Time to get Flyered Up! Our boys are officially into the Eastern Conference Finals after putting down the Canadians in a quicker than expected 5 game series.
Next come those familiar Pittsburgh Penguins, the team who threw the final game of the year against Philly in order to face the floundering Senators in round one of these playoffs. While they might have ducked us then, they’ve gotta man-up now. Meanwhile, our Flyers are skating high after their recent success, certainly a far more confident team then they were at the end of the regular season.
No love between these two teams, we should be seeing some real fireworks in this so-called Battle of Pennsylvania. However you dub it, that elusive Stanley Cup slot is up for grabs, expect some top of the line, high octane playoff hockey.
The Flyers will continue to rely on spreading out their scoring and taking advantage of the fact that they have the most 20+ goal scorers in the league. Umberger leads the team in playoff goals? Keep ‘em guessing who the next one with the hot stick will be and good things will happen.         More production needs to come from some (I’m looking at you Richards and Carter), while others (ie Briere and Prospal) need to just keep doin’ what they’re doin’.
Even more importantly, Marty Biron must continue whatever off-ice voodoo he’s been up to that is allowing him to channel the spirit of Bernie Parent. Despite being dramatically outshot by the Habs, Biron’s athletic style and authoritative presence managed to cancel out the offensive differential. In-the- zone goaltenders = playoff gold. Let’s just hope Marc-Andre Fleury isn’t that guy (he’s got the mojo as well, boasting a 1.76 GAA and a .938 save percentage) feeling it too. The Flyers offense needs to get inside of his noggin in the early going.
Shutting down the Pens’ scoring machines of Crosby and Malkin is a must, but don’t forget about the other  weapons in this dangerous Pittsburgh offense: Malone, Sykora and Hossa are all potential nightmares as well. Can we start a riverwards fund raiser to award the first Flyer who leaves Crosby crumpled and out cold on the ice? I’ll get in on that…
Defensively, the Flyers will face a tough core of players centered around Gonchar, Orpik and Gill. Ideally, the Flyers won’t get the shaft of the proverbial stick in officiating (as was the case in both the Washington and Montreal series), and should focus on keeping out of the box. Those aforementioned Pittsburgh goal scorers make for a pretty sick power play.
Prepare yourself for the pundits that are the national sports media to predict Pittsburgh to blow us out. But while you hear it, keep in mind that they were all saying the same thing in the Washington and Montreal games. And they were wrong. Can our boys in orange and black keep making the sportswriters around the country eat their words? Will a parade ever march down Broad Street? How much will Crobsy run his mouth? Game one coming on Friday… we’ll see. •