Sunday, 27 April 2014

Live from New York …


… it’s not the Philadelphia Flyers!

Game five went to the Rangers. We’re back to Philly on Tuesday for Game 6, and I wonder if the coach will saddle up Hal Gill again, or will he go with Erik Gustafsson to replace the injured Nick Grossmann on defence? Honestly, dressing Gill was like putting a Percheron on the blue line. I don’t care if he’s played 110 playoff games—he’s scored in none of them, and while he has size on his side, height and breadth are not winning this series. I almost feel bad for the guy, given he’s 39 years old (in hockey years that’s equal to 65) and only played six times in the regular season. Okay, so he’s got great leadership qualities. None of the kids were listening. Geez, &*^%$  ^*&$#!!!

So here’s where my lamenting the old back-to-back playoff model is tested. Say the Flyers win on Tuesday. Game 7 is scheduled for Wednesday in New York, but if there’s momentum going in, chances are good that Philly will carry through to win the seventh game and the series.

Am I putting money on this? Hey, I’ve already donated $15.00 to charity. Nothing in this stupid series is predictable except the frustration level. The Rangers play the boring defensive game typical of Alain Vigneault’s coaching style. They have two guys pretty much all the time on Claude Giroux (who finally managed to score his first goal today) and are shutting down the snipers on Philly’s top two lines. The other problem is Martin St. Louis, who has finally found his groove after being traded from Tampa Bay. He’s little, he’s agile, he’s got great hands and better instincts … sure, Hal Gill can stop him from shooting.

*&$^%

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