Jaroslav Halak probably knows exactly how Michael Leighton is feeling right now. Halak was the Habs hero in their shocking playoff victories over the Washington Capitals and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Leighton’s 30 stops on Tuesday night, lead the Flyers to a 3-0 shutout of the Canadiens, and a 2-0 lead in the best of 7 conference finals. Following a 6-0 Philadelphia victory on Sunday, Leighton is just the third goalie to post back to back shutouts in the first two games of a conference finals series since 1944. Leighton is also the first Flyers goalie to record consecutive playoff shutouts since Bernie Parent in 1975, the year the Flyers won their second consecutive Stanley Cup.
The Canadiens started the first period with a lot of drive and determination, outshooting Philadelphia 16-6. Leighton held his team in the game, until the Flyers awoke from their enigmatic effort in the opening 20 minutes. The red hot Danny Briere continued his scoring surge , notching his ninth of the post-season, to give the Flyers a 1-0 lead at 4:16 of the first, and some breathing broom, at a time when they were being outplayed by a wide margin. Philadelphia managed to get a win, even though they played the first two periods without much passion. They did not finish their checks in the first two periods, and avoided utilizing the physical game that helped them in their very easy, game one 6-0 victory. Another major difference in this game, was that Jaroslav Halak looked very beatable . The Habs net minder seemed especially weak, on the Flyers third goal by Ville Leino, at 10:24 of the third period. Philadelphia is starting to shoot high on Halak, and it is paying dividends, so far in this series.
It is starting to appear as though Montreal’s miracles may be running dry. They have encountered a team that thrives on creating traffic in front of the net, which is always a solution for cooling out a hot goalkeeper. It seems to have worked on Halak, who also might be fatigued, from all the shots he has seen in the playoffs. The Habs do not have anybody on their roster who can match up with the skill level of either Chris Pronger,or Mike Richards. Over the course of this playoff series, that significant advantage will probably become even more important. Montreal has superior speed over Philadelphia, but they can’t seem to sustain it for an entire game, partly because the Flyers seem to be able to respond by interrupting the flow of play, by clogging up the passing and shooting lanes in the neutral zone.
The Flyers are the first team in NHL history to win six straight playoff games following a 3 game losing streak in the same postseason. Philadelphia has outscored their opponents 24-8 during their 6 game win streak. Montreal has shown a lot of character in beating the Caps and Pens in their run to the conference finals. Expecting yet another Canadiens Cinderella story, might be more than they can manage.