Tomas Kopecky

Flyers captain Mike Richards slammed his stick across the crossbar, shattering it in half late in Saturday night's wild Stanley Cup Finals opener. Tomas Kopecky's goal was the reason for his disgust. Added to the lineup because of an injury to left winger Andrew Ladd, Kopecky scored after skating inside the left circle and beating Brian Boucher with 11 minutes, 35 seconds left. The goal snapped a 5-5 tie and paved the way for the Chicago Blackhawks' 6-5 victory in Game 1 at the frenzied United Center.

Goaltender Joey MacDonald stopped all 23 shots he faced to record his 15th career shutout and first of the season as the Grand Rapids Griffins took a 4-0 win over the Phantoms last night in an AHL game in Grand Rapids, Mich. It was the eighth time the Phantoms have been shut out this season, tying the franchise record set twice before. While operating on the game's first power play late in the first period, Kent McDonell fired a pass from the right-wing corner into the slot, where Clay Wilson collected it and fired it into the upper lefthand corner for a 1-0 lead.

There aren't a lot of questions about Chicago's roster heading into the Stanley Cup Finals. One variable is whether Blackhawks left winger Ben Eager will have the chance to play in front of the Flyer fans who once cheered him. Eager has played in the last nine consecutive playoff games for Chicago as coach Joel Quenneville has taken advantage of his physical presence. Eager led Chicago with 120 penalty minutes in 60 games this season. Quenneville was making forward Tomas Kopecky his healthy scratch in the San Jose series.

Chicago captain Jonathan Toews scored three power-play goals and added two assists as the Blackhawks beat the Canucks, 7-4, last night in Vancouver and grabbed a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference semifinal series. Toews took over the NHL playoff scoring lead with 18 points as Chicago moved within one win of its second straight trip to the Western Conference finals. Patrick Sharp also scored on the power play and Tomas Kopecky added a goal shortly after another penalty expired.

Ville Leino took a devastating midice hip check from Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell only 7 minutes, 16 seconds into the game. He sat out much of the rest of the first period, but recovered well enough to score the game-winner. Would the Blackhawks really have been given a two-man advantage in the third period of a finals game if the score hadn't been 4-1? What would a team leading a finals game 4-1 have to do to get a late power play? Discuss. The Flyers' late sloppiness detracted from Michael Leighton's evening, but he made some big stops, including a deflection when the score was 4-3. Much earlier, with the Flyers leading, just 1-0, Leighton made a pair of strong stops on Tomas Kopecky.

Dominic Moore scored the tying, shorthanded goal with 1 minute, 57 seconds left in regulation and then netted the only goal in the shootout to help the Tampa Bay Lightning snap a five-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory Thursday night over the New York Rangers . In the shootout, Moore beat Henrik Lundqvist with a forehand to the glove side after Tampa Bay's Mathieu Garon made two acrobatic saves in the last minute of overtime....

Carl Hagelin had a goal and an assist, Henrik Lundqvist stopped 27 shots, and the New York Rangers earned a 4-1 victory against the host Florida Panthers on Friday night. Brad Richards, Michael Del Zotto, and Brandon Dubinsky also scored for the Rangers, who have won six of seven. Ryan McDonagh had two assists for New York, which leads the Eastern Conference with 50 points. With 7.6 seconds left in the game, Del Zotto delivered a cross-check to Tomas Kopecky in front of the net knocking Kopecky's helmet off. Kopecky responded with a punch that knocked Del Zotto to the ice. The incident prompted a fight with Kopecky and Mike Rupp.

Winning the Central Division was almost anti-climatic for the Chicago Blackhawks, even if it was high on the team's to-do list. Patrick Kane had a goal and an assist, and the Blackhawks beat the visiting Calgary Flames 4-1 yesterday, shortly after officially clinching their first division title since winning the Norris Division in 1992-93. The Blackhawks, winners of three straight, were handed the Central crown minutes before the puck was dropped when Detroit lost to the Flyers.

The Blackhawks' roster is punctuated with young stars who have emerged both in the NHL and through their international play. But their 6-5 victory over the Flyers was paced Saturday by players who have seen a lot of bench as well as ice this postseason. Specifically, the Hawks were led by a 24-year-old forward from North Delta, British Columbia, who has gone through the playoffs with a heavy heart. Powering home two goals and one assist was Troy Brouwer, who missed the last four games of the regular season as his father has been battling a blood clot on his brain.

Marc Savard scored a power-play goal, then set up Boston's next two goals, and the Bruins ran their longest winning streak in nearly 26 years to nine games by beating the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-2 last night. Savard had his usual big game in Pittsburgh, and Dennis Wideman had a goal and two assists as the Eastern Conference-leading Bruins improved to 23-2-1 in their last 26 games, outscoring opponents by 106-51. Boston, which barely made the playoffs last season, hasn't had a run like this since the Barry Pederson-Ray Bourque-led 1982-83 team won nine in a row in January, tied one, then won their next five.

Carl Hagelin had a goal and an assist, Henrik Lundqvist stopped 27 shots, and the New York Rangers earned a 4-1 victory against the host Florida Panthers on Friday night. Brad Richards, Michael Del Zotto, and Brandon Dubinsky also scored for the Rangers, who have won six of seven. Ryan McDonagh had two assists for New York, which leads the Eastern Conference with 50 points. With 7.6 seconds left in the game, Del Zotto delivered a cross-check to Tomas Kopecky in front of the net knocking Kopecky's helmet off. Kopecky responded with a punch that knocked Del Zotto to the ice. The incident prompted a fight with Kopecky and Mike Rupp.

Dominic Moore scored the tying, shorthanded goal with 1 minute, 57 seconds left in regulation and then netted the only goal in the shootout to help the Tampa Bay Lightning snap a five-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory Thursday night over the New York Rangers . In the shootout, Moore beat Henrik Lundqvist with a forehand to the glove side after Tampa Bay's Mathieu Garon made two acrobatic saves in the last minute of overtime....

DOMINIC MOORE scored the tying goal, shorthanded, with 1 minute, 57 seconds left in regulation and then netted the only goal in the shootout to help the Tampa Bay Lightning snap a five-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers last night in Madison Square Garden. The Lightning ended its skid despite not having star forward Martin St. Louis in the lineup for the first time in 500 games. St. Louis was struck near his left eye yesterday morning by a shot taken by Moore and sustained facial and sinus fractures.

CHICAGO - As expected, the Chicago Blackhawks shuffled their lines for Game 5 on Sunday night, and the new-look lineup helped them build a 3-0 first-period lead at the roaring United Center. All three of the Hawks' usual first-liners - center Jonathan Toews, right winger Patrick Kane, and left winger Dustin "Big Buff" Byfuglien - were on separate lines to start the game. Kane said the moves gave the lines more balance and caused the Flyers to "make more decisions about who they have to try to play against.

CHICAGO - We interrupt this Conn Smythe Trophy engraving ceremony to bring you a special announcement. Chris Pronger has not killed the Blackhawks just yet. In fact, last night, the spear was reversed. Chicago coach Joel Quenneville switched his lines around specifically because Pronger and defensive partner Matt Carle were nullifying Chicago's top line of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Dustin Byfuglien. Pronger came into the game a very impressive plus-7 for the series.

CHICAGO - As expected, the Chicago Blackhawks shuffled their lines for Game 5 Sunday night, and the new-look lineup helped them build a 3-0 first-period lead at the roaring United Center. All three of the Hawks' usual first-liners - center Jonathan Toews, right winger Patrick Kane, and left winger Dustin "Big Buff" Byfuglien - were on separate lines to start the game. Kane said the moves gave the lines more balance and caused the Flyers to "make more decisions about who they have to try to play against.

The Chicago Blackhawks' deep stable of young talent made them the choice to defeat the Flyers when their series began for the Stanley Cup. But youth can be prone to impatience and disarray against a more seasoned club, and the Flyers appeared to tap into those vulnerabilities in the two games they won at the Wachovia Center that evened the series at two games apiece. As this gripping, dramatic series shifts back to the United Center in Chicago for Game 5, it's apparent the Blackhawks are not as composed as the Flyers.

THIS IS HOW you make 48 years of frustration 49. You give away a game, as the Blackhawks did last night, 5-3. You forfeit the momentum that two wins at home afforded you. You lose the swagger earned by seven straight road wins in the playoffs; the Blackhawks now have lost two straight to the Flyers, and the best-of-seven series stands even. You plant an acorn of doubt in your revived, worshipful fan base, which hasn't seen a Stanley Cup since JFK was in office. The United Center might rock tomorrow night at the start of Game 5, but will that energy dissipate if the Flyers make a game of it again?

Ville Leino took a devastating midice hip check from Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell only 7 minutes, 16 seconds into the game. He sat out much of the rest of the first period, but recovered well enough to score the game-winner. Would the Blackhawks really have been given a two-man advantage in the third period of a finals game if the score hadn't been 4-1? What would a team leading a finals game 4-1 have to do to get a late power play? Discuss. The Flyers' late sloppiness detracted from Michael Leighton's evening, but he made some big stops, including a deflection when the score was 4-3. Much earlier, with the Flyers leading, just 1-0, Leighton made a pair of strong stops on Tomas Kopecky.

If you trust your eyes, the Flyers have swung this series and seized control from the Chicago Blackhawks. If you believe your eyes, the impossible now seems more than possible. The Flyers are two wins from the Stanley Cup. So are the Blackhawks, of course. This is where you can't be sure of your eyes. Have the Flyers solved Chicago and goaltender Antti Niemi as completely as it appeared in Friday night's 5-3 victory? Or are we being fooled by home-ice mirages? A few days ago, Chicago fans and media were gloating about how certain the Blackhawks were to close out the Flyers and win their first Cup in 49 years.