Image Courtesy of BridgetDS http://www.flickr.com/photos/bridgetds/sets/72157628266089729/

Flight Plan: Rivalry Week

The Philadelphia Flyers have won five of their last seven contests after taking a 2-1 decision yesterday against the Ottawa Senators. They have been getting good play and consistent production from their top two lines, and Ilya Bryzgalov has been steady, if not terrific, on most occasions. The Flyers have two days off before staring a week full of intense rivalry games. They begin by taking a ride up I-95 to New York to face off against the New York Rangers, returning home to host the Pittsburgh Penguins, and finally ending the week in Boston to see the Boston Bruins …

Image courtesy of Amy Irving http://www.Facebook.com/38Photography

Flyers Outlast Sens In Goalie Duel

Wayne Simmonds scored on a beautiful goal in the second period, beating Ottawa goaltender Ben Bishop between the pads to give the Flyers a two-goal lead in an eventual 2-1 victory on Saturday afternoon. Simmonds started the play in his own end, gave an outlet pass to Danny Briere, who dropped it off for Brayden Schenn, who fed a cross-ice pass to Simmonds who went forehand, backhand, and eventually five-hole to beat Bishop. Also scoring for the Flyers was Jakub Voracek, notching his co-team leading ninth goal. Ilya Bryzgalov was stellar again for the Flyers, stopping 33-of-34 shots. The Flyers …

BryzSkyward

Crashing the Crease: Bryzgalov Wearing Down?

How much can one reasonably expect from a goaltender when playing him almost nightly behind a worn down, somewhat-ramshackle NHL defense? If you live in Philadelphia, the answer may be to simply look at his cap hit for your answer. Recently, there’s been a lot of talk regarding Ilya Bryzgalov and how well he “should” be playing based on his AAV of $5.67 million. In a lot of ways, it’s a reliable fallback story for a season full of nearly regular Jekyll-and-Hyde nights where serious hockey analysis of defensive breakdowns and failed offensive forays will bore and confuse the average …

Gagne and Knuble

Breaking down the Bullies: Gagne makes sense

It’s becoming an ugly trend for the Flyers. Week after week, they fail to establish momentum, instead opting to tread water at the .500-mark in the win-loss column. The past four games have provided no relief. After a stellar win in Pittsburgh, the team followed it up with a completely deflated effort against the Panthers. They seemed to rebound with a come-from-behind victory over the Jets, but any thoughts of a winning streak quickly vanished as they failed to deliver against the Maple Leafs. This time, Paul Holmgren had seen enough. His (first?) response was swift, yesterday sending a conditional …

HE'S BACK!!! Image courtesy of lehighvalleylive.com

Atlantic Watch: Gagne Returns, Pens and Rangers Deal With Injuries, Devils and Islanders Endure Goaltending Woes

The Philadelphia Flyers won a pair of exciting contests this week, but they also lost two games where they could have easily grabbed points. With the return of a familiar face, the Orange and the Black look to reach .500 with two tilts against teams below them in the standings and a matinee against a Northeast Division foe. The Flyers started their week, and concluded their road trip, with an exciting 6-5 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins at the CONSOL Energy Center. Jakub Voracek put the game-winner past Tomas Vokoun with 1:31 left in regulation to complete his hat trick, …