Atlantic Watch: 1/11-1/17

The Flyers won two of their three games this week, as they finished the week by handling the free-falling Minnesota Wild. After Sergei Bobrovsky earned the start on Thursday night on Long Island, Ilya Bryzgalov got the call for the last two games of the week making 46 saves on 50 shots against. Philly looks forward to a difficult week, as two of their four games are against division leaders in the Eastern Conference. The Orange and Black started off with a 3-2 in New York against the Islanders. Sean Couturier scored with 1:30 left in regulation to extend the …

Flyers Score Three Goals in Second Period, Dominate Wild 5-1

The Philadelphia Flyers returned to home ice on Tuesday night and five different players recorded a goal in their 5-1 rout of the visiting Minnesota Wild. Braydon Coburn netted the game-winning goal in the middle of the second period, while Matt Read and Jaromir Jagr were the only players who had multi-point performances with two-assist games. Ilya Bryzgalov, newly christened as the Number One goaltender, came through and won his third straight home game with a 25-save effort, as the Flyers recorded their first multi-goal victory in 2012. Shortly after the game’s opening faceoff, Philly drew the game’s first power play 1:14 in when Matt …

Flyers Lose 4-2 To Predators In Nashville

The Flyers suffered their first ever loss in regulation in Nashville tonight, dropping a  4-2 decision to the Predators. Nick Spaling grabbed his third-game winner of the season 4:30 into the final period, as Martin Erat and Sergei Kostitsyn each had a goal and an assist in the win. Pekka Rinne made 36 saves for his fourth straight victory. Sean Couturier and Wayne Simmonds each had a goal and an assist, as Ilya Bryzgalov dropped his second straight decision with a 21-save effort for Philly. Minutes into the game, the Flyers nearly found themselves trailing 1-0 on what looked to be a garbage …

JvR out with concussion

Everybody wondering “What’s wrong with James van Riemsdyk?” now has an answer, so they can stop gnashing their teeth and rending their garments over it. From the desk of Flyers GM Paul Holmgren late this morning: “James was hit in the head in each of our last two games. He reported yesterday, not feeling like himself. He will be out indefinitely with a concussion.” I agree with some sentiments over the internets today, that there’s a new way to mask injury issues: rampant trade rumors. Van Riemsdyk was limited to 15 shifts totaling 10:32 on ice in Thursday’s 3-2 win …

Couturier Scores Late, Flyers Win Eighth Straight Against Islanders

Sean Couturier’s goal late in the contest gave the Flyers a 3-2 win over the New York Islanders tonight in Long Island. The rookie’s eighth goal of the season gave him his third straight game with a tally, as the Flyers earned their fourth win in their last five games. Goals from Scott Hartnell and Wayne Simmonds helped Sergei Bobrovsky earn his second straight win with a 33-save effort. John Tavares recorded his 15th goal of the season in the final minute of play and assisted on Kyle Okposo’s tally earlier in the period, while Andrew MacDonald notched a two-assist night to serve as the only …

Atlantic Watch: 1/4-1/10

The Flyers won three of their four games this week, as all three wins came in one-goal games. In the Flyers’ last three games, they have received no help from the line of Claude Giroux, Scott Hartnell, and Jaromir Jagr as all three players are pointless since the Flyers’ win on Thursday. The line will look to find their groove again as the Flyers complete their four-game road trip this week before returning home for a game against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday.  In their first match-up in Philadelphia since Game six of the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals, the Flyers beat …

Bobrovsky, Rookies Lead Flyers Past Hurricanes

Sergei Bobrovsky made 35 saves tonight as he helped the Flyers to a 2-1 victory on the road against the Carolina Hurricanes. Sean Couturier provided the game-winner early in the third period, while Brayden Schenn scored in the second period for the Flyers as Philly earned their third win of the season against the Hurricanes. The victory was also the 100th for Peter Laviolette as head coach of Philadelphia, joining Fred Shero, Pat Quinn, Bob McCammon, Mike Keenan, Paul Holmgren, Terry Murray, Ken Hitchcock and John Stevens in that elite group. Cam Ward made 35 saves as well, while Jerome Samson recorded …

Two Phantoms, one Bear draw suspensions for Saturday fracas

While Philadelphia got to see a rare outdoor AHL contest between the Adirondack Phantoms and Hershey Bears on Friday, fans who packed the decidedly-indoor Giant Center in the Chocolate City got the most for their buck on Saturday night. In this jumpy video, Phantoms forward Tom Sestito and defenseman Oliver Lauridsen, along with Bears forward Joel Rechlicz mix it up near the benches.   There’s a better view of the situation, folded into a brief highlight package for the whole game. You can see it all develop from the 2:32 mark.   The American Hockey League had something to say …

NHLPA response to NHL’s realignment plan invites speculation

We apologize for missing this over the weekend, being so caught up in the moment during the final outdoor contest that capped the week of events at Citizens Bank Park, but here’s NHLPA executive director Don Fehr’s statement regarding the rejection of the realignment proposal: “On the evening of December 5, 2011, the NHL informed the NHLPA that they proposed to put in place a four-conference format beginning with the 2012-13 season. As realignment affects Players’ terms and conditions of employment, the CBA requires the League to obtain the NHLPA’s consent before implementation. “Over the last month, we have had …

Kuba Scores Late, Senators Beat Flyers 6-4

After a dramatic overtime victory in Philly yesterday, the Flyers failed to sweep their home-and-home with the Ottawa Senators as they dropped a 6-4 decision on the road Sunday evening. Filip Kuba scored on a slapshot from the point with 71 seconds left in the game for the winner as Daniel Alfredsson, Chris Neil, Erik Karlsson, and Nick Foligno each recorded a goal and assist in the Senators’ win. Matt Read was the only Flyer with a multi-point game as he scored in the second period and assisted on Sean Couturier’s goal in the first period. Read tied Ryan Nugent-Hopkins for the NHL …