WASHINGTON — Would you want to throw your body in front of an Alex Ovechkin slapper coming in hot at upwards of 100 mph?
Probably not, but it’s something Flyers players such as Nick Schultz and Brandon Manning will be doing routinely during the Flyers' first-round series with the Washington Capitals.
Even Jakub Voracek can’t help but be amazed at what those guys do.
“It takes some big balls to go into that shooting lane,” Voracek said. “When you look at Schultz blocking shots, it’s pretty impressive. That’s what you’ve got to do to win a game.”
Schultz and Manning combined for seven of the team’s 21 blocked shots during Thursday’s Game 1 and were the only two players on the team with at least three. In the four regular season meetings and the first playoff game between the Flyers and Caps, Schultz has 17 blocked shots while Manning, who sat out two of those contests, has nine in his three games against the Capitals this year.
“That’s not easy to do especially with the guys they have shooting the puck,” said Flyers goalie Steve Mason, the beneficiary of those blocked shots. “You like to see the guys competing like that. We like to see that kind of effort especially on our penalty kill.”
What’s the thought process of someone that goes down on both knees or slides across knowing a shot is coming?
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“You’re trying to take away the far side of the net,” Schultz said. “It’s hard for [Mason] if he’s tracking the puck and coming across to take away the whole lane to the net. It’s hard to take away the whole net so our goal is to try and make sure [the shooter] can’t hit the far side of the net and have the goalie be able to see the near side of the defenseman if the puck gets through.”
That only amplifies when going up against an offense such as Washington’s. With a power play that ranked fifth in the league in the regular season when it hit at a 21.9 percent clip, the Capitals become even more dangerous than they already are when they’re on the man advantage. The Flyers’ penalty kill will emphasize getting in front of shots when playing shorthanded this series.
There may not be anyone better from the top of the circle on the power play than Ovechkin. It’s no coincidence he’s won six Rocket Richard Trophies as the league’s leading goal scorer in the regular season, the last of which came just this year. That’s why the Flyers defenders always have one eye focused on him and the other on the puck.
“He’s dangerous,” Schultz said. “He can pick any side of the net. You just try to get over there and take away as much as possible.
“It’s not fun but it’s all a part of it. Obviously they’ve got a lot of weapons on their power play and you’ve got to try and pick your poison with which shots you’re going to give up and how you’re going to play it.”
Right now, the Flyers are placing a heavy emphasis on doing so and despite allowing a power-play goal, which just so happened to be a result of a blocked shot off of Chris VandeVelde, the players are pleased with their efforts in the shooting lanes. The Capitals were just 1 for 6 on the man advantage on Thursday.
“It’s all part of playoff hockey,” Schultz said. “Getting in lanes, guys trying to do whatever it takes to win. It’s about winning four games, so every night you go there and that’s your goal. Whatever your role is, you got to go out there and do it.”