PHILADELPHIA - The Montreal Canadiens have been in this position before this spring.
For the sixth time, they head into a game facing elimination from the Stanley Cup playoffs, this time at the hands of the Philadelphia Flyers, who lead the Eastern Conference final 3-1 with Game 5 set for the Wachovia Center tonight.
“You have a weird range of emotions, but it’s kind of a liberating feeling,” said Canadiens winger Mike Cammalleri, who has scored six of his playoff-leading 13 goals in games in which the Habs have faced elimination. “You can’t sit here and worry this could be your last game.”
If the Canadiens are going to expand on their 5-0 record in elimination games this spring, it wouldn’t hurt for them to score a goal here.
They were shut out by Flyers goaltender Michael Leighton in Games 1 and 2 here (he added his franchise record third shutout in the series Saturday in Game 4 at the Bell Centre.) One thing that would help in that department would be the power play, which is just 1-for-16 in the series with the only goal coming late in the Canadiens lone win in the series.
“We’ve made adjustments that haven’t worked so well,” said Cammalleri. “It’s important to play to your strengths and I think we’ve gotten away from that. I think it’s more important to cater to a guy’s strengths than play a structure that looks good on paper.”
Winger Tom Pyatt, who suffered an upper body injury in Game 4, will be a game-time decision, Canadiens coach Jacques Martin said this morning. If he can’t play, Mathieu Darche would probably go back in to the lineup.
Defenceman Josh Gorges, meanwhile, said he will likely not wear his foot guards tonight. He stumbled on a loose strap in Game 4, which led to Philadelphia’s Claude Giroux getting a step on him and scoring the opening goal of what turned out to be a 3-0 Flyers victory.
“There’s no sense having something to worry about,” said Gorges of his decision to drop the clear plastic protectors. “If you get hit in the foot, you get hit in the foot. It’s playoff hockey. You’ve got to fight through it.”
Martin was asked again about the issue of sand or some other substance in the hallway outside the Flyers dressing room Saturday at the Bell Centre. The Flyers training staff wound up putting down towels for the players to walk on after several skates were nicked and needed sharpening during the game.
“Well, I think that it’s a complete fabrication. We did an investigation and the Bell Centre is really an impeccable building,” said Martin, “and we have some more important things to focus on and prepare ourselves for the game tonight.”
chris.stevenson@sunmedia.ca
