Looking Ahead
Game 1: Penguins at Philadelphia Flyers, First Union Center. The date and time will be announced by the NHL today. Flyers officials believe it will be Wednesday or Thursday. Friday is not available because of an NBA playoff game. It appears that Game 2 will be Saturday at 3 p.m. in Philadelphia. Tickets for the Penguins' three home dates in Round 2 -- Games 3, 4 and, if necessary, 6 -- are available at the Gate 1 box office at Mellon Arena and from TicketMaster.
The Headline
Hits just keep on coming: Although they aren't the Broad Street Bullies anymore, the Flyers remain one of the most rugged and physical teams in the NHL. The Penguins, conversely, have only a handful of players who thrive in hard-hitting games. It stands to reason, then, that Philadelphia will try to use its size and muscle to intimidate the Penguins -- that would hardly qualify as a major tactical innovation -- even though the Flyers' public stance is that such a strategy wouldn't necessarily be effective. "I don't know [if the Penguins can be intimidated]," Flyers winger Keith Jones told Philadelphia reporters. "I'm sure Washington tried to, and they didn't have much success." RW Rick Tocchet put a slightly different spin on the issue. "I think in the playoffs, it's really hard to intimidate a team because the refs really call it tight," he said. "But you can intimidate a team with your size and strength, and we do have that advantage." The Flyers' primary target, as always, figures to be RW Jaromir Jagr, and Tocchet believes that picking on him can be effective -- to a point. "If you hit him and if he thinks you're getting away with cheap stuff, he'll show his frustration," Tocchet said. "That's what we've got to try to do, make sure he gets frustrated. But he's still going to come back on the next shift and try to score. He's not going to shut it down."
Penguins Notebook
At the session: The Penguins were off for the second day in a row. They will resume practicing today, but that workout, like all during the playoffs, is closed to the public.
Injury update: With LW Rene Corbet back in the lineup and C Jan Hrdina saying he expects to return for the opener of Round 2, the Penguins' only injury of consequence is the sprained ankle that has prevented G Jean-Sebastien Aubin from practicing or playing since April 3. It remains to be seen if he will go on the ice for practices this week.
Golden goaltending: G Ron Tugnutt will be hard-pressed to match his first-round performance when the Penguins play Philadelphia a more skilled and imposing team than the Capitals. Tugnutt posted a league-best save percentage of .950 -- that means he stopped 19 of every 20 Capitals shots -- and a goals-against average of 1.58 that puts him just below playoff leaders Martin Brodeur (New Jersey) and Chris Osgood (Detroit), both of whom check in at 1.50. Tugnutt shut out the Capitals in Game 1 -- "He got off to a good start, and it carried over," Coach Herb Brooks said -- and peaked two days later by stopping 37 of 38 shots in a 2-1 overtime victory. "They always say a goalie has to win one game by himself, or he's got to really help his team [win one]," Tugnutt said. "For me, I think that was Game 2." That might have been when Tugnutt was at his best, but he was pretty good in the other four games, too. And his teammates noticed. And appreciated. "We were pretty much playing for him," RW Alexei Kovalev said. "He saved us [in] a lot of games."
Brooks goes for broke(r): Brooks plans to return to his old job as a scout after this season, but he's also preparing for a second line of work -- as a stock broker. Brooks said he has "started reading and studying" the information he'll need to earn a license, although he is "just in the very embryonic stages" of the process. Brooks' son is in the brokerage business, and Brooks allowed that, "I might join his company." Even if he does, however, Brooks hopes to stay with his current employer. "It would be off-season work," he said. "I intend to stay in the player-personnel stuff."
Flyers Notebook
At the session: The Flyers had the day off. They will resume practicing today at 10 a.m. at The Coliseum in Voorhees, N.J.
Injury update: D Ulf Samuelsson, a key member of the Penguins' championship teams, is expected to miss the series with torn ligaments in his right knee. ... C Eric Lindros will sit out because of a concussion.
Tocchet praises Jagr: Tocchet, who joined the Penguins in a trade with Philadelphia in 1992 and won a Stanley Cup a few months later, has made a point of remarking on how Jagr has matured since their time together here. He even endorsed the decision to have Jagr succeed Ron Francis as captain in the fall of 1998. "I think he knew when Ronnie Francis left that he'd have to carry the torch, step up and say something in the dressing room," Tocchet said. "With all the Europeans they have there, I think it's easier to have a Jagr as the captain rather than an American or a Canadian, because when he speaks, I'm sure it's more effective."
A matter of style: The second round shapes up as a collision of styles, with the Penguins preferring a game that emphasizes speed and skill. Philadelphia, conversely, would rather grind down the Penguins with their intense forechecking and superior size. "We don't want to race up and down the ice with them," Flyers interim coach Craig Ramsay said. "We want to keep the puck in their end. You have to try to make Pittsburgh play in their own zone. We want to play from the red line in. That's the style we think can be effective against any team. But you've got to be smart and not turn over the puck at the blue line. We don't want to exchange [odd-man] rushes."
