By KEVIN ROBERTS
Courier-Post Staff
PHILADELPHIA
Robert Esche has talked about being unemotional during this series, never too high or too low. Or, more accurately, he's tried not to talk much about it. But in the third period Saturday, when Sami Kapanen drove in the empty-net goal to seal the clinching game of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals, Esche got a little high.
He pumped his fist. He had both hands in the air. And seven seconds later, Esche had backstopped a team to a playoff win.
"I was excited," Esche said. "Obviously, I was excited. I was very excited that we won. We battled hard, and I was excited to finally win the series."
Esche was brilliant in this series, perhaps the number one reason why the Flyers won it. He literally stole Game 4, and he was rock solid in the clincher Saturday. The Flyers and Devils were locked in a 1-1 tie in the third period Saturday, and this game had six overtimes written all over it.
But it was Martin Brodeur who blinked first. Brodeur has the Stanley Cups, and he's going to the Hall of Fame. But Saturday it was Esche who was going to the next round.
"We know as well as anyone that good goaltending can win you a Stanley Cup," said Devils center Patrik Elias, who fired five shots at Esche without success. "You can cut it however you want - he stepped up, and we didn't get lucky. He didn't give us many chances. He did a great job in this series."
Brodeur offered Esche only the quickest congratulations during the postgame handshake - just "Great series" - but after the game credited his opponent's resolve.
"I knew he was a good goalie," Brodeur said. "He's definitely solid in the net. But so was Cechmanek last year. Definitely for them until they win the Stanley Cup, they will blame the goalie."
Brodeur is wrong in that Esche in this series was far better and way more reliable than Cechmanek last year. But he's right in that playing goalie for the Flyers is a demanding position in a harsh spotlight. But when you play it well - as Esche certainly did in this series - you do get the hero treatment.
"I didn't know it could get that loud in here," Esche said. "I could feel the ice shake."
The crowd at the Wachovia Center Saturday roared with every save. Esche never faltered. For the series, Esche stopped 146 of 155 shots - a .942 save percentage - and allowed just 1.81 goals per game.
"It was the same thing he showed us during the regular season - that he could steal a game, that he is a tremendous athlete, that he's very, very competitive," Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock said. "When he's allowed to stay in the moment - like the playoffs are - he can be very efficient and very effective."
Esche definitely seemed shaken by the public criticism to a late-season slump. But after a star-making performance in this series, he backed away from any chance to crow. He slipped right back into the not-too-high, not-too-low mode - which is right where he wants to be.
"I'm excited we won, but I'm sure nobody here is just looking for one series," Esche said. "For a long time I have been waiting to play in the playoffs. I am just excited to have the opportunity.
"When you are up three to one, you always have it in the back of your head that you are going to win. At least, you have to think that way. The truth of it is, when it was over, I thought it was a great thing."
Reach Kevin Roberts at kroberts@courierpostonline.com