Timonen disappointed in effort

February 12, 2012

                                                                      CenterIcePhilly

Kimmo Timonen was clearly frustrated by yesterday's 5-2 loss to the Rangers, and had a few things to get off his chest about his teammates.

“I’m a little disappointed at the effort, the emotional level, a top team in the conference and league and to be honest. We got half the guys going and half not,” Timonen said.

“That was my opinion. You might see differently, but that is what I saw. It’s a big game for us and I was expecting more. It was tight game, they got three power play goals, we didn’t score any.”

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When aksed about the Ranger's consistency this season, against the Flyer's especially, Timonen explained why, and reinforced that the Flyer's must improve and give more effort.

“They play the same way every night. There’s no surprises and if there is a breakdown their goalie makes the save and they block a ton of shots. Somehow they get the job done. They work hard. They play the same system every night and their goal plays really well every night.”
You have to bring it every night,” Timonen said. “I don’t care who you are … Every game matters. You have to bring it!”

Timonen was then asked if the absence of captain Chris Pronger was starting to have its effect on the team, and if he would have said something by now if he was playing.

“He’s not here and we all should get by that by now – he’s not coming back,” Timonen said. “We’d be more than happy to take him back but he’s not here. Would he say something? I don’t know. Who knows?”
“… Everyone realizes we could have played better,” he said. “It was a tight game, 2-2, but I felt we could have pushed more and pressured more. They got another two points.

“… We need everybody going at the same time. We just can’t have one or two lines going and four defensemen or whatever. We need everybody going. This is the time of year when you need everyone going.”

Timonen said that if the team does not play well against the Western Conference leading Detroit Red Wings, then their chances of catching up to the Rangers in the standings will become a lot slimmer.

“Tomorrow, if we’re not ready to play, it’s even a tougher opponent than today,” Timonen said.

Hopefully, Timonen's words will light a fire in his teammates.

The Flyers have been playing very inconsistenly, even before Saturday's loss to the Rangers. If this is what it takes to get them to play on a higher level, then it is great that Timonen spoke up.