(Sports Network) - The Philadelphia Flyers were able to stave off elimination with an overtime victory in Game 4, but the Boston Bruins will get another chance to end this Eastern Conference semifinal series when they host Game 5 tonight at TD Garden.
Game 5: Back On Home Ice, Bruins Looking To Close Out Series With Flyers
Simon Gagne’s tally at the 14:40 mark of the extra session helped the Flyers stay alive in this series. Gagne was playing his first game since April 20, when he broke a toe on his right foot while blocking a shot in Game 4 of Philadelphia’s opening-round series against New Jersey.
“It was a good ending,” Gagne said. “I can’t ask for more to be able to come back early a little bit in the series.”
Gagne was alone at the right post to deflect a Matt Carle dish into the net for the game-winner.
"I tried to challenge him," Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask said. "I was expecting that kind of pass, but it's tough to recover with your pads. I tried to get my glove under it."
The seventh-seeded Flyers still have a daunting task ahead of them if they want to move on to the conference finals. Only twice in NHL history has a team come back from a 3-0 series deficit to win a series. The last time it happened was in 1975, when the New York Islanders charged back to defeat Pittsburgh in the quarterfinals. The Detroit Red Wings were on the wrong end of the other 3-0 comeback, losing the 1942 Stanley Cup Finals against Toronto.
Chris Pronger, Claude Giroux and Danny Briere each registered a goal and one assist for the Flyers, who had to battle through Mark Recchi's tying goal in the final minute of regulation along with a short-handed situation earlier in the extra session to avoid being swept.
Carle notched a career playoff-best four assists and Brian Boucher stopped 33 shots, including nine in the OT period, for the win. Boucher, who has a solid 2.43 goals-against average and .913 save percentage in the playoffs, could be backed up by Michael Leighton tonight.
Leighton had been serving as Philadelphia's No. 1 goaltender before suffering a high ankle sprain in Nashville on March 16. There is a good chance Leighton will be activated today and replace Johan Backlund as the Flyers' backup netminder.
Recchi recorded a pair of goals, while Milan Lucic and Michael Ryder also tallied for the Bruins, who are trying to reach the conference finals for the first time since 1992.
Patrice Bergeron and Dennis Wideman contributed two assists apiece and Rask made 29 saves in defeat.
“We came in here, we played two pretty good games. They battled hard in both, and this time they got a big win,” Recchi admitted. “Now we’re going home and we’ve still got home ice in the series, and that’s something we’ve kept throughout. Now we get to take a couple days off, regroup and recharge for another big one.”
The Bruins are 5-0 as the host in these playoffs and have an excellent shot at ending this series tonight and avoid returning to Philadelphia for Game 6 on Wednesday. Boston was just 18-17-6 at TD Garden during the regular season.
Meanwhile, the Flyers were just 17-21-3 on the road during the regular season and are 2-3 as the guest since the start of the playoffs.
Boston and the Flyers are meeting in the playoffs for the first time since 1978. Each team has won twice in the four all-time playoff series between the clubs. The Flyers won the most notable matchup, beating Boston in six games to win the Stanley Cup in 1974. The Bruins have won the last two encounters, including a five-game series win over Philly the last time clubs met in the 1978 Stanley Cup semifinals.
The Flyers and B’s split four games this year in a season series that included Boston’s 2-1 overtime victory in the Winter Classic at Fenway Park. Both the Bruins and Flyers had 2-1-1 records in the series.
On the injury front, Philadelphia could be without pest Daniel Carcillo tonight after the forward suffered a knee injury in Game 4. Boston defenseman Adam McQuaid is questionable after missing the last game with a lower-body injury.
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