On the brink of elimination, Keith Primeau saves the Flyers ... again.
By JOANNE KORTH
Published May 21, 2004
PHILADELPHIA - Less than two minutes.
That's how close the Flyers came Thursday to being eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs. Trailing by a goal, season on the line, clock ticking loudly.
Enter Keith Primeau.
The man who has carried the Flyers on his back throughout the East final scored a dazzling goal with 1:49 left to send Game 6 into overtime. He finished with two goals, bringing his playoff total to nine, and two assists.
"We obviously had no choice," Primeau said. "That's what we talked about between the second and third periods: Leave nothing to doubt and nothing in the tank. We played with a lot of heart."
Primeau's line of wings Jeremy Roenick and Simon Gagne accounted for four of the Flyers' five goals - all at even strength - including the winner by Gagne 18:18 into overtime. Gagne had two goals, Roenick two assists.
"I think we clicked very well tonight," Gagne said. "I was excited when I saw that line on the board this morning. We battled hard and scored some goals."
The Lightning, looking to protect a 4-3 lead, played the third period in a defensive mode, dumping the puck into the Flyers zone to kill time and hunkering down in front of goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin. The Flyers attacked in waves.
Tampa Bay's inability to clear the puck out of its zone proved costly. Fighting for possession in the corner to Khabibulin's right, Roenick tied up Martin St. Louis, knocking him down. St. Louis tried to clear the puck to Dave Andreychuk, but it hopped over Andreychuk's stick toward the blue line.
Flyers defenseman Mattias Timander fired a slapshot from the point that Khabibulin saved with his right pad. The rebound appeared headed harmlessly to the corner, but Primeau kicked it from the side of the goal with his right skate back between Khabibulin's pads and through the crease.
Primeau skated behind the goal, reaching around with his stick and pushed the puck into the net from the opposite side.
"I kind of directed it with my skate," Primeau said. "I thought, "Oh, don't go in.' I wanted it to go in, but I didn't want it to go in because I was thinking, "They're going to review this and it's going to be disallowed.' All of a sudden it kept coming across the crease and I was coming out the other side. I got a good whack it."
Everything in a strange series of events worked to the Flyers' advantage.
"The puck could have gone anywhere else, but it landed right there in front for Primeau," Lightning defenseman Dan Boyle said.
The winning goal was textbook teamwork by Primeau, Roenick and Gagne. It began with Gagne working the puck behind the net to Roenick, who cycled it around to the left circle to Primeau, who fired it back to Roenick at the side of the net.
"We were pushing and pushing, especially in the third and overtime," Roenick said.
Roenick tried a wraparound, but the puck slipped off his stick and across to Gagne, who buried it between Khabibulin's legs.
"The whole line was unbelievable," Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock said of his high-scoring trio.
"The line was for the most part unstoppable. We had a lot of people who just didn't want the season to end, and they wouldn't be denied. And Keith led the charge."
