Playoffs 2000:Flyers might exit playoffs before Lindros can enter

Flyers might exit playoffs before Lindros can enter
Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA -- The Pittsburgh Penguins are doing their best to mess up Eric Lindros' comeback plans.

Lindros, the injured former captain, set the conference finals as a target date. The Philadelphia Flyers might not advance that far to make a return possible.

Philadelphia lost its second straight home game to the Penguins in the Eastern Conference semifinals and the Flyers head to Pittsburgh down 0-2.

Penguins goalie Ron Tugnutt has a lot to do with Philadelphia's precarious position.

The Flyers took nearly 105 minutes to score a goal against Tugnutt, who followed a Game 1 shutout with a 43-save effort in Pittsburgh's 4-1 victory Saturday.

Before winning Game 1 on Thursday, the Penguins hadn't won in Philadelphia since February 1994 and hadn't beaten the Flyers in five tries this season.

Lindros, who hasn't played since March 12, is recovering from his fourth concussion in two seasons. He was cleared to skate earlier in the week and said he planned to return for the next round.

"The way they're playing and the confidence this team has heading into the Pittsburgh series, I look forward -- if everything goes well -- to be able to compete sometime in that third round," Lindros said Wednesday.

Lindros might be a series too late.

"He is one of the best players in the world; I would think that you miss him a lot," Flyers interim coach Craig Ramsay said about playing without the former captain. "But that doesn't mean that this team doesn't compete."

Top-seeded Philadelphia now must win at least two games in Pittsburgh after losing the home-ice advantage. Game 3 is Tuesday night in Pittsburgh, where the Flyers are 3-14-5 in their last 22 games.

"We didn't figure on going to Pittsburgh down 0-2," Flyers center Keith Primeau said. "Is that a bad thing? Did we get ahead of ourselves? I don't think so. We need to give them the respect their due."

Pittsburgh didn't clinch a playoff spot until the final week of the season and entered as the No. 7 seed before upsetting the second-seeded Washington Capitals in five games. Meanwhile, the Flyers eliminated the Buffalo Sabres in five games.

"I don't think we were overconfident at all," Flyers captain Eric Desjardins said. "We all respect what kind of team this is."

Rookie goalie Brian Boucher said, "We knew going in if we didn't play well this could happen."

The Flyers' woes can be attributed to their inability to score on the power play. After scoring nine special teams goals against Buffalo, the Flyers have none against Pittsburgh.

Philadelphia was 0-for-8 with the man-advantage Saturday and Pittsburgh was 2-for-10. The Flyers are 0-for-10 in the series.

"They're doing a great job of creating traffic," Primeau said. "They all collapse. They lay down on the puck, sacrifice their body and do a great job. They're not allowing us a chance to set up."

Tugnutt, acquired by Pittsburgh from Ottawa on March 14, has been superb, stopping 71 of 72 shots this series and a remarkable 224 of 233 shots in the postseason. He already has twice as many playoff victories this season (6) as he did previously in his career.

The Flyers didn't imagine Tugnutt, who had never won a postseason series, would be this difficult to solve -- especially after they handled Buffalo's Dominik Hasek.

"Who would've thought we'd have an easier time with Dominik Hasek than with Ronnie," Primeau said.