Well, it is finally that time of year…the National Hockey League playoffs are upon us and the Pittsburgh Penguins are again invited to the party. Sure, there was a time where we didn’t think that they would be attending the soiree, but the boys caught fire and made sure that they were included. In fact, they are now one of the cool kids and earned themselves the right to play host for the opening round games against a familiar opponent…the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Flyers are no push over and should give the Penguins all that they can handle in the opening round. I definitely expect the tempers to flair and the blood to boil between these two cross-state rivals. We all know that there is no love lost between the two teams, the two fan bases and even the two groups of media. Sure, we here at Hockey Buzz have a great relationship with one another, but the newspaper folks have long taken jabs at one another in their columns and game run downs.
We all got a big taste of this last season, as the Penguins were able to knock off the Flyers for the right to go to the Stanley Cup Finals, but this series could be different. I definitely do not see the Penguins knocking off the Flyers in five games as they did one year ago, this Flyers team is healthy and has some great firepower up and down the line-up -- something that was lacking last season.
Let’s take a look at the series…though the Penguins took the season series 4-2-0, this series should be very evenly matched.
First of all…here is the official schedule. I realize that it was posted last night, but this also includes the television schedule.
Date
Location
Time
Channel
Wednesday, April 15
Pittsburgh
7 p.m.
FSN
Friday, April 17
Pittsburgh
7 p.m.
FSN
Sunday, April 19
At Philadelphia
3 p.m.
NBC
Tuesday, April 21
at Philadelphia
7 p.m.
FSN
*Thursday, April 23
Pittsburgh
7 p.m.
FSN
*Saturday, April 25
at Philadelphia
3 p.m.
NBC
*Monday, May 7
Pittsburgh
TBD
FSN
The Forwards
Well, most folks have been touting the fact that the Flyers probably have the overall advantage in this category. They say that the Penguins might have the better top end talent, but the Flyers boast a better top to bottom group of forwards. Prior to the trade deadline I would have agreed with this assessment, but in a post deadline world, the Penguins match- up pretty evenly with the Flyers.
The Flyers do have 6 players with 25+ goals, but after that have only one additional player who has notched double digits in the category. The Penguins on the other hand boast a group that has seen six 20+-goal scorers, with 11 players picking up at least 10. Jeff Carter does lead both groups with 46 goals, but overall looking at goal scoring the Penguins look to have a slightly deeper group.
The deadline acquisitions of Chris Kunitz and Bill Guerin made the Penguins forwards better from top to bottom, as it slotted players like Pascal Dupuis, Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy to play in roles that were better tailored to their games.
This probably comes down to Mike Richards/Jeff Carter versus Sidney Crosby/Evgeni Malkin…who ever gets the better performance from its top guns probably wins. I also look for Danny Briere to be a wild card in this series…he could be a big difference maker for the Flyers.
Overall, the forwards should match-up pretty evenly.
Defensemen
The Defense is interesting…the Penguins obviously didn’t face a healthy Flyers crew last spring when they knocked them off in the Eastern Conference Final. Braydon Coburn and Kimmo Timonen missed most of the series and were not healthy when they did play. The Penguins will not get so lucky this time around. Both players have had a hand in the Flyers successes this season and they combine with Ryan Parent and Matt Carle to form a pretty effective defensive core.
The Penguins answer the above with Sergei Gonchar, Brooks Orpik, Kris Letang and Mark Eaton. They also have Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill who have formed a pretty effective shut down duo down the stretch. A healthy Philippe Boucher is also available to the Penguins and has looked very impressive over the final two regular season games.
I believe that the Penguins group has a bit more depth, but the Flyers will rely heavily on their top four horses. This category is also very evenly matched.
No clear cut advantage…though it is worth noting that Sergei Gonchar is probably the freshest player on either team’s blue line.
Goaltending
This battle will be key in deciding who moves beyond round one. Marc Andre Fleury has been the Penguins horse under Dan Bylsma. He has played him in all but three games since taking over the team and the Flower has been playing his best hockey of the season down the stretch. He still is plagued by poor rebound control at times and has a knack for allowing shooters to beat him high when not concentrating.
Though some Flyers fans have openly been calling for Antero Niittymaki, Marty Biron will be the Flyers man. He has the ability to steal games for the Flyers, but he hasn’t often done that this season. The Flyers have spent more time bailing him out on the season, which is actually a tribute to their offense, as they managed to win a lot more than they lost.
Biron is often criticized for making the first move on shooters and allowing a clear view of the top of his net. He also doesn’t deal well with traffic in and around his crease, which the Penguins are better built to bring to the table after the acquisitions of Kunitz and Guerin.
On paper, the Penguins have the advantage in this category, but if the Flyers can take advantage of rebounds they are going to be able to score goals. They definitely have the players who can make the Penguins pay in this area. This will be a test for the Penguins defense to be sure.
Advantage – Penguins
Special Teams
The power play will most likely be a very important part of the plan for whichever team moves on in this series.
The Flyers definitely had the better power play throughout the season, as they scored on 22.5 % of their opportunities, good for 6th in the league. They have some big forwards who patrol the front of the net and get their twigs on many a loose puck, thus scoring plenty of goals. Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne and Mike Knuble lead the way with 13, 12 and 11 power play goals respectively.
The Penguins struggled throughout the season with the extra man, even though they have plenty of talent to employ on their power play. They did make a marked improvement since Dan Bylsma took over the team and even more so since Sergei Gonchar rejoined the line-up, but they still only managed to score with the extra man 17.2 % of the time…good for 20th in the league. Evgeni Malkin and Petr Sykora were the top power play goal getters for the Penguins, posting 14 and 13 respectively. The Flyers, who were one of the most penalized teams in the league, might want to stay out of the box, as this Penguins power play could be a sleeping giant.
Penalty killing is very close to a wash.
The Penguins finished with the 8th best PK, killing off 82.7 % of power plays against. They also made a marked improvement in this category since the coaching change.
The Flyers got the penalty kill 83 % of the time, which was good for 6th in the league.
Though the two teams are close on the PK, having Mike Richards gives the Flyers the advantage. He is one of the most dangerous short-handed players I have ever seen. He knows when to take his shot and when he does, he is like a cat pouncing…off to the races.
Advantage Flyers based on the short-handed play of Richards…
Coaching
There is no denying what Dan Bylsma has accomplished in his short National Hockey League head coaching career, but it remains to be seen how he will react during a playoff series. Sure, he has been a picture of calm, cool, and collected thus far, but the pressure ramps up exponentially during the post season. This will be a big test.
John Stevens doesn’t have a ton of experience himself, though he is a grizzled vet in comparison to Bylsma. Look for Stevens to try to outsmart Bylsma throughout the series. Stevens is also very calm under pressure and should be a lot more comfortable in this seasons post season, his second foray into the NHL’s post season tournament.
Advantage – Flyers
This is going to be a very fun series for all involved…I personally cannot wait for it to kick off. The Keystone Showdown Part II is upon us! Stay tuned for more as the week goes on!
Penguins Again Provide Opportunity for Fans to Watch the Games from the Front Lawn of Mellon Arena
The outdoor TV screen that became a fan favorite during the Penguins’ 2008 Stanley Cup playoff run will again be showing home and away playoff games during round one of the 2009 Penguins playoff series presented by Trib Total Media.
The Penguins will battle the Philadelphia Flyers in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference quarterfinal series starting this week. Game 1 is scheduled for Wednesday at Mellon Arena and Game 2 will be played Friday at Mellon Arena. Both games will begin at 7 p.m. and will be televised locally by FSN Pittsburgh.
The 12x16 LED screen, courtesy of Consol Energy and Trib Total Media, will be set up in front of the Gate 3 entrance at Mellon Arena. Last year, thousands of fans gathered to watch the broadcasts.
“The big screen quickly became a destination for our fans during last season’s playoff run,” said Penguins president David Morehouse. “We are looking forward to offering the outdoor viewing area once again this year and encourage those without tickets to the games to come and experience the tremendous playoff atmosphere.”
For safety reasons, the team asks fans not to bring grills or tents to the Gate 3 area. Also, alcohol is prohibited.
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