Flyers Come Out On Top in the Battle of Pennsylvania

Sunday afternoon showcased a rival that continues to grow every year. The game had everything you would expect. The hitting was huge; there was plenty of scoring and some fantastic goaltending. The first period was a for the most part equally contested with Martin Biron playing some of his best hockey. He stopped everything that came his way in the period and looked sharp. Simon Gagne opened up the scoring with a power play goal at 5:19 of the opening stanza. He did so with assists from Mike Knuble and Claude Giroux. That was the only scoring in the period and the Flyers took the early 1-0 lead into the locker room.

The second period was more of the same. Both teams looked sharp and goaltender Martin Biron stopped every shot he faced. The Flyers were able to put an early goal on the board at 2:54 of the second period when Scott Hartnell deflected a Jeff Carter pass off his skate and into the net. The period ended with the Flyers leading 2-0.

In the third the Flyers continued to play sound defense and they were again able to score a goal. Pittsburg made the game interesting when Kris Letang scored a power play goal that cut the Flyers lead in half at 10:02 of the third period. That would be all the scoring the Penguins would have. At 19:32 of the third Darroll Powe put the puck in the empty net and sealed the deal for the Flyers. The win put the Flyers 2 points ahead of Pittsburg, who entered the game tied for fourth with the Flyers.

Tune in tonight when the Flyers take on there biggest rivals, the New Jersey Devils. The Devils are on fire lately and look to make the Flyers road to the playoffs difficult.

Post Game Quotes:

“Obviously, (the power play) was big tonight,” said Philadelphia coach John Stevens. “It goes us an early lead, which I thought was important. The penalty kill (also) did an outstanding job.”

“(Daniel Briere) made a good play going wide, fed (Carter), and I don’t know if he tried to shoot it or if he knew I was backdoor and had my stick and my skates kind of angled toward the net and was able to find my skate and go in,” Hartnell said. “I definitely didn’t kick it, so it was a big relief when (the referee) pointed to center ice.”

“The referee didn’t see it,” Gonchar said. “But he cross-checked me, so I punched him.”

“I thought we did a pretty good job carrying the play for most of the game,” Crosby said. “Unfortunately we couldnt execute, but that happens sometimes against a good team. Well just move on.”

“That’s pretty good, you know, to face the top two scorers in the league and keep them to the outside, keep them from shooting the puck,” Hartnell said.

“It’s the regular season; the playoffs are a different beast,” Biron said. “We were tight in the standings, so this was a big game.”