Flyers Notes: Briere wary of Chara's high stick

Danny Briere is generously listed at 5-foot-10. Boston defenseman Zdeno Chara is accurately listed as 6-9, and is believed to be the tallest player in the history of the NHL.

The disparity in height doesn't seem to make for a fair fight, but Briere scores many of his goals from the side of the net, which is the area Chara patrols. Briere scored his team-high seventh playoff goal in Saturday's 7-3 loss to the Bruins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. He also took a whack on the side of the head from Chara's stick, but there was no penalty.

Briere called it accidental, but he also believes Chara is sometimes careless with his stick.

"He was battling with someone else in front of the net, but the thing with him is every time he battles, he always has his stick up in the air, and with the size he has I don't think he needs to do that," Briere said. "You're supposed to be in control of your stick. But it wasn't intentional on his part."

Even though the club didn't practice, Flyers chairman Ed Snider chatted up some of the players Sunday at the Skate Zone in Voorhees.

Claude Giroux believes Snider's presence serves as a motivator.

"He cares for sure. He's always around. After games he comes into the room and shakes guys' hands and he's always happy," Giroux said. "He believes in us. Any time you see someone important like that who cares so much, obviously it helps your motivation because you want to play for him."

Said Briere: "That's why he's considered one of the best owners in any team sport. He's very passionate. He loves his team and he loves his players, so it's pretty cool to see him around here."

Bruins coach Claude Julien wasn't whining, but he may have been sending a message to the officials to keep his goalie, Tim Thomas, from getting banged around by the Flyers.

"It's a playoff series and there are a lot of fine lines," Julien said Sunday. "As a referee, one thing you don't want to do is overreact, but you still want to make sure that goaltenders are protected."

In eight playoff games, Flyers goalies have combined for a 3.06 goals-against average and .898 save percentage. . . . The Bruins are 5-3 in the playoffs even though they haven't scored a power-play goal in 26 tries. . . . Claude Giroux has had two assists in four consecutive games.