BOSTON - Before Simon Gagne's game-winner with 7:08 remaining, there was long-forgotten James van Riemsdyk.
Van Riemsdyk, the Flyers' youngest player at 21, wasn't considered a threat by the Boston Bruins - being that he was scoreless not only in the series but also in his short, 12-game playoff career.
But without van Riemsdyk's ice-breaking first-period goal, which cut the deficit from three goals to two last night in Game 7, the comeback of all comebacks might not have been possible.
"That's what the playoffs are all about," Chris Pronger said. "You can stink up the joint, if that's what you want to call the first six [games], but he played a heck of a game. He got a big goal for us.
"James made a great move and somehow found a way to trickle it in. That kind of gave us a little bit of life and rallied the troops and got our spirits up."
The goal wasn't pretty, but he'll take it. It was a broken play. Van Riemsdyk skated around the circle and sent an awkward shot toward Tuukka Rask. The wobbling puck bounced off a Bruins defenseman and changed direction at the last second, just squeaking through the goalie's pads.
"It felt good to score that goal," van Riemsdyk said, "but it would not have felt as good if we didn't win the game."
Coach Peter Laviolette said that was the key to the win.
"I think it was really important for us to just get in the game," Laviolette said. "That first goal, for me, was huge. If you go into the locker room down, 3-0, it's a little bit of a different feeling. If you go in 3-1, then you just have to win the second period."
They did that. And them some.
The number 35, as in the number of years it had been since a team overcame a 3-0 series deficit to win, has magical Flyers connections. It has been 35 years, also since 1975, since the Flyers won their second and last Stanley Cup. In 1979-80, the Flyers embarked on a 35-game winning streak, posting a 25-0-10 record. And guess who is 35 years old? Chris Pronger.
More than 10,000 fans showed up at the Wachovia Center to watch Game 7 . . . The Flyers are the first team since April 16, 1991, to come back from a 0-3 score in Game 7 to win the game. The last team to do that was the Edmonton Oilers against the Calgary Flames in their first-round series . . . The Flyers were 1-for-3 on the power play, the Bruins were 2-for-3 . . . Ville Leino picked up two assists . . . Lukas Krajicek was a plus-2 . . . The Flyers won 56 percent of face-offs . . . Chris Pronger played 31:42.
