Poor starts cost Flyers, says van Riemsdyk

BOSTON -- Flyers forward James van Riemsdyk realizes there's only so many times a team can go to the well.
 
For the Flyers, who had given up a League-leading 18 first-period goals this playoff season, playing catch-up was certainly not the recipe for success. While the club enjoyed a remarkable run to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final by overcoming much adversity and generating some historic comebacks, it just wasn't to be this spring.
 
Van Riemsdyk, who finished tied for the team-lead with 7 goals in 11 postseason games while also finishing with 64 shots on goal to lead the League at present, was vividly disappointed his season had officially come to end on Friday following a 5-1 loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
 
The 22-year-old native of Middletown, N.J., spoke to the media after Boston's series-clinching triumph at TD Garden.
 
Q: James, can you describe the mood in the locker room?

JVR: I think mentally, guys are never going to quit. We have a lot of character and confidence, and it's tough because you don't want to end your season now. You want it to end later in June. You want to be playing to the very end and have an opportunity to lift that trophy over your head. To not get there is pretty devastating.
 
Q: What did you think of Sergei Bobrovsky's performance in goal?

JVR: I think he made some good saves in there. They scored on a couple of backdoor plays and a breakaway, but I think he played a strong game of us. He gave us a chance to win.
 
Q: Do you think it was just too much to ask to put together another comeback this time?

JVR: We're a resilient group and that's the attitude we always have had. We got down, but in the end we needed better starts to the games. Maybe it would have been to our benefit to not start off behind the eight ball.
 
Q: Do you think the Bruins were very motivated for this series?

JVR: You take that for what it's worth. They want to win as bad as we do, no matter what happened last year. Obviously, they played a good game and they're obviously going on … so.
 
Q: Can you assess the series for us?

JVR: Well, in a couple of these games, we didn't have our best game and that's obviously tough because, in the playoffs, the margin for error is so small that if you give games away like that, you put yourself behind the eight ball. They played some good hockey and Tim Thomas was great. Their team played well too, so you have to give them credit.
 
Q: Do you feel your team peaked too early this season?

JVR: I don't know if there's such a thing as that. You want to play as well as you can no matter what time of the year it is. I don't know what happened, to be honest, this year … I don't really know.
 
Q: What was the difference in this series?

JVR: They bought into their system and buried their chances. Maybe we weren't as opportunistic as they were. They found ways to win.
 
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