TheAussiePosse

The one game I swap Brisebois for Coborn in fantast hockey. I LOVE YOU PATRICE! IT'S NOT JUST THE BEER TALKING! YOU REALLY ARE THE MOST BEAUTIFL CANAIDIEN EVER! LOVE! X 10000000!

Knuble is back tonight. I'm tipping Price to start, Carbo is being a little too smug (someone mentioned a grin like a Cheshire Cat) for it to be Halak. Hopefully Ryder comes in, maybe he has a fire after being benched for 5 games. Tender, apart from the lucky assist, didn't play like he wanted it last game. And it was pointed out in the media that Carbo may see some of himself in Lapierre, and is favouring the kid, giving second and third chances to redeem himself, extra minutes, etc. Anyone else think/see this?

The thing is, we were outshot (or at least, outplayed) by Boston in the middle 5 games of last round, but managed to win two of them (and take another to OT). Both teams have acknowledged they're not playing their best hockey right now, but the bounces are going Philly's way just like they went our way in the first round. Our first line has stepped up (with the exception of Higgins, who's gripping his stick too tightly), but we need our 2nd and 3rd lines to get their heads outta their butts and start playing. I firmly believe you make your own luck (although I do also believe in jinxes, and an all-powerful being, and the Loch Ness plesiasaurus), and as hard as some players are working, others aren't. And they're the ones who are needed to make a difference in this round. Umberger's a third liner, but has goals in three straight games, none of them pretty, just a result of hard work and perhaps luck. Maybe the two go together? We always leave playing our best hockey until the 2nd or 3rd period, and by then, the Flyers seem to get a two-goal cushion that is rather difficult to overcome. And the refs are playing it quite even, I don't think anyone has any reason to complain about a pro-Philly bias.

Could have done with a time out right about now...

Ref was in the corner too, no care. I just don't know what to do anymore ... do we dare to dream? Do we dare to hope for a tying goal? Broken hearts just don't heal so easily.

Knuble will be back soon, so we need all the help we can get now. The refs aren't working against us. C'mon Smoke, time to work your magic.

Nice hustle Begin. C'mon PP, exorcise those demons. Markov - you WILL hold the puck in at the point!

That was a manhandling on the face-off. Nice work Laps.

It seems the only way we're going to score is by putting shots on net, and jumping on the loose puck. The Flyers have been good so far in jumping on it, but if we can do it 5-on-5, there's hope.

Why a time out now? We might need it towards the end...

This ... is a hockey game. And I likes

That's it. Price is getting dressed as 2nd line C next game. Finally, a goal.

That would be a miracle if our PP was what it was in the regular season. Hell, if we can get one goal out of this, I will be a happy camper.

You are a Habs fan, right? Because this is what it's all about - second-guessing the coach, figuring out what's wrong, and doing everything to the max - cheering and jeering. It's to be expected. I'm just thinking that somewhere on these boards, someone posted something stupid, and we jinxed ourselves. We gotta make a sacrifice, burn an effigy or carve out the internal organs of a poster. Any volunteers?

Technically, according to the NHL rulebook, we can have a player-coach who dresses. And I'm beginning to think Carbo would be more useful to us centering the Kostitsyns than he is as coach. So, for the third period ... I want us to come back and push it to OT, or get blown out so badly that the Flyers get cocky, over-confident, and most of all, that Biron's lucky streak fades away.

I hope not. I want Halak to come in fresh next game and stonewall Philly. If a hot Philly get a few on him in the third, I see no hope. And I'm the eternal optimist...

I haven't seen as much dump and chase hockey this period from our part. And the Flyers scored on their first shot of the period, almost half-way in. We're limiting their shots, just not getting the quality goaltending to stop the ones that count, and not finishing chances or making use of the PP. Still, I maintain Price is tired, and needs rest.

WHY WON'T YOU LISTEN TO ME!? WHY!? WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY!?

Okay, that's proof that Price is a pot-head.

They say the Connecticut Cro-Magnons went through an icy-cold PP freeze for about eight centuries back in 8350 B.C., so a while, I'd say. Here we go again... Please guys - don't give up a shorty.

Biron is outplaying Price in terms of puck-handling, and that's making the difference. Price keeps making goofs, but Biron hasn't yet messed up by coughing the puck up or handing it over with a miss-pass. If we can get in his head, we'll be fine. We're not gonna get that by giving him the puck from the red line every chance we get. Break it down, Carbo. First man deep, second man to the net, third man high. Go from there.

Sometimes being psychic isn't worth the paper it's printed on. Heh... Here's to hoping Plekanec, Higgins and Latendresse all get put on a line together, and discover a chemistry not seen since Antoine Lavoisier. Higgins says the ice is pretty bad, which is messing up everyone's passing. Legit excuse?

Tripping Price ... there better be a PP on top of it all. Not that we'll do much with it.

Markov costs us possession in the offensive zone on a 5-on-3 for the second game in a row. Non-chalance will bite Markov and Price in the ass if they're not careful. Meanwhile, I'm going to keep banging my head against a wall and hope the neighbours don't angry. It seems the only real way to vent.

Not anymore - Tenders is playing tonight. Although Begin's being bumped to 4th line, and Tender is joining Smoke and Kosto on the 3rd. I have a feeling Carbo will roll 3-lines tonight and save Begin-Lapierre-Streit when the tide isn't in our favour and we need an energy jolt.