The five day pause between the Flyers’ Game 5 victory to clinch the Eastern Conference and Saturday’s opening game of the Stanley Cup Finals is proving to be a torturous experience. Finally, we are here.

Hockey is hot across the country, with the teams from two of America’s largest cities representing their respective conferences, but only one is getting all the pub nationally: the Chicago Blackhawks.

Inevitably, when the pick is made, each certified expert speaks along the lines of “You have to give the Flyers credit for all they’ve battled through, but…Blackhawks in five.” One of such writers, ESPN.com’s Pierre Lebrun, went so far as to title the Western Conference finals the real Cup Finals. These are the same Western Conference Finals that ended in four games, with Chicago sweeping San Jose.

If that is what embodies a true championship series, then we’ll have to take back our enjoyment of the Flyers’ dramatic run up to this point. After all, these Flyers weren’t supposed to beat Martin Brodeur and the second-seeded Devils, couldn’t possibly have come back and defeated the Bruins after losing the first three games of the series and certainly weren’t going to easily solve the Ovechkin-and-Crosby-slaying Montreal Canadiens and Patrick-Roy-reincarnated Jaroslav Halak.

They definitely weren’t going to do all of that after losing Simon Gagne, Jeff Carter and Ian Laperriere, nor keep playing long enough to get any of them back. They weren’t going anywhere with Brian Boucher in net or, after he was injured, with a just-returned Michael Leighton.

Sure they weren’t.

The Flyers are here though, and for all the talk of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Dustin Byfuglien, Marian Hossa, Kris Versteeg, Duncan Keith, Seabrook and Antii Niemi, there is Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne, Danny Briere, Claude Giroux, Chris Pronger, Kimmo Timonen and Michael Leighton. Is there a definite disparity in talent there? A resounding “No” rises from the rational, the objective and the sane.

Yeah, but…

We know. The Blackhawks swept the postseason-impotent San Jose Sharks and psychologically tormented Gold-medal winning goaltender Roberto Luongo and the Vancouver Canucks. It did take them six games to beat Nashville in the first round (a result that may have been quite different if Marian Hossa had been properly penalized —and if Martin Erat felt like holding on to the puck longer) but of course, because it did take six games, it just proves Nashville obviously to be a scrappy band of pluckers, grinders and muckers — and the Blackhawks all the more impressive for beating them.

No one has yet to make a convincing argument for Chicago’s supposed advantage in every aspect of the game. Where is this obvious gap between the two teams? Where is this chasm of talent between the high-flying Blackhawks and the knuckle-dragging Flyers?

It’s not there. Regardless of who they played to get here, the Flyers are in the Stanley Cup Finals and have as good a shot to win the damn thing as the Blackhawks do. Period.

Recapping the conference finals: Andrew picked the Cup matchup; Joe picked the bronze-medal game. For the playoffs, Andrew is 9-5, Joe is 6-5.

Andrew: Flyers in six (Gotta stay with what works — haven’t been right yet, but the Flyers haven’t lost yet.)

Joe: Flyers in seven