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Bryz Emerges From the Forest |
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Bryz.
Bryzard of Oz.
Bryzly Bear.
Or how about … the “old” Bryz is back?
You know, the one who played so well in giving the Phoenix Coyotes a chance to win every night last season?
That sound we all heard Thursday night after the 5-0 rout over the Florida Panthers was a collective sigh of relief from people everywhere in Flyerdom.
Ilya Bryzgalov seems to have found his way back onto the path of success.
Even before the Flyers recent western road trip, you can make a compelling case that Bryz was starting to show signs of improvement. Viewed as whole, it’s right there to see.
“The timing couldn’t be better,” goalie coach Jeff Reese told me this week. “This is when we needed Bryz to get hot and he’s doing that.”
The Flyers have won 4 in a row. Two have been Bryz shutouts. During this win streak, Bryz has a 1.25 goals against average and a .960 save percentage.
Over his last 10 consecutive starts – 7-2 record (one no-decision) _ he has a 2.17 GAA and .921 save percentage.
That’s your proof he’s getting it together.
Couple things stand out for me.
Bryz is playing farther outside the net and not burying himself in it. He is challenging – we saw that in the shootout in Calgary. First time all season he did it.
He looks BIG in net and not small. Reese that was more important than people think. To do that, you need confidence to move outside and after the rocky months of January and early February, Bryz has really regained that confidence he needs down the stretch.
“There’s no question I think confidence always plays in for players,” coach Peter Laviolette said. “Just in general, if you’re speaking about players or a team, confidence I think is always a factor.
“He seems pretty locked in right now. He’s preparing, he’s going out there, he’s executing, and then he gets ready for the next one. It’s more mechanical now, not his game or anything, just what he’s doing.”
Fans were chanting “Bryz, Bryz” on Thursday night at Wells Fargo Center.
They did that in Winny-peg on that last road trip and it was derisive chants.
“I was so concentrated I didn’t hear it, but if they cheered for me, it’s very nice and very kind for them,” Bryzgalov said after the Panthers’ win. “From hating to love in one step, in another direction.”
Another thing I really liked about Bryz was his sense of humor came back on Thursday.
He talked about rookie defenseman Brandon Manning and kinda slipped into one of his quotes that Manning “was released from the Colts.”
When he said that, he paused, waiting for the stunned media to react. Then he winked and the media laughed.
He continued to make football analogies to hockey to amuse us.
This was something Danny Briere touched on this week that got so many people riled up. It’s okay for Bryz to be Bryz “if” he’s winning and focused and playing well and not trying to hog the spotlight with nothing to back it up.
While Briere took some heat for his comments to me in that story which ran on CSNPhilly.com, there were others within the Flyers who had no problem with what Briere was saying because he said that Bryzgalov had become a “better teammate” by listening to what the leadership was telling him.
Point is, everyone seems relieved that Bryz is back to being the goalie we thought he would be when the Flyers overpaid (they always do) for him last summer in free agency.
“It was good to hear the fans behind him and behind our team,” Giroux said. “I can't even imagine how hard it was for him at one point.
“He had a tough stretch and was pretty much being booed on home ice. He is our best player and we need our goalie to be the best player.”
He’ll need to keep looking like this, too, if the Flyers are going to go deep in the playoffs this spring.
So who do want in the first round? Jersey or Pittsburgh?
Or could the Rangers possibly fall to 4th?
Regardless, it will be on Bryz’s shoulders.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger • 
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