PREVIEW (6:30 AM)
The Stanley Cup is not directly on the line tonight but make no mistake about it: If the Philadelphia Flyers are to have any shot at winning their series with the Chicago Blackhawks, it is absolutely critical that they win both games in Philadelphia.
The Flyers may have been able to pull off a miraculous comeback from a 3-0 deficit against the Boston Bruins earlier in the playoffs but it would be virtually impossible to do the same against a Chicago team that has now won seven straight playoff games after closing out their six-game series against Vancouver, sweeping San Jose and winning the first two games of the Final. The Hawks have also won seven in a row on the road.
The first two games of this series have been up for grabs. Poor defense and mediocre goaltending by the Flyers led to three blown leads and a 6-5 loss in Game 1. A combination of excellent goaltending by Antti Niemi, a defensive miscue and a soft goal sent the Flyers to defeat in Game 2.
Tonight is one of those nights where the Flyers absolutely need their best players to be their best players in order to notch a critical win. That means that at least two among Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne, Danny Briere and Chris Pronger are going to have to have big nights offensively and then get a little supplementary offense elsewhere if possible. The club needs to build off its third-period forechecking effort from Game 2 and sustain that type of intensity. Defensively, the Flyers need to build off their improved effort from the last game and Michael Leighton (who otherwise played a solid game on Monday) cannot afford to let in any stoppable goals.
Coming into tonight's game, you can be sure that Joel Quenneville will remind his club that the best way to take the raucous Philly crowd out of the game will be to maintain tight checking early and then counter-punch to grab a lead. Despite the seesaw nature of Game 1, the Hawks are outstanding at playing with the lead. Although certain national and Philadelphia area columnists who may not have seen Chicago play all year said the Flyers "got caught in Chicago's run-and-gun game" in the opener, the Blackhawks are actually an outstanding backchecking club that is often difficult to score against and a strong forechecking club to boot.
You have to figure that eventually Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are going to make a major impact on the series, especially in light of the fact that the Hawks have been getting so much offense from elsewhere in the lineup. Likewise, Marian Hossa or Duncan Keith can strike at any time. That's another reason why the Flyers absolutely need their big guns to lead the way in the two games in Philly.
As expected, Oskars Bartulis will remain in the Flyers lineup in place of Ryan Parent. Although the rookie was on the ice for the first Chicago goal on Monday, he was not at fault on the play (veteran partner Lukas Krajicek was beaten by Marian Hossa). Bartulis did not hurt the club in his 10 minutes of ice time on Monday, and that's what the club needs from its sixth defenseman. There has not yet been official word on whether rookie James Van Riemsdyk, a healthy scratch in Game 2, will get back in the lineup tonight.
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Every Flyers fan who was alive in the 1980s fondly recalls J.J. Daigneault's game-winning goal in Game 6 of the 1987 Stanley Cup Final against Edmonton. The goal capped off an improbable third period comeback by a team that appeared to be out of gas against arguably the greatest NHL team ever assembled.
From a Philadelphia point of view, it's time to start creating some new positive memories of the Finals. The Flyers have now lost seven straight Finals games (game 7 against Edmonton in 1987, four in a row against Detroit in 1997 and the first two in this series) since that magical night of 23 years ago.
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Today's
Daily Drop at Versus.com looks at psychological gamesmanship in the Stanley Cup playoffs. This year's Final has been no exception.
Today's
Across the Pond at NHL.com will preview the NHL's upcoming tour of Europe at the start of next season. In addition to the now-traditional season openers in Stockholm, Helsinki and Prague, there will be NHL vs. KHL exhibitions in St. Petersburg, Russia and Riga, Latvia, a stop in Mannheim, Germany and a first-ever game in Belfast, Northern Ireland. There is also a preview of the agenda for the upcoming World Hockey Summit in Toronto.
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For those of you who cannot attend tonight's game, you may want to log on to tonight's
game-night chat on Versus.com.
Moderated by Hockeybuzz alum Brian Metzer, former Flyers captain Dave Poulin -- the leader of the 1985 and 1987 clubs that pushed Edmonton to the limit -- will be in the chatroom from 7:30 to 8:00 PM.
In addition to having one of the sharpest hockey minds around and being a thoroughly classy gentleman, Dave is also one of the most articulate sportsmen you could ever hope to meet.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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