Bruins Series Game 2 Review

My standing prediction for the game tonight was 3-2, but I wasn't sure who would be on right side of that scoreline. Apparently it was the Bruins.

Total gutpunch of a loss.  Great start, thrown away by flat-footed defense and soft second goal in the span of a minute and a half.  Bruins were good in the second period, but the Flyers onslaught was relentless in the third, setting franchise playoff records for most shots in a period and most shots in a game.  The longer the 3rd period carried on without a goal to show for it however, you knew the chances that the game would slip away from the Flyers would increase.

I'd like to say "wow, the Flyers played great, obviously they can come back on the Bruins."  More likely though, is that the Flyers were facing a must-win game, gave the Bruins their best shot, and still lost.

It's pretty indisputable that at least tonight, the chasm in goaltending between the teams cost the Flyers.  The Bruins put out one of the league's best, the Flyers a streaky career backup.  Good goaltending isn't often going to win or lose a series on its own, but when you have two good teams playing each other, which is essentially always the case in advanced round of the playoffs, it will decide series.

Even if goaltending incompetence does not directly cause a Flyers loss (like tonight), the simple fact is that the Flyers are have been vastly overmatched at the position and it makes the job that much harder for the rest of the team to win. You can't expect the Flyers to score 4 goals every night against good teams.

Still clinging to some hope, but things look pretty bleak from where I sit.

Notes and other deep thoughts:
-Great game for Thomas (52 saves!!  22 in the 3rd period!), but you can't ignore how much more effective the Bruins defense was at preventing rebound chances---something the Flyers have done pitifully this series.

-Was there any doubt the JVR was the best player on the ice?  The guy was everywhere.  They flashed a stat on the broadcast, that after 9 playoff game JVR has the 2nd most all-time shots, only trailing Alex Ovechkin in 2009.  Oh yeah, he has 7 goals too, though at some points it looked like he might get 7 tonight alone.  He's doing the same power move over and over, but with his combination of size and skating, no defensemen seems to be able to do damn thing to stop him in one-on-one situations.

-No Pronger.  Bad back?  Bad hamstring?  Who knows.  Neither of those injuries are ones that tend to get better overnight.

-Carter is nowhere to be found at practices.  Do the Flyers try to rush him back now?

-The Flyers continue to have trouble rounding out the 4th line.  Shelley only played a few minutes and took a foolish penalty.  Who knows who we'll see in the lineup for game 3 in that slot.

-Do the Flyers change goalies again?  Not that Boucher was remarkably bad, but do you give the team another kick in the butt?  Probably not, but who knows with this squad.