Game 1 Caps vs. Flyers 4-11-2008 Preview

Series C: Washington Capitals (43-41; 94 points; 1st Southeast Division, 3rd Eastern Conference, 12th Overall) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (42-42; 95 points; 4th Atlantic Division, 6th Eastern Conference, 11th Overall):
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Game #1, Caps Game #1, Home Game #1, NHL Game #131

Verizon Center, Washington, DC, 7:08 pm. Washington TV: Comcast Sportsnet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WJFK 106.7-FM, 1300-AM. Philadelphia TV: Comcast Sportsnet Philadelphia. Radio: WWIP 610-AM. U.S. National TV: Versus. Canadian National TV: TSN, RIS (French). NHL Center Ice: None.

Tonight the talking ends and the playoff begins for the Caps who are back in the postseason for the first time in five years looking for their first playoff series win in ten years. The Caps and Flyers split the season series with the road team winning all four games, however these two teams have not met since the trade deadline. The Flyers won seven of their last nine games to make it into the playoffs this year after missing them last year.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post. Times: Ulitmate Fighting on Ice, a day in the life, superstar overnight, series preview. Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com AP Wire. AP Wire #1. AP Wire #2. TSN.ca Series Page. ESPN NHL Playoffs page.

Open Source Intelligence:

Philadelphia Daily News: riding on the goaltender, demoted, you can only hope to contain him. Philadelphia Inquirer: big problem, having a seat, in a frenzy, under the radar.

What Do I Expect Tonight?:

With the excitement that has been building since last Saturday night, the Caps tonight are likely to come out on total fire, especially with the energy that is going to be in the Phone Booth tonight. The Caps will have to guard against coming out too pumped up because that can be just as bad as coming out flat. The Flyers on the other hand will be looking to slow things down which is why they're likely to resort to their intimidation/fighting tactics. Though they may not get a chance as the NHL Front Office has seen five days of predictions/anticipation of blood, guts, and gore and have very likely informed tonight's officiating crew to call a very close game. That too will disrupt the Caps and the building's energy tonight while also possibly putting the Caps behind the eight-ball because of Philadelphia's prolific Power Play unit. The key tonight is getting the first goal of the game. Whoever can jump out to a lead tonight can settle into their game quicker and relieve some of the pressure that has been building up all week. For the Caps specifically, they need to remain disciplined. Without discipline, this will be a very short series for them.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 3
Flyers 2
Winner by Kozlov