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Bagel Boys: What We Learned After a Second Straight Shutout in Flyers 2, Canadiens 0

Anthony SanFilippo

By Anthony SanFilippo

Published:

John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

The countdown is on. This is the closest thing to that feeling you get on New Year’s Eve, except it’s in the middle of August.

You know it’s going to happen now. There’s no way it doesn’t. Sure, there’ll be moments of anxiety. There’ll be quick heartbeat skips. There’s be groans resulting from close calls, born out of either relief or frustration. There’ll be more head-shaking at the power play.

And yet, despite all that, by the time Jim Gardner signs on for Action News the Flyers will have finally eradicated a drought eight years and four months in the making.

That’s right, the Flyers will win their first playoff series since ousting the Penguins in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals in 2012.

I know, you’re probably superstitious and you’re sitting there cursing my name for putting the cart ahead of the horse. This series against the Canadiens isn’t over yet. The Flyers haven’t looked that good. After all, they were the first team in NHL history to lead a series after three games while scoring just three goals and are now the first team to ever lead a series 3-1 while scoring fewer than seven goals.

I don’t care. I’ve seen this film before and I know the ending.

The Canadiens are a beaten team. This is what happens when you get shutout two games in a row in the playoffs. Everyone wants to talk about Carter Hart – including me. Hell, it’s hard to avoid Hart becoming the youngest goalie in the modern era of the NHL (post-1967 expansion) to register back-to-back shutouts in the playoffs.

But this is about a Canadiens team that looked befuddled. Confused. Beaten.

The Flyers won Game 4 by a 2-0 score. But the score didn’t matter. Les Habitants were there in their bleu, blanc et rouge colors only. The hockey was disjointed. Dispirited. Despondent.

After Game 1, the Canadiens were saying they knew they could play with the Flyers. In Game 2 they were super excited by their 5-0 embarrassment of the No. 1 seed. And since then, they have been on a rapid decline back to reality where they have now realized they are not the Flyers’ equal.

That’s not to say the Canadiens haven’t been a good story in these unique playoffs. Upsetting the Penguins in the qualifying round and giving the Flyers an early scare. They deserve credit for doing all that – especially since they were fortunate to even be participating in this tournament to begin with.

But in Game 4, they were caught off guard in the opening minutes, got behind, couldn’t solve the Flyers forecheck and when they did, couldn’t generate scoring chances because they couldn’t match the Flyers will to win.

And the use of the word “will” is important. It was a word that Flyers coach Alain Vigneault used when describing why his team was “embarrassed” in Game 2. He repeated it too, in case he wasn’t heard the first time. The Canadiens played with more will than the Flyers.

Since he said that, the Canadiens haven’t scored a goal.

That’s partly because Hart has been really good in net, but it’s mostly because the Flyers have dominated in the will department – and broke the Canadiens’ spirit.

So, rest assured Flyers fans, we’ll be talking about the second round in just a couple posts. Until then, here’s what we learned in Game 4:

1. Coaching can be a difference maker

Vigneault should make himself a bonus dirty martini after this game, because he played a Bobby Fischer-esque game of chess while Canadiens associate coach Kirk Muller thought they were playing checkers.

First, Vigneault made two lineup changes  – Joel Farabee returned and Connor Bunnaman played for the first time in the series.

Out were Nic Aube-Kubel, who I’m hearing suffered an injury blocking a shot in Game 3, and James van Riemsdyk, who was a healthy scratch.

That last decision alone is bold. Most coaches wouldn’t scratch a $7 million player in the playoffs, but Vigneault is the hockey coaching equivalent of the honey badger.

He even made a change on the power play, replacing Travis Konecny on the top unit with Farabee.

But it wasn’t the lineup changes that had the biggest impact.

Instead, it was what happened to start the game.

For the first half of the first period, Vigneault was throwing his forwards names into a blender and the first three to come put were playing together. It was organized chaos. The Flyers knew what they were doing, but Montreal was caught completely off guard.

And so there was Michael Raffl, rotating onto the top line for a couple shifts with Sean Couturier and Jake Voracek, plugging along when this happened:

It would turn out to be the game-winner.

To be honest, the line-shuffling really left the Flyers looking a little sloppy in the first period. Vigneault re-united the top line in the second period and went with more steady trios in the final 40 minutes, and the Flyers were better, but there’s no doubt that the hectic switcheroos threw the Canadians for a loop.

Once Raffl scored to give the Flyers the lead, the Canadiens were feeling the pressure. And as the game went on, the Flyers tightened their squeeze on the lead and made it harder and harder for the Canadiens to do anything.

And after Phil Myers scored a goal that Carey Price absolutely should have stopped, it was all over.

2. Block Party

For the second-straight game the Flyers made a commitment to blocking any and every shot they could from Canadian sticks – and they celebrated each one:

Shea Weber has one of the hardest shots in hockey. Getting in front of his shots takes some real intestinal fortitude.

But Raffl wasn’t alone.

Here’s Robert Hagg:

And here’s Nate Thompson:

There’s no video of it, but I’m sure assistant coach Ian Laperriere was smiling.

The Flyers have blocked 37 shots in the last two games. You think Vigneault got into their heads after their listless effort in Game 2?

This is why I’m so confident they will win Game 5. This and…

3. Cahtah Haht

There have certainly been better two-game performances by goalies in NHL history. Maybe even better two-game performances by young goalies in NHL history. Heck, Brian Boucher holds the Flyers playoff record for consecutive minutes played without allowing a goal (180) and faced a heck of a lot more shots than Hart has.

All that said, it’s hard to deny that what Hart is doing is really impressive.

What’s most impressive is it’s simplicity.

For two games Hart has been positionally perfect. His saves look easy, because he’s in the right spot all the time. And for those who would call him lucky because Montreal has hit five posts in the past two games, know that many times posts are hit because the goalie is in the right spot.

Hart is now in rarefied air.

He’s the third Flyers goalie to register back-to-back playoff shutouts, joining Bernie Parent (1975) and Michael Leighton (2010… no, seriously).

But he’s the second-youngest goalie in NHL history, and the youngest in the last 53 years to do it. That’s saying something.

His 120-minute shutout streak is the sixth-longest in Flyers history. The other five all occurred in seasons where the Flyers reached the Eastern Conference Finals (1999-2000) or the Stanley Cup Final (1973-74, 1974-75, 1979-80, 1984-85, 2009-10).

The kid is special, there’s no doubt.

4. Kevin Hayes was the star of the game… and didn’t notch a point.

I love when guys play a game like Hayes played in Game 4. They don’t score a goal or pick up an assist, but have the biggest impact on the game for the way they play otherwise.

Hayes was a 200-foot player. In the offensive end, he was so patient with the puck, slowing the game down to create chances:

But in the defensive end he was sensational. Whether it was blocking shots…

… or winning faceoffs, or winning puck battles, or lifting sticks to prevent shots. Hayes was everywhere. He was the best player on the ice, bar none.

I know a lot of people don’t love this style of hockey. It can seem boring at times, but it is effective. It’s going to take the Flyers far. Hell, it won the New Jersey Devils a few Cups.

These Flyers have bought in. The coach has his finger on the pulse of his team. If it isn’t fun for you yet, I promise, after they win on Wednesday, it will be.

Enjoy the ride.

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Anthony SanFilippo
Anthony SanFilippo

Anthony SanFilippo writes about the Phillies and Flyers for Crossing Broad and hosts a pair of related podcasts (Crossed Up and Snow the Goalie). A part of the Philadelphia sports media for a quarter century, Anthony also dabbles in acting, directing, teaching, and strategic marketing, which is why he has no time to do anything, but does it anyway. Follow him on Twitter @AntSanPhilly.

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