Horrible Third Period Costs Flyers Game

Heading into the third period against the Atlanta Thrashers, the Philadelphia Flyers led 3-1.  On the strength of three second period goals, they had taken total control of the game and looked to erase the memory of Sunday’s ugly loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

With a 22-0-2 record for the season when leading after two periods, the game seemed to be in the bag.  But for the second straight game, Philadelphia lost a home game by giving up a goal late in the third period. 

The Flyers came into the game after a four day layoff.  They looked a bit flat early, and trailed 1-0 after one period on Jim Slater’s first goal of the game. 

But the second period was a much different story.  Claude Giroux electrified the crowd with a highlight reel goal, stickhandling down the left side, cutting through a couple of Thrashers defenders, and around goaltender Johan Hedberg to put the puck into a yawning cage.  It was Giroux’ first goal in seven games and knotted the score at 1-1.

Less than four minutes later, the Flyers took the lead as Giroux set up Arron Asham for the marker.  James van Riemsdyk started the play with a nice outlet pass that sprung Giroux and Asham on a two-on-one break.  Giroux sent a beautiful saucer pass and Asham roofed the puck over a sprawled Hedberg.  Philadelphia led 2-1.

They would add to that lead just three minutes later.  Daniel Carcillo was the recipient of a beauty of a 25th birthday gift.  He took an Ian Laperriere pass from the right wing boards and chopped it past Hedberg to give the Orange and Black a 3-1 lead.

It didn’t take long for Atlanta to turn the tide in the third period as they potted two goals in the first four and a half minutes.  Thrashers sniper Ilya Kovalchuk gathered up a loose puck off of a faceoff and beat Ray Emery.  Amid countless trade rumors, it was Kovalchuk’s 31st of the year and cut the Flyer lead to one at 3-2 just 29 seconds into the period.

Four minutes later, Atlanta defenseman Pavel Kubina spotted Rich Peverley free at center ice and hit him in full flight for a breakaway.  Peverley beat Emery for his 17th of the season and the game was tied at 3-3.

Play grew increasingly chippy through the rest of the third.  During a scrum in front of Emery between Flyer defenseman Ole-Kristian Tollefsen and Thrasher Eric Boulton, Asham came out of nowhere and decked Boulton.  Atlanta forward Chris Thorburn skated over and challenged Asham to a fight, and after three rights, Thorburn was on the ice.

Just two minutes later, the Thrashers grabbed the lead.  Rookie Evander Kane, the youngest player in the NHL this season, started the play.  In a very similar move as the play he made on Slater’s goal in the first period, Kane again barrelled down the left wing past Chris Pronger, then swooped around the net and threw the puck across the crease.  As defenseman Matt Carle tried to get back and cover the front of the net, he inadvertantly crashed into Emery, knocking the Flyer goaltender out of the crease and behind the net.  All that was left for Slater was to put it into the wide open net, and he did just that.

Philadelphia would mount an attack and had several chances to tie the game, but shots by Simon Gagne, Danny Briere and Jeff Carter all missed by just inches.  Briere took a minor for goaltender interference with 2:30 left in regulation as he attempted to screen Hedberg but instead got tangled up with the Thrasher’s netminder.  Though shorthanded, Philadelphia was still able to pull Emery for an extra attacker and generate scoring chances. 

They just couldn’t finish, and for the first time this season had lost a game they led going into the third period.  This one could definitely come back to haunt them when all is said and done in the playoff race.

Taking a Flyer:  The Flyers national anthem singer, Lauren Hart, missed last nights game and will miss tomorrows game.  She and her husband are in Ethiopia adopting two children.  The daughter of the late, legendary, longtime voice of the Flyers Gene Hart, Lauren had missed just five games since taking over the anthem duties back in 2000…Carcillo was the fourth Flyer to score a goal on his birthday this season.  Briere, Pronger and Giroux have also accomplished that feat…The Flyers squandered a chance to move into sixth place all by themselves.  Atlanta instead moved ahead of them in the standings, leaving Philly in seventh, tied with three other teams, and just a point ahead of three others in the ultra-tight Eastern Conference.

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