Canucks Goalie Stands on Head to Defeat Panthers

Alex Auld was at the top of his game tonight as he shutout the Florida Panthers to give his Vancouver team a 2-0 win. Auld stopped all 30 shots the Panthers put up against him to earn the top star in tonight's Vancouver win. The goals by Jonathan Toews and David Perron were all the Canucks needed to secure the victory in souther Florida. The first period started very slowly on offense for both teams as the Canucks outshot the Panthers 4-1 in the first ten minutes. Then Vancouver came to life briefly scoring two goals in a two and a half minute span to take a 2-0 lead. For the first period Vancouver outshot Florida 10-6. The second and third periods saw no more scoring and not many chances although for the final two periods the Panthers did outshoot the Canucks 24-15. The Panthers blew three power play opportunities and did not manage more than one shot on goal during any of their three chances. The Canucks were one for two on their power play opportunity when David Perron scored in the first period. Roberto Luongo earned his third loss and stands 4-3 on the season. He did stop 23 of 25 shots but his offense didn't perform well and could not put the puck past the opposing goalie. The loss, ends the Florida home winning streak at four. The Panthers will be on the road for the rest of the first block playing at New York, Boston and ending the block in Vancouver.

                     Vancouver Canucks at Florida Panthers                       
DATE : 01/05/2008 
 
GOALS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
Vancouver Canucks              2  0  0  0  2  
Florida Panthers               0  0  0  0  0  
 
SHOTS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
Vancouver Canucks              10 8  7  0  25 
Florida Panthers               6  13 11 0  30 
 
S C O R I N G  S U M M A R Y 
1. VAN. JONATHAN TOEWS(1)( KEVIN BIEKSA, DAVID PERRON ): 1st 14:01 
2. VAN. DAVID PERRON(1)( MATTIAS OHLUND, JONATHAN TOEWS ) (PP) : 1st 16:33 
 
 P E N A L T I E S  S U M M A R Y 
1. FLA. JAY BOUWMEESTER - 2 Minutes: 1st 15:52 
2. FLA. LADISLAV SMID - 2 Minutes: 1st 19:47 
3. VAN. KEVIN BIEKSA - 2 Minutes: 1st 19:47 
4. VAN. KEVIN BIEKSA - 2 Minutes: 2nd 9:05 
5. VAN. BENCH PENALTY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 16:34 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY GUILLAUME LATENDRESSE 
7. FLA. ROSTISLAV OLESZ - 2 Minutes: 3rd 5:03 
8. VAN. ALEX BURROWS - 12 Minutes: 3rd 16:26 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY SHEAN DONOVAN 
 
 I N J U R I E S 
NONE 
 
Player Stats For Vancouver Canucks 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
JONATHAN TOEWS                  1   4  1  1   0  0  0   7-3 36 19:45  1   0  1  1  
MASON RAYMOND                   0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 14  8:06  0   0  0  0  
MICHAEL RYDER                   1   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 35 19:26  0   1  1  0  
DAVID PERRON                    1   2  1  1   0  1  0   1-1 35 19:26  0   0  1  0  
KEVIN BIEKSA                    1   1  0  1   4  0  0   0-0 18  9:47  0   0  0  0  
RICHARD PARK                    0   2  0  0   0  0  0   4-0 27 15:49  2   0  0  1  
MATTIAS OHLUND                  0   2  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 45 24:27  0   1  0  1  
TAYLOR PYATT                    0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 24 14:07  0   1  0  1  
ALEX BURROWS                    0   3  0  0  12  0  0   0-0 29 16:34  1   1  1  0  
ADRIAN AUCOIN                   0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 42 25:41  0   1  0  0  
GUILLAUME LATENDRESSE           0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 21 12:32  0   0  1  0  
SAMI SALO                       0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 45 24:27  3   0  1  1  
JARKKO RUUTU                    0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 25 14:35  0   0  0  0  
SEAN BERGENHEIM                 0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 14  8:06  0   0  0  0  
FRANCIS BOUILLON                1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 18  9:47  1   1  0  0  
TREVOR LINDEN                   0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 14  8:06  0   0  1  0  
SHEAN DONOVAN                   0   1  0  0   0  0  0   4-1 28 16:17  1   0  1  0  
BRENDAN WITT                    0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 42 25:41  0   0  0  0  
BENCH                                         2 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                           5  25  2  4  18  1  0  16-5           9   6  8  5 
 
Player Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
OLLI JOKINEN                   -1   1  0  0   0  0  0   7-5 35 20:04  1   0  1  2  
FREDRIK MODIN                   0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 14  8:06  0   0  0  0  
BRENDEN MORROW                 -1   4  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 43 23:52  0   0  1  1  
NATHAN HORTON                  -1   5  0  0   0  0  0   1-0 38 21:44  1   0  1  1  
NIKLAS HAGMAN                   0   4  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 27 15:25  1   0  0  1  
STEPHEN WEISS                   0   1  0  0   0  0  0   3-3 25 14:31  1   0  0  0  
KRISTIAN HUSELIUS               0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 25 14:31  1   0  2  0  
DAVID BOOTH                     0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 14  8:06  0   0  0  1  
ROSTISLAV OLESZ                 0   3  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 23 13:26  2   0  1  0  
LUKAS KRAJICEK                  0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 34 19:02  0   0  0  0  
JAY BOUWMEESTER                 0   3  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 43 23:42  2   1  0  1  
STEVE MONTADOR                  0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 21 12:32  0   0  0  0  
BOYD GORDON                     0   0  0  0   0  0  0   5-3 28 15:34  0   0  0  0  
CORY MURPHY                    -1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 18  9:47  0   0  0  0  
GREGORY CAMPBELL                0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 14  8:06  0   0  0  0  
GREG de VRIES                   0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 46 27:44  0   0  0  0  
ERIC BREWER                     0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 42 25:41  1   1  0  0  
LADISLAV SMID                  -1   0  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 27 13:54  0   0  0  0  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                          -5  30  0  0   6  0  0 16-11          10   2  6  7 
 
Goalie Stats For Vancouver Canucks 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
ALEX AULD                        60     30  0    0  6  6   105  
JASON LaBARBERA                  0      0   0    0  0  0   0    
 
Goalie Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
PETER BUDAJ                      0      0   0    0  0  0   0    
ROBERTO LUONGO                   60     25  2    0  6  6   105  
 
POWER PLAY                    OPP   GOALS 
Vancouver Canucks             2         1 
Florida Panthers              3         0 
 
STARS OF THE GAME 
1st star - ALEX AULD from Vancouver 
2nd star - JONATHAN TOEWS from Vancouver 
3rd star - DAVID PERRON from Vancouver 
 

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Panthers Down Visiting Bruins 2-1

The Florida Panthers home winning streak continued as they defeated the visiting Boston Bruins by a score of 2 to 1. Roberto Luongo had a shutout going until there were 45 seconds left in the game when Mike Knuble drove the puck past the Panther's netminder, but it was too little too late for the Bostoner's. There was no scoring in a first period that saw three penalties, two by the Panthers and one by the Bruins. Boston outshot Florida 12-8 in the first period. Late in the second period Rostislav Olesz gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead when he scored on a long pass by Niklas Hagman. Roberto Luongo also was given an assist on that play, his second assist of the young season. Florida outshot Boston in the second period 10-8. Late in the third period at the 18:14 mark, Nathan Horton scored his third goal of the season to add an insurance goal for the Panthers making it a 2-0 game. It was fortunate that Horton scored that goal because one minute later Luongo's shutout ended on the Knuble goal to make the final score 2-1. Luongo stopped 31 of 32 shots for the Panthers and was a perfect 5-5 on GRs. Boston goalie Hannu Toivonen stopped 29 of 31 shots and was 4-5 on GRs in the loss. Luongo was named first star of the game, and teammates Niklas Hagman and Rostislav Olesz were named the second and third stars.

                       Boston Bruins at Florida Panthers                         
DATE : 01/04/2008 
 
GOALS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
Boston Bruins                  0  0  1  0  1  
Florida Panthers               0  1  1  0  2  
 
SHOTS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
Boston Bruins                  12 8  12 0  32 
Florida Panthers               8  10 13 0  31 
 
S C O R I N G  S U M M A R Y 
1. FLA. ROSTISLAV OLESZ(1)( NIKLAS HAGMAN, ROBERTO LUONGO ): 2nd 15:20 
2. FLA. NATHAN HORTON(3)( BRENDEN MORROW, ERIC BREWER ): 3rd 18:14 
3. BOS. MIKE KNUBLE(1)( SEAN O'DONNELL, JOE THORNTON ): 3rd 19:15 
 
 P E N A L T I E S  S U M M A R Y 
1. FLA. NATHAN HORTON - 2 Minutes: 1st 0:30 
2. BOS. DAVID KREJCI - 2 Minutes: 1st 4:25 
3. FLA. KRISTIAN HUSELIUS - 2 Minutes: 1st 19:13 
4. FLA. NATHAN HORTON - 2 Minutes: 2nd 2:04 
5. BOS. SEAN O'DONNELL - 2 Minutes: 2nd 4:52 
6. FLA. LADISLAV SMID - 2 Minutes: 2nd 7:10 
7. FLA. GREG de VRIES - 2 Minutes: 2nd 16:27 
8. BOS. HAL GILL - 2 Minutes: 3rd 3:59 
9. BOS. P.J. AXELSSON - 2 Minutes: 3rd 8:58 
 
 I N J U R I E S 
NONE 
 
Player Stats For Boston Bruins 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
BRIAN ROLSTON                   0   2  0  0   0  0  0   2-2 38 21:10  2   1  1  2  
JOE THORNTON                    0   3  0  1   0  0  0  11-7 39 21:50  0   0  1  1  
MIKE KNUBLE                     0   4  1  0   0  0  0   0-0 35 19:36  0   1  1  1  
SERGEI GONCHAR                 -1   3  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 40 22:16  0   0  0  1  
PHIL KESSEL                    -1   1  0  0   0  0  0   4-4 25 14:15  0   0  0  1  
GLEN MURRAY                    -1   3  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 25 14:15  0   0  0  0  
ANDY HILBERT                    0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 10  6:01  0   0  0  1  
P.J. AXELSSON                   0   2  0  0   2  0  0   4-0 40 22:36  2   0  0  1  
MIKE GRIER                      0   4  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 32 18:20  1   0  2  1  
MARTIN LAPOINTE                 0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 10  6:01  0   0  0  0  
MARK STUART                     0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 26 14:32  1   0  0  0  
DAVID KREJCI                    0   0  0  0   2  0  0   3-3 23 13:34  0   1  0  0  
NICK BOYNTON                    0   3  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 47 27:14  1   0  0  0  
HAL GILL                       -1   1  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 46 25:39  4   0  0  0  
VLADIMIR SOBOTKA                0   0  0  0   0  0  0   1-1 10  6:01  0   0  0  0  
SEAN O'DONNELL                  0   0  0  1   2  0  0   0-0 36 21:09  1   0  0  0  
MARCEL HOSSA                   -1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 17  9:59  0   0  0  0  
MATT JONES                      0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 15  8:42  0   0  0  0  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                          -5  32  1  2   8  0  0 25-17          12   3  5  9 
 
Player Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
OLLI JOKINEN                    0   6  0  0   0  0  0  14-6 45 25:29  3   0  1  2  
FREDRIK MODIN                   0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 10  6:01  0   0  0  0  
BRENDEN MORROW                  0   4  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 46 25:32  0   2  0  1  
NATHAN HORTON                   0   5  1  0   4  0  0   2-1 37 21:13  0   1  0  2  
NIKLAS HAGMAN                   1   4  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 18 10:23  0   0  0  1  
STEPHEN WEISS                   0   4  0  0   0  0  0   4-1 26 15:08  1   0  0  1  
KRISTIAN HUSELIUS               0   1  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 26 15:08  0   0  0  0  
DAVID BOOTH                     0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 10  6:01  0   0  0  0  
ROSTISLAV OLESZ                 1   2  1  0   0  0  0   0-0 23 13:05  0   0  0  0  
LUKAS KRAJICEK                  1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 31 17:57  0   2  0  0  
JAY BOUWMEESTER                 1   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 49 27:02  0   0  0  1  
STEVE MONTADOR                  0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 23 13:34  0   0  0  0  
BOYD GORDON                     1   2  0  0   0  0  0   4-0 24 13:08  0   0  0  0  
CORY MURPHY                     0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 15  8:42  0   0  0  0  
GREGORY CAMPBELL                0   0  0  0   0  0  0   1-0 10  6:01  0   1  0  0  
GREG de VRIES                   0   0  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 46 26:47  0   1  0  0  
ERIC BREWER                     0   0  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 41 24:02  0   4  0  0  
LADISLAV SMID                   0   1  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 28 15:02  1   2  0  0  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                           5  31  2  3  10  0  0  25-8           5  13  1  8 
 
Goalie Stats For Boston Bruins 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
TUUKKA RASK                      0      0   0    0  0  0   0    
HANNU TOIVONEN                   59     31  2    0  5  4   104  
 
Goalie Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
PETER BUDAJ                      0      0   0    0  0  0   0    
ROBERTO LUONGO                   60     32  1    0  5  5   105  
 
POWER PLAY                    OPP   GOALS 
Boston Bruins                 5         0 
Florida Panthers              4         0 
 
STARS OF THE GAME 
1st star - ROBERTO LUONGO from Florida 
2nd star - NIKLAS HAGMAN from Florida 
3rd star - ROSTISLAV OLESZ from Florida 
 

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Florida Defeats Visiting New Jersey

The Florida Panthers looked for a little vengence agianst the team that knocked them out of the first round of last year's playoffs and they got their vengence a little by knocking off the visiting New Jersey Devils by the score of 5 to 3. Florida came into the contest 2-0-1 and from the start it looked bad for the Panthers just 30 seconds into the game when Lukas Krajicek took a penalty giving the Devils the first shot at a power play opportunity. The Devils were unable to execute on the power play though they managed four early shots on goal all stopped by Roberto Luongo. Just over a minute later though, Keith Tkachuk took advantage of a breakaway and drilled one past the Florida netminder to give the Devils a 1-0 lead. New Jersey center Scott Gomez took a penalty for slashing at 7:59 and right off the faceoff Nate Horton tied the score for the Panthers. Less than two minutes after that Stephen Weiss gave the Panthers a one goal lead as he sneaked one past the Devils goalie Martin Brodeur. Later in the first perioed Keith Tkachuk evened the score with his second goal of the game. Florida outshot New Jersey 12-11 in the first period. Into the second period, Mark Parrish scored on a Devils power play to give New Jersey the lead once again. Later in the period Niklas Hagman and Olli Jokinen would each score giving the Panthers a 4-3 edge going into the third period. The Panthers held off two Devils power plays in the third period and managed to score an insurance goal. Niklas Hagman scored his second goal of the game at 15:23 to help insure the Panthers victory. For the game the Panthers were 1 of 2 on the power play while the Devils managed 1 out of 6 chances with the man advantage. Brodeur stopped 33 of 38 shots against him while Luongo stopped 32 of 35 for the Panthers. Hagman with his two goals was named first star of the game while Devils forward Keith Tkachuk with his two goals earned the second star. Brenden Morrow added two assists to give him 9 points in the first four games of the season and earned the third star for the game.

                     New Jersey Devils at Florida Panthers                       
DATE : 01/03/2008 
 
GOALS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
New Jersey Devils              2  1  0  0  3  
Florida Panthers               2  2  1  0  5  
 
SHOTS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
New Jersey Devils              11 11 13 0  35 
Florida Panthers               12 16 10 0  38 
 
S C O R I N G  S U M M A R Y 
1. NJD. KEITH TKACHUK(1)( PATRIK ELIAS, VIKTOR KOZLOV ): 1st 3:49 
2. FLA. NATHAN HORTON(2)( BRENDEN MORROW, JAY BOUWMEESTER ) (PP) : 1st 7:59 
3. FLA. STEPHEN WEISS(1)( KRISTIAN HUSELIUS, CORY MURPHY ): 1st 9:29 
4. NJD. KEITH TKACHUK(2)( PATRIK ELIAS, BRIAN RAFALSKI ): 1st 18:44 
5. NJD. MARK PARRISH(1)( BRIAN GIONTA, KEITH TKACHUK ) (PP) : 2nd 6:19 
6. FLA. NIKLAS HAGMAN(2)( BOYD GORDON, LUKAS KRAJICEK ): 2nd 15:15 
7. FLA. OLLI JOKINEN(4)( BRENDEN MORROW ): 2nd 19:11 
8. FLA. NIKLAS HAGMAN(3)( LUKAS KRAJICEK, ROSTISLAV OLESZ ): 3rd 15:23 
 
 P E N A L T I E S  S U M M A R Y 
1. FLA. LUKAS KRAJICEK - 2 Minutes: 1st 0:30 
2. NJD. SCOTT GOMEZ - 2 Minutes: 1st 7:59 
3. FLA. LUKAS KRAJICEK - 2 Minutes: 1st 11:53 
4. FLA. NATHAN HORTON - 2 Minutes: 1st 16:27 
5. FLA. BRENDEN MORROW - 4 Minutes: 2nd 1:38 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY NATHAN HORTON 
7. NJD. BRIAN GIONTA - 2 Minutes: 2nd 1:38 
8. FLA. BENCH PENALTY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 4:53 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY KRISTIAN HUSELIUS 
10. NJD. ANDY GREENE - 2 Minutes: 2nd 12:26 
11. FLA. JAY BOUWMEESTER - 2 Minutes: 3rd 11:18 
12. NJD. BRIAN GIONTA - 2 Minutes: 3rd 11:18 
13. FLA. OLLI JOKINEN - 2 Minutes: 3rd 13:00 
 
 I N J U R I E S 
NONE 
 
Player Stats For New Jersey Devils 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
SCOTT GOMEZ                    -1   2  0  0   2  0  0   6-5 31 16:43  0   1  0  0  
JAY PANDOLFO                    0   1  0  0   0  0  0   3-0 17  8:52  0   0  0  0  
PATRIK ELIAS                    1   2  0  2   0  0  0   2-1 32 18:49  0   0  0  1  
BRIAN GIONTA                   -1   3  0  1   4  0  0   0-0 32 17:30  1   0  2  2  
STEVE REINPRECHT               -2   1  0  0   0  0  0   1-1 21 13:22  0   0  0  0  
BRIAN RAFALSKI                 -1   5  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 52 28:45  1   0  1  2  
KEITH TKACHUK                   1   5  2  1   0  0  0  11-5 33 19:16  1   1  0  1  
TRAVIS ZAJAC                    0   0  0  0   0  0  0   1-1 12  6:50  0   0  0  0  
JAMIE LANGENBRUNNER            -2   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 37 20:56  0   0  1  2  
MARK PARRISH                   -1   4  1  0   0  1  0   0-0 35 18:52  1   0  1  1  
VIKTOR KOZLOV                   1   2  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 35 20:11  1   0  0  1  
ROB BLAKE                       1   7  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 38 21:46  0   1  0  2  
DAVID CLARKSON                  0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 12  6:50  0   0  0  0  
CHRIS GRATTON                  -2   0  0  0   0  0  0   5-2 21 13:22  0   0  0  0  
JOHNNY ODUYA                   -1   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 43 24:34  1   1  0  0  
MIKE MOTTAU                    -2   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 15  9:24  0   0  0  0  
ANDY GREENE                    -2   0  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 15  9:24  0   1  0  0  
COLIN WHITE                     1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 36 20:25  1   0  0  0  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                         -10  35  3  6   8  1  0 29-15           7   5  5 12 
 
Player Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
OLLI JOKINEN                    1   3  1  0   2  0  0   9-3 36 19:03  1   0  0  1  
FREDRIK MODIN                   0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 12  6:50  0   0  0  0  
BRENDEN MORROW                  1   4  0  2   4  0  0   1-1 37 19:32  1   0  1  1  
NATHAN HORTON                   1   3  1  0   2  1  0   1-1 29 15:22  0   0  0  1  
NIKLAS HAGMAN                   2   4  2  0   0  0  0   1-1 27 16:08  0   0  1  2  
STEPHEN WEISS                  -1   3  1  0   0  0  0   6-3 22 13:44  0   0  0  0  
KRISTIAN HUSELIUS              -1   4  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 25 15:26  0   0  1  1  
DAVID BOOTH                     0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 12  6:50  0   0  0  0  
ROSTISLAV OLESZ                 2   3  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 28 16:45  0   0  0  1  
LUKAS KRAJICEK                  1   1  0  2   4  0  0   0-0 36 21:11  1   2  0  0  
JAY BOUWMEESTER                 1   2  0  1   2  0  0   0-0 52 28:45  1   1  0  1  
STEVE MONTADOR                 -1   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 22 13:44  0   0  0  0  
BOYD GORDON                     2   3  0  1   0  0  0  10-5 32 18:54  1   0  0  0  
CORY MURPHY                     2   2  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 15  9:24  1   0  0  0  
GREGORY CAMPBELL                0   3  0  0   0  0  0   1-0 12  6:50  0   0  0  0  
GREG de VRIES                  -1   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 43 23:48  2   0  0  0  
ERIC BREWER                    -1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 38 21:46  1   1  0  0  
LADISLAV SMID                   2   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 26 14:56  1   0  0  0  
BENCH                                         2 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                          10  38  5  9  16  1  0 29-14          10   4  3  8 
 
Goalie Stats For New Jersey Devils 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
MARTIN BRODEUR                   60     38  5    0  10 5   105  
SCOTT CLEMMENSEN                 0      0   0    0  0  0   0    
 
Goalie Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
PETER BUDAJ                      0      0   0    0  0  0   0    
ROBERTO LUONGO                   60     35  3    0  5  3   105  
 
POWER PLAY                    OPP   GOALS 
New Jersey Devils             6         1 
Florida Panthers              2         1 
 
STARS OF THE GAME 
1st star - NIKLAS HAGMAN from Florida 
2nd star - KEITH TKACHUK from New Jersey 
3rd star - BRENDEN MORROW from Florida 
 

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Panthers bounce back after road loss

The hometown Miami fans had a lot to cheer about as the Florida Panthers defeated the visiting New York Rangers 6-4. Olli Jokinen scored twice and added an assist on another goal by Brenden Morrow. For the game the Panthers outshot the Rangers 40-26 and a late goal by Daniel Paille made the score closer than it actually was. Jay Bouwmeester opened the scoring with a power play goal at the 4:14 mark of the first period. David Booth scored two minutes later to give the Panthers a 2-0 lead. Two minutes after that, Boyd Gordon put one past the New York netminder to make it 3-0. Ryan Callahan put the Rangers on the board at 15:17 of the first period to make it a 3-1 game. Still in the first period Brenden Morrow scored his first goal of the season. The Panthers outshot the Rangers 17-7 in the first period. After such a wild scoring first period things settled down a little bit in the second period. Olli Jokinen scored his first of the game at the 17:08 mark on a power play. He was assisted by Brenden Morrow and Jay Bouwmeester. Just before the end of the second period, Daniel Girardi sneaked the puck past the Florida goalie Roberto Luongo to make it a 5-2 contest. Early in the third period Ales Kotalik scored on a power play for the Rangers to make it a 5-3 game. Seven minutes later, Olli Jokinen scored his second goal of the game to make it 6-3 for Florida. With just two seconds left on the clock the Rangers' Daniel Paille scored to make the final score 6-4. This win gives the Panthers a 2-0-1 record early in the 2008-2009 season. Florida was 2-6 on the power play while the Rangers netted one out of two in power play chances. Brent Johnson started the game for the Rangers and was removed after the Panthers fourth goal in the first period. He stopped 11 of 15 shots against him. Henrik Lundqvist came in to relieve the beleaguered netminder and in his 42 minutes on the ice he stopped 23 of 25 shots against him. Roberto Luongo went the whole way for the Panthers stopping 22 of 26 shots against. Olli Jokinen was named first star with Brenden Morrow and Jay Bouwmeester earning the second and third stars respectively.

                      New York Rangers at Florida Panthers                       
DATE : 01/02/2008 
 
GOALS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
New York Rangers               1  1  2  0  4  
Florida Panthers               4  1  1  0  6  
 
SHOTS                          1  2  3 OT  F 
New York Rangers               7  7  12 0  26 
Florida Panthers               17 13 10 0  40 
 
S C O R I N G  S U M M A R Y 
1. FLA. JAY BOUWMEESTER(2)( BRENDEN MORROW, NATHAN HORTON ) (PP) : 1st 4:14 
2. FLA. DAVID BOOTH(1)( FREDRIK MODIN, JAY BOUWMEESTER ): 1st 6:11 
3. FLA. BOYD GORDON(1)( ROSTISLAV OLESZ ): 1st 8:20 
4. NYR. RYAN CALLAHAN(1)( UNASSISTED ): 1st 15:17 
5. FLA. BRENDEN MORROW(1)( LUKAS KRAJICEK, OLLI JOKINEN ): 1st 17:31 
6. FLA. OLLI JOKINEN(2)( BRENDEN MORROW, JAY BOUWMEESTER ) (PP) : 2nd 17:08 
7. NYR. DANIEL GIRARDI(1)( NICKLAS BACKSTROM, DANIEL PAILLE ): 2nd 19:25 
8. NYR. ALES KOTALIK(1)( NICKLAS BACKSTROM, NIGEL DAWES ) (PP) : 3rd 6:24 
9. FLA. OLLI JOKINEN(3)( BRENDEN MORROW ): 3rd 13:01 
10. NYR. DANIEL PAILLE(1)( ALES KOTALIK, NICKLAS BACKSTROM ): 3rd 19:58 
 
 P E N A L T I E S  S U M M A R Y 
1. NYR. JONI PITKANEN - 4 Minutes: 1st 2:48 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY NICKLAS BACKSTROM 
3. FLA. ERIC BREWER - 2 Minutes: 1st 2:48 
4. NYR. MIKE YORK - 2 Minutes: 1st 10:36 
5. FLA. FREDRIK MODIN - 2 Minutes: 1st 10:36 
6. NYR. RYAN KESLER - 4 Minutes: 1st 11:16 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY NATHAN PAETSCH 
8. FLA. BRENDEN MORROW - 2 Minutes: 1st 11:16 
9. NYR. ROB DAVISON - 2 Minutes: 2nd 2:06 
10. NYR. ROB DAVISON - 4 Minutes: 2nd 8:19 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY BRANDON DUBINSKY 
12. FLA. GREG de VRIES - 2 Minutes: 2nd 8:19 
13. FLA. BOYD GORDON - 2 Minutes: 2nd 12:57 
14. NYR. BENCH PENALTY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 16:30 
     EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY BRANDON DUBINSKY 
16. NYR. NICKLAS BACKSTROM - 2 Minutes: 3rd 3:09 
17. FLA. NIKLAS HAGMAN - 2 Minutes: 3rd 5:39 
18. NYR. RYAN KESLER - 2 Minutes: 3rd 7:58 
19. FLA. BRENDEN MORROW - 2 Minutes: 3rd 7:58 
 
 I N J U R I E S 
NONE 
 
Player Stats For New York Rangers 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
NICKLAS BACKSTROM               2   2  0  3   2  0  0   4-4 31 17:23  0   0  1  0  
ALES KOTALIK                    2   3  1  1   0  1  0   1-0 34 19:08  0   0  1  1  
DANIEL PAILLE                   2   1  1  1   0  0  0   0-0 41 22:56  1   0  0  0  
MIKE COMRIE                    -1   0  0  0   0  0  0   3-0 17  9:46  0   0  0  1  
CLARKE MacARTHUR                0   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 13  7:55  0   1  0  0  
BRANDON DUBINSKY               -2   1  0  0   0  0  0   8-7 23 13:25  0   1  0  1  
MIKE YORK                      -1   0  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 13  7:55  0   0  0  0  
NIGEL DAWES                    -1   6  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 22 12:10  1   0  2  1  
RYAN CALLAHAN                   0   1  1  0   0  0  0   0-0 21 11:57  0   1  0  0  
DANIEL GIRARDI                 -2   1  1  0   0  0  0   0-0 62 35:01  1   0  0  0  
RYAN KESLER                    -2   5  0  0   6  0  0   8-4 40 22:14  2   1  0  3  
STEVE OTT                      -2   0  0  0   0  0  0   1-0 27 15:49  0   2  0  0  
JONI PITKANEN                   0   2  0  0   4  0  0   0-0 28 15:51  2   0  0  0  
DOMINIC MOORE                   0   2  0  0   0  0  0   4-1 15  8:56  0   0  0  0  
FEDOR TYUTIN                   -2   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 54 30:53  1   1  0  0  
NATHAN PAETSCH                  1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 13  7:58  0   1  0  0  
ROB DAVISON                     0   1  0  0   6  0  0   0-0 31 17:32  1   2  0  0  
MARC STAAL                      1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 17 10:03  1   1  1  0  
BENCH                                         2 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                          -5  26  4  6  22  1  0 29-16          10  11  5  7 
 
Player Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS 
OLLI JOKINEN                    2  11  2  1   0  1  0  13-5 42 23:46  0   0  2  3  
FREDRIK MODIN                   0   0  0  1   2  0  0   1-1 13  7:55  0   0  0  0  
BRENDEN MORROW                  2   5  1  3   4  0  0   1-0 42 23:37  0   1  1  3  
NATHAN HORTON                   2   5  0  1   0  0  0   3-2 40 22:41  0   0  2  3  
NIKLAS HAGMAN                   1   0  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 20 11:08  0   1  0  0  
STEPHEN WEISS                  -2   1  0  0   0  0  0   5-1 27 15:20  4   0  0  0  
KRISTIAN HUSELIUS              -2   4  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 31 17:32  0   0  1  1  
DAVID BOOTH                     0   3  1  0   0  0  0   0-0 13  7:55  1   0  1  1  
ROSTISLAV OLESZ                 1   0  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 17  9:46  1   0  0  0  
LUKAS KRAJICEK                  2   1  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 44 26:04  0   2  0  0  
JAY BOUWMEESTER                 2   1  1  2   0  1  0   0-0 61 34:40  0   3  1  2  
STEVE MONTADOR                 -2   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 26 14:59  1   0  0  0  
BOYD GORDON                     1   3  1  0   2  0  0   5-3 20 11:09  0   1  0  0  
CORY MURPHY                    -1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 12  7:18  0   0  0  0  
GREGORY CAMPBELL                0   1  0  0   0  0  0   1-1 13  7:55  0   0  0  0  
GREG de VRIES                   0   2  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 41 22:43  1   0  0  0  
ERIC BREWER                     0   0  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 32 17:53  1   1  0  0  
LADISLAV SMID                  -1   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 20 11:04  3   0  0  0  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
TOTAL                           5  40  6 10  14  2  0 29-13          12   9  8 13 
 
Goalie Stats For New York Rangers 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
BRENT JOHNSON                    18     15  4    0  4  2   31   GF 
HENRIK LUNDQVIST                 42     25  2    0  7  5   74   
 
Goalie Stats For Florida Panthers 
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS 
PETER BUDAJ                      0      0   0    0  0  0   0    
ROBERTO LUONGO                   60     26  4    0  10 7   105  
 
POWER PLAY                    OPP   GOALS 
New York Rangers              2         1 
Florida Panthers              6         2 
 
STARS OF THE GAME 
1st star - OLLI JOKINEN from Florida 
2nd star - BRENDEN MORROW from Florida 
3rd star - JAY BOUWMEESTER from Florida 
 

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Flyers Tame Wild In Opener, 5-1

Special Teams & Giguere Lift Flyers

Philadelphia,PA- The Flyers got a couple of PP goals from Dany Heatley & two short handed goals, one each from Patrick Sharp & Jeff Carter, to go along with spectacular goaltending from J.S. Giguere, enroute to a 5-1 victory over the defending North West Conference Champions, the Minnesota Wild.

The Flyers came out with an 8-1 shot advantage to start the game, but by the time the period ended, the Flyers held a 10-9 edge in the 1-1 game. With Michal Rozsival in the box with the season's first penalty (hooking), Sharp had control of the puck & made two nice skating moves out of the zone, and was able to break in on Brian Boucher & beat him (G-14), to give the Flyers their first goal of the season & a 1-0 lead at 11:19. The lead didn't last long, 4 minutes later, Pierre-Marc Bouchard deflected A Jordan Leopold shot from the point past Giguere, who would make 31 saves & 12/12 GRs.

In second, the Wild seemed to control the play, outshooting the Flyers 14-7, but Giguere was unbeatable, and the Flyers broke the 1-1 tie when Dany Heatley scored on the Power Play at 17:10 to take the 2-1 lead into the locker room.

At 3:19 of the 3rd, Slava Kozlov scored his first of the year to make it 3-1. After the ensuing faceoff, Brent Burns took a frustration penalty when he slashed Flyer defenseman Braydon Coburn, putting the Flyers back up on the man advantage. On the PP, Heatley took advantage of a Nick Schultz giveaway & burried the puck in behind Boucher for the 4-1 lead at 4:16. With a comfortable 4-1 lead, Coburn took revenge on Burns at 7:53, but the ref saw it and blew the whistle. Coburn for 2...elbowing. The Flyers finishe the Wild off when Carter scored the team's 2nd shorthanded goal of the game at 8:37.

The Flyers' special teams shined, as Coach Keith Jones expected. 2-5 on the PP & 5-5 on the PK with 2 SHGs.

Next up for the Flyers: division rival Boston Bruins.

Panthers Win Home Opener 3-2 In Shootout

Opening night in Miami began with high hopes of a good season to come but the crowd quickly realized that the Anaheim Ducks came to play. After a scoreless first period that saw Anaheim outshoot Florida 9-8, Sergei Fedorov sneaked one past the hometown goalie to give the Ducks a 1-0 lead. Eleven minutes later Mathieu Dandenault increased the lead for the Ducks to 2-0 when he drilled one past an out of position Luongo. The Panthers regrouped and late in the second period Niklas Hagman made it a one goal game when he took a pass from Rotislav Olesz and drilled it past Olaf Kolzig. The Panthers outshot the Ducks 12-9 in the second period. Alexei Ponikarovsky took a late penalty in the second period which carried over into the third. Fifteen seconds into the third period, with the Panthers still on the power play, Olli Jokinen drilled a one-timer past Kolzig to tie the game 2-2. The score would remain knotted through multiple power play opportunities for each team through the third period and on into overtime. The 4-4 skate could not decide the contest and on into a shootout the two teams went. First to shoot was Alexander Ovechkin who nearly got the puck by the Panthers goalie. Luongo made another save on Sergei Fedorov and Olaf Kolzig saved a very good shot from Florida winger Brenden Morrow. Next up was Jokinen who was lucky as anything as he appeared to trip on the blue line only to sneak the puck past a leaning Kolzig to give the Panthers a slight edge in the shootout. Finally it was up to the Ducks forward Vaclav Prospal who skated in hard on Luongo only to sail a backhander wide of the open side post giving the hometown fans their victory at last. For the game the Ducks outshot the Panthers 36-29. Roberto Luongo made 34 saves on the 36 Anaheim shots and was 5-7 on GRS. Olie Kolzig made 27 saves on the 29 Florida shots and was 5-6 on GRS. Florida was successful on 1 in 5 power play opportunities while the Ducks managed 1 out of 3. Niklas Hagman was the first star putting the Panthers on the board in the second period four shots on goal and had one hit. Luongo was second star with his 34 saves and Alexander Ovechkin with an assist on the Sergei Fedorov power play goal in the second period was the third star. Some could have argued though that Jokinen was deserving of the first star with his game tying goal and then game winning marker in the shootout. If I were the judge, I would definitely have given it to Jokinen who scored the game winner. Top notch performance by the cats as they come from behind against arguably a better team in this home opener.

                      Anaheim Ducks at Florida Panthers                        
DATE : 01/01/2008

GOALS                          1  2  3 OT    SO     F
Anaheim Ducks                  0  2  0  0  0 (0 -3 )2 
Florida Panthers               0  1  1  0  1 (1 -2 )3 

SHOTS                          1  2  3 OT  F
Anaheim Ducks                  9  9  16 2  36
Florida Panthers               8  12 9  0  29

S C O R I N G  S U M M A R Y
1. ANA. SERGEI FEDOROV(1)( ALEXANDER OVECHKIN, JASON ARNOTT ) (PP) : 2nd 2:24
2. ANA. MATHIEU DANDENAULT(1)( CAM BARKER ): 2nd 13:29
3. FLA. NIKLAS HAGMAN(1)( ROSTISLAV OLESZ ): 2nd 18:02
4. FLA. OLLI JOKINEN(1)( JAY BOUWMEESTER, BRENDEN MORROW ) (PP) : 3rd 0:15

S H O O T O U T  S U M M A R Y 
1. ANA. ALEXANDER OVECHKIN - Save by ROBERTO LUONGO
2. FLA. BRENDEN MORROW - Save by OLAF KOLZIG
3. ANA. SERGEI FEDOROV - Save by ROBERTO LUONGO
4. FLA. OLLI JOKINEN - Score! (ANA-0 FLA-1)(GDG)
5. ANA. VACLAV PROSPAL - Wide.

P E N A L T I E S  S U M M A R Y
1. ANA. KIM JOHNSSON - 2 Minutes: 1st 0:30
2. ANA. FRANCOIS BEAUCHEMIN - 2 Minutes: 1st 12:24
3. FLA. BENCH PENALTY - 2 Minutes: 1st 17:33
    EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY CORY MURPHY
5. FLA. BRENDEN MORROW - 4 Minutes: 2nd 1:05
    EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY NATHAN HORTON
7. ANA. ALES HEMSKY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 1:05
8. ANA. DAVE STECKEL - 4 Minutes: 2nd 5:27
    EXTRA PENALTY SERVED BY MATHIEU DANDENAULT
10. FLA. KAMIL KREPS - 2 Minutes: 2nd 5:27
11. FLA. GREG de VRIES - 5 Minutes: 2nd 14:11
12. ANA. CAM BARKER - 5 Minutes: 2nd 14:11
13. ANA. ALEXEI PONIKAROVSKY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 18:35
14. ANA. FRANCOIS BEAUCHEMIN - 2 Minutes: 3rd 4:58
15. FLA. JAY BOUWMEESTER - 2 Minutes: 3rd 4:58
16. ANA. JAN HEJDA - 2 Minutes: 3rd 11:17
17. FLA. DARRYL SYDOR - 2 Minutes: 3rd 13:34
18. ANA. CAM BARKER - 2 Minutes: OT 3:31
19. FLA. GREG de VRIES - 2 Minutes: OT 3:31

I N J U R I E S
NONE

Player Stats For Anaheim Ducks
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS
ALEXANDER OVECHKIN              0   8  0  1   0  0  0   4-1 38 21:29  4   0  1  1 
VACLAV PROSPAL                  0   2  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 25 14:56  0   0  1  1 
JASON ARNOTT                    0   1  0  1   0  0  0   5-2 32 17:59  0   0  0  1 
SERGEI FEDOROV                  0   2  1  0   0  1  0   9-6 38 21:24  0   0  0  1 
RYAN SHANNON                   -1   2  0  0   0  0  0   2-1 23 13:19  0   0  0  0 
MARKUS NASLUND                  0   6  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 28 16:15  0   0  0  0 
MATHIEU DANDENAULT              0   2  1  0   0  0  0   1-0 19 10:34  0   0  0  0 
ALES HEMSKY                     0   3  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 35 20:10  1   0  0  1 
TRENT HUNTER                   -1   3  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 33 18:49  1   0  0  2 
ALEXEI PONIKAROVSKY            -1   0  0  0   2  0  0   1-0 25 14:48  1   1  0  1 
KIM JOHNSSON                    0   1  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 43 24:28  1   3  0  0 
TREVOR LETOWSKI                 1   1  0  0   0  0  0   3-0 17  9:11  0   0  0  0 
DAVE STECKEL                    1   0  0  0   4  0  0   2-2  9  5:10  0   0  0  0 
CAM BARKER                      1   0  0  1   7  0  0   0-0 42 24:24  0   1  0  0 
FRANCOIS BEAUCHEMIN             0   3  0  0   4  0  0   0-0 39 22:52  3   1  0  0 
NICLAS HAVELID                  0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 29 16:25  0   1  0  0 
KEITH CARNEY                    0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 19 10:50  1   0  1  0 
JAN HEJDA                       0   2  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 43 25:04  1   1  0  0 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL                           0  36  2  3  23  1  0 27-12          13   8  3  8

Player Stats For Florida Panthers
PLAYER                        +/- SOG  G  A PIM PP SH  FO-W AC    IT TA HIT SP AS
OLLI JOKINEN                    0   5  1  0   0  1  0 17-12 46 26:23  0   0  0  2 
FREDRIK MODIN                  -1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0  9  5:10  0   0  0  0 
BRENDEN MORROW                  0   5  0  1   4  0  0   1-0 50 27:59  1   0  2  2 
NATHAN HORTON                   0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 38 21:24  0   0  0  1 
NIKLAS HAGMAN                   1   4  1  0   0  0  0   0-0 32 18:28  2   1  1  1 
KRISTIAN HUSELIUS               0   2  0  0   0  0  0   1-0 27 16:03  0   0  0  2 
STEPHEN WEISS                   0   2  0  0   0  0  0   3-2 23 13:46  0   0  0  0 
DAVID BOOTH                    -1   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0  9  5:10  0   0  0  0 
ROSTISLAV OLESZ                 1   2  0  1   0  0  0   0-0 22 12:45  0   0  0  0 
JAY BOUWMEESTER                 0   1  0  1   2  0  0   0-0 57 31:43  0   1  0  1 
STEVE MONTADOR                  0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 22 13:08  0   0  0  0 
KAMIL KREPS                    -1   1  0  0   2  0  0   2-0  9  5:10  0   0  0  0 
BOYD GORDON                     1   2  0  0   0  0  0   3-1 31 17:09  0   0  0  0 
CORY MURPHY                     0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 19 10:50  0   1  0  0 
DARRYL SYDOR                    0   2  0  0   2  0  0   0-0 38 21:57  1   1  0  0 
GREG de VRIES                  -1   2  0  0   7  0  0   0-0 42 24:35  1   0  0  0 
ERIC BREWER                     0   0  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 37 22:12  0   3  0  0 
LADISLAV SMID                   1   1  0  0   0  0  0   0-0 33 18:13  1   1  0  0 
BENCH                                         2
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL                           0  29  2  3  19  1  0 27-15           6   8  3  9

Goalie Stats For Anaheim Ducks
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS
OLAF KOLZIG                      65     29  2    0  6  5   113 LOSS
KARI LEHTONEN                    0      0   0    0  0  0   0   

Goalie Stats For Florida Panthers
PLAYER                          MIN  SHOTS GA  ENG GR GRS
PETER BUDAJ                      0      0   0    0  0  0   0   
ROBERTO LUONGO                   65     36  2    0  7  5   113 WIN

POWER PLAY                    OPP   GOALS
Anaheim Ducks                 3         1
Florida Panthers              5         1

STARS OF THE GAME
1st star - NIKLAS HAGMAN from Florida
2nd star - ROBERTO LUONGO from Florida
3rd star - ALEXANDER OVECHKIN from Anaheim

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FLYERS LOOK FORWARD TO SEASON'S START

FLYERS 2008-09 HBMHL PREVIEW



PHILADELPHIA, PA- With the start of the season just days away the Flyers wrapped up a promising camp. On their home ice the summer, they posted a 7-3-0 record, but the Flyers really wanted to see how the chemistry of the top line would develop. Dany Heatley-Mike Richards-Patrick Sharp combined for 17 goals, 24 assists, & 41 points in those 10 games. Let's take a look at the team:

LOSSES FROM LAST YEAR:

Marc-Andre Bergeron (traded), Dany Markov (signed in Europe), Erik Cole (traded), R.J Umberger (traded), Jeff O'Neill (retired), Ryan Potulny (traded), Alexander Picard (traded), Denis Seidenberg (sold), Michal Handzus (traded), Daniel Tjarnqvist (retired), & Branko Radivojevic (Free Agency).

ACQUISITIONS THIS SEASON:

Jason Blake (trade), Sergei Brylin (waivers), Steve Downie (draft), David Jones (draft), Randy Jones (trade), Tyler Kennedy (trade), Andreas Lilja (free agent), Dean McAmmond (trade), Brian Pothier (free agent), Denis Tolpeko (draft), Scottie Upshall (trade), 1st season eligible: Jeremy Colliton & Ryan Parent.

GOALTENDING:

This area is much improved over last season. Number 1 goalie, J.S. Giguere (NHL: 2.12GA & .923 SV) had a solid camp, 6-1 with a 2.20 GA & .923SV in 8 games. He should improve on his 2.62 GA from last year, especially with an improved Defense in front of him. Antero Niittymaki (NHL: 2.91, .907) is much improved over his prior year (NHL 3.39, .894). The Flyers expect to see Nitty play about 25 games this season. His stats were a bit inflated for camp, he played in 3 games but one bad outing in 2 periods did some damage to his numbers...best kept unsaid! This past week the Flyers claimed goaltending prospect Dan LaCosta off waivers & assigned him to the minors. He will be ineligible this season, but the Flyers believe that he will be a HBMHL caliber goalie in the future.



DEFENSE:

The Flyers believe that they have improved in this area, however they come into the season without their top 3 +/- guys from last season: Marc-Andre Bergeron (+15), Dany Markov (+15), & Denis Seidenberg (+8 in 30gms) and have no 4-rated d-men. This year's top line is slated to be Braydon Coburn (NHL: 9-27-36, 5ppg) & Michal Rozsival (NHL: 13-25-38, 6PP) both are 3 rated D even & short. The 2nd pairing looks to be new comers Randy Jones (NHL: 5-26-31) & Andreas Lilja (NHL: 2-10-12) bothe solid all-around 3's. The 3rd pairing will be Lasse Kukkonen (1-4-5) & Mike Commodore (3-11-14) both are 2's but 3's on the PK. Commodore out played Lilja in camp & if he continues to do so, will jump into the 2nd pairing. Additional D: Bret Hedican (2-15-17 in 66gm) will try to play his way into the lineup. Rookie Ryan Parent (0-0-0 in 22 gms) will play mostly in the minors but may see some action to cover injuries, he was a +3 in 3 pre-season games. Brian Pothier (5-9-14 in 38GM) was a FA pick up this season. He will see plenty of time, but a sore shoulder will limit him this year. Will be a big help on the offensive end for the defense. Nate Guenin (2gm) will be designated to his junior team.



OFFENSE:

The Flyers should be a potent offensive force this year with a strong first line & consistent scorers beyond. One big problem will be Simon Gagne being out with a concussion sustained in preseason. He will be out until Block 6. As stated above, Heatley (41-41-82) - Richards (28-47-75) - Sharp (36-26-62), should be an explosive line & the Flyers are hoping that the other lines will produce in helping to keep this line together. Although the remaining lines are not quite set in stone, the 2nd line at press time is set as Jeff Carter (29-24-53) centering for Slava Kozlov (17-24-41) & Antti Meittinen (15-19-34). The 3rd line may have Brooks Laich (21-16-37) between Scottie Upshall (14-16-30) & Jason Blake (15-37-52) & the 4th line of Dean McAmmond (9-13-22) between rookie Tyler Kennedy (10-9-19) & Mark Recchi (14-34-48).

Veteran Jim Dowd (5-5-10), who may be entering his final season, should see his share of playing time. Sergei Brylin (6-10-16 82gm) was picked up to help fill voids at all forward positions. Rookie Steve Downie (6-6-12 32gm) leads the remaining forwards, all who are young: Jeremy Colliton (0-0-0 16gm), Draft pick David Jones (2-4-6 27gm) who played well in the preseason, Stefan Ruzicka (1-3-4 14gm), & Denis Tolpeko (1-5-6 26gm). Designated to the Junior Leagues are two blue chip prospects, Claude Giroux & Chris Bourque (son of Ray). The Flyers are weak in the area of depth here, but believe that these young players will blossom in the minors & hope to make an even stronger impact next season.


SPECIAL TEAMS:

The Flyers Power Play should be one of the strongest in the league. Coach Keith Jones has said that he wants to keep the Richards line together with the man advantage with Coburn & Rozsival on the blueline. They will go with Laich-Carter-Meittinen as the 2nd line having Randy Jones & Recchi quarterbacking.

If the preseason is any indication of how the season will go, the Penalty Killing units will be a lot busier than the PP units. In 10 games, the Flyers had 31 man-advantages, while their opponents had 49. The big thing that the PK will have do to is not skate their way into giving their opponent the big scoring chance. The Flyers have 13 players with a 3 SH D-rating, and 4 players with a SK14, 1 with a 12, 1 with a 10, & 3 lower but with (1)'s, including McAmmond's 8(3). Eight players have the ability to skate out of the zone for breakaway scoring chances.


OUTLOOK:

Expect to see the Flyers in the race for their division & a home ice spot for the playoffs. Coach Jones was disappointed in the team's lack of goal scoring at the end of the season & the team's poor play at home in the playoffs. A poor start could be critical. The first block has them playing 8 games out of conference & 2 games with the Bruins. They were 13-9-0 against the Northwest last season & 4-4 against the Bruins.