April 24, 2016
The Flyers had been given a gift. It was Chris VandeVelde’s stick, not Nicklas Backstrom’s, that caused Ryan White to bleed his own blood at 8:59 of the second period. And yet, it was the Capitals’ top line center who went to the penalty box for four minutes:
Ryan White takes a stick from his own teammate and the Caps get a 4 minute penalty pic.twitter.com/AfB0NUlTOl
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) April 24, 2016
Five seconds later, Wayne Simmonds drew a hooking penalty on Matt Niskanen. Thanks to a fortunate call, the Flyers were in business: 5-on-3 for 1:55, and, just for kicks, 5-on-4 for 2:05 after that.
The Flyers didn’t cash in, and they didn’t even come particularly close outside of a half-decent rebound chance for Simmonds. Ryan White ended the team’s four minutes with the man advantage early, taking a penalty of his own. For the series, the Flyers went 1-24 on the power play.
“[The Caps] did a good job,” Brayden Schenn said. “They came with a lot of pressure, pressured G on the half-wall, pressured Ghost up top. They had pressure everywhere, and those are obviously the toughest PKs to go against.”
The Philadelphia Flyers exceeded expectations both in 2015-16 and this first-round series against the Washington Capitals, but the Orange and Black will look back on their inability to muster anything with the man advantage as one of the primary reasons they weren’t able to take the NHL’s top team the distance. Washington ended the Flyers’ season in Game 6 at the Wells Fargo Center, 1-0.
Backstrom ended up having the last laugh, doing what the Caps had found so difficult for almost two games: score on Michal Neuvirth.
Backstrom gives the Caps a lead. Nice play by Ovechkin to help set it up pic.twitter.com/82ePARbE6q
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) April 24, 2016
"It was 3 on 2 and a good pass and a unbelievable shot," Neuvirth said. "I don’t think I could have stopped it."
What else can you say about Neuvirth? The Czech netminder’s rebound control wasn’t as sharp as it was on Friday night in the nation’s capital, but the Caps still had a ton of trouble solving him. Before Backstrom’s goal, Neuvirth had turned away 72 consecutive shots.
After coming into relief duty in Game 4, Neuvirth made 103 saves on 105 shots.
"It’s tough you want to get some goals for the guy," Shayne Gostisbehere said after wrapping up an excellent rookie season. "Give him some support. But it doesn’t happen sometimes.”
The Flyers weren’t thoroughly dominated like two nights ago in Washington — They were outshot 29-26 — but it didn’t feel like Braden Holtby was tested much until late in the third period when the Flyers were throwing the kitchen sink at him. The Vezina favorite was up to the task when called upon.
The Flyers’ top line (Claude Giroux and Wayne Simmonds) capped off a frustrating series with a couple of penalties in the first period, but the more aggressive penalty kill (5 for 5) was up to the task. In the series, Giroux managed only one point.
"Not good enough," Giroux said when asked to evaluate his play. "You know, I’m pretty frustrated with myself. Gotta find a way, doesn’t matter how it is. You gotta find a way."
After the game, the Flyers fans gave their team a big round of applause. They know this season wasn't supposed to result in a playoff berth, that their team was outmanned in this series, and that the future for the organization is promising.
“It was great," Simmonds said. "Those are the Philly fans we know and love."
Follow Rich on Twitter: @rich_hofmann
