Sunday, May 1, 2011
Posted: 2:53 p.m.
By Tim Panaccio
CSNPhilly.com
Take your pick: 1-0 or 7-3. Chris Pronger says it doesnt matter what the score is when you lose a playoff game.
A loss is a loss, Pronger said Sunday, referring to the Flyers 7-3 pasting by the Boston Bruins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Flyers lost Game 1 of the series against Buffalo by a 1-0 final score.
Obviously, we realize there are a lot of things we can fix from that game and well do so Monday in Game 2. Nobody said it was going to be an easy ride and it never is.
Wearing a t-shirt that said, Mr. Bully, Pronger seemed OK. He is suffering from a cold and left the ice late in the third period for what reportedly was a back issue. A source said his back was fine on Sunday.
NHL
Pronger did not argue with the Flyers shoddy defensive play, allowing the Bruins easy looks in front of goalie Brian Boucher.
Well, we just need to tighten up, he said. For whatever reason, we were pretty loosey-goosey in our own end against a team that can capitalize and gets pucks to the net. You cant do that.
Pronger was minus-3 in Game 1, his worst playoff outing since he was minus-5 in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final against Chicago last June.
Even
Flyers center Claude Giroux, one of two skaters along with Nikolay Zherdev to be even in the game instead of minus, was embarrassed.
We got beat a lot in the battles both offensively and defensively, Giroux said. I think we need to win more battles and give a better effort. Its obviously not the start we wanted. We need to bring our better game Monday.
The pest
Bruins agitator Brad Marchand managed to get Pronger to take a bad slashing call in the opening period.
Well thats just it, I think Brad has gotten much better and we're going to stand here and say that was room for improvement but hes been so much better at being able to ride that fine line, said Bruins coach Claude Julien.
Hes one of those guys that can be a pest but hes also a very good hockey player. We need him as much on the ice than anything else but you never want to take away one of the things he does well. You have to let him do it and as long as he doesnt cross the line I have no issues with that.
Even strength
That seems to be the only way Boston is going to score goals in these playoffs.
When was the last time you heard of a club getting seven goals in a game and not a single one was a power play goal? Boston did it, going 0 for 5 with the man advantage.
David Krejci had two even strength goals for Boston.
Our power plays arent very good, I guess, but I think there was some really good movement on our PP, he said.
We had some good chances, we just have to stay positive, take the positive things from this game today and if were going to play this way on the power play it is just a matter of time and the first one is going to go in.
Loose pucks
The Flyers' team numbers in goal are awful: 3.06 goals against and .898 save percentage. That won't win you a Stanley Cup.Flyers chairman Ed Snider milled about the facility, talking to players, offering encouragement. Its pretty cool, Danny Briere said. Thats he is considered the best owner in any team sport. He loves his team, loves his players, Its pretty cool to see him behind us that way.Though Peter Laviolette would not comment on his goalie, team captain Mike Richards said he expects Boucher to have his usual, strong bounce-back game. ... There are a limited amount of tickets available for Game 2 on Monday, May 2 at the Wells Fargo Center, but additional tickets are expected to be released after being returned by the visiting team.
E-mail Tim Panaccio at tpanotch@comcast.net
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