thought Pronger joke was funny
The Chicago Tribune ran a graphic depicting Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger in a skirt on Wednesday and the paper’s reader, Allen Bruhns, thought it was rather amusing.
“I always look to my Tribune for a good yarn and boy do they deliver,” said Bruhns, a retired schoolteacher from Evanston, IL that has stood as the Chicago Tribune’s sole subscriber for the past 15 months. “They gave that fancy boy Pronger a pair of woman legs and a skirt! He’s a real dandy now! I bet ‘Chrissy’ will think twice about coming to Chicago, won’t he! It’s amazing how they manage to come up with such fresh material!”
The New York Post ran a similar front page graphic last October with Phillies outfielder Shane Victorino in a skirt, but according to a spokesperson with the Chicago Tribune, “ours was totally different because they used a red skirt and ours was orange.”
“We also gave him a girly name to further suggest that he plays hockey like a girl,” added the creative genius that came up with the headline. “I know, I surprise myself sometimes, too.”
US government steps up effort to contain Philadelphia Flyers
Efforts to contain the Philadelphia Flyers’ epic run through the NHL suffered a major setback on Monday, meaning the team could continue destroying everything in its path for days, and possibly weeks.
Canadian hockey players were brought in to help suppress the Flyers’ intensity, but after only minutes on the job, it was evident that the Montreal club had no clue what they were doing.
President Obama pledged Tuesday to “use every single available resource” and the U.S. military ratcheted up preparations to help contain the Flyers.
“We sent in Martin Brodeur, and that didn’t work,” Obama said of the previous attempts to stop the Flyers. “Then we throw the Bruins at them and just when we thought that worked, it didn’t work. We only have a few more days to stop them before they reach my Chicago Blackhawks, then all hell will break loose.”
Obama has not ruled out using military action against the Flyers, but according to the President, “the way those guys play with half of their face missing, I’m not sure our military would even make a difference.”
Flyers complete epic comeback to front page of newspaper
The Flyers crawled back from a three-game deficit to eliminate the Bruins in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals and secure a historic comeback to the front page of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Simon Gagne scored the game-deciding goal with 7:08 left in the third period, which led to the Flyers’ first appearance on the front page of a major news outlet since 1903.
“Everyone counted us out after we couldn’t make it to the front page for the 13,505th straight time,” said Danny Briere. “But here we are. The single greatest comeback in the history of sports. It’s a good feeling. What’s that? The Phillies just took over the front page from us? Son of a…”
The Flyers destroyed the Canadiens 6-0 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Sunday, ruining any chance they had to stun the world with another 3-0 series comeback.