Believe it: Flyers are going to Game 7

(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

For the third game in a row, the Flyers played with their backs against the wall and, for the third time in a row, they have managed to survive to fight another day. Despite being outplayed for much of Game 6, the Flyers made just enough plays and got just enough good goaltending from Michael Leighton to earn a 2-1 win over the Bruins and force a Game 7 back in Boston. Now, with the Canadiens knocking off the Penguins, all that stands between the Flyers and being the higher seed in the Eastern Conference is one more win.

Before we start looking ahead to Game 7, though, let's look at the brilliance of Game 6. After getting an early goal from Mike Richards, the Bruins controlled the game for the rest of the first and most of the second period, out-shooting and out-hustling the Flyers despite not being able to score. While Leighton did play a great game in net, a lot of the credit has to go to the Flyers defense, who rarely allowed the Bruins a clean look at the net and blocked a whopping 30 shots throughout the night. After a goal by Danny Briere gave the Flyers a 2 goal lead, all they had to do was hold off the Bruins, which they did despite a goal in the final minute that made things interesting.

What Michael Leighton did in this game cannot be overstated. Coming off an injury and in his first career playoff start, Leighton stonewalled the Bruins for 59 minutes of play and stopped 30 shots in all. While much of the success of the Flyers goaltenders can be attributed to how well the team is playing in front of them, for Leighton to be that ready to play after not starting a game for nearly two months is truly remarkable. Hopefully he has another 60 minutes like that in him.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Flyers playoff game without a few injuries. Mike Richards had an early scare that forced him to go to the locker room briefly but returned and luckily showed no signs of injury. Blair Betts, on the other hand, suffered what looked like a separated shoulder and didn't play in the third period at all despite sitting on the bench. Early word from the Flyers is that Betts, the best penalty killer on the team, will suit up for Game 7.

So the improbable run continues. With how well they have played in the last three games, it's amazing to think they ever had a 3 game deficit against the Bruins. Clearly, the Flyers have learned how important it is to get an early lead against Boston and force their anemic offense to attempt to fight their way back into the game. The Bruins simply don't have the offensive firepower to create many solid scoring chances against a Flyers defense that seems to be one step ahead of them at all times.

The Flyers are clearly a team that loves to play with everything one the line, whether it be the final game of the regular season or elimination games in the playoffs. Simply put, they have basically been on borrowed time for weeks now and seem to be playing better because of it. Now, with one final elimination game to go, we'll see if this Flyers team has it in them to complete the miracle. I, for one, believe.

Flyers extend Betts for 2 years, 1.4 million

You can make the argument that Blair Betts is one of the most important Flyers. No, he doesn't score a lot of points. And, no, he doesn't get time on the power play, fight or rack up a ton of hits. Still, what Betts does for the Flyers is something every team in the NHL needs. He's a glue guy that plays great defensive hockey and kills penalties with the best of them. He's a 4th line center who will win you the important faceoffs. He will also be a Flyer for 2 more years.

The Flyers and Betts have agreed to a 2 year, 1.4 million dollar extension. On a Flyers team filled with players with multi-million dollar contracts, having a guy like Betts around for just 700,000 per year is a steal and a necessity, given the Flyers cap issues. Betts likely could have commanded closer to a million dollars if he went on the open market so the Flyers were smart to get him locked up at this price when they could.

With the number of penalties the Flyers take, they need to have several smart penalty killers on the roster. While Betts has issues staying healthy, when he's out there, he allows guys like Mike Richards and Jeff Carter to spend a little less time on the PK and a little more time trying to score goals. For the price of 700k a year, I'm not sure you can find a more valuable hockey player.

Flyers lose Betts and Powe to injury

Just when you thought everything was looking up for the Flyers, they lose a pair of games and a pair of players in subsequent days. Philly had won 7 of their last 8 heading into Friday night's game with the Sharks, which they lost 6-3, then they headed to Phoenix on Saturday where they lost 3-1 to the Coyotes. A pair of losses on the road isn't necessarily a terrible thing but the team unfortunately also suffered a pair of significant injuries.

Blair Betts has been an unsung player for the Flyers, killing penalties and winning faceoffs in his checking line role. While Betts doesn't fill up a box score, he does all the little things that help hockey teams win. Unfortunately for the Flyers, however, Betts re-injured his right shoulder on Saturday night against the Coyotes, an injury that, according to Tim Panaccio, is expected to keep him out about a month. This will be the second time this season Betts has injured his right shoulder so concern has to be setting in about whether he will hold up at all this season.

The Flyers also will be without Darroll Powe, another forward who does the little things but has also had a scoring touch this season, for an undisclosed amount of time. Powe injured his left shoulder against the Sharks on Friday night and the Flyers believe that he will be out for several games.

It will be interesting to see who the Flyers call up and how they go about replacing Betts and Powe in the lineup. Youngster David Laliberte will likely remain with the team for a while but I am curious as to who else will step in and get some extra minutes. I wouldn't be surprised if Jared Ross is brought up for the first time this season.

No one the Flyers call up is likely to have the same positive impact that Betts has on the club, however.

Good news: Flyers win thriller in OT Bad news: Betts, JVR injured

(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

The Flyers continued their hot start to the season, downing the Capitals in overtime in a high-scoring 6-5 contest. Danny Briere was the hero in OT, netting the winner to keep the Flyers undefeated season going. Other studs on the night were Mike Richards, who had a hat trick in the second period, and Matt Carle, who had an NHL record-tying 4 assists for a defensemen in the 2nd period. The Flyers had some issues shutting down Capitals star Alex Ovechkin, who had 2 goals and an assist, but managed to slow him down just enough to keep the game close. New Flyers goalie Ray Emery played his worst game in net so far, stopping 31 of 36 shots, but he made the big saves late in the game when they mattered.

Following the exciting win, the Flyers did get some bad news on the injury front. According to Tim Panaccio on Twitter, newly signed forward Blair Betts, a face-off and penalty killing expert, separated his shoulder in the game and will be out for about a month. Losing Betts doesn't slow the team down too much although it will stretch the solid PK unit a little thinner.

Panaccio also reported one other injury that is a little scarier: Flyers phenom James van Riemsdyk may have suffered a concussion in tonight's game. Flyers fans have had enough experience with concussions to know the severity of them and for a kid like JVR to start down the concussion path at his age brings back bad memories of Eric Lindros and Simon Gagne. Let's hope JVR is all right and can continue his development this season.

Great overtime win by the Flyers tonight. They certainly gave fans everything they could ask for in their home opener. 82-0 is still a possibility!

A perfect start to the Flyers season

(AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

A win. 2 power play goals. A shutout. Perfect on the penalty kill. A fight. Could you have asked for anything more in the Flyers season debut?

The Flyers started off their 2009 season with a 2-0 road win against the Hurricanes in a game that was filled with positives for the team. The Flyers got their goals from two familiar faces, Jeff Carter and Mike Richards, but there were several standout players new to the team this year. New goaltender Ray Emery started his Flyers career off in the best way possible, stopping 28 shots and posting a shutout. Other newcomers Chris Pronger (2 hits, 3 blocked shots) and James van Riemsdyk (1 assist, 3 shots) also had good nights as the Flyers played a complete game of hockey.

Another Flyer who played well in his debut was 4th liner Blair Betts. If you want to know why Flyers fans were so happy when the team signed the guy, just look at his 6 minutes of perfect penalty killing and the fact that he was the only Flyer with a faceoff win % above 50 (56%). Betts is the perfect role player for this team; he won't put up big numbers but he will do all the little things that win hockey games.

The only negative that I take from tonight's game was that van Riemsdyk needs more ice time if he is going to develop. JVR had 8 minutes 59 seconds of ice time tonight, third lowest on the team behind Danny Syvret and Dan Carcillo. While I did like his nearly 2 minutes of power play time, if the Flyers want to keep JVR in the NHL for this entire season, they will need to play him more.

All in all,it was the perfect start to a promising Flyers season. I think we are in store for a fun year.

Blair Betts is (finally) a Flyer

It took longer than it should have, but training camp invitee Blair Betts has finally signed with the Flyers. According to Tim Panaccio of CSN Philly, Betts, who will be the 4th line center, signed a one year deal with the team. There was some hold-up with the money involved and that made the deal take longer than expected.

Betts is the perfect complementary player for the Flyers. He will kill penalties, win faceoffs and play the kind of defensive hockey you need from a 4th line player. On a team loaded with top-end offensive talent at forward, he's exactly what the team was missing.

The Flyers had room on the roster to sign Betts because they announced yesterday that Ole-Kristain Tollefsen and Brian Boucher would be placed on the injured list to start the season. Marc-Andre Bourdon was also called up and will be the 7th defenseman until Tollefsen is ready.

Here is the Flyers current roster:

Forwards (14): Danny Briere, Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, Jeff Carter, Scott Hartnell, Daniel Carcillo, Claude Giroux, Arron Asham, Riley Cote, Darroll Powe, Ian Laperriere, Mika Pyorala, Blair Betts, James van Riemsdyk

Defensemen (7): Chris Pronger, Braydon Coburn, Kimmo Timonen, Ryan Parent, Matt Carle, Danny Syvret, Marc-Andre Bourdon

Goalies (2): Ray Emery, Johan Backlund

Injured List: Brian Boucher, Ole-Kristian Tollefsen

Flyers finalize roster: JVR makes it but no Betts yet

With NHL rosters due at 3 pm today, the Flyers made their final moves to get their roster ready for Friday's opening game. An NHL team is able to keep 23 players on their roster so the Flyers had to shift a couple of players around to fit everyone in.

As expected, rookie phenom James van Riemsdyk made the team after a strong preseason showing where he basically forced himself onto the roster. Also making the team after looking solid this preseason was forward Mika Pyorala.

Not making the team, yet, was Blair Betts. Betts was brought in on a tryout basis and needs a contract to play for the Flyers. The Flyers are believed to be in negotiations with Betts at the moment but no agreement has been reached as of yet. Betts would make a great 4th line center who can win faceoffs and kill penalties so hopefully the Flyers reach a deal with him soon.

With the Flyers keeping JVR, Pyorala and hopefully Betts, they could have 14 forwards. Since teams only suit up 12 forwards a game, that means 2 players from an incredibly deep group will have to sit out every night. The likely scratches would be 2 from the following group: Pyorala, Darroll Powe, Riley Cote and Arron Asham. Having this many quality forwards means the Flyers can mix and match depending on their opponents strengths and weaknesses.

If the Flyers do sign Blair Betts in the next few days they would have to place hobbled goaltender Brian Boucher on the injured list. As of right now, Boucher stays on the roster although he won't be able to play for another week or so. Johan Backlund will temporarily be on the roster as the backup until Boucher is healthy enough to go.

The team also sent recently waived Randy Jones to the Phantoms, ensuring defensemen Danny Syvret and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen of roster spots. Syvret will likely be the 6th defenseman and Tollefsen will be a healthy scratch on most nights.

Here is the Flyers roster for the beginning of the season:

Forwards (13): Danny Briere, Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, Jeff Carter, Scott Hartnell, Daniel Carcillo, Claude Giroux, Arron Asham, Riley Cote, Darroll Powe, Ian Laperriere, Mika Pyorala, Blair Betts, James van Riemsdyk

Defensemen (7): Chris Pronger, Braydon Coburn, Kimmo Timonen, Ryan Parent, Matt Carle, Ole-Kristian Tollefsen, Danny Syvret

Goalies (3): Ray Emery, Johan Backlund, Brian Boucher

Flyers to say goodbye to Jones, hello to Betts?

Fans have been calling for it for months and they may finally get their wish. According to the Daily News, the Flyers are going to release Randy Jones this weekend in order to free up salary. Jones is set to make 2.75 million dollars this year, so waiving him would clear up some valuable cap space to sign forward Blair Betts, who has earned his way onto the team with his solid defensive skills.

Ridding themselves of Jones would be a great move for the Flyers because he hasn't done anything this preseason to prove he is much better than Danny Syvret or Ole-Kristian Tollefsen, the two defensemen vying for a spot on the roster. Both Syvret and Tollefsen make more than 2 million dollars less than Jones so it seems like a logical move to take a small hit in talent for a large boost in cap space.

What happens to Jones after he gets waived will be interesting. There are probably many teams in the league looking for help on defense but I'm not sure they are willing to take on his salary. If he ends up going unclaimed, the Flyers can then send him down to the Phantoms for as long as they want.

The upside from this move, the likely signing of Blair Betts, outweighs the negative that the Flyers will lose some of their depth on defense. Keeping Jones around as the 6th defenseman would be fine talent-wise but dollar-wise it just doesn't make much sense. Cap space is a valuable commodity in the NHL, much more valuable than an average defenseman.