First off, Mike Richards missed practice with a head cold and not an injury.
He confirmed my reports on CSNPhilly.com by texting Lisa Hillary shortly after I posted it.
That's better than Richards missing practice with an injury.
I would be blown away if Chris Pronger played in Game 1 given he has not shot the puck for more than a week. My sources continue to say that Pronger is doubtful and nothing on the ice suggest anything different.
Remember. The Flyers dont need Chris Pronger for Game 1. They need him for Game 7. They need him for the long haul, etc.
I thought it was interesting to hear what coach Peter Laviolette had to say about richards as a leader this week:
“Your leaders and your best players and you need to make sure they are in the forefront,” Laviolette said. “I’m confident that they will be.
“Looking back at his career, he’s been a guy that’s performed well in the spotlight. Playoffs, Olympic team, junior teams, Memorial Cup teams, America Hockey League teams. Big games can bring out the best in big players.”
Richards needs to snap out of the emotional funk he has been in much of the second half and come to Game 1 prepared to play with the kind of enthusiasm he showed at the very start of the season.
Most of the fans seem to recognize that he has not been himself for a very long time on the ice.
The biggest thing I can tell you from the dressing room is that the Flyers have been very upbeat since the season finale. Like, 'ok, it's over and now the real season begins.' Like they didn't care about the regular season and just wanted to get to this one.
“We’ve been waiting 82 games to get to this position,” said Hartnell. “Losing in the Finals, it is devastating.
“You think about it a lot. We’ve been waiting all year. Maybe that’s why we had the slide the last few weeks. We knew we were in and we were getting ready for it.”
Here's my Flyer playoff advance on CSNPhilly.com:
click here 
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