Saturday, October 8, 2011
Flyers FINAL
3 - 0
3 - 0
Devils| FINAL | 1 | 2 | 3 | T |
| Flyers | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Devils | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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A LONG TIME COMING
Ilya Bryzgalov didn’t think about the Flyers last shutout. He didn’t let it enter his mind that it had been over a full year and a half since the Flyers held their opponent scoreless through all 60 minutes of play in the regular season. Knowing that a goal can happen at any time during the game regardless of the scoreboard, his teammates didn’t remind him that he had turned aside all 19 shots the Devils threw at him because with a face off in the offensive zone with 20 seconds left on the clock, they knew one more shot was possibly coming… and it did. Bryzgalov stopped it and the other 19 to earn the shutout and more importantly the victory for the Flyers and give them a 2-0-0 record right out of the gates. “I can’t say enough,” said Bryzgalov of the team’s defense in front of him. “It was about the whole team work ethic. They just played unbelieveable and they worked extremely hard.” Not to be overshadowed but some other Flyers newcomers broke out of their shell tonight and had standout performances of their own. Rookie forward Matt Read tallied his first NHL goal to give the Flyers a 2-0 lead and was used by Peter Laviolette in all situations. Wayne Simmonds was equally impressive. Simmonds earned a hard fought goal by parking himself in front of the net and banging home a rebound for his first as a Flyer. A short while later, he was challenged by Devils tough-guy David Clarkson to drop the gloves, but in the end it was Simmonds who dropped him to the ice. The Flyers have now started the season 2-0-0 for the 14th time in team history and will look to expand on that as they open the Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday with another tough test – the defending Western Conference Champion Vancouver Canucks. |
• Ilya Bryzgalov recorded his first shutout as a Flyer. It was the Flyers’ first regular season shutout since April 6, 2010 when Brian Boucher blanked Toronto 2-0. • The Flyers are 2-0 for the 14th time in their history. The last time was 2009-10. • Andrej Meszaros led the Flyers with five shots tonight. He had another two blocked and one that missed. • The Flyers led the Devils 47-31 in terms of total shots at the net (SOG + attempts blocked + missed shots). • The Flyers had three firsts tonight – Matt Read with his first NHL goal, Wayne Simmonds with his first Flyers goal and Ilya Bryzgalov with his first Flyers shutout. • Sean Couturier played 4:05 on the penalty kill tonight, second-most among Flyers forwards. |
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| “I think collectively we did a good job as a whole and played good team defense. We all back-checked hard and we all took care of what we had to do.” -- Wayne Simmonds “The room has been great. From Day one it seems. There’s still a long way to go with developing that chemistry and camaraderie. There’s still a long way to go with the game itself… tonight was more of what I was looking for with regard to faster and tighter checking.” -- Peter Laviolette “There‘s a lot of new faces in this locker room, and it’s a great organization and locker room to be in. I couldn’t be happier with the first couple of games and bonding with my teammates, you’re kind of nervous, but these guys make it easy so it’s fun.” -- Matt Read |
 Tonight’s star is indisputable. Ilya Bryzgalov earned the Flyers a shutout victory for the first time since April of 2010.Bryzgalov turned aside all 20 shots he faced for his second victory as a Flyer. Bryz has now stopped 42 of 43 shots in his first two games and has not allowed a goal in over five periods of play.  The turning point in tonight’s game came in the last seconds of the second period. Having outshot the Devils by a good margin in the first period, the Devils started to circle the net to even the score at 1-1, but as he was all night, Bryzgalov was up to the task and denied Parise with a great post-to-post save with six seconds left on the clock. The Flyers would head into the dressing room with a 1-0 lead and two quick strikes early in the third period padded a lead the Flyers would not give up. |
PIC OF THE NIGHT: Matt Read displays his first NHL goal puck after the Flyers win. |
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 Flyers 3, Devils 0 Associated Press NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - The new-look Philadelphia Flyers have started the season with a pair of solid victories on the road. They hope the momentum continues Wednesday for the home opener against the Vancouver Canucks. Ilya Bryzgalov, the former All-Star brought to Philadelphia to cure one of the league's shakiest goaltending situations, made 20 saves as the Flyers spoiled New Jersey Devils season opener with a 3-0 victory on Saturday night. The Flyers launched the season on Thursday with a 2-1 win over the defending Stanley Cup champion Bruins in Boston. Philadelphia improved to 2-0 with the victory at the Prudential Center. "I can't say enough about the whole team work ethic," Bryzgalov said. "Everybody's doing their part. It's been amazing." Claude Giroux, Matt Read and Wayne Simmonds provided the goals to support Bryzgalov, among the Flyers' major offseason signings. It was his 24th career shutout and improved his record against New Jersey to 2-1-0.  FULL RECAP |
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