As the Round Robin Qualifying round has ended for the Philadelphia Flyers they have certainly managed to come into Toronto and impress. Making it out the other side undefeated against Boston, Washington, and Tampa Bay has earned them the top spot in the east. This makes the Montreal Canadiens the next obstacle in the way of the Philadelphia Flyers and their Head Coach Alain Vigneault’s (AV) methodical climb to the pinnacle which is them hoisting Lord Stanley’s Cup.
Don’t sleep on the Canadiens though they are just coming off of a great series win against the Flyers hated rivals the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins thought they would be able to use the Canadiens as an easy couple of warm up games on their way to the later rounds of the NHL playoffs. That plan back fired on them for sure; you can now find most Penguins players back out on their local golf course and Sidney Crosby at the local nail salon getting a mani pedi or whatever other weird stuff he may do for fun.
Now to take a look at how the Flyers faired against Montreal in the regular season (one that seems so long ago now) the Flyers won their 1st meeting this season against the Canadiens 3-2 back on Nov. 7th. They played again on Nov. 30th which resulted in a 4-3 OT win for the Flyers. In the last game that the two paired off against each other Montreal managed to quiet Philadelphia’s offense causing a 4-1 win over the Flyers.
Taking a look at who might be a problem for the Flyers in this series you will find a pair of 25-year-olds that are coming into the prime of their careers.
- (C) Max Domi (son of former NHL tough guy Tie Domi) plays with his dad’s grit but is also capable of using his hands for producing points as well. Max totaled 17 goals in the regular season this year, and plays the game in such a way that he would be an instant fan favorite in Philadelphia if he were to ever wear the Flyers Black and Orange jersey. (Chuck rumors around Montreal say that Max is currently very unhappy in his current situation just saying).
- (W) Jonathan Drouin would be the other. This former top three overall pick was forced to deal with injuries most of this season, but is back and ready to help the Canadiens contend for the cup. Don’t forget Jonathan was the sidekick to Nathan Mackinnon (current Colorado Avalanche star forward) this dynamitic duo wreaked havoc on the rest of the Quebec Major Jr Hockey League (QMJHL) for the Halifax Mooseheads back in 2011-2014. Drouin is an excellent set up man and is very quick on his skates.
To go along with these dangerous forwards Montreal has a pair of wisely old veteran defenseman who are the twin towers that guard their teams blue line.
- (D) Shea Weber who most Philadelphia fans know as the guy the Flyers signed to an insane offer sheet only to have Nashville match it (in order to not lose him), is the player that the Canadiens offense runs through. Weber is blessed with a blistering hard shot which he lets go often from the blue line at speeds that have been clocked at over 108 M.P.H.!!! With that kind of power Flyers Athletic Trainer Jim McCrossin better get some extra bags of ice ready for Carter Hart after the games.
- (D) Jeff Petry is the other presence on the Montreal blue line you have to look out for. He has 3 points in just four games in the playoffs already.
Last but certainly not least is their Goaltender.
- (G) Carey Price has looked like his 2014-2015 self (the season in which he won 44 games) this post season against the Penguins. Many rumors around Montreal this year had Price hung out to dry saying he is washed up and a form of his old self. This 6 time All Star who has a Vezina Trophy, a Ted Lindsay Award, a William M. Jennings Trophy, a Hart Memorial Trophy, and an Olympic gold medal all under his belt must have heard them because has seemed like he’s out to prove that he still got it. Price has posted a 1.67 Goals Against Average paired with a .947 save percentage (SV%) so far in the playoffs which helped his team to knock the Penguins out of commission.
Now that Flyers Head Coach Alain Vigneault (a former Montreal Canadiens Head Coach himself) has had time to prepare before Wednesday’s Game One of the Quarterfinals, expect AV to have a few tricks up his sleeve for the Canadiens. Especially since he has former Montreal Head Coach (twice removed) now Flyers Assistant Coach Michel Therrien alongside of him to pick his brain on what may help their current team beat their old one.
Expect much to stay the same
Like the line of Kevin Hayes, Scott Laughton, and Travis Konecny. Who have been on a tear with Laughton posting 3 Goals and 2 assists for 5 points, Hayes totaling 4 assists so far, and Konecny setting up 2 goals with a couple of nice assists under his belt this post season.
Same goes for the Flyers defensive pairing of Travis Sanheim and Philippe Myers; who have molded together to become quite an offensive force throughout these playoffs.
The young goaltending Phenom Carter Hart should be ready to go after an impressive couple of starts in his first shot at post season play. In which he only was able to achieve a 1.00 G.A.A. with a .966 SV%! (Can you say Conn Smythe?)
Things to look for in the upcoming series
Look for winger Joel Farabee to stay on that 1st line with Sean Couturier and Claude Giroux after Joel’s highlight reel one timer that hit the back of the net against the Lightning; even if Jakub Voracek comes back after being out for a few games with an injury. Also look for Shayne Gostisbehere to receive another shot after a 2 assist performance in his long awaited return to the lineup. Shayne’s skating ability looked to be back after having to have two different knee surgeries this season. The odd man out maybe defenseman Robert Hagg who will be forced to sit out a few games thanks to his less than inspiring -2 average in his two games played during the round robin part of the tournament.
Even though the Flyers went undefeated in the qualifying rounds don’t expect perfectionist Vigneault to sit back and not think of ways to get the following players going.
- Claude Giroux who was held pointless in the three games seemed to win many face-offs but could not find a way to get on the score sheet.
- James van Riemsdyk has been the model of inconsistency this year and has struggled in his new head coaches system to say the least. James was also pointless in the 2 games he played in; games where he found himself at the end of the bench yet again.
- Center Derek Grant who came into the fold at the trade deadline this year hasn’t found that guy or two that he can gel with since returning from the NHL’s long break.
Something else that Vigneault will be pondering on is how to get his Power Play Unit going. In the three round robin games the Flyers capitalized on their power play opportunities about as much as Shaquille O’Neal (Shaq) capitalized on his free throw attempts during his time in the NBA. Now it doesn’t seem like that big of deal because the team has done fine during 5 on 5 play thus far during the playoffs, but as the series go on the Flyers are going to need one of those man advantage goals sooner rather than later.
AV is a great coach and will surely have his team ready to go on Wednesday night. When asked in a recent interview a question regarding the lines for game one Vigneault said this:
“ I will say that my policy throughout the season, I’m very open about who’s playing with who and line combinations, et cetera. I think everybody understands once playoffs come, we’re a little bit more private in that matter. Our lines will be kept to ourselves here moving forward.” AV
With that being said Vigneault doesn’t seem to want to give the opposition any help in their efforts to prepare for the games against his Flyers, and rightfully so. With all his bottom six players and defenseman pairing helping out offensively in the round robin games AV will be sure to use a slew of different line combinations every night in order to keep their opponents guessing. In doing so the Flyers depth should help them to prosper, being able to roll four lines the entire game should keep their star players fresh for when they are truly needed. This series is set to commence in just a few short hours and should keep us all on the edge of our COUCHES watching the most exciting Flyers team in recent memory try and bring home the city’s third Stanley Cup!
