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Simmonds’ hat trick powers Flyers past Hurricanes in Carolina

The Philadelphia Flyers were able to post a win in their first game since knowing they were eliminated from playoff contention, as they beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 on the road tonight. Wayne Simmonds recorded his first career hat trick and added on an assist, while Matt Read had a goal and two assists in the win. Steve Mason earned the decision in the high-scoring affair, as he denied 26 of the Hurricanes’ 29 shots on net. Justin Peters lost with only 33 saves on 38 shots against. “It felt pretty good obviously,” Simmonds said after his big night. “I feel …

What Thornton was about to do to Bryzgalov, Bryz later did to the media

Saturday Morning Musings*

Something, something, intro paragraph. Fluff, yay! Let’s start off by facing the cold, hard truth. There is something like a 1% chance (with a 1% margin of error) that the Flyers could make the playoffs this season. Pointless wins are meaningless. Planning for next year is significantly more important at this point. So, what does that mean? Well, for starters, it does not mean that your loyalty as a fan is not contingent upon whether or not you want the team to win the remaining games of the season. The rational choice is to do what it takes to make …

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Atlantic Watch: Flyers aren’t out yet, Pens clinch the division, Islanders sit in seventh, Devils endure long losing streak

The Philadelphia Flyers entered this week on a winning streak, but they left it on a losing skid and can now only hope they receive some help to make the postseason. With four of their final nine games coming up in the next week, the Orange and Black will likely find out if they will be heading to the playoffs by April 17th. The Flyers won their third straight game on Wednesday night with a 5-3 comeback decision over the Montreal Canadiens in Philly. Wayne Simmonds tied the game with a little over five minutes left before Erik Gustafsson’s first …

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Flight Plan: Playoffs Still Within Reach

The Philadelphia Flyers took a four game win streak, their first of the season, into Winnipeg yesterday. They scored the first goal and, after a few shaky minutes at the beginning of the first period, completely took over registering 13 shots in the primary stanza, limiting the Jets to just four through 20 minutes of play. Winnipeg roared out of the gates in the second and notched four goals on just 12 shots, while Philadelphia could only muster five all period. Newly acquired backup goaltender Steve Mason saw his first action as a Flyer, stopping all seven shots he faced …

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Couturier and pair of new Flyers help Philly to road win over Leafs

The Philadelphia Flyers extended their season-high winning streak to four games tonight with a 5-3 decision over the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre. Sean Couturier and Erik Gustafsson both recorded two-assist nights, while Jay Rosehill was credited with the eventual game-winner against his former squad. Ilya Bryzgalov may have allowed three goals on 28 shots, but he and the Flyers’ defense did come up big in the third period when the Leafs surged late in the contest. The trio of Nikolai Kulemin, John-Michael Liles, and James van Riemsdyk beat Bryzgalov tonight, while James Reimer suffered the loss …

Come tomorrow, tomorrow I'll be gone

Looking forward: Who goes?

Prior to curating your opinions last week, I ran down a list of the players that the Flyers should keep heading into next season. This week, I will take a different approach, stating not what should happen but what may actually happen. Throughout yesterday’s trade deadline, the team remained relatively quiet, surfacing only to claim Adam Hall off of waivers to fill Max Talbot’s spot and to swap backup goalies. The front office openly acknowledges there are many holes to fill but the restraint shown today is an indicator that Paul Holmgren is not going to overpay for players just for the sake of …

Waiver wire: Hall arrives, Foster clears

It’s been a day slower than molasses in Vermont in January on trade deadline 2013, but the first move has been made by the Flyers. Adam Hall was claimed off waivers from the Tampa Bay Lightning. Hall, a 32-year-old Michigan native, posted four assists in 20 games with the Bolts, after failing to record a point in six appearances with Carolina earlier in the season. A 10-year NHL veteran who played collegiate hockey for Michigan State, Hall has totaled 65 goals and 147 points in 591 NHL games for Nashville, the Rangers, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Tampa and the Hurricanes. Despite being …

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St. Louis, Purcell Lead Lightning Past Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at the Tampa Bay Times Forum by the score of 5-1 in Michael Leighton’s first start of 2013. Martin St. Louis had four assists and Teddy Purcell had a goal with two helpers, while Philly’s goalie stopped 21 of 26 shots from the opposition in the loss. Sean Couturier had the Flyers’ lone goal, as Max Talbot had the only assist. Anders Lindback may have allowed a soft girl early, but he did a great job to limit Philly to one goal, as he stopped 24 of the Flyers’ 25 shots. In …

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Then and Now: Sami Kapanen

In the middle of the 2002-2003 regular season, the Philadelphia Flyers shipped defenseman Bruno St. Jacques and winger Pavel Brendl to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a pair of players. Ryan Bast was one player Philly acquired in the deal, a defenseman who only played a pair of games in the NHL, both of which were with the Flyers. The other was Sami Kapanen, a veteran left winger in his eighth season in the NHL. After several seasons with the Hartford Whalers’ organization, who became the Hurricanes in his third season with the club, Kapanen became a member of his …

Stamkos And Garon Lead Lightning In 5-1 Victory Over Flyers

Steven Stamkos had a two-goal night and Mathieu Garon made 31 saves to led the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-1 home victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. Despite out shooting the Lightning 32-16 and forcing them into 11 icings while Tampa Bay didn’t force them into any, the Flyers leave Tampa Bay after an unfortunate loss they didn’t deserve. Scott Hartnell scored the Flyers’ only goal of the game while Ilya Bryzgalov stopped a mere 11 of the 16 shots he faced as the Flyers lost for the fourth time in their last five games.  Hartnell was snakebitten early on, victimized by Garon with a huge save during 5-on-5 …