They Said It: 5 Key Quotes Heading into Game 6

The cliche about taking things one game at a time never rings truer than when a team is trying to overcome a multi-game deficit and is one loss away from elimination in a playoff series.

For a team to successfully come back to win a series after trailing three games to zero or three games to one, it takes massive resiliency, a balance of tunnel-vision and adjustments, and a dose or two of puck luck resulting from hard work.

Both on Tuesday night following their 4-3 overtime win against the New York Islanders in Game 5 of their Second Round series, and then again the next day during media availability, Flyers players and coach Alain Vigneault voiced a unified message: the win enabled the team to live to play another game on Thursday. Now the process of fighting to stay alive begins anew.

Here are five key quotes reflecting that mental approach:

VIGNEAULT:"I would say our last two games have been our best since we've been in the Bubble. I think today, what we need to do is recover. Make sure you get your rest and your nutrition in. Get a good night's sleep.Tomorrow morning, we'll have a morning skate. We'll have a plan for our group. There's no doubt this is a real challenging series. I mean, us coaches, we analyze the Islanders. I've watched so many games of theirs, [pre-]Bubble, all their games in the Bubble. There's just no weaknesses there, from Line 1 to Line 4."

This quote from Vigneault hits on all the key points on where the Flyers stand. It lays out his central belief that the team's play has been trending in the right direction over the last couple games, despite a hard-fought 3-2 loss in Game 4. It discusses the practical issues of needing a day to recharge following Game 5. It also shows a healthy level of respect for the Flyers' opponent and the bar that's been for the team to clear in order to force a Game 7.

GIROUX:"At the end of the day, we can't get too high and can't get too low. I think we've done a good job of that. Now we're excited for Game 6. We still think we can play better and it's going to be a good match for Game 6."

Once again, there's an emphasis on making the next game's performance better than the last, and on staying on an even mental keel so as to not give in to frustration when adversity hits. Overall, the Flyers put forth a strong performance in Game 5 but it still left plenty of room for improvement.

The Flyers' dominance of the first period of Game 5 did not produce a goal despite multiple Grade A chances. The team gave up a pair of 2-on-1s in the opening period. The Islanders won the special teams battle on the night (1-for-4 on the power play, 2-for-2 on the penalty kill). Most distressingly, for the second time in the series, the Flyers were unable to close out a game in regulation that they led by two goals in the third period. New York's second goal of the game was from a distance where Hart needed to make a save. The tying goal was a multi-player breakdown by the Flyers that led to a back-door tap-in.

Overall, the positives for the Flyers outweighed the negatives in Game 5. But the same could be said for Game 4 but for a less sustained stretch of time (primarily the second period). The bottom line difference was that Philly found a way to pull out Game 5 in OT and fell a goal short the previous game.
HAYES:"Coots is an elite player... But we have some players, [including] some who haven't played in this series, that are really good players as well and bring a lot to this team. It's a next-up mentality. Who ever would be coming in will be giving their best and trying their hardest. That's all we can ask for."

The availability of Selke Trophy finalist center Sean Couturier, is unknown for Game 6. He was unavailable for the third period and overtime of Game 5 after apparent knee-to-knee or knee-to-quadriceps contact with Mathew Barzal in the second period. Couturier underwent further evaluation on Wednesday morning.

Two years ago, after suffering a torn right MCL after a practice day collision with then-teammate Radko Gudas, Couturier scored a crucial goal to help the Flyers stave off elimination in Game 5 of their First Round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins. In a losing cause in Game 6, he tallied a hat trick.

If it is at all possible for Couturier to suit up for Game 6 against the Islanders, he will do so. It is not a promising sign that the player, in an elimination game on Tuesday, was unable to finish out the game. But the determination for Game 6 will depend on the nature of diagnosis that Couturier receives.

THOMPSON:"He was Carter Hart last night. He made some key saves at key moments of the game last night. Even after a couple of goals, when they tied it up, you could see the bounceback. He made huge saves in overtime, including that breakaway. He's been our backbone the whole time, so no surprise there."

Regardless of territorial control, here's the bottom line of the series. Entering the third period of four of the five games, the score has either been tied or within a goal (either way) entering the third period. The Islanders led 1-0 after two periods in Game 1, and 2-1 in Game 4. The score was tied at 1-1 entering the third period of Game 3. The Flyers led 2-1 entering the third period of Game 5. Only in Game 4 -- a 3-1 Flyers lead -- was there a multi-goal differential entering the final period of regulation.

Underlying this fact, however, is the undeniable edge the Islanders had in puck possession at either the first or second period of each of the first four games. At those times, the Flyers needed their goalies to step up big to give them a chance to pull out a win in crunch time.

van RIEMSDYK: "We know where we stand. It's do or die for us. We wanted to come out with a strong effort as a team and I thought we did that. Obviously it feels good to chip in offensively. Like I said before, I think every guy up and down the lineup did a good job pulling the rope in the right direction and that's what we need more of in the next one."

This postgame statement from JVR, who, like Giroux, scored his elusive first goal of the playoffs in turning a 1-0 deficit in the second period to a 2-1 lead by intermission, touches upon the same themes as the others. It also raises an additional key facet to the quest to force a seventh game: No one is hanging their heads or throwing teammates under the bus. No one has taken Vigneault's cajoling (such as his "big boy pants" challenge to Giroux and van Riemsdyk before Game 5) as a personal attack.

No one is under the illusion that the Islanders are disheartened by losing Game 5. No one expects anything less than another grind-it-out match in Game 6. Just as importantly, no one is feeling sorry for himself or focused on personal goals such as their ice time or even a scratching from the lineup. That's only part of the battle of being on the comeback trail, of course, but it's exactly what is needed from the mental standpoint.