Pens-Flyers LIVE Blog From the Consol Energy Center

Once again, the Pens were kind enough to invite me back to their friendly confines to cover tonight's  season-opening matchup against the Flyers, and I'll be providing commentary on all things on and off the ice throughout the evening. Be sure to check back/refresh often for the latest from the yet-to-be-nicknamed Consol Energy Center. Also, one quick note: click on the pictures for a much bigger view.

UPDATED: BIG BEN'S WEBSITE SELLING...FLYERS CHAMP GEAR?

I was previously unaware of this, but apparently the Big Ben website has some sort of virtual store that has over 50,000 items offered for sale from all sorts of fields. I'm guessing that these items are shipped by a third party and Ben is not sitting around in a warehouse filled with sporting goods packing boxes this summer; but nonetheless, an emailer named D.J. came up with an interesting find today among the offerings: Philadelphia Flyer Eastern Conference Champions gear. 

That's right, a wide variety of t-shirts and hats celebrating the team Pittsburgh loves to hate can be found for sale via the website of the quarterback the city will find itself welcoming back at some point in the near future. I'm 99.999% sure that Ben doesn't even realize his site is selling this stuff, but then again, it's not as if he's sensitive to this rivalry.

UPDATE:

*I failed to mention this detail earlier, but the method that our reader (D.J.) found out about this was a direct email sent by the Big Ben website, which means they were pushing this product above and beyond the 50,000 other items they sell. You know, to target the all the Steeler/Roethlisberger fans who want to celebrate the Flyers' victory...or maybe all the Philadelphia fans that buy their gear through a Pittsburgh QB's website. The target audience is kinda lost on me in this instance. Oh, and here's the pic that was sent with the email. After seeing this, I'd have to agree that this would be a pretty bizarre solicitation to receive from Ben's site.

Philadelphia Flyers Pro Gear [BigBen7.com]

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LESSER OF TWO EVILS: HOSSA OR THE FLYERS?

Regardless of the outcome, this Stanley Cup is bound to leave some Pittsburghers disappointed. In one corner sits hockey mercenary Marian Hossa, trying to win with his third team in as many years. In the other corner sits the Philadelphia Flyers, arguably the most hated opponent in Pittsburgh sports. Gotta put this one to a vote.

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IS MORGANTOWN THE NEW PHILLY?

Mountaineer fans are getting hammered from coast to coast today, so let's pile on with this first-person account from a longtime reader named Mike S. who attended the game last night:

"Well, last April when you made that post called “More on the Morons” about how Flyers fans were so nasty to Penguins fans at the playoff games last year, it kind of inspired me. A part of me wanted to experience this heckling/humbling journey so I made it my goal to make it to one Pens game in Philly this year.

I ended up going to the one in December where Crosby won the game in the shootout. Overall, it wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected. I’m sure it would have been worse if it were the playoffs or higher stakes, but I never felt threatened for my safety and other than people just coming up to me and saying that the Pens suck and stuff it wasn’t bad. It was actually the worst after the game when Crosby won it and people would just beep their horns at us in the parking lot and shout stuff. One guy a couple rows in front of me wearing a Crosby jersey got a beer dumped on him which incited a small fight where a kid got knocked over. What else can you expect though?

So my next stop on my journey to humble myself was WVU last night. I had read all the stuff about how bad the fans were and everything so my friends and I got 4 cheap tickets to the game. I would definitely say it was worse than Philly.

First, as soon as I got in and walked around some guy threw an elbow at me. As much verbal abuse as there was in Philly, I was not physically harmed. He didn’t elbow me hard or anything but who the Hell does that and bolts away? No other physical harm going to me seat. Just some “Eat s** Pitt” and “F*** the Panthers.”

WV fans definitely hate Pitt more than we hate WVU. They walk around with "F*** Pitt" shirts and one said "If you're a Pitt fan, then your a B***h fan."

America was disgraced during the singing of the national anthem. At every breath the singer took, there were dozens of shouts of “F*** Pitt!” and “Eat S***Pitt” (seeing a pattern?).

The game was just what we expected with the addition of “Suck my Dixon” and other personal attacks on our players such as informing Gary McGhee that he is visually unappealing and not of the straight orientation. You saw the stuff thrown on the floor which delayed the game. You saw Huggins call out the fans. My question is why did the student section cheer after Huggins yelled at them?

The fans were definitely more interested in taunting Pitt than cheering on their own team. I don't think there was a "Let's goooo Mountaineers" chant that wasn't prompted by the scoreboard or their band.

I also thought the West Virginia hick thing was just a stereotype. It’s not. It’s dead on. And the sad part is that Morganhole is one of the more civilized parts of West Virginia.

I don’t really have that high of moral standards- I thought the Pitino stuff and even the “suck my Dixon” was slightly humorous in a college-like manner. But some of the chants last night were out of line and the overall way the WVU fans behaved last night totally sucked. It killed the flow and the momentum of the game. Even some of the casual WVU fans were upset at how the majority of the fans were behaving.

I will say that the atmosphere was very good in there and it is a very loud arena. It’s a real home-court advantage.

Needless to say, I will not be returning to WVU to watch my panthers and I would gladly drive across the state to the trash heap that is Philadelphia to watch the Pens again before I cross the border to WV.

I think Philadelphia fans have been supplanted by the Mountaineer Maniacs."

Thanks to Mike for the recap. And to follow that up, a timely poll question:

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TODAY'S HEADLINES

Cooke saves the day: Matt Cooke scored on a power-play goal with 1:47 left in the third period to lead the Penguins past the Flyers, 2-1, on Sunday afternoon in Philadelphia in front of a national NBC audience. The Pens lead the season series, four games to one, with a final regular-season meeting between the teams coming March 27 in the Steel City.

It wasn't the most memorable Pens-Flyers tilt in history, but as I like to say, a win is a win is a win. Is a win. And we've been historically beaten down enough in the past as Pens fans to appreciate any win in that city, where the Penguins failed to record a single W between 1974 and 1989 - 42 games.

The story of this game was penalties and power plays. The first period alone featured a combined 12 penalties, with two coming in the second and nine more in the third. Luckily, the Penguins were able to convert twice on six power play chances, giving them just enough offense they would need on the day. The Flyers' PP unit was not nearly as successful, going just 1-for-9 against a solid Pens PK unit.

The Pens' first goal was a power play score in the first period from the game's top star, Sergei Gonchar, whose shot in the third period was deflected in by Cooke for the game-winner. They also got a nice effort in goal from Brent Johnson, who stopped 27 of 28 to raise his record to 7-5 on the season. Johnson has won two of three as a replacement for the injured Marc-Andre Fleury in the past week.

The Penguins don't have much time to enjoy the spoils of victory, with a 7 PM game at the New York Rangers on Monday night. [ESPN]

Panthers fading fast: A frigid shooting percentage killed the Pitt Panthers at Seton Hall on Sunday, where the Pirates came away with the 64-61 victory, the biggest win in the turbulent tenure of coach Bobby Gonzalez to date. Coupled with the Panthers' loss to Georgetown last week, it marks the first time since the 2007-08 season that Jamie Dixon's club lost two games in a row.

The Panthers shot 35% from the floor and 23.5% from three-point land, the latter actually being outdone by Seton Hall's 15.4% shooting from beyond the arc. To say this was not the prettiest of games would be a massive understatement.

Ashton Gibbs led Pitt with 23 points, but was 4-for-15 from the floor and 1-for-7 from three-point land. Gibbs' last three shooting nights also include 4-for-12 (Louisville), and 3-for-16 (Georgetown), giving him a three-game total of 11-for-43. Ouch.

Aliquippa's Herb Pope (profiled in the PG on Sunday) had 19 points and nine rebounds for the Pirates, who moved to 12-6 and 3-4 in the Big East. The Pirates' win was even more impressive due to the fact that their leading scorer this season, guard Jeremy Hazell, played just 16 minutes due to foul problems. Hazell is averaging 23 PPG this season for Seton Hall.

The Panthers try to rebound on Thursday at the Pete against St. John's (12-7, 2-5). Tipoff is slated for 7 PM, with TV on ESPNU. [ESPN]

Colts, Saints advance to Super Bowl 44: And here are your local connections...

The Colts feature LB Clint Session (Pitt), punter Pat McAfee (West Virginia and Plum HS), and Sr. Offensive Coordinator Tom Moore, who was a Steeler assistant from 1977-89 under Emperor Noll.

The only player with local ties on the Saints' roster is TE Darnell Dinkins, who attended Schenley HS and played safety, wide receiver, and linebacker while at Pitt. He started his post-Pitt career with the Pittsburgh Colts semi-pro team.

Woodley to hoop it up in Miami: Freshly-minted Pro Bowler LaMarr Woodley will be playing in the Mike McKenzie Superslam celebrity basketball game during Super Bowl week in Miami.

Woodley will be joined by the likes of Chad Ochocinco, Willis McGahee, Anquan Boldin, and DeAngelo Williams, among others. The game benefits Mike McKenzie’s 34 Ways Foundation and takes place on February 5. [Boudoirmag.com]

A rarity: I agree with Ron Cook: It doesn't happen often, and that's why it's worth pointing out. But Cook is right on the money: Joe Namath is still The Man. [PG]

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PENS-FLYERS, ROUND 2

The Pens and Flyers get it on tonight at the Wachovia Center, and as the above trifecta of clips from Tuesday's beatdown would illustrate, there is no love lost between the two teams.

A 6-1 win over Philadelphia always puts a smile on the face of a Penguin fan, but a win on Philly ice always holds a special place. Between February 7, 1974 and February 2, 1989, the Penguins played 42 games at the Spectrum and won a grand total of zero. That's right, 0-39-3. And we thought it was a big deal when the Browns went a few years between wins against the Steelers.

The good news coming out of the Pens' morning skate is that Bill Guerin participated and will play tonight. Guerin sat out of practice yesterday after being hit in the leg with a shot against Philadelphia on Tuesday. It's good to have all hands on deck when going against the Flyers, and the guys certainly sound like they are ready for battle (says Evgeni Malkin: "I'm ready. I have a helmet.")

Here's hoping tonight once again gives us a jubilant Penguin team leaving the ice in Philly just like they did after Game 3 in 2008.

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PENS-FLYERS: THE BEST OF THE DECADE

The Penguins and Flyers resume their fierce rivalry tonight at Mellon Arena, a game which adds increased interest when you consider the Pens' relative health and unveiling of a new power play. It should be a good one, as if you needed another reason to tune in.

But exactly how good is this rivalry? SI recently named it as the best of the decade in the NHL, and the 2000 playoff game between the franchises got top honors as the game of the decade (for the record, Pens-Wings Game 7 last season was #2).

In fact, the Pens were deservedly all over the "Best Of" series, placing several players past and present on the All-Decade Team (Sidney Crosby, Jaromir Jagr, Markus Naslund, Sergei Zubov), and making several appearances on the "Memorable Performances" list, which brought back some great memories and led with the dramatic return of #66 nine years ago this month.

If you've got some time to kill this afternoon, it's an interesting series, and the individual lists are below:

• FARBER: Lidstrom leads our NHL All-Decade team
• FARBER: Highlights, lowlights of tumultuous 10 years
• MUIR: NHL's 10 signature moments of the decade
• MUIR: Best and worst trades, free agents, draft picks
• GALLERY: The decade's 10 greatest NHL games
• GALLERY: Decade's most memorable performances

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NO DISCIPLINE FOR HARTNELL

If last night's actions by Scott Hartnell set any precedent, then the Penguins are allowed to bite the fingers of opponents with no fear of discipline from the Garage League (sometimes known as the NHL). Witness:

Sources told cable sports network TSN that referees Eric Furlatt and Dean Morton along with linesmen Don Henderson and Jean Morin did not see the alleged incident and as such, there was insufficient evidence to further penalize Hartnell.

Hartnell told reporters he did not bite Letang, adding that "a lot of stuff happens on the bottom of the pile. He had his hands in my face doing the face wash and we're rolling around. I can't say what happened."

Of course Hartnell's not going to admit it. He may be dumb, but he's not that dumb.

Flyers' Hartnell avoids fine, suspension [CBC.ca]

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SORE LOSERS

The Flyers Flyered-up the end of Thursday night's 5-4 loss to the Penguins, and let's just say The Tanger wasn't too happy with the behavior of one Scott Hartnell. Was it a bite? Hartnell says no, but I think everyone reserves the right to be skeptical.

Yes, it was your typical Pittsburgh-Philadelphia game: ample penalties (Geno Malkin alone took four), hard hits, multiple "Crosby sucks" chants, nine goals, and flying fists - in other words, it was much more entertaining than the Pens' snoozefest with Phoenix just a night earlier.

Despite those four penalties, Geno Machine-o took home the game's #1 star with a goal and an assist. Alex Goligoski, Jordan Staal, and Bill Guerin each found the back of the net for the first time this season, and once again, Tyler Kennedy, Mr. Clutch, got the game-winner. Is there a new Mr. October in sports?

Jeff Carter wasted a four-point night for the Flyers, who lost for the first time this season despite holding Sidney Crosby pointless (and for the second night in a row - gasp). So much for Chris Pronger putting the Flyers on top, although that was a sweet misconduct he notched at the end of the game.

Each team is now 3-1, and the Pens suit up for action next on Saturday night at Toronto.

---

By the way, I forgot to link this the other day, but Mark Madden did a list of the Pens' top rivalries earlier this week (scroll down his page for the post), and the Flyers landed at #1. I must say, this is one tough list to compile. I could see the case for any of his top-3 to lay claim to the #1 spot.

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GAME, SET, MATCH.

PENGUINS 5
FLYERS 3

As hockey fights go, it was forgettable. Max Talbot, after a goat-worthy turnover that led to Mike Knuble's first-period goal, got his A&L Motors-loving tail beat by stereotypical Flyer goon Daniel Carcillo. But from a momentum point of view, what Talbot did in sparking his team can never be measured. All that we can definitively say is that before the fight, the Penguins were down 3-0. And after the fight, the Pens began chipping away and gradually took the lead back from Philadelphia, finishing off the Flyers with a Sidney Crosby empty-netter with 28 seconds left. For their efforts, the Penguins get a ticket to Round Two, and the Flyers leave their fans with the parting gift of watching a handshake celebration on home ice. Couldn't have happened to a nicer fan base.

From the individual-effort angle, Marc-Andre Fleury had himself quite a game, despite his stats showing three goals allowed. He shut out the Flyers over the last 36 minutes of the contest, finishing with 22 saves on 25 shots, including a biggie on Jeff Carter in the third period. The only iffy goal he allowed was the Flyers' second, by Joffrey Lupul, towards the tail-end of the first period. It was the strong performance the Pens needed in goal.

The stars also rose to the occasion on this afternoon, with two goals from Crosby (one being the empty-netter), and a two-assist, first-star game from Geno Malkin. As Flyers coach John Stevens said of the dynamic duo, "I just thought Malkin and Crosby almost looked like they took the game over, to be honest with you".

Sergei Gonchar stepped up after a quiet series with the eventual game-winning goal, his first of the series. And getting goals from non-traditional sources such as Ruslan Fedotenko and Mark Eaton were part of the solution to a team mired in a recent goal-scoring funk.

So the Penguins move on in six games, like many prognosticated, while the Flyers make tee times for Sunday morning while guaranteeing chants of "1975" for at least one more season. It's hard to believe that just a few months ago the Pens were on the outside looking in, and now are a quarter of the way to the Stanley Cup. That experience with adversity certainly came in handy on Saturday, with a comeback for the ages that may ultimately define their season. Although for a group that lost Crosby and Fleury for great lengths last season and then qualified for the Cup Finals, they've proven that no task is too large.

This was a hard-fought series, one that looked like it could've gone either way at a number of points. Luckily for Dan Bylsma and his team, they came out on top. Future rounds will certainly challenge this team's resolve, but through six games, they have shown the heart of a potential champion.

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BIG DAY OF SPORTS AHEAD

Get some new batteries in your remotes, because you're going to need them today. At 3:08 PM, the Penguins and Flyers face off in a crucial Game Six at the Wachovia Center. Equally as intriguing will be the interaction between fans of the two teams, especially in light of the internet war of words that's developed in the time since the last meeting in Philadelphia.

At 4 PM, it's the 2009 NFL Draft, which has a number of local storylines. Will the Steelers go for Oregon's Max Unger as many think, or could they be thinking defense? Where will Shady McCoy end up? Or how about the guy that's become the X-factor du jour in this year's draft, WVU's Pat White? Luckily, the draft moves at roughly the same speed as Casey Hampton, so you'll have plenty of time to catch up should you miss some happenings.

At 10:05 PM, the 9-7 Pirates put the wraps on a busy day of sports with a matchup against the San Diego Padres. Unfortunately, the Battlin' Bucs fell victim to Brian Giles knocking in the winning run in the 11th inning of last night's 4-3 Padre victory. Zach Duke (2-1, 2.95) tries to even the series tonight against Shawn Hill (1-0, 3.60). By the time that game ends, your thirst for sports should be fully quenched...until the draft resumes at 10 AM on Sunday.

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WHITEOUT TURNS TO BLACKOUT

FLYERS 3
PENGUINS 0

After all the pregame hype of a team-requested whiteout, the biggest thing fans will remember from a lifeless Game Five performance by the Penguins might be the weather-induced blackout in the second period on FSN Pittsburgh.

Following a first period in which they outshot the Flyers 15-5 yet had nothing to show for it, the Pens virtually packed it in, managing just 13 more shots the rest of the way and yielding three Flyer goals. Once again, Philadelphia got production from role players such as Claude Giroux (nine regular season goals) and Arron Asham (eight regular season goals) in their successful takedown of Pittsburgh.

The Sykora/Satan debate proved to be a moot point. Marc-Andre Fleury came back down to Earth. The power play was an o-for, falling to 4-for-29 (13.8%) in the postseason. The role players didn't score. The stars didn't score. This was disappointing on every conceivable level for a Penguins fan.

Now, instead of getting some rest for the second round, the Penguins have to travel back to Philadelphia, which is a scenario no one wanted to think about. It's definitely not the end of the world, but if you had a choice, you'd rather have the series over.

Most prognosticators had this series going either six or seven games, so this circumstance shouldn't be a complete surprise. But the way the Penguins played last night showed that they must show a serious increase in energy and desire if they want to close things out on Saturday. Because at this point, the only thing worse than having a Game Six is having a Game Seven.

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PHILLY RESPONDS

As you can imagine, some Philadelphia Flyer fans are not happy with their portrayal on this site, especially after Puck Daddy spread it all over the hockey community and outside of our Pittsburgh-biased bubble today.

The Philly Sports Forum message board has several pages of thoughts on the issue. And just in, Broad Street Hockey has issued an official response on behalf of Flyer fans that he asked me to share with you.

Don't worry, Flyer fans. It will all be over soon enough.

Blog to make you all feel better [Philly Sports Forum]
Grow Up [Broad Street Hockey]
Puck Headlines: Tales of horror from Penguins fans in Philly [Puck Daddy]
More on the Morons [MH]

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AT LAST, A SCOTT HARTNELL SONG

Courtesy of ESPN's Dave Dameshek Show, here's "He Looks Like a Woman....Scotty" (to the tune of Billy Joel's "She's Always a Woman To Me".

Also, breaking news: Sykora a healthy scratch, Satan returns tonight!

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UPDATED: MORE ON THE MORONS

That brief email I posted this morning concerning Flyer fans really struck a nerve, because I've received a few follow-ups from other readers that I felt compelled to immediately share. From what I can gather, it sounded like an extremely high-class gathering of people celebrating the sport of hockey. Or the complete opposite. Yeah, the opposite.

---

"Following up on that fight story -- I also attended game 4 while wearing my blue Malkin jersey, and I threw together this list of things people yelled at me over the course of the evening, from the standard gay things to someone literally punching me after the empty netter went in." - Dan H. from Elvis Has Left

---

"I too was at the game on Tuesday and the Wachovia center was quite crazy. I will give you a few of my observations to go along with the emailer you posted earlier. First off, when we told my classmates here that we were going they told us we were crazy so I had some idea of what we were in for. The verbal abuse started as soon as we got out of the car with comments about Crosby and everything. I am certain I have never been called a fag so many times in my life. We got to our seats pretty early and so we avoided the section wide "a**hole" chants that other Pens fans were greeted with. The entire game I just sat in anticipation of something escalating beyond verbal abuse- you know beer being dumped, pushing, something- but it never did. The only physical altercation occurred as we were leaving and some punk tried to stand in our way and was met with a nice forearm to the ribs and he did nothing about it. As for the fans, it was absolutely amazing how much crap they talked about both the pens and their own Flyers. I have been to many Pens games and cannot ever remember the fans near me bashing the opposition so much. It bordered on obsession. As for the intimidation factor, A) it is very intimidating- the roar after the Carcillo goal was louder than anything i have ever heard, but B) the Flyers arena staff do quite a bit to fire up the crowd including having some D-bag get on the microphone before the game to tell the fans what Max talbot had said about them. They also replay every non-call or questionable call on the jumbotron to get the fans fired up about the referees- it is now clear why they feel cheated all the time. You never get a replay like that from the Pens arena. Could you imagine the Yinzers if the Steelers replayed every non-hold on Harrison!?! And then there is the organist that plays to the tune of "Crosby sucks"- there is no Flyers chant that would work for that tune and is solely played to rag on Crosby. All in all we had a blast and the crowd was bad, but not as bad as i had anticipated. We heard many concede the fact that Fleury was simply unbeatable." -- Brad A.

---

"I too live in the Philly area. I was at the conference finals last year too. Last year I wore my Crosby jersey and was facewashed by a turd in a Flyer uniform (complete with gloves and helmet). I always try to avoid trouble because I'm a law enforcement officer, and I could potentially lose my job for brawling while off duty. For that reason I dressed as Guy Incognito this year, but sat next to my buddy wearing his vintage Nedved jersey with the diagonal "Pittsburgh". Needless to say, the cursing and BS was incessant. Favorite quote directed at my friend: "You're a bandwagon fan. I can still see the pricetags on that brand new jersey." Uh, yeah. The nice usher had to make two trips up to our section to warn the jerks around us to stop cursing at us. We didn't ask, mind you. She could see and hear what was going on from a ways off. She told my buddy at the end of the game she was happy the Flyers would lose so she wouldn't have to deal with their fans until next year.

I had a friend sitting in another section. He watched a Penguin fan get a beer poured on him, then jumped by a few Flyer fans/thugs in a restroom. The kid emerged roughed up with his jersey torn off his body. I won't repeat the unending homophobic filth I heard in the restrooms. In fact, "Fa**ot" was about the only word I think these people knew, other than "A**hole". And there's no pattern to the boorish behavior. At times I saw gray haired old men, other times it was women and even 11 year old kids. Classy. I know I could never bring my little daughter to a Flyer game even if she would dress normally- unless I wanted to explain what those words meant, why the people in orange were punching the other people, and the reality of "alternate lifestyles" while attending a hockey game.

In the 'burgh you hear chants of "Let's go Pens". In Philly they only chant: "A**hole" and "Crosby Sucks". I hate Flyer fans." -- P.L.

UPDATE:

FLYER FANS RESPOND TO THE POST!

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YOU CAN'T BEAT A HOT GOALIE

Much like a dominant starting pitcher or a stout NFL defense, a hot goaltender can neutralize almost anything a good offense can throw at them in postseason play. In fact, many a goalie has made a name for himself specifically during this time of year.

In Pittsburgh, it's usually Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin that gets the headlines. Marc-Andre Fleury, despite his standing as a #1 overall pick and Stanley Cup goalie, gets very little credit for his contributions to this day. I think merely the title of Scott Burnside's ESPN column, "No more doubts about Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury", would seem to back that up. But on this occasion, Tuesday night's Game Four was all about the man we affectionately call MAF.

The Flower was nearly perfect, save for a Daniel Carcillo third-period goal, in leading the Penguins to a hard-fought 3-1 victory in Philadelphia that puts the Flyers on the brink of playoff extinction. This came despite a Penguin power play that went 0-for-5, only to be outdone by Philly's 0-for-8. This came despite Evgeni Malkin somehow not getting a shot on goal. This came despite the Penguins' first goal having a legitimate chance of being taken off the board, and despite getting outshot 46-26. BUT...what happened happened, and the series sits at 3-1, Penguins. It's not always going to be a cakewalk. In fact, last night was intense of a game as you'll ever see. Deal with it, Philadelphia. The better team won.

The Flyers were desperate. That was obvious with the extra body blows they delivered to Fleury every time they crashed the net. But the 24-year-old with the pleasant disposition stood tall and turned the Wachovia Center into the quietest gathering of 19,883 people you might ever see in a lifetime for a majority of the evening.

So now the series shifts back to Pittsburgh, with the Penguins having the opportunity to escort the Flyers into golf season on home ice. The game is scheduled for 7 PM on Thursday. Flyer golf season is scheduled for 8 AM on Friday.

Addendum:

Apparently the Versus broadcast was very pro-Flyer last night, which is a surprise to no one. But I did get an email from a reader named Billyseth who has a complaint with the local broadcast. Please, read on:

"I’m writing you tonight in an attempt to voice a complaint that I feel most Pens fans have, but is never spoken of outside of bars and people's homes. The person who is controlling the camera angles for FSN is doing his damnedest to ruin Penguin broadcasts. Anytime there's an opportunity to zoom in on an individual player, he takes it. Tonight, for example, he nearly ruined Crosby's goal by zooming in on Matt Cooke coming out of the penalty box. Rather than seeing the brilliant steal and pass Kunitz made to Cooke, we only saw Cooke receiving the pass. This has gone on for far too long and it needs to stop. I desperately hope you will mention this on your website on the off chance that this nonsense will stop. When will FSN learn that hockey fans would much rather see a play develop than a close-up of the guy carrying the puck."

Also got an in-person report from Matt E. about our friends to the East that should be heard:

"Just got back from Game 4. Also went to Game 3. Live in Philly now. Let me say, that Wachovia Center crowd is WILD. I have been to Pens-Flyers, Steelers-Eagles, and Pirates-Phillies, and the Flyers fans are by far the craziest. There may only be 19,000 of them in the entire city, but they come out in full force for these games. I will also say, though, that the arena parking lot and the subway station are absolute cesspools for Philly/ Jersey obnoxiousness/ classlessness. This all came to head on Sunday evening when my 54 year-old father and I got into a good old fashioned streetfight with some classic Philly douchebags. I'm not emailing you to brag, although the fight did have a much different outcome than game 3 did (the old man and I looked like Caufield and Godard), but instead to share a quote from a Flyers fan after the melee:

"C'mon you a**holes! Everyone in that arena knows you guys are gonna win this series, we don't need that garbage going on here, too."

So while the crowd's intensity cannot be denied, the authenticity of how "Flyered Up" they really are seems suspect to me. And on top of that, for as many pacifiers and signs these people make for Cindy Criesby, nobody's whining compares to theirs. 6 of the 8 phone calls I heard on sports radio on the ride home complained about the refs when the Flyers were 0-for-8 on the power play tonight. These fans make me sick. That team makes me sick. Mike Richards makes me sick. He might be a worse person than Ray Lewis. Let's win the cup this year. I might be drinking the Fleury-Aid, but I think we can do it. Let's go Pens."

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FLYERS, PENGUINS IN BATTLE OF THE BANDS

Pittsburgh's had their share of "interesting" songs come down the pike during various Steeler or Penguin playoff runs in years past. But none, I repeat, none, will be as criticized as this offering from artist Richie Rosati, entitled, "Broadstreet Bullies - Flyers Play Off Song".

Meanwhile, this tune by ESPN 1250's Scott Paulsen, a revival of his 1997 hit, "Ya Flyer Scum", has been burning up the Pittsburgh airwaves. Has a hockey playoff series ever had such a musical back-and-forth?



Video: Unofficial Flyers playoff anthem will blow your ears, mind [Puck Daddy]

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FLYERS SHOW SIGNS OF LIFE

FLYERS 6
PENGUINS 3

It goes without saying that Pittsburgh was disappointed with the outcome of Sunday's Penguins-Flyers playoff tilt in Philadelphia. That's a given. But while the 6-3 Flyers victory shouldn't exactly be celebrated in the Steel City, it shouldn't be thought of as the first nail in the coffin of the 2008-09 Penguins, either.

In any loss, fans will look for someone to point the finger at, and anyone from the invisible Petr Sykora to the five-goal-allowing Marc-Andre Fleury to the unpopular suits at NBC will take their share of the blame in some way, shape, or form. But sometimes, you must give credit to the opponent, and much as I hate to say it, this is one of those instances. The Flyers were simply the better team on an emotional day that started with a Kate Smith video rendition of "God Bless America" and ended with the final 0.9 seconds being ticked off the clock to prevent any more Carcillo-esque incidents from occuring.

The game played out exactly how the Penguins didn't want it to play out, with the Flyers jumping out to a 2-0 lead before you could even settle into your seat. So much for jumping on Philly and silencing the capacity crowd. The first period also featured 20 minutes in fighting penalties dished out as a result of Chris Kunitz-Scott Hartnall and Kris Letang-Darroll Powe:

The resilient Pens would battle back from that early hole to tie the game 2-2, thanks to a late first-period goal from the red-hot Evgeni Malkin and a quickie to start the second period from Rob Scuderi. But they simply didn't have success keeping up with the Flyers, who would score three times before Malkin found the back of the net on a third-period power play. The Penguins played from behind for all but seven minutes of the game on Sunday. That makes winning a difficult proposition.

The Flyers benefitted not only from their usual goal-scoring suspects, like Simon Gagner, Jeff Carter, and Mike Richards, but also from guys like Jared Ross and Claude Giroux, who combined for nine goals in the regular season, all by Giroux. And whenever players of that ilk can contibute to the cause, the road to victory becomes a whole less congested.

On the other hand, the Penguins, although not playing their best game, clearly had their chances, as a tie score early in the second period would indicate. But the Pens had a hard time getting things going on Sunday, with a 1-for-7 effort from the power play, three trips to the penalty box for Kunitz, and a mediocre combination of defense and goaltending.

All is certainly not lost, with the exception of the opportunity to sweep an utterly unlikable franchise like the Flyers. The Penguins will regroup, re-focus, and recharge their batteries, and if all goes as planned, they'll return to Pittsburgh with a chance to close out the series on Thursday night.

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BILL. GUERIN.

PENGUINS 3
FLYERS 2
OT

I don't know if the conditional draft pick the Penguins surrendered in exchange for Bill Guerin will ever turn out to be anything special. But if last night was any indication, that player-to-be-named already has some catching up to do in the category of huge playoff goals.

The 38-year-old import from the New York Islanders scored two of the team's three goals last night, including the overtime winner shown above, in a 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, who leave town buried in a 2-0 series hole that they probably will never escape from.

After playing a disciplined game throughout the first 60 minutes (especially by their standards), the Flyers became unglued in the extra time, racking up enough penalties to not only negate a two-minute time-out for Hal Gill but to also give the Penguins a 5-on-3, which would be cashed in by Guerin just moments later.

It's worth noting that the Penguins would probably be headed back to the other end of the state in a 1-1 series tie if not for the play of Marc Andre Fleury, who had what could probably be called "The Save II" on Jeff Carter in the third period. That play kept the window of opportunity open long enough for Evgeni Malkin to score the game-tying goal nearly 17 minutes into the third frame, a power-play goal set up by Kris Letang and Sergei Gonchar that you could just feel coming.

So where do the Flyers go from here? A team completely changing identities from one game to the next is a dicey proposition, regardless of the fact that Philly nearly pulled off on Friday night. But they're going to have to do some serious soul searching to have a shot in this series, and that's sorta tough for a heartless group like the Flyers.

Sunday's game is set for 3 PM in Philadelphia, and don't forget, no watching on the big screen. NBC obviously needs every viewer they can get.

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DECISIVE

PENGUINS 4
FLYERS 1

I'm still trying to figure out what was the more surprising development from last night's local sports action: the decisive fashion in which the Penguins disposed of the Philadelphia Flyers or the fact that more than 20,000 showed up for a weeknight Pirate game opposite the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

I'll go with the Pirate attendance, only because it could be at least a little expected that the Flyers would revert to an undisciplined style of hockey in an emotional Game One at Mellon Arena. The Flyers' "Goon Mentality", as Herb Brooks called it, would rear its ugly head often, most prominently at the end of the game, when 21 minutes of penalties were levied against Philadelphia in the last 20 seconds. But unlike their counterparts from the other side of the state, the Penguins played smart, took advantage of opportunities, and left the building with a 1-0 series lead.

Nothing could illustrate the previous sentence better than the first five minutes of the game, in which the Pens quickly turned a Flyers penalty into a Sidney Crosby power-play goal and a 1-0 lead. After that, it was all Penguins, piling on in the next 55 minutes with goals from Tyler Kennedy, Evgeni Malkin, and Mark Eaton, who was all over the place, in a good way.

Beyond the usual Crosby/Malkin praise, Jordan Staal was singled out as the game's top star, assisting on Kennedy's goal, winning 11 of 14 faceoffs, and playing dominant defense. Marc-Andre Fleury was solid in goal, certainly better than the shaky Martin Biron; and Matt Cooke played the Jarkko Ruutu agitator role perfectly, although he did have a nose full of cotton and blood for his efforts.

The Pens eventually gave into the temptation of fighting a Flyer when Bill Guerin took on Braydon Coburn with seven seconds left in the game, but by that point, the game was in hand and the action was more of a "we're not gonna take it" message. Of course, the Flyers would quickly show that they would use every last second to take a cheap shot at anyone dressed in Penguins gear, as Daniel Carcillo hit Max Talbot in the back of the head in the closing seconds. You stay classy, Philadelphia. (Sidenote: Bob Errey hit one out of the park in a discussion with Paul Steigerwald about Carcillo late in the third. Steigy: "Wayne Gretzky once thought Carcillo could score 30 goals a season." Errey: "In what league?")

Game over, and congrats to Disco Dan Bylsma on his first playoff win. See you Friday night at 7 PM. A win send the Flyers back home to nurse their wounds and search for answers on how to get out of a 2-0 hole against the reigning conference champions. Good luck with that.

*Oh yeah, and those 20,000 Pirate fans left disappointed anyway. 4-1 Astros. Mike Hampton was in 1999 form. Adam LaRoche seems to have figured out his April blues, but now we can worry about his brother, who's 0-for-the season.

Fleury sharp; Kennedy gets winner as Penguins rocket past Flyers in opener [PG]
Flyers-Penguins Boxscore [ESPN]

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