As part of Hockeybuzz's blog coverage of the playoffs on Versus, Penguins blogger Brian Metzer and I will be writing game-by-game previews of the Flyers-Penguins Eastern Conference Finals series.
You can link to our articles, along with Andy Strickland and Peter Tessier's take on Game 1 of the Canucks-Blues series
here.
I have to disagree with Tim Panaccio about something he wrote in his
Comcast Sportsnet preview of the series.
This isn’t a hard series to figure out. It all comes down to whether the Flyers have the defensive mindset to stop Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby while enduring the relentless pressure those two are going to throw at them.
I think it's a lot more complicated than that. First of all, I think that the club needs to pay special attention to Sergei Gonchar. It's no coincidence that the Pens went 17-5 in the games after his return from shoulder surgery. More than Dan Bylsma taking over for Michel Therrien behind the Pittsburgh bench, the return of Gonchar enabled the Penguins to regain the form that saw them reach the Stanley Cup Finals last.
Gonchar's presence at the point is what elevates the Penguins' power play from good to lethal. He's also very dangerous any time his team cleanly wins an offensive zone faceoff. Gonchar has always tortured the Flyers offensively. In 60 career games against the Flyers, Gonchar has scored 14 goals (nine on the power play) and added 32 assists for 46 points.
Second, Tim overlooks the Penguins' scoring depth and strength down the middle through all four lines. In addition to the Pens' contingent of six 20-plus goal scorers, ex-Flyer Ruslan Fedotenko (17 career goals in 36 career games against the Flyers, including the 2004 Eastern Conference Finals) seems to do better against his old club than against any other team in the NHL.
Last but not least, I don't think it's realistic to "stop" Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Rather, the goal is not let them single-handedly dominate the game and keep the secondary scorers off the board. Easier said than done, of course.
In terms of style of play, I think there's a common misconception that the Flyers thrive in grind-it-out games. Actually, these Flyers love to play up-tempo (sometimes at the expense of playing sound team defense). They get frustrated when they can't find skating room, which is why the trapping style Therrien played against the club last year was especially effective. When the Flyers have room to operate, they are as dangerous as any team in the NHL.
It's absolutely critical that the Flyers get pucks in deep in the Pittsburgh zone. Philly struggles with failed clears and turnovers between the defensive goal line and offensive blueline. The Penguins, especially Crosby and Malkin, can turn those into goals with frightening precision.
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Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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