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MONTREAL — The last stand by the last Canadian team in the Stanley Cup playoffs is over.
The Philadelphia Flyers dispatched the Montreal Canadiens swiftly to the sidelines with an entertaining 6-4 come-from-behind victory at the Bell Centre on Saturday to take the NHL Eastern Conference semi-final series in five games.
The outcome against the Flyers was unforeseen by the pundits and now has many of the Canadiens' faithful wondering whether this team, which unexpectedly meshed to produce such a magical regular season, can succeed in the playoffs or will this experience be an invaluable lesson for future spring-time success?
“You don't become a winner overnight,” Montreal captain Saku Koivu said. “We have to look at the good things we did this year. We made progress.”
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After not being given much of a chance to make the playoffs, the Canadiens finished atop the East standings for their first regular-season title since 1988-89. But they couldn't carry that sensation into the playoffs, even though the first two rounds of the postseason set up perfectly for them.
In the first round, the Canadiens met the Boston Bruins, a team they roughed up in the regular season by going 8-for-8. But in the postseason, Montreal had an unexpectedly difficult time with the Bruins and needed seven games to prevail.
In the second round, the Canadiens went up against a Flyers team that they beat in each of the four regular-season meetings. But after pinching the series opener in overtime, the Canadiens lost four in a row. It was their first four-game losing string all season.
The Canadiens put themselves in a bind in the first four games by falling behind each time. They finally snatched their first lead in the series when Tomas Plekanec scored in the first period of the fifth game and they enjoyed a 3-1 lead midway through the second period.
But the Flyers came roaring back with three goals in 2 minutes 58 seconds against bewildered Canadiens goaltender Carey Price late in the second period. “It was the worst moment of my career,” Price said.
The 20-year-old netminder's first foray into the NHL playoffs started well, but finished feebly. The rookie's form simply wasn't up to snuff. He lost five of his final seven games. His save percentage dipped to a mediocre .901 in his 11 playoff games, far below the wonderful .955 he recorded when he was handed the No.1 goaltending reins after Montreal general manager Bob Gainey traded Cristobal Huet for a second-round draft pick on Feb. 26.
Price surrendered way too many soft goals, while Flyers counterpart Martin Biron was on his game.
Biron, of Lac Saint-Charles, Que., was stingy. At 30, he is playing in his first NHL playoffs and first postseason since backstopping the Rochester Americans of the AHL to the 1999 Calder Cup final.
Besides goaltending weakness, the Canadiens also showed an inability to score timely goals like the Flyers did. Montreal led the league in goals scored in the regular season and power-play efficiency, but that wasn't the case in the playoffs. The Canadiens were 8-for-55 in man-advantage situations, worst among the eight teams that advanced to the second round.
“Playoffs are a bit different game,” Koivu said. “Our power play wasn't as good, but not bad. At times, when we needed a goal we just didn't get that.”
Gainey's off-season aim will likely be to add some grit to the lineup. The Flyers, who will meet the Pittsburgh Penguins in the conference final, had plenty, with the likes of Mike Richards, R.J. Umberger and Scott Hartnell.
Gainey has decisions to make with his roster. Patrice Brisebois, Michael Ryder, Bryan Smolinski and Mark Streit are eligible to become unrestricted free agents in the summer, while Josh Gorges, Jaroslav Halak, Maxim Lapierre and Ryan O'Byrne could be restricted free agents on July 1.
“As a coach, you are frustrated because you're not playing the next day,” Montreal coach Guy Carbonneau said. “We have come a long way since September. Now we have to take the next step [next season] and not only make the playoffs, but become a contender.”
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