Flyers Dispatch Leafs

Carcillo is actually a hockey player now? I like it! (Source: Yardbarker)

Carter, Gagne, and Briere lead the Flyers to a 3-1 win over Toronto.  There’s still work to be done, but the team is looking a lot better. Carcillo has finally become the player we were promised that we would get in that unpopular trade a year ago. He had a sweet goal taken back, and showed some self-discipline that helped draw a pair of penalties.

Colton Orr, a bum, tried starting a fight by giving Carcillo a face wash shoving him into the boards.  No retaliation came, and the Flyers went on the PP. They didn’t score (more on that in a bit) but a few more penalties occurred, one after another, and they finally cashed in.  With a nice screen in front, Pronger loaded the canon and took aim. Instead of firing, the sent a slap pass to a wide open Carter, and he had time to settle, aim and release into an empty net. Though they had 3 or 4 PP’s in a row, it took a while for this kind of chance to develop.  The Flyers did not keep constant pressure in the Toronto end, and didn’t generate a ton of shots. That’s not good, especially when you consider that Toronto has the worst PK, and the Flyers have the 3rd best PP. That goal would turn out to be the only PP goal in 6 chances.

The second period saw Toronto tie things up about four minutes in. There was no desperation on the Flyers’ part, and they seemed to play down to the level of their competition.  Things changed quickly in the last few minutes.  First, Carcillo set up Gagne for a nice rising shot that found net.  Less than a minute after that, Carcillo broke into the zone as Richards lofted a puck over a few players. Carcillo settled the puck with his first touched, pushed it with his second, and roofed a backhander with his third touch. Unfortunately, the play was called offsides.  It didn’t matter, because Briere caught a Coburn pass with his skate, directed it to his stick, and ripped a shot home. After that it was smooth coasting.  The rest of the game saw the Flyers dumb it down a bit, and neither team really controlled the tempo.  The biggest highlight of the third was a Hartnell-Phaneuf fight, but it wasn’t all that great.  They both took off their helmets, went at each other, grappled, spun around, tried throwing a few hooks, and tumbled to the ice.  A little more balance and it could have been much better. These teams meet one more time, so hopefully they’ll work on that.

Next up are the Islanders, making it back-to-back games against the worst teams in the East.  Sure the Flyers won this game, but I still don’t like how they look.  Teams like this should get pounded in every aspect of the game.  I want to see more of the killer instinct, and I want it to happen fast. There’s not a ton of time left for it to grow. The season is winding down, and they’ve had more than enough time to gel. Pick it up, and handle business!

Thanks for reading.

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