Bad News Buffalo ... Panthers Mantra: We played well ... Reality: Good, Not Good Enough ... Playoff Push? Setback More Like It -- http://miamiherald.typepad.com/flapanthers/
FLYERS vs. PANTHERS SERIES HISTORY: Current and Miscellaneous:
The Flyers' W-L-T-OTL record in this series is 35-20-7-2.
The Flyers' W-L-T-OTL record at home is 13-11-6-2.
The Flyers' W-L-T-OTL record away is 22-9-1-0.
The road teams have a W-L-T record of 35-22-7.
The home teams have won just 22 of 64 regular season games.
13 of the last 17 have been decided by one goal or less.
1993-1995:
March 1, 1993 -- Bob Clarke left the Flyers and joined the Panthers to become Vice President and General Manager. That season, he was chosen The Sporting News' and The Hockey News' Executive of the Year for 1993-94.
November 2, 1993 -- The teams met for the first time and the Flyers won 4-3 in Miami Arena by scoring four goals in under 11 minutes in the second period after trailing 2-0. Rod Brind'Amour had three points. The Flyers scored the first three goals in 3:35. The last two goals of the four were SHGs. The first goal scored in this series was by Florida's Jesse Belanger. The first Flyers' goal was by Josef Beranek.
February 10, 1994 -- In the first meeting in Philadelphia, the Flyers won 4-3 when Eric Lindros' (2-1-3) scored his second goal of the game just 50 seconds into OT. Florida scored twice in the final six minutes of regulation to even the score. Mark Fitzpatrick made 34 saves in the loss. The game was played in the Spectrum.
March 20, 1994 -- JVB made 45 saves leading the Panthers to their first win in the series, 5-3 in Miami. Philly outshot Florida 36-14 over the last two periods but the Panthers held a 4-2 goals edge. Rod Brind'Amour scored twice on PPs. Brian Benning had three assists for the Panthers.
March 24, 1994 -- Philly skated to a 4-0 lead and held on for a 4-3 win at home. Eric Lindros (1-2-3) had three points including his 42nd goal. The Panthers scored twice in the third period.
April 7, 1994 -- Florida's Gord Murphy (1-1-2) scored in the third period and the game finished in a 3-3 tie in Philadelphia. The Panthers held a 42-23 shots advantage, Tommy Soderstrom made 39 saves for the Flyers.
June 15, 1994 -- Bob Clarke returned to the Flyers as President and General Manager and in exchange Philadelphia traded a 1994 second round pick (used to select Ryan Johnson). Clarke was the Vice-President and General Manager of the Panthers. Clarke became the first person to win The Hockey News' Executive of the Year in successive years with different franchises as he accomplished the feat with the Panthers for 1993-94 and with the Flyers for the 1994-95 season. The Flyers failed to make the playoffs in the previous five years then advanced to the 1995 Conference Finals under his leadership. Clarke was with the Minnesota North Stars for the 1990-91 and 1991-92 seasons, including when the team played in the 1991 Stanley Cup Finals, and then returned to the Flyers for one season, 1992-93, in a non-hockey operations role.
February 9, 1995 -- JVB stopped 26 Flyers' shots in the Panthers' 3-0 victory in the Spectrum. Florida led 3-0 after one, scoring three times in about seven minutes. Dave Lowry gave Florida a 1-0 lead. The Panthers held an 18-7 shots advantage in the first period; the Flyers had a 19-10 edge the rest of the game.
March 2, 1995 -- The Legion of Doom line had six points in a 2-2 tie. The Flyers outshot Florida 37-17 including 27-12 after two periods when the Panthers held a 2-1 lead. The Flyers' Mikael Renberg finally broke through with under two minutes left in the second period on a PPG then evened the game in the third period when Eric Lindros scored.
March 18, 1995 -- Eric Lindros (3-1-4) completed the hat trick with an OT goal in a 4-3 win. The Legion of Doom line (Lindros 4, Mikael Renberg 3 and John Leclair 2) had nine of the team's 11 points. The Flyers limited Florida to 11 shots over the last 42+ minutes and Dminic Roussel made 25 saves for the victory.
April 18, 1995 -- Eric Lindros (1-2-3) and Mikael Renberg (1-1-2) combined for five points in a 3-1 win in Miami. Philly took command with a 3-0 lead after two as they held a 23-7 shots edge after 40 minutes.
November 2, 1995 -- Florida won 2-1 in Philly. The Panthers held a 15-3 shots advantage after one period but the Flyers responded with a 19-6 edge over the last two periods. JVB made 21 saves for Florida with only Eric Lindros beating him.
November 7, 1995 -- Florida scored three times late in the third period and recorded a 4-2 home win. The Panthers held a 27-16 shots advantage. Scott Mellanby and Kevin Dineen fought in the first period.
November 29, 1995 -- Kevin Haller scored with 30 seconds left in OT and the Flyers, who dominated OT with an 8-1 shot advantage, beat Florida 2-1. Brent Fedyk tied the game 1-1 1:02 into the third period. Each team had 28 shots in the game; Florida held a 21-8 edge after two while the Flyers held a 20-7 advantage in the third and OT combined. Ron Hextall made 27 stops. JVB made 30 saves for Florida.
1996-1999:
January 22, 1996 -- Rod Brind'Amour scored with 2:39 left in the third and the game ended 1-1 in Philadelphia. Earlier in the third, Jody Hull put the Panthers up 1-0. JVB (30 saves for Florida) and Ron Hextall (23 saves) were the goalies.
February 14, 1996 -- Ron Hextall made 28 saves leading Philly to a 4-2 victory in Florida. John LeClair had a goal and an assist. The Panthers went 0-for-5 on the PP while the Flyers scored with 16 left on their only attempt with the man advantage.
May 2, 1996 -- In Game One of the East Semis, JVB recorded the shutout as the Panthers' strong team defense limited the Flyers in a 2-0 win. The result of the tight-checking game was a combined total of 33 shots (Flyers 18, Panthers 15) on goal, the lowest figure in any Flyers' PO game. Stu Barnes (1-1-2) and Dave Lowry scored goals, the first coming on a 2-on-1 break with Kerry Huffman the sole Flyer back, and the second coming with just over four minutes left and with Kjell Samuelsson in the box. Highlights: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ3RNW5cyWc
May 4, 1996 -- In Game Two, Eric Lindros' (1-2-3) third period goal snapped a 2-2 tie and provided the Flyers with a 3-2 victory in the Spectrum. Lindros was a key factor throughtout the game including some plays that infuriated the Panthers' brass like knocking off the mask of goalie JVB and cutting Stu Barnes (five stitches) near his eye. John LeClair (1-2-3) also had three points. The Flyers scored twice in the second period, goals by Karl Dykhuis and LeClair, to take a 2-1 lead but Dave Lowry evened the score with a third period PPG. JVB made 44 saves for Florida. Philly outshot the Panthers 47-26 but goalie Ron Hextall made huge saves in the third period. After the game, Florida head coach Doug MacLean verbally attacked referee Mark Faucette and then he and Panthers' GM Bryan Murray contacted other NHL execs to complain that Lindros' stickwork was not whistled. The Panthers were issued a gross misconduct penalty at the 20:00 mark. Highlights: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJxgY3M55a4
Karl Dykhuis evened the game at 1-1
May 7, 1996 -- In Game Three, the Flyers recorded a 3-1 victory in Miami. Dan Quinn (1-1-2) and Eric Lindros (GWG) scored on consecutive first period PPs with Brian Skrudlund off on a double minor for high-sticking. The Flyers outshot the Panthers 17-2 in the first period and led 2-0. The game finished with multiple penalties including a Lindros-Ed Jovanovski confrontation when the Flyers' captain tried to score into the empty net. Scott Mellanby, according to Flyers' head coach Terry Murray, punched Lindros while Bill Lindsay came in and jumped him. The game began with the Panthers' faithful chanting "Lindros Sucks" throughtout the National Anthem and then tossing plastic rats at him while he stood on the ice. Highlights -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lw6y...eature=related
May 9, 1996 -- In Game Four, Dave Lowry's controversial goal 4:06 in OT gave Florida a 4-3 victory. Lowry's goal came as the net was lifted off its moorings by Scott Mellanby but a video replay called by referee Rob Schick was done to see if the puck was kicked into the goal, which it wasn't. Rob Niedermayer scored twice in the first period, including on the game's first shot, to give Florida a 2-0 lead at 8:23, the second of which came with two Flyers' defensemen in the box and on a 5-on-3. Mikael Renberg (2-0-2) and Rod Brind'Amour (1-1-2) scored second period goals within 78 seconds to tie the game but a crucial error cost the Flyers as defenseman Kerry Huffman, subbing for the injured Kevin Haller, created a gaffe and Stu Barnes capitalized with 5.5 seconds to go in the middle period when he batted a Paul Laus shot. The Flyers dominated the second period 24-11 in shots and held a 46-32 advantage for the game. With the Miami Arena crowd sensing victory, Renberg temporarily silenced them by scoring with 1:07 left in regulation. JVB made 43 saves for the Panthers. An odd moment: after the first period was over the Flyers complained that there was a clock malfuntion at the end of the first period, which was verified; the teams played the lost time of 3.6 seconds to start the second period. Rob DiMaio returned to the Flyers' lineup after missing the prior 17 games with a knee injury. Highlights -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0jpvQhYxKo
Dale Hawerchuk helped set up Mikael Renberg's tying goal
May 12, 1996 -- In Game Five, Mike Hough scored 8:05 into the second OT to give the Panthers a 2-1 victory on Mother's Day in Philadelphia. Ron Hextall, highly praised afterwards by Terry Murray, made 40 saves and was one of the few bright spots in a dismal effort. At the 2:27 mark, the Flyers were given a five-minute PP for a Paul Laus elbow but managed just one shot on goal. Eric Lindros scored a PPG with one second left on a 5-on-3 in the second period but Stu Barnes tied the score early in the third period. The Panthers outshot the Flyers 17-5 in the two overtimes. It turned out to be the last Flyers' game played at the Spectrum (until two preseason games in 2008). No penalties were called after the 12:54 mark, meaning 55:11 was played without a call. The game drew the highest NHL rating ever for South Florida, an 8.2, beating the 4.9 and previous high for Game One of the series. Lindros said "We're coming back here. We're going to win."
May 14, 1996 -- In Game Six, Florida clinched the series with a 4-1 victory played in Miami Arena backed by JVB's 34 saves. Bill Lindsay scored a SHG in the first period and that 1-0 lead held until Rob Niedermayer scored a PPG early in the third. Florida took a 3-0 lead before John LeClair scored a late goal to cut the gap to 3-1. Kevin Haller returned to the Flyers' lineup for his first action all series (broken thumb). Florida's Scott Mellanby said "I kind of feel a little numb right now. I really didn't see this series going this way." Terry Murray said "JVB was the best player of the series. He was tremendous." A Miami Herald writer named Greg Cote said Murray was "annoyingly stubborn, that or a dunce of enormous gall... a poor delusional fellow..." for thinking the Flyers were the better team.
October 5, 1996 -- In the first regular season game played in the Flyers' new CoreStates Center, the Panthers won 3-1. Florida's Brad Smyth scored the first regular season goal in the building, his only goal of the season. Dainius Zubrus, at 18 years and 3 months, was the youngest Flyer to score a goal 13 seconds later to even the game 1-1. Scott Mellanby scored the eventual GWG. JVB made 31 saves for Florida.
October 27, 1996 -- In Florida's 3-2 win in Philadelphia, Scott Mellanby scored the first goal of the game 29 seconds into the second period and JVB made 21 saves. Ron Hextall made 25 saves in the defeat.
November 2, 1996 -- Joel Otto's goal with 1:02 left in the third period snapped a 2-2 tie in a 3-2 win. The Flyers had 44 shots including 22 in the third when they socred twice. There were three fights in the game including two by Paul Laus (Shjon Podein and Dan Kordic) in the first period.
December 10, 1996 -- The Flyers held off a Florida rally for a 5-4 home win. Philly led 4-1 after two periods. Joel Otto, Eric Lindros and John LeClair each had a goal and an assist. The Panthers went 3-for-6 on the PP. There were a couple of brawls and a many minors in a chippy third period.
February 22, 1997 -- Eric Lindros (2-1-3) had three points and scored with 57.6 seconds left in OT to lift Philadelphia to a 4-3 win in Miami. Lindros won a key faceoff then passed back to Eric Desjardins whose shot was deflected by Lindros. The Flyers won an incredible 53 of 75 faceoffs. Philly also held a 40-34 shot advantage, 5-1 in overtime, including 15 combined from Lindros and Rod Brind'Amour who gave the Flyers a 3-2 lead when he stole Bill Lindsay's drop pass and scored a SHG breakaway. Garth Snow made 31 saves in the win, JVB made 36 saves in the loss. At the 15:04 mark, Johan Garpenlov of the Panthers suffered a severe knee-on-knee injury from Michel Petit resulting in a one-game suspension to the Flyer. Paul Laus of the Panthers attempted to fight Petit but was issued a minor-misconduct while Petit was given a major-misconduct. After the penalty was served, Scott Mellanby of Florida did get to Petit and he also was issued a misconduct. Said Garpenlov "I don't think he tried to hurt me but he did."
October 1, 1997 -- Ron Hextall made 27 saves in a 3-1 win in Philly. The Flyers went 2-for-5 on the PP while the Panthers missed on six chances. Chris Gratton gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead and after the game was tied 1-1 in the second period, the Flyers got PPGs from Dainius Zubrus and Pat Falloon.
November 14, 1997 -- John LeClair's second goal of the game snapped a 2-2 third period tie in a 5-2 win at Florida. The Flyers trailed 1-0 but scored two PPGs in the second period but the Panthers scored an early third period goal to even the game. The Flyers scored times in about four minutes midway in the third to break open the tilt. LeClair had a game-high seven shots.
December 20, 1997 -- Garth Snow stopped 14 shots and Rod Brind'Amour (1-1-2) and Eric Lindros netted PPGs in the Flyers' 2-0 victory in Philadelphia. Lindros fought Rob Niedermeyer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ-d6pgfkK0
April 4, 1998 -- JVB made 27 stops for Florida in a 4-1 win in Philly. The Flyers scored 2:08 into the game but were held off the scoreboard the remainder of the game despiute seven PPs. The Panthers scored twice in 20 seconds early in the first period. The Flyers had a 15-5 shots advantage in the third period but the Panthers scored the only goal.
April 9, 1998 -- Bill Lindsay scored late in the second period to snap a 2-2 tie in the Panthers' 3-2 home win. In the final nine seconds of the second period, there were three separate stoppages in play for fighting majors including a healthy scrap between Chris Gratton and Dallas Eakins. There were 142 PIMs whistled in the period (160 PIMs in the game). In another fight, Scott Mellanby fought Chris Joseph because he thought the Flyer cut Dino Ciccarelli. Dan Kordic battled Paul Laus in another fight. The final .7 seconds had to be played at the start of the third period because of the clashes. Kirk McLean made 23 saves. A sellout crowd of 14,703 saw Roger Nielsen's first visit to Miami Arena since his departure from the Panthers (53-56-23 mark).
Dan Kordic vs. Paul Laus
April 16, 1998 -- John LeClair (1-3-4) and Eric Lindros (2-1-3) led the Flyers to a 7-3 win at Florida. The Flyers led 4-2 entering the third but the Panthers responded with a SHG to narrow their deficit to 4-3. John LeClair scored his 51st goal of the season with 8 minutes to play followed by two goals in the last minute. Kirk McLean was replaced after two period and four goals by JVB who played the third for Florida. Sean Burke made 33 saves for the Flyers. Philly was 3-for-8 on the PP while the Panthers were 0-for-8.
November 12, 1998 -- Kirk McLean made 39 saves and Mark Parrish scored two first period goals in Florida's 2-1 win in Philly. With 1:17 to play, Peter Worrell and Chris Gratton got fighting majors while Gratton also received an instigator minor and a misconduct. The Flyers had a 40-15 shots advantage and Eric Lindros, John LeClair and Dan McGillis combined for (17) more shots than the entire Panthers' roster. JVB played goal for Philly.
November 22, 1998 -- Keith Jones (1-1-2) scored 26 seconds into OT and the Flyers recorded a 2-1 victory in the Panthers' new arena, the National Car Rental Center, in Sunrise, Florida. Eric Lindros also had 2 points. JVB made 25 saves for the Flyers and earned to pstar honors in his return to Florida. The Flyers were limited to 16 shots and just 9 after the first period.
January 26, 1999 -- Newly acquired Pavel Bure (six goals in three games) scored a hat trick for Florida in a 3-3 OT tie in Philadelphia. The Flyers outshot the Panthers 11-1 and led 2-0 about seven minutes into the game. Bure's second goal tied the score in the third period. Eric Desjardins gave Philly a 3-2 lead. Philly held a 30-19 shots advantage, including 5-0 in OT. Goalie JVB suffered an injury after Rob Niedermayer and Eric Desjardins collided in his crease, landing Beezer awkwardly into the goal post. JVB was replaced with 23 seconds remaining in regulation by Ron Hextall and missed the next game. "My right leg got into somewhat of a spasm, and it wouldn't release," Vanbiesbrouck said. "My rear end hit the post." Alexander Daigle was benched after nixing a trade that would have sent him to Edmonton for Andrei Kovalenko. GM Bob Clarke said Daigle is "not part of the team anymore. He made that decision."
February 24, 1999 -- Florida prevailed 5-3 at home. After a scoreless first, Philly took a 2-0 lead in the second before the Panthers scored three in succession to take a 1-goal lead into the third. After Eric Desjardins' PPG, Mark Parrish scored a PPG to give Florida a 4-3 lead.
October 24, 1999 -- JVB recorded his third consecutive shutout as he stopped 22 shots in Philly's 2-0 home win. The three shutouts came in five nights. Jody Hull scored in the first period, the game's only goal until Eric Lindros scored into an empty net. Sean Burke made 31 saves in the defeat. Adam Burt-Paul Laus fought.
November 24, 1999 -- Eric Lindros scored twice, JVB made 21 saves and the Flyers crushed the Panthers 6-1 in Florida. Lindros scored the 20th time in his career against the Panthers which was more than any Florida opponent. Lindros' first goal of the game came 37 seconds after Valeri Zelepukin made it 1-0; less than three minutes later, Mikael Renberg made it 3-0. Trevor Kidd was replaced less than 13 minutes into the game after giving up the three goals on 11 shots. Philly held a 38-22 shots edge and led 3-0 after one and 5-0 after two. Luke Richardson vs. Paul Laus in a fight: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrDW1KQyeZc
2000-2004:
January 17, 2000 -- Mike Vernon made 30 saves and Robert Svehla scored twice in the third (including an ENG) in Florida's 3-1 home win.
January 27, 2000 -- Keith Primeau made his debut, in one of the few games that he teammed with Eric Lindros, and Philly skated to a 4-2 win at home. Lindros, who missed the prior four games (Flyers had zero wins), returned to the lineup after his third concussion in 22 months. Philly led 3-1 after one period on goals by Simon Gagne, Lindros and Mark Recchi; the scoring concluded until the last minute of the game when the Panthers closed to within 3-2 then Chris Therien added an ENG. There were three fights in the game including Primeau and Todd Simpson, Lindros and Simpson ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3xYem4-rtw ) and Sandy McCarthy vs. Todd Worrell who battled each other at many points in the game (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ry2p48_hMk8). Adam Burt was penalized for retaliating against a questionable Simpson hit to the head and eventually suffered a concussion resulting in two lost games. Jody Hull of the Flyers suffered a knee injury, costing him the next 10 games, on another play that some Flyers thought should have been penalized, too. Mike Vernon made 37 stops in the loss.
December 27, 2000 -- Roman Cechmanek made 29 saves and Philly recorded a 5-2 win in Florida scoring five straight goals over three periods. There were four fights in the game including three in the last five minutes -- Daymond Langkow vs. Serge Payer -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8H_TvFBVu38 , Luke Richardson-Peter Worrell and Ruslan Fedotenko-Len Barrie -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVDtLT--AtI . A day later, the Panthers fired VP/GM Bryan Murray and head coach Terry Murray.
January 13, 2001 -- Philly recorded a 4-1 win in Florida as they outshot the Panthers 41-25. The Flyers 2-0 in the third on two first period goals. Todd Fedoruk-Peter Worrell had a fight in the first with each getting in some decent blows. The Flyers lost just twice (9-2-5) in their last 16 games.
January 20, 2001 -- Keith Primeau (2-2-4) had two goals and three points in the third period in a 5-3 victory. Down 2-1 after two, a period in whic there were three fights including Todd Fedoruk and Joey Tetarenko in a feisty battle, the Flyers exploded for three straight goals in the third and capped the period with a fourth goal at 19:59. Daymond Langkow had nine shots in the win and Philly held a 47-30 shots edge.
April 3, 2001 -- Trevor Kidd made 39 stops and Len Barrie scored in the third period to lead Florida to a 2-1 win. The Flyers held a 40-19 shots edge, 32-11 after two periods. Pavel Bure scored his 59th goal, a SHG, in the second period about a minute after Philly went ahead 1-0.
June 23, 2001 -- Jiri Dopita was dealt to Philadelphia for a 2001 second round pick which was eventually sent to Calgary who chose Andrei Medvedev.
October 4, 2001 -- Justin Williams (2-1-3), Jeremy Roenick (1-2-3), in his Flyers' regular season debut, and Eric Weinrich (1-2-3) led the Flyers in a 5-2 win in the season opener. Roman Cechmanek made 32 saves. The score was 1-1 after two periods. Philly scored three straight to open the third and Williams tallied twice in the final period. Jiri Dopita suffered a left knee injury in his first game and missed the next 15 contests. The Flyers played Kate Smith's "God Bless America" to which Lauren Hart joined in the singing; Philly had a 64-15-3 mark with the song played.
October 13, 2001 -- The Flyers had a 53-25 shot advantage in a 5-2 win in Florida. It was the most shots any team had against Florida in a Panthers' home game. The Flyers also set a record for the fastest two goals against the Panthers, 17 seconds, when John LeClair and Ruslan Fedotenko scored. The Flyers led 4-1 and held a 38-18 shots advantage after two periods. Thirty-nine seconds after Pavel Bure scored in the third to make it 4-2, the Panthers' star violently slashed Dan McGillis resulting in a Flyers' PP on which they scored and regained the momentum. Bure was benched after the play. Trevor Kidd made 48 saves in a loss. There were eight fights in the contest. In the early third, Peter Worrell defeated Todd Fedoruk in a fight, then Paul Laus and Rusty Fedotenko battled about four minutes later. At 48:17, Luke Richardson whipped Bill Lindsay, Mark Recchi fought Kevyn Adams and Keith Primeau clashed with Lance Ward. In the third, Fedoruk-Worrell part 2 in a limited fight while later Eric Weinrich was jumped by Jason Wiemer and Jeremy Roenick-Olli Jokinen fought.
November 10, 2001 -- John LeClair scored with 43 seconds left in OT in a 3-2 win at Florida. Simon Gagne (2-0-2), Mark Recchi (0-2-2) and Eric Desjardins (0-2-2) all had two-point efforts. The Flyers doubled Florida on the shot board 36-18, including 15-4 in the third period and OT (4-0) combined. Roberto Luongo made 33 saves in the loss.
April 8, 2002 -- The Panthers' Pierre Dagenais scored his second goal of the game with 17 seconds left in the third in a 4-4 tie at Philly. Mark Recchi had three points. Keith Primeau pummeled Igor Ulanov in a fight: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2ed5XEGYeY
November 13, 2002 -- Each team scored in the second period of a 1-1 tie. Pavel Brendl gave Philly a 1-0 lead. Jani Hurme stopped 29 shots while Robert Esche made 28 saves. The crowd of 18,834 at the First Union Center was the Flyers' smallest home crowd since 1996. Jeremy roenick won 12 of 14 faceoffs.
December 10, 2002 -- Robert Esche made 24 saves and Simon Gagne scored consecutive goals on his only two shots of the game in Philly's 5-2 win in Florida's renamed Office Depot Center.
February 22, 2003 -- Roberto Luongo was brilliant with 43 saves in the Panthers' 4-2 win in Philly. The Flyers had 17 shots in the first period and 16 more in the second but the score was 1-1 after 40 minutes. Afterwards, Ken Hitchcock said "To me, we gave them all the enthusiasm they needed after two periods by not being able to bury it.''
April 6, 2003 -- Radovan Somik (2-1-3) and Todd Fedoruk (0-3-3) led Philly to a 6-2 win in front of a sellout crowd in Florida in the regular season finale. In the first period, Philly led 3-0 and dominated the shots 18-3. Justin Williams returned to the Flyers' lineup after missing the prior 36 games due to a knee injury.
October 29, 2003 -- For the first time in the last eight meetings, a home team won as the Flyers prevailed 5-1. Michal Handzus and Joni Pitkanen each had a goal and an assist. Robert Esche made 21 saves. Philly went 3-for-9 on the PP and killed all six Florida PPs. Mark Recchi played in his 1,100th game and John LeClair played in his 800th.
Jeremy Roenick and Branislav Mezei fought
January 2, 2004 -- Mike Comrie scored twice in the second period, both goals assisted by Justin Williams and Simon Gagne, and Philadelphia recorded a 2-1 win at Florida. Gagne had 17 points in as many games in his career against the Panthers. Jeff Hackett made 29 saves. It was the Flyers' seventh consecutive road victory against the Panthers. A Jay Bouwmeester slapshot hit Keith Primeau resulting in a broken thumb for the Flyers' captain.
January 8, 2004 -- Valeri Bure scored 2:56 into OT in Florida's 4-3 road win. Roberto Luongo was sensational with 46 saves. Philly outshot the Panthers 49-19 in the game including 33-11 after the first period; however, Florida scored three of the game's four goals. Nathan Horton (2-1-3) scored the Panthers first and second goals and he became the youngest player (18 years, 224 days old) in NHL history to score a goal on a penalty shot which made the score 2-2.
January 28, 2004 -- Joni Pitkanen scored twice but Roberto Luongo made 44 saves in a 3-3 tie at Florida. The Flyers outshot Florida 47-25. The Flyers' Mark Recchi said afterwards "He (Luongo) was the No. 1, 2 and 3 stars out there." Road teams were now 7-1-3 in the last 11 played in this series.
2005-2009:
July 30, 2005 -- A draft day swap of first round picks resulted in the Flyers drafting Steve Downie in the 1st round (29th overall) of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft.
October 27, 2005 -- Joni Pitkanen scored 1:13 into OT and the Flyers recorded a 5-4 home win. The Flyers trailed 4-2 in the third period but goals by Simon Gagne (2-1-3) and Peter Forsberg (1-2-3) sent the game to OT. It was Forsberg's first goal with the Flyers, earlier he was stopped on a penalty shot. Jeff Carter's first NHL regular season goal tied the game in the second period at 1-1. Eric Desjardins assisted on the tying and winning goals. Philly outshot Florida 40-34. The Panthers were successful on 3 of 8 PPs.
November 12, 2005 -- Mike Knuble thrilled the home crowd by scoring a SHG with four seconds left in the third period and the Flyers prevailed 5-4. Knuble had just arrived on the ice after a shift change and blasted a slapper past a stunned Jamie McLennan to lead the Flyers to their sixth straight win. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaALPyrZoJk Robert Esche made 26 saves and assisted on the GWG. Knuble had two goals in the game. The Flyers led 2-0 at the 2:58 mark and though they never trailed, were tied three different times by the Panthers. Out of the lockout, the Flyers improved to 11-3-1.
December 26, 2005 -- Michael Handzus scored the only goal in the four-round shootout and Ben Eager scored twice in regulation in the Flyers 3-2 win at the Panthers' renamed BankAtlantic Center. Eager's goals were the first two of his NHL career. Roberto Luongo (42 saves) and Antero Niittymaki (34 saves) also played particularly well.
March 15, 2006 -- Robert Esche made 27 saves and had an assist in a 4-0 shutout victory played in Florida. Philadelphia completed a four-game season sweep of the Panthers but this game didn't have the dramatic finishes as the previous three. Roberto Luongo was replaced by Jamie McLennan for the third period. R.J, Umberger and Joni Pitkanen each had two points. Donald Brashear vs. Jamie Allison -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_qYhNvxL_Q
October 20, 2006 -- Ed Belfour made 25 saves and Mike van Ryn assisted on the last two goals of Florida's 3-2 home win. Simon Gagne scored both Flyers' goals. The Flyers began the season 1-6-1 and two days later Bob Clarke resigned his role as Flyers' GM and head coach Ken Hitchcock was fired. The Flyers were 9-0-1 in their prior 10 games at Florida.
November 23, 2006 -- Jon Sim was sent to the Panthers for a 2007 6th round pick used to select Patrick Maroon.
December 27, 2006 -- The Panthers recorded a 3-1 home win and the Flyers fell to their 10th straight defeat. Rostislav Olesz scored 30 seconds into the game. Antero Niitymaki left the game after the second period due to a hip injury and was replaced by Robert Esche who returned to the lineup after missing 11 games due to a groin injury. Florida scored in each period. Ed Belfour won for the 465th time.
March 8, 2007 -- Chris Gratton (1-1-2) was credited with the third period GWG in the Panthers' 2-1 win in Philly. Martin Biron made 35 saves but his attempted clear deflected off teammate Randy Jones -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LS48_4wY84s
Dmitry Afanasenkov scored both Flyers' goals on March 8 and March 20, 2007
March 20, 2007 -- Ed Belfour made 24 saves, won for the 481st time, and Florida recorded a 4-1 victory in Philly. Belfour went 4-0-0 against the Flyers. Entering the season, his lifetime mark against Philadelphia was 7-10-8. Mike Richards suffered a separated left shoulder. The Panthers killed all six Fllyers' PPs.
October 24, 2007 -- Olli Jokinen and Greg Campbell each scored twice in Florida's 4-3 home win. Martin Biron made 38 saves. Jokinen's goals, which helped establish him as the Panthers' all-time leader in goals and points, gave the Panthers leads of 1-0 and 2-0 while Campbell's goals gave his squad leads of 3-2 and 4-2. The announced attendance was 12,856. Simon Gagne, it was later learned, was hit by defenseman Jay Bouwmeester, suffered a concussion and never really recovered.
December 30, 2007 -- Derian Hatcher scored the game's lone goal and Antero Niittymaki had a brilliant shutout with 38 saves in the Flyers 1-0 win in Florida. Niittymaki's shutout was the third of his career and among his saves was a stop on a penalty shot by Radek Dvorak. Florida outshot Philly 38-20. The victory snapped Philly's five-game skid in this series. The ice condition in the game was poor and Danny Briere said afterwards "It's not an excuse to win or to lose because both teams have to play on the same ice. But for the fans, they should be allowed to watch a better show than what was put on the ice tonight, and I feel bad for them and I apologize."
January 16, 2008 -- The Flyers led 4-1 after the first period and held on for a 5-3 win in Philadelphia. The Panthers got within 4-3 in the last two minutes of the middle period. Kimmo Timonen (1-2-3) and Danny Briere (2-0-2), who scored an ENG, led the offense. Antero Niittymaki made 28 saves including a beauty against Richard Zednik -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jo8-7...eature=related . Scott Hartnell had two fights in the game, one against Olli Jokinen -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6KHW...eature=related ) and against Richard Zednik -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgNCyvo7U1g
February 23, 2008 -- Olli Jokinen scored on the PP with 1:17 left in OT and sent the Flyers to a shocking defeat 2-1 in Philadelphia. Jay Bouwmeester's slapper tied the game with 3.7 seconds left in regulation when Steve Montador made a key play as he managed to keep an attempted clear in the zone and passed to Bouwmeester. The Flyers lost for the 10th straight time (0-8-2); however, after this game, the Flyers picked up 28 out of a possible 40 points the remainder of the schedule and advanced to the post-season. Danny Briere scored on the PP with 3:40 left in the second to make it 1-0. Jeff Carter played over 26 minutes but goalie Craig Anderson, who made 40 saves, stopped his breakaway attempt with about 3:30 left in the third period. Philly outshot Florida 41-25. Mike Richards suffered a torn left hamstring in the game.
January 16, 2009 -- Simon Gagne, who gave the Flyers a 2-0 lead with a PPG, scored the lone shootout goal in the 3-2 win at Florida. Antero Niittymaki made 32 saves and stopped all three Panthers' shootout attempts. Florida erased a two-goal deficit with a pair of PPGs in the last 5:13 of the second period. Highlights -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgNCyvo7U1g
January 27, 2009 -- Tomas Vokoun made 33 saves and Michael Frolik (1-2-3) led the offense as the Panthers recorded a 3-2 home win. Florida improved to 7-2-1 in the last 10 games against the Flyers. Highlights -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSQuTQRP8sw
FLYERS vs. PANTHERS -- 2008-09 SCHEDULE:
January 16, 2009 -- Flyers 3 at Panthers 2 (SO)
January 27, 2009 -- Flyers 2 at Panthers 3
March 26, 2009 -- Panthers at Flyers
April 7, 2009 -- Panthers at Flyers 7:00
FLYERS' UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
Mar 28 -- Flyers at Islanders -- 7:00
Mar 29 -- Bruins at Flyers -- 7:00
Apr 1 -- Flyers at Maple Leafs -- 7:30
Apr 3 -- Maple Leafs at Flyers -- 7:00
Apr 4 -- Flyers at Senators -- 7:00
Apr 7 -- Panthers at Flyers -- 7:00
Apr 9 -- Flyers at Rangers -- 7:00
Apr 11 -- Flyers at Islanders -- 2:00
Apr 12 -- Rangers at Flyers -- 5:00
All Times are PM and Eastern Time
THIS DATE IN FLYERS' HISTORY:
1969 -- Happy birthday to Luke Richardson who was born this day.
1975 -- Reggie Leach scored a hat trick against the California Golden Seals. Bernie Parent joined Terry Sawchuk as the only goalies to post consecutive 40-win seasons.
1987 -- Dave Poulin scored in overtime against the Quebec Nordiques.
1988 -- Tim Kerr scored a hat trick and Mark Laforest shutout Winnipeg 6-0.
November 12, 1998 -- Kirk McLean made 39 saves and Mark Parrish scored two first period goals in Florida's 2-1 win in Philly. With 1:17 to play, Peter Worrell and Chris Gratton got fighting majors while Gratton also received an instigator minor and a misconduct. The Flyers had a 40-15 shots advantage and Eric Lindros, John LeClair and Dan McGillis combined for (17) more shots than the entire Panthers' roster. JVB played goal for Philly.
November 12, 1998 -- Kirk McLean made 39 saves and Mark Parrish scored two first period goals in Florida's 2-1 win in Philly. With 1:17 to play, Peter Worrell and Chris Gratton got fighting majors while Gratton also received an instigator minor and a misconduct. The Flyers had a 40-15 shots advantage and Eric Lindros, John LeClair and Dan McGillis combined for (17) more shots than the entire Panthers' roster. JVB played goal for Philly.
Not awesome.
Big game on the road to officially clinching a spot. A win will knock the magic number to 5.
Awesome GDT MSE, that picture of JVB on the beach cracks me up.
Just win guys, play a full 60 minutes of hockey, and win!
I will be at this one, my first game all year.
GO FLYERS!!!
My job will probably hate me.
I'm just trying to see an epic win and get me some wig!!
Wahoo. Great night of sports on tomorrow night. Got this game and then a few minutes after this game ends, the Villanova Duke game starts. Going to be ordering myself a pizza and drinking some beers tomorrow night. Wahoo
Die Panthers had a nice little collapse last night. I don't see them having much confidence coming into this game. If the Flyers show up it should be an easy win.
I'd rather face Vokoun than Anderson. Backup goalies scare me.
After losing to the Slugs last night, Florida needs this game real bad. They've come in here and stolen games in the past. Hopefully, it's a good game and two points for the Flyers.
