In the midst of their final 3-game-in-4-day stretch of the season, the Flyers got just what the doctor ordered. They enjoyed a 7-1 blowout win over a dispirited Toronto Maple Leafs team that fell behind early and barely competed thereafter. As a result, Peter Laviolette was able to distribute ice time evenly around the lineup.
By the end of the game, Zac Rinaldo (20 shifts, 13:18 TOI) had played more than Claude Giroux (16 shifts, 13:08 TOI). Eric Wellwood (goal scored, 20 shifts, 12:29 TOI) saw the ice more often than Scott Hartnell (team low 14 shifts, 11:19 TOI), who came up limping after blocking a shot late in the second period but gritted it out and tangled with Toronto's Mike Brown at the end of the same shift.
On defense, rookie callup Marc-Andre Bourdon (24 shifts, 20:18 TOI, +1, 4 hits, 3 blocked shots) hit the ice more often than veteran Pavel Kubina (1 assist, 23 shifts, 17:41 TOI, +1, 3 hits, one block). After taking a maintenance day on Wednesday, Nicklas Grossmann was only needed for 16:35 of ice time (22 shifts, +2, 2 hits, 4 blocks) while rookie Erik Gustafsson absorbed 17:22 (1 assist, +2, 2 blocks).
With games coming up on Saturday afternoon at home against Ottawa and Sunday afternoon in Pittsburgh, being able to rest key veterans was one of the two most positive developments to come out of last night's game. The other one, of course, was the trio of Brayden Schenn (2 goals), Wayne Simmonds (2 goals, 1 assist) and Danny Briere (first career 4-assist game) showing continued signs of getting hot offensive after individually going through long droughts.
The Giroux line came up empty in the goal department last night, but Jaromir Jagr collected three assists while playing on the power play and with members of other lines. Giroux, who took a maintenance day on Wednesday, did not look very good in either Monday's loss to Tampa or last night's game).
Sergei Bobrovsky only faced a few testers but did not look rusty in goal. He was beaten on a nice move and backhanded finish on a first period breakaway by Mikhail Grabovski. Other than that, Bob handled the other 16 shots sent his way.
The Flyers came out ready to play last night, while Toronto just wants to get the season over with. It also didn't help that rookie Jussi Rynnäs had to make an emergency start in goal after Jonas Gustavsson got injured during warmups. The Leafs' team defense was non-existent, and Rynnäs frequently looked off-balance and out of position when he wasn't being abandoned by the players in front of him.
Hopefully, the Briere line as well as Matt Read (one goal, one assist), Jakub Voracek (one goal, one assist) and Wellwood can carry some offensive confidence over to the weekend games. Apart from that, last night's game was probably the last "easy win" the Flyers are likely to see for awhile. All five remaining games are against teams that are either a lock for the playoffs or fighting to get in.
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According to Flyers' general manager Paul Holmgren, Ilya Bryzgalov (chip fracture, right foot) is "doing better" and is expected to practice today. Should be an interesting next few days to say the least.
The club is also scheduled to take its team picture today at the Wells Fargo Center at 11 a.m. EDT.
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It was a welcomed sight to see Eric Lindros donning a Flyers practice jersey and skating with the team yesterday in Toronto. Fences have been mended, largely as a result of the efforts of Paul Holmgren, and the Big E is now part of the Flyers family again ever since the big "family reunion" that was the Winter Classic Alumni Game.
The visual of Lindros and Jaromir Jagr -- two of the most dominant players in the world in the 1990s -- standing on the ice side-by-side in Flyers jerseys is one I never thought I'd see. It was a real nice surprise.
By the way, speaking of Jagr, the assists that he and Pavel Kubina logged on Jakub Voracek's goal last night marked a first in Flyers' franchise history. It was the first time in club history that a Czech player scored a goal for the team assisted by two fellow Czechs.
There have been a few one-assist tallies (including one scored by Michal Sykora with goalie Roman Cechmanek drawing the lone helper) but this was the first Czech three-pointer on the same play.
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