Who would have thought a week that featured three games against mediocre Southeast Division opponents could provide such entertaining hockey (no sarcasm) and debate? An unusual scene in Tampa Bay, resulting in the equivalent of a puck-possession staring contest, has caused such a stir that the general managers needed to talk about it at their meetings, multiple short-handed penalty-shot goals were awarded AND converted, Braydon Coburn fought a former Philly scrapper in addition to scoring a goal, and the Flyers almost (I know I’m stretching it here) blew a two-goal lead in the final ten seconds of a game. Let’s start with …
Read Provides Unique Game-Winner as Philly Beats Florida 3-2
The Flyers leave the state of Florida on a positive note tonight as they beat the Panthers 3-2. Matt Read recorded his first game-winning goal in the NHL with a rarity: a short-handed, penalty-shot goal in the third period, while Braydon Coburn registered his first goal of the season. Ilya Bryzgalov had a 31-save evening with his only errors coming from a goal off an awkward deflection and a goal with nearly no time left in the game. Despite being out shot 16-9 in the final twenty minutes of regulation, the Flyers held on for the win. In an opening period which featured five …
Flight Plan Week of 11.13.2011
The Philadelphia Flyers lost their only game of last week by a score of 2-1 in overtime against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Never mind that the bizarre tactics employed by Peter Laviolette’s team to try to break the Bolts out of their 1-3-1 neutral zone trap ended up making the game look like a Mexican standoff. Instead, think about how the Flyers are now in third place in the Atlantic Division, below both the Pittsburgh Penguins and the New York Rangers, all because they stopped pressing in a game where they clung to a 1-0 lead through a good portion of the game and …
Flight Plan Week of 10.30.2011
The Philadelphia Flyers split their four games this week. After a big win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Flyers dropped a bad one to the Montreal Canadiens where they looked all sorts of out of sorts against a team who was desperate for a win. Then, the Flyers continued looking discombobulated up until the end of the second period against the Winnipeg Jets in a crazy 17-goal back-and-forth shoot out at the Wells Fargo Center, the Jets barely getting out of dodge with a win they should have had locked up. Wrapping up the week, Philadelphia was able to …
Atlantic Watch: 10/19-10/25
To say this was a rough week for the Flyers would be an understatement. They managed to pull out one victory this week, but it came at the cost of losing Chris Pronger to a nasty eye injury. Embarrassing losses to the Washington Capitals and St. Louis Blues provided a rough taste of reality for the Flyers, a team that had yet to experience much adversity since their hectic roster shuffle in the offseason. Despite all the negative aspects of this week for Philly, the Flyers are still second in the Atlantic Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference with 11 …
Atlantic Watch: 10/12-10/18
Three more games for the Flyers this week resulted in five more points in the standings. Losing their first game of the year in overtime to the Kings, the Flyers are no longer perfect on the season. However, since they won their other games in the week, the Flyers still haven’t lost in regulation this season. Sure, it’s upsetting to lose a game like Saturday’s to Los Angeles, a team featuring former Philly teammates Mike Richards and Simon Gagne, but it’s important to earn points early in the year. It’s also important to see many of the young players stepping …
Atlantic Watch: 10/6-10/11
Philly started off the season with a 2-1 win against the defending Stanley Cup Champions, the Boston Bruins in Beantown, then recorded a dominant 3-0 shutout in New Jersey to end a 101-game drought during the regular season and playoffs combined. After giving up the first goal of the NHL season to Brad Marchand, the Flyers scored two goals in the final minute of the first period. Claude Giroux dangled his way to a goal with 50 seconds left, while Jakub Voracek scored with only three seconds to go on a turn around shot in the slot. Fortunately for Philly, this would be all they needed as Ilya …
Then and Now: Dennis Seidenberg
At the time, Bob Clarke’s decision to send 24-year-old defenseman Dennis Seidenberg to Phoenix for the aging Petr Nedved was a questionable move. All the Flyers have left from their trade with the Coyotes on January 20, 2006 is minor leaguer Joonas Lehtivuori. Seidenberg, at the moment, is helping the Bruins try to win their first Stanley Cup since 1970. So just how did the aftermath of this deal transpire? “Nedved has always been a good scorer and a real good player and we think he’ll solve some of our problems up front,” Clarke told the Associated Press after the trade back in …
Carter’s Pair Carry Flyers To 3-2 Win Over Florida
For the second time in eight days, a pair of goals from Jeff Carter gave the Flyers the boost they needed to win as a trip to Florida resulted in a 3-2 win over the Panthers. Carter’s pair within an eleven minute span in the second period along with a first period goal from Scott Hartnell gave the Flyers a win after a terrible loss on Saturday. The Flyers’ win improves their record to 43-19-7. The Flyers didn’t start the game as they planned as the Panthers had a very strong first shift. However, the Flyers did produce the …
Flight Plan Week of 03.13.2011
Ever hear that saying, “take one step forward and two steps back”? How about “two steps forward and one step back… off a cliff”? That’s what the Philadelphia Flyers did as you would think that last Sunday was rock bottom for the guys in Orange and Black when they took a 7-0 beating at the hands of the New York Rangers, but no. The Flyers were able to take any and all progress they had made in their previous two games against the Edmonton Oilers and the Toronto Maple Leafs and not only squander it, but revert back to a …