Flyers blow 2 goal lead, chance to end series

You knew he would make his mark eventually. After basically being shut down for 5 games, Alexander Ovechkin proved why he is the NHL MVP as he scored two goals in the third period to lead the Capitals past the Flyers, 4-2. The win forces the series back to Washington for a Game 7, something the Flyers desperately wanted to avoid.

The Flyers dominated the game through most of the first 30 minutes of play, building a 2-0 lead from two power play goals scored by Mike Richards and Danny Briere. From there, the Caps took over, scoring 4 unanswered goals and completely dominating the play. Nicklas Backstrom scored his third goal in as many games to start the scoring for the Caps, and Ovechkin added the game winner in the beginning of the third period when he came in all alone and shot the puck past Martin Biron. Ovechkin later added a one-time goal on the power play to seal the victory for the Caps.

It was only a matter of time before Ovechkin got going, and the Flyers made several costly mistakes to facilitate his breakout game. Washington "capitalized" on nearly every Flyer mistake, and there were plenty of sloppy passes and dumb penalties for them to take advantage of. The Flyers lacked a killer instinct all night, like they were unaware they had a great opportunity to finish off the series. As soon as Philly got a two goal lead, they seemed satisfied and played back on their heels, allowing the Capitals to dictate the play. The only thing that kept this game from being a bigger blowout was the play of Martin Biron, who made 36 saves, several of them big stops that kept the Flyers within striking distance.

The Flyers are now forced to try to finish out the Capitals in Washington, a place they haven't played great hockey. The Flyers need to come out with way more energy than they have shown in the last two games or the Capitals will score early and the game could be over quickly. They blew their chance tonight, and now the Caps carry all the momentum and confidence into the final game of the series. Alexander Ovechkin also appears to have woken up from his playoff slumber, and that could spell the end for the Flyers' season.

Biron shuts door, Flyers tie series

Washington Capitals' fans should file a missing persons report for Alexander Ovechkin, because he was nowhere to be found in today's 2-0 win by the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers defense shut down the usually potent Ovechkin, who managed 5 shots on goal, but generated very few chances in his nearly 27 minutes of ice time.

Martin Biron played a great game in goal, turning aside 24 shots en route to his first career playoff shutout. He needed to make several big stops in the second period when the Capitals were firing a number of shots on goal, but he also had long stretched of time where he could relax, including six minutes in the third period when the Capitals didn't tally a shot on goal.

Biron had to be sharp in the first two periods because the Flyers couldn't keep out of the penalty box. The Flyers had 4 penalties in the first period alone that led to numerous power play chances by the Caps, but luckily they were able to stop the usually potent Washington attack.

Offensively, the Flyers scored both of their goals in the first period. The first goal of the game came on a long pass from Braydon Coburn to R.J. Umberger which led to Umberger putting it past Cristobal Huet. The second goal was created when Mike Green of the Capitals turned the puck over to Mike Knuble, who fired a shot on goal, and the rebound went directly to Jeff Carter who buried it for a 2-0 lead in the first period. From the second goal on, the Flyers generated only very few good chances, instead focusing on shutting down Washington's attack.

This is a big win for the Flyers, who now get to go home after stealing one in Washington. I said before the series started that Philly needed to take one of the first two games to have a chance, and after blowing a great opportunity in the first game, they were resilient in fighting back today. They have to be happy that they seem to have found a way to slow down Alexander Ovechkin, who has been invisible except for his game winning goal in Game One. The Flyers are also happy to take this win knowing their top offensive combo, Danny Briere and Vaclav Prospal, didn't have to score at all. Getting the other lines going is critical if the Flyers want to have success in the playoffs, they can't rely solely on Briere and Prospal to carry them.

Game Three is Tuesday in Philly. The Capitals looked extremely frustrated at the end of Game Two, so if the Flyers can get an early goal or two, they might be able to run away with the series.

Expect Alexander Ovechkin to "find himself" in Game Three. It will be up to the Flyers to respond.