[AP Preview – WashingtonCaps.com Preview]
When the Caps last faced the Flyers, Viktor Kozlov‘s shootout goal gave Washington a much-needed win over their biggest rival in a game that Bruce Boudreau did his best Don King impression in promoting (visualize that for a moment).
Since then, the Flyers have gone 10-7-0 and seem to be headed for a fourth-place finish in the Eastern Conference, meaning they won’t be on the Caps’ plate in the first round of the playoffs. But that’s getting way ahead of ourselves, of course, and the task at hand is tonight‘s Flyers team.
Interestingly, both the Caps and Philly are coming off home games against the Pens, but with different results (a 5-2 Caps win and a 5-4 Flyers loss), thanks in large part to Flyer netminder Martin Biron‘s bizarre blunder (the Caps, unfortunately, will draw back-up Antero Niittymaki tonight). Philly’s Mike “Louganis” Richards was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week on Monday, and has shorthanded goals in three straight games (the entire Flyer penalty kill warrants significant attention), and Scott Hartnell has horrible hair.
Look, at this point I don’t need to tell you that it’s a big game – you know that if the Caps are playing a team from the Keystone State with a yapping diver wearing the “C,” it means a little more. Let’s hope this one goes as well as Sunday’s.