Philadelphia Inquirer - May 5, 1997

Rejuvenated Brind'Amour reaches peak playoff form

By Tim Panaccio
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

e says he doesn't feel any different. He says he hasn't done any more push-ups or sit-ups than the couple hundred or so he normally does.

Yet something is different about Rod Brind'Amour this spring. The smile is back on his face; the gleam in his eyes is back.

And on the ice, Brind'Amour has had an impact in all six Flyer playoff games, including Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Saturday against Buffalo.

Brind'Amour scored the tying goal midway through the third period to set the stage for Shjon Podein's game-winner as the Flyers rallied for a 5-3 victory over the Sabres.

Five goals and seven points in six games. That's three more goals than Brind'Amour had in all 12 playoff games a year ago. His seven points have already equaled last spring's totals. His five goals lead the club, and his seven points make him second only to Eric Lindros (nine points) in scoring.

``People say you should pick it up in the playoffs or whatever, but you play as hard as you did in the regular season,'' Brind'Amour said after yesterday's practice as the Flyers prepare for Game 2 tonight at 7:30. ``I think everything gets magnified in the playoffs. Little plays become big plays.''

Such as his goal off a nifty feed from Dale Hawerchuk that saw the Flyers, who once trailed by 3-1, tie the game and suck the life out of the Sabres at Marine Midland Arena.

Brind'Amour centered the second line for the first time in months. Hawerchuk, who would normally center the line, moved to left wing, with Pat Falloon on the right side.

When Brind'Amour scored, Hawerchuk was in the center of the ice and Brind'Amour was on the left side.

Going back to center is no small deal to Brind'Amour, and it had nothing to do with him being a better faceoff man than Hawerchuk.

Brind'Amour has been upset since December, when he lost his center-man role on the second line to Hawerchuk, then Vinny Prospal. When Lindros was out of the lineup for 23 games, Brind'Amour centered either the top line or second line on many nights.

Yet the position switch with Hawerchuk for Game 1 was by mutual consent. Hawerchuk is still a little tender on his left side (groin pull), which bothered him right up to the start of the playoffs.

``Dale and I talked, and Ducky [Hawerchuk] was a little sore and didn't want to turn so much out there,'' Brind'Amour said. ``It's [center] my natural position as much as it is his. If it didn't work, I'd go back to wing.

It worked. What worked better was that the Flyers were rolling all four lines as much as Buffalo. Brind'Amour's line got a lot of ice time which he thought was significant. ``When you are used to playing a lot, you get a feeling for the game, and last night was a great example of that,'' Brind'Amour said. ``We played a lot; we felt great. And we got to contribute when we had our chances.

``If you have a bad shift, you don't worry so much because you come back the next time. When you don't have as much time, you get cold, you don't have the jump in your legs.''

The second line was a plus-3 in Game 1 against Buffalo with three points. It created an abundance of scoring chances, too, and had 16 shots, the most of any line. Opportunity seems to be knocking for this line just as it did during the Pittsburgh series, when the second line had five points in the opening game, a 5-1 Flyers rout.

You may recall the last time the Flyers were in Buffalo, on March 16, they lost, 3-2, on Lindros' turnover in overtime. Brind'Amour and coach Terry Murray were exchanging unpleasantries after the game. Brind'Amour was upset about his lack of ice time in the third period, coupled with not being on the ice during the pivotal penalty kill in overtime.

"He feels he can do the job and wants to be on the ice, ” Murray said yesterday. “That is the way it needs to be. We talked about it the next day, and I explained why I did what I did."

Differences patched up, eh? Well, maybe not.

"We're not taking each other out to dinner, and he hasn't had me over to his house, yet," Murray said with a smile.