Wrapup (10:35 PM)
The Flyers parlayed an excellent first period and a bend-but-don't-break final stanza into their fifth straight victory and their third win in four nights. Dallas is a defensively weak club this season, and the Flyers were able to take advantage of the Stars' deficiencies. But what started out looking like a fairly easy game for the Flyers turned into a grind-it-out victory as Dallas took over the game in the second period.
"We got ourselves in a dogfight and we allowed them some momentum. But we are finding ways to win hockey games right now," said head coach John Stevens. "We get up, get tied, get up, get tied, get up, get tied, and then Richie goes down and makes a great play and wins the game. And the penalty kill has been a staple for a while now.
"I don’t know if they hit the net at the end there. They got a one-block shot I know for sure and they did a great job of pushing the puck to the perimeter and allowing it to get to the net much like we did against Phoenix."
The bottom line is that the club is finding ways to win. They are playing with a lot of confidence now, and there's no sense of panic even when they give up leads.
Once again the Flyers got the job done on the penalty kill, although they can't keep taking so many more penalties than the opposition (tonight the powerplay disparity was 5-to-1). Philly got strong games from the entire first line of Simon Gagne, Mike Richards and Mike Knuble. Scottie Upshall had one of his best games in awhile, and Andreas Nodl turned in a commendable effort as well despite a few turnovers. Jeff Carter and Knuble had five scoring chances apiece, accounting for three of the Flyers' four goals.
"We all feel there's a plan," said victorious goaltender Martin Biron. "Like last week, there was a plan. We had a day skate, we had two days off. When we had a rest, I think if you look at this week and the way we have six games in nine days, I think [John Stevens] has a plan in mind. He's rolling four lines and using everybody. It's same for us [goalies]. We talked about the workload and what we want to accomplish. Now that we're playing this way, it's a lot easier to stick to it and keep going with it."
The Stars refused to go away quietly, and the Flyers showed some of the effects of their busy stretch of games. Wily old Mike Modano (two goals, 17-for-25 on faceoffs) led the way for Dallas. The Flyers had some coverage problems dealing with Dallas' centering passes.
"Dallas does a couple things a little bit differently on their cycle. They have corner-to-corner plays that are a little bit of an adjustment," said Stevens. "We still gave up 25 shots or something like that and I think they had the power plays maybe six to one. I think it was a little misleading but I still think the key to the game for me was that we had a real good first period and we knew they were going to come out and push."
Notes and quotes:
* In his return to the lineup, Ossi Vaananen registered four hits and logged 20:47 of ice time. Kimmo Timonen, playing his 100th game as a Flyer since his acquisition from Nashville, had three blocks tonight and played 23:17.
* A rough night for Matt Carle but he came on as the third period progressed.
* Mike Knuble said of the game-winning goal, "“It was a hard wrap by them. They dumped it in hard and it popped over their guys stick and I just advanced it up the wall and Simon [Gagne] had a great battle at their blue line.
"To win that puck battle, you know that was a big key to getting the play going. Mike went through and I was just trailing and saw everybody kind of over-backcheck and I found a seam. It was great patience by Mike and Simon takes a lot of traffic to the net and I came in the back there."
* Asked about being an elder statesman on the Flyers, Knuble said, " Everybody wants to talk about age. Guys ask me ‘How old are you?’ They think I’m 32. That age factors in with our CBA, but its irrelevant. I feel great and I have low mileage and as far as I consider, I’m a healthy player and I play a lot of games. I still feel I’m pretty effective, able to play with those guys and able to compliment those guys.”
Knuble was then asked how old he feels. He grinned.
"Eighteen, like [Luca] Sbisa," he said.
* In the third period, John Stevens used Andrew Alberts (2:01 of 3rd period ice time) and Sbisa (2:39) sparingly and rolled four defensemen.
* Stars coach Dave Tippett assessed the game this way: “That’s kind of where we are right now. I didn’t think we started the game very well. We had a lot of guys that were deer in headlights. Once we got our feet under us and got moving a little bit, we engaged in the game.
"It’s a competitive game, if you don’t engage in a competitive part of it, you’re not going to be very good. So we got that straightened around, we got ourselves back in the game, but then we did what we did a lot of times this year and shot ourselves in the foot and the puck is in the back of our net.”
* Dallas' Sean Avery refused all interviews after the game as he's apparently done throughout much of the season. Decked out in a checkered suit and a beret, he strode out of the lockerroom without answering a single question.
3rd period synopsis: Flyers 4 - Stars 3
Dallas had a territorial edge for most of the period, but the Flyers blocked shots when they needed to, and Martin Biron came up with key saves to keep the game where it was. Finally, Mike Knuble cashed in his second goal of the game, and the Flyers held on for their fifth straight victory.
Carle, who is having a very rough game, turns over another puck in the first minute of the period. No harm done on the play, but not the way the Flyers wanted to start the period.
Good forechecking work by Mike Richards and a side angle shot by Simon Gagne gives the Flyers an offensive circle faceoff after their best shift in awhile. Carter loses the ensuing faceoff, however, and play swings the other way.
Dallas flurries in close to Biron at about the 5:00 mark. Biron can't cover the puck but holds the post with his skate to prevent a go-ahead goal for Dallas.
Another Flyers turnover leads to a Stars chance from the point. Flashing across in front of the net on the play, Chris Connor brushes into Biron, who flops in an effort to get a goaltender interference penalty. A good non-call.
Coburn is sent off for tripping Rebeiro as the center carries the puck into offensive zone at the 8:01 mark. The Flyers are a bit slow getting into the passing lanes, but Carle has a nice block of a shot and a zone clear. At 9:57 (four seconds left on the penalty), Knuble gets a holding minor.
On the kill of the Knuble penalty, Carter breaks out of the zone but fumbles the puck carrying through the neutral zone. Dallas gets extended attack-zone time, but can't generate a shot. Hartnell gets in Modano's face as the Flyers' finally clear.
After the kill ends, Carter comes within a whisker of his second goal of the game, snapping a wrister just wide of the long side.
Flyers are rotating four D (Timonen-Vaananen and Coburn-Carle). Haven't seen Alberts an Sbisa in awhile.
Flyers 4 - Stars 3: Mike Knuble finishes off his second goal of the game (10th of the season), converting a perfect feed from Mike Richards off the rush. Gagne with the secondary helper. Time of the goal was 14:52.
At 15:28, Martin Biron makes a point-blank blocker save on Brad Richards to keep the Flyers ahead.
Turco erases a bad turnover behind the net with a clutch stop on Upshall at 17:30.
At 18:54, Coburn goes back to the box for a hook on Avery (who immediately looked at the referee). Timeout called. Turco off for an extra attacker. Dallas wins the draw. Richards clears the zone with 10 seconds left and Dallas never gets set up again.
Third period shots were 8-7 in the Stars' favor (Shots tied 25-25 for the game). Faceoffs were 14-6 in the Stars favor (Stars ahead 36-30 for the game, with Mike Modano winning 17 of 25 draws. Mike Richards won 11 of 20 for the Flyers, Carter was just 2-for-17).
2nd period synopsis: Flyers 3 - Stars 3
A much, much better period for Dallas. The Flyers, playing their third game in four nights, cannot afford to have the same fatigued-looking third period that nearly cost them the Atlanta game last weekend. They started to show those signs (increased turnovers, gap widening, coverage breakdowns) in the middle stanza, and grizzled vet Mike Modano took full advantage twice.
The referees call an absolute joke of a tripping penalty on Scottie Upshall at 0:28. He was racing Sergei Zubov for an icing and made incidental contact (at most) before Zubov lost his footing and slid into the end boards. The veteran defenseman was a bit shaken up on the play.
On the ensuing kill, Richards had a 2-on-1 with Gagne but the play got broken up.
Flyers 2 - Stars 2: As the Upshall penalty expired, Mike Modano collected a rebound in the right circle and beat Biron to tie the game. Assists to Eriksson and Parrish. Time of the goal was 2:30.
Score one for Sean Avery. He punks it up after a stoppage of play at 4:38, and it works exactly the way he wanted it to. He draws a roughing penalty on Josh Gratton. On the ensuing kill, Dallas gets set up immediately on powerplay, generating a full minute of attack zone time (but no scoring chances) before the Flyers finally clear. The Stars also get extended offensive zone time late in the advantage, but Martin Biron makes a stop as the penalty expires. Dallas with an offensive zone faceoff at 6:42.
At 8:33, Petersen goes off for tripping Matt Carle behind the Flyers net. On the ensuing powerplay Knuble carries up the wng and feeds across to Mike Richards going to the net. Turco makes the stop. The Flyers do not generate another meaningful chance.
A few seconds after the penalty expires, Scottie Upshall narrowly misses his second goal of the game. He didn't have an angle to jam in a loose puck that trickled past Turco off the initial shot and laid uncovered behind his skate just outside the left goal post.
Kimmo Timonen gets away with one at about the 15:30 mark. He trips Neal Kimmo's stick got stuck in Neal's skate) right in front of the referee.
Chances at both ends: A Flyers 2-on-1 misses connections. Fabian Brunnstrom breaks the other way, one on one with Luca Sbisa. The Swiss rookie deposits the Swedish rookie on the ice with an open ice hit.
Flyers 3 - Stars 2: The red hot Jeff Carter (15th goal of the season) continues to make his case for an All-Star berth, skating into the circle and firing an explosive wrister past Turco. Assist to Scott Hartnell at 14:22.
Flyers 3 - Stars 3. A brutal coverage breakdown by the Flyers with the Carter line and the Coburn-Carle pairing on the ice. Mike Modano takes full advantage to jump into the slot and take a feed from Daley at 17:26. Brad Richards gets the secondary assist.
Carter makes a trendendous move at 19:00 and feeds an open Knuble in front, but Knuble can't quite convert.
Second period shots were 12-4 in the Stars' favor (Flyers lead 18-7 through 40 minutes). Faceoffs were 11-10 in the Flyers' favor (Flyers lead 24-22 through 20 minutes, Richards is 9-for-13 but Carter is only 1-for-11 and has been getting schooled by Modano in the circle).
1st period synopsis: Flyers 2 - Stars 1
A dominant first period for the Flyers. Even though it's just a one-goal game, the Stars face an uphill climb. They are just 1-7-3 (29th in the NHL) when allowing the game's first goal and/or trailing after the 1st period. The Flyers are 8-1-2 when scoring first and 5-1-1 when leading after the opening 20 minutes.
Martin Biron with a stop on Chris Connor at 13 seconds. Matt Carle turned the wrong way on the play.
Upshall drilled by a heavy hit from Stephane Robidas at about the 1:00 mark.
Flyers 1 - Stars 0: At 3:17 Joffrey Lupul makes a strong move, cutting in from the right circle and feeding Scottie Upshall cross-ice, who puts the puck into a half-open net from the doorstep for his 3rd goal of the season.
Andreas Nödl had his potential first NHL goal waved off at 7:45, as he poked away at the puck ostensibly covered by Marty Turco. The goal definitely came after the whistle.
Sean Avery has his first get-together with Josh Gratton at a stoppage of play at 8:35. Mostly a lot of yapping from Avery (big shocker).
A diving backchecking play by Scottie Upshall helps break up a Dallas 2-on-1 near the net at around the midway mark of the first period. Carle was caught up ice a bit and Coburn was back defending the play.
Flyers 1 - Stars 1: Kimmo Timonen takes a hit behind the net and his attempted wrap around the boards goes to Darryl Sydor. Sydor's shot hits Jon Kalinski in front and bounces to an open Landon Wilson, who snapped his first of the year over Biron. Time of the goal 11:33.
Luca Sbisa breaks a stick on a one-timer attempt at 15:35.
Flyers 2 - Stars 1 : Mike Knuble (9th of the season) walks right in from the circle and snaps a shot past Turco at 16:00. Simon Gagne gets the assist, extending his point streak to eight games in a row (3 G, 9 A) and he now has points in 11 of the last 12 games (and points in 18 of the 19 games he's played this season). On the rush, Trevor Daley pretty much let Knuble do whatever he wanted.
Matt Carle snuffs out a scoring chance with a blocked shot off the shinpad into the corner at about 18:55.
Shots were 14-5 in the Flyers' favor. Faceoffs were 13-12 in the Flyers' favor (Richards and Metropolit were each 4-for-7).
Pregame update (6:15 PM, EST)
Stars lines
Eriksson - Richards - Connor
Avery - Rebeiro - Neal
Brunnström - Modano- Parrish
Neal - Petersen - Wilson
Grossman - Zubov
Robidas - Daley
Janik - Sydor
Turco
[Stephan]
Preview (12:15 PM, EST)
The Flyers (9-6-4) will look for their fifth straight win tonight when they take on the Dallas Stars (6-9-4) at the Wachovia Center. The Stars are coming off a 2-1 shootout loss against Anaheim on Saturday.
The goaltending matchup will likely feature Martin Biron (4-0-1 with a 1.76 goals-against average and a .944 save percentage in his last five starts) playing for the third time in four nights. Dallas' goaltending has been average at best this season, but veteran Marty Turco (5-8-4, 3.49 GAA, .872 SV%) cranked up good efforts in the shootout loss and a victory over Phoenix on Nov 15. Turco remains an aggressive puck handler who makes it tough to wrap pucks in deep without the puck being wheeled right back out of the zone.
The Flyers last met the Stars on December 1, 2007. In that game, Dallas shut the Flyers down defensively and capitalized on a couple of deflection goals to eventually prevail, 4-1. Outstanding team defense has been a Stars hallmark dating back to Ken Hitchcock's regime. It's been shocking to see Dallas struggle so badly this year to keep the puck out of their own net. The Stars have allowed 70 goals (only Toronto has given up more) and have the NHL's 26th-ranked penalty kill.
Although it's always crucial to score first and play a strong 60 minutes, Philly ought to be in good shape if they jump to a 1-0 lead. Dallas is just 1-7-3 (29th in the NHL) when allowing the game's first goal. They're also in the bottom third of the league (20th overall) when scoring first, with a 5-2-1 record. Meanwhile, the Flyers have an 8-1-2 record (7th in the NHL) when scoring first this season, but are just 1-5-2 (26th in the NHL) when giving up the game's first goal.
Dallas is missing two critical players: team captain Brenden Morrow and perennial Selke Trophy candidate Jere Lehtinen. Morrow is out for at least six months with a torn ACL in his right knee. Lehtinen, who has only played three games this season, is out with an upper body injury.
The club has also undoubtedly been hurt by the fact that perennial All-Star candidate Sergei Zubov has been limited to seven games (4 assists). He missed all of training camp and the first 12 games of this season after undergoing hip surgery in September. The 38-year-old was set back last season by a sports hernia that limited him to 46 games. Zubov remains a stabilizing force as well as an offensive trigger man for the Stars when healthy.
Likewise, 38-year-old Mike Modano (six goals, 13 points, plus-two) still occupies a key leadership role on the club. Even though he's no longer the offensive force he used to be, he can step up in clutch situations. He endured a five-game point drought in early November and has been held pointless in three of the last four games, although he had a goal and an assist in the Stars' 6-3 home loss to Chicago last Thursday.
Keep an eye on Loui Eriksson tonight. The 23-year-old Frölunda product has come into his own and been one of the Stars' few bright spots this season: a two-way player who not only leads the club with nine goals but also excels in any game situation. He has three goals in his last three games, and handled over 20 minutes of ice time on Saturday.
Mike Rebeiro leads Dallas with 16 assists and 18 points. Although he's always been more of a setup guy than a goal-scorer, five of his eight career points in 16 games against the Flyers have come on goals. He's always been a fairly one-dimensional player, but he has logged an average 20:48 of ice time per game this season. He's been mediocre on faceoffs (48.6%).
Brad Richards, a big-ticket acquistion at last year's trade deadline, is second on the club with 15 points (5 G, 10 A) and has logged 20:51 of ice time. Like many current and former Tampa players, he's enjoyed considerable success against the Flyers (28 points, +8 in 26 games) over the course of his career. Over the course of his last six games, he has five points (1 G, 4 A). He's won 51.9% of his faceoffs for the season.
Dallas also has two of the NHL's most agitating players on the roster. Sean Avery (2 G, 9 PTS, 77 PIM) and Steve Ott (2 G, 6 PTS, 57 PIM) always walk the fine line between helping and hurting their club. Ott is currently out of the lineup with a broken hand.
For the Flyers, Jeff Carter will look to continue the torrid pace he's been on. Mike Richards broke out of an offensive mini-slump late in the Phoenix tilt, and has been on a tear in the faceoff circle. Simon Gagne is in the midst of a seven-game point streak (3 G, 8 A) and has points in 10 of the last 11 games.
Philly will still be without Daniel Briere tonight. Defenseman Ossi Väänänen will be back in the lineup.
PROJECTED FLYERS LINES AND SCRATCHES
Gagne - Richards - Knuble
Hartnell - Carter - Nödl
Upshall - Metropolit - Lupul
Gratton - Kalinski - Asham
Sbisa - Timonen
Coburn - Carle
Alberts - Väänänen
Biron
[Niittymäki]
Scratches: Kukkonen (healthy), Briere (groin), Cote (LTIR, oblique muscle), Jones (LTIR, hip), Parent (LTIR, shoulder), Hatcher (LTIR, knee)
****
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