Faceoff Factor

Canadiens vs Flyers Series Preview/Game 1 Preview

Andrew Chiappazzi | National Hockey League

Apr 23, 10:30 PM | Hype this story!

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Canadiens (1) vs. Flyers (6) Conference Semifinal Preview
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The two areas of the country that remain decidedly anti-Pittsburgh are facing off. They’re doing it early, too, a strange NHL schedule quirk that certainly favors the Rangers and Penguins. Despite the Canadiens and Flyers both going seven games in their previous series, they only have a couple days off before starting what should be an intense series Thursday night.

The real question is how far the Flyers can go one year after finishing last in the league. Oh, and whether Carey Price can continue to stand up to the unreal pressure as a rookie goaltender in the NHL’s hottest cauldron of fandom. Price could use some help in front of him, mostly in the “take-care-of-business” category. Alexei Kovalev would be a nice start. Despite leading the Habs in points, Kovalev has been relatively quiet in the first round. That can’t happen in the second round, although the Flyers will do everything they can to keep the mercurial winger quiet.

Speaking of, keeping people quiet will be a key factor in this series, namely on special teams. The two teams match-up almost perfectly on the PK and PP. While Montreal was one of the best on the power play all year long, they’ve been one of the worst in the playoffs. Philly’s PK hasn’t been much better, and if the Canadiens can start converting their chances – which they’ll have plenty of in this series against the physical Flyers – then it could be a short series. In the meantime, when Philly goes on the power play, it could get extremely entertaining. The Flyers are clicking at a quality percentage for the playoffs (22.2%), but the Habs are extremely hot on the PK (90% closure rate). Something will have to give.

Oh, and if you thought the Flyers defense had issues with the Capitals forwards, they might just wet themselves facing Montreal’s constant press. Whether the 2008 version of the Broadstreet Bullies can avoid the sin-bin and looking like pylons will go a long way to determining how this series shakes out.

Game 1 is Thursday night at 7pm in Montreal.

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Team Numbers
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Regular Season Standings
Montreal: 47-25-10; 104 pts; 1st Northeast; 1st Eastern; 3rd NHL
Philadelphia: 42-29-11; 95 pts; 4th Atlantic; 6th Eastern; 11th NHL

Record in Playoffs
Montreal: 22-13-6 at home; 25-12-4 on the road; 3-1-0 at home in playoffs; 1-1-1 on road in playoffs; 4-0 vs PHI
Philadelphia: 21-14-6 at home; 21-15-5; 2-1 at home in playoffs; 2-2 on road in playoffs; 0-4 vs MON

Special Teams in Playoffs
Montreal: PP, 9.4% (14th); PK, 90% (4th)
Philadelphia: PP, 22.2% (6th); PK, 77.1% (12th)

Scoring in playoffs
Montreal: 19 GF, 2.71 GFA (5th/8th); 15 GA, 2.14 GAA (6th/4th)
Philadelphia: 23 GF, 3.29 GFA (1st/4th); 20 GA, 2.86 GAA (15th/12th)

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Player Leaders In Playoffs
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Goals
Montreal: A. Kostitsyn (3); S. Kostitsyn (3); Kovalev (2)
Philadelphia: Briere (6); Prospal (3); Carter (3)

Assists
Montreal: Brisebois (4); Kovalev (4); Begin (3)
Philadelphia: Prospal (6); Briere (5); Richards (5)

Points
Montreal: Kovalev (6); S. Kostitsyn (6); Brisebois (5)
Philadelphia: Briere (11); Prospal (9); Richards (7)

Penalty Minutes
Montreal: S. Kostitsyn (12); Komisarek (10); Latendresse (9)
Philadelphia: Hatcher (5); Jones (5); Knuble (3); Carter (3); Coburn (3)

Wins
Montreal: Price (4)
Philadelphia: Biron (4)

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Injuries
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Montreal: No players expected to miss time. All injured players returned for Games 6 and 7 versus Boston.
Philadelphia: Knuble (doubtful, torn hamstring)

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Series Schedule
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GAME 1: April 24 at Montreal
7:00 p.m. (ET) CBC, RDS

GAME 2: April 26 at Montreal
7:00 p.m. (ET) CBC, VERSUS, RDS

GAME 3: April 28 at Philadelphia
7:00 p.m. (ET) CBC, VERSUS, RDS

GAME 4: April 30 at Philadelphia
7:00 p.m. (ET) CBC, VERSUS, RDS

~GAME 5: May 3 at Montreal
7:00 p.m. (ET) CBC, VERSUS, RDS

~GAME 6: May 4 at Philadelphia
7:00 p.m. (ET) CBC, VERSUS, RDS

~GAME 7: May 6 at Montreal
7:00 p.m. (ET) CBC, RDS