PHILADELPHIA -- “C’mon! Punch him in the face, Coots! Yeah!”
A fan shouted that Sunday from the lower bowl of the already low culture inside Wells Fargo Center. He was urging the Flyers' Sean Couturier to punch Kris Letang in the face. Which, coincidentally, was precisely what followed in the form of a double-gloved uppercut to the jaw.
Our Matt Sunday both heard and observed:
That would continue through the afternoon, well after the Penguins had taken command of what wound up a 5-1 rout in Game 3. Couturier jabbed Letang. Letang poked his helmet from the back. And with each of those, that famously rabid portion of the Philly crowd -- which is to say all of it -- roared its approval, fueling the home team in a manner that's always applied more here than anywhere else in the NHL.
It's who the Flyers are, for better or worse. And in this case, I swear I don't mean it cynically.
Because there are only two ways, from this perspective, that they can make a series of this, beginning with Game 4 tonight:
1. Get outrageously lucky, like Game 2.
2. Out-energize the opponent.
And in this setting, amid this citizenry that's spent the past 72 hours applauding the distribution of Sidney Crosby photos inside public urinals, that basically means the Flyers would need to be the worst version of themselves. Because that's what gets the place going and, in turn, what gets them going.
There isn't another option. They can't match the Penguins' skill or speed up front. They can't defend with the Penguins. They can't tend goal with the Bethel Park JV.
Which brings me to this punchline, far less savage than the one from that fan: "For sure, in Game 3, we let it get away from us with some sloppy penalties. There’s more to it than that. It’s never just that simple. But if you want to look for one key reason, that’s a good place to start.”
That was Dave Hakstol, the Flyers' head coach who's received justifiable credit in preaching just-play pacifism within a franchise that's forever turned up its nose at the concept. He's gotten decent results, too, getting his team back to the playoffs after a one-year absence and winning 42 games despite a 10-game losing streak in December.
But this is the playoffs. And these are the Flyers. And this is Philly. And given virtually no advantage being visible beyond the rawest of intangibles, Hakstol is insisting -- now more than ever -- that his guys take the ice without their teeth.
Don't misunderstand here, please: I'm aware that this roster isn't built the same as it's been in the past. Radko Gudas, Brandon Manning, Wayne Simmonds and a couple other guys can get cheap, and even the MVP-level captain, Claude Giroux, again has shown his snarly side in this series. But no one's about to ask Valtteri Filppula or Oskar Lindblom to go break some heads.
What I'm talking about is energy. Fire. Anything that could be kindled for any sort of edge.
Not this ...
“When we work hard and get pucks deep and play below their goal line and get cycle shifts going, I think that has a lot of success for our team. We just have to get back to that and turn this thing around.”
That came yesterday from Jordan Weal, a winger who'll be inserted in the lineup tonight as part of a broader Hakstol shakeup. And he's wrong. That won't turn it around. The Penguins' defense has been active enough, and their forwards have tracked back diligently enough to prevent sustained cycling.
“We have to take care of the puck a little more and we can’t be scared of making plays. Sometimes you start playing too safe and it gets you in trouble.”
That came from Giroux, who's followed a 100-point regular season with a one-assist playoff series so far. And he's wrong. That won't turn it around. Taking risks against the Penguins, when they're at their counterattacking best, tends to result in fishing pucks out of one's own net.
“Just don’t give him time and space. It’s not like he’s single-handedly defeated us."
That came from Ivan Provorov, the terrific young defenseman who's been largely responsible for sticking close to Crosby. And he's actually right. Crosby hasn't single-handedly defeated Philadelphia, even with four goals and three assists.
But that alone should have the Flyers looking at something other than status quo.
• The Penguins have lost Patric Hornqvist for Game 4, and the Flyers might have lost Couturier because of a practice collision with Gudas yesterday. If Couturier can't go, the Flyers will have taken the bigger loss. That's got nothing to do with Hornqvist, the far more valuable player, and everything to do with Hakstol having hardly any depth at center.
• If -- and I mean only if -- Hornqvist is out because of that ugly crosscheck into the boards in Game 2, then he should be suspended for all of Game 5 for embellishment.
• These were Mike Sullivan's practice lines yesterday, which might or might not be how they account for Hornqvist's absence:
Guentzel-Crosby-Simon
Hagelin-Malkin-Kessel
Sheary-Brassard-Rust
Aston-Reese-Sheahan-Kuhnhackl
Dumoulin-Hunwick
Maatta-Schultz
Olesksiak-Ruhwedel
Arguing with Sullivan's decisions is akin to betting against the pre-Buster Douglas version of Mike Tyson, but I'll offer this: Zach Aston-Reese on that top line offers a much higher ceiling, including within these playoffs. If he can perform alongside Crosby at anywhere near the level he flashed before his injury two months ago, he'd create the legit three-line depth Sullivan's been seeking all season.
Simon might be more serviceable right away. He's more experienced, more sound. But remember that the Penguins rode some huge rookie contributions in the past two Cup runs, and another would be more than welcome. Aston-Reese can offer that if given the chance.
• No. 1 benefit to the Penguins finishing this series off in five: Phil Kessel can mend. Now Hornqvist, too, but I'll focus on Kessel because his style involves a lot more nuance than Hornqvist's. He needs to be sharper to be effective.
• One facet to watch early tonight to see if the visitors will keep up the massive possession advantage they've owned: They've got to make quick outlets. In the Flyers' strongest stretch of the series, the opening 10 minutes of Game 3, they capitalized on a little too much east-west on the breakouts. Go one and done.
• Carter Rowney's healthy and ready. He hasn't exactly excelled over the past few months on those rare occasions he's been available, but don't underestimate the coaching staff's respect for his penalty-killing. The PK guys realize it, too, and a couple of them are one lousy short-handed performance away from being replaced.
• I'd predicted Matt Murray would be the Penguins' best player in Game 3, and that one turned out OK. I'll go out on a precarious limb this time and pick Crosby. If only because he really hates this place almost as much as he loves celebrating here.
• The captain's first point tonight will match Mario Lemieux's career playoff mark of 172. I've never compared anyone to Lemieux and never will. He's the most gifted player in the history of hockey. And his points were piled up in 107 games, while Crosby's played in 151.
Still, man ...
"When you're in that company, it's great," Crosby was saying yesterday. "It's not why you play but, when it comes up, it's cool to be involved in that. Being one point away ... I had no idea. I would take being close with Mario. The day I came into the league, if someone told me I could be close, I would take it."
Never take it for granted, my friends. Not either end of that equation.
• Anyone else stay up late to see the Capitals and Blue Jackets take all three of their games now to overtime?
I've got a few verbal thoughts on that, now that Lars Eller's fluky goal has made that a series again:
• Vegas sweeps L.A. Wow. First team to the good side of the handshake line.
I'm through doubting the Golden Knights. Add up all that speed George McPhee smartly amassed, the skill of William Karlsson, James Neal and others, the full-court-press system Gerard Gallant installed in camp and now the peak version of Marc-Andre Fleury, and they've earned so much more than the asterisks accompanying an expansion team.
What a story. They're the story of the year in the NHL, without a close second.
• Even so, forget that dream matchup in the Final. The Eastern winner will spend mid-June in sunny Manitoba. Sticking by that one. The Jets look just terrifying right now. They've got it all and they're mean. That's a hell of a combo.