Welcome to 3-on-3, a weekly look at the Philadelphia Flyers from a statical standpoint. The Flyers were 1-1-1 last week, gaining three out of a possible six points. Claude Giroux returned from injury against Dallas with a four point performance, but would it be enough to capture the top spot for the week? Let's find out:
3 “Hot”:
- Claude Giroux: “G” returned from his concussion and had a goal and three assists for four points. Giroux, only 23, continues to have an MVP-caliber season for the Flyers and currently leads the NHL in scoring with 43 points. He is a plus-8, his relative Corsi is 5.8 and he has kept his faceoff winning percentage at a steady 51.2 percent. Giroux simply makes this team go.
- Scott Hartnell: Hartnell also had a four-point week, with a goal and three assists. He continues to have a great year playing on the Giroux-Jagr line. He leads the team in plus minus at plus-20 and is second on the team in scoring with 32 points. He also leads in relative Corsi with a 10.7 rating.
- Jaromir Jagr: Jagr had a three point week with a goal and 2 assists in three games. Jagr continues to have a revival in his return to the NHL this season, ranking third on the team in scoring with 29 points, third in plus minus at plus-11 and second in relative Corsi with a 10.6 rating.
3 ”Not”:
- The Flyers in the shootout: The Flyers have been historically bad in the shootout, so when they had to go to the skills competition against the Avs, you just had a feeling it wouldn’t go the way of the Orange and Black. Overall, the Flyers fell to 19-36 all time in the shootout with their loss in Denver, placing 30th in the league along with the 30th-ranked save percentage at 54.6 percent. I know whenever it goes to the shootout, I just automatically chalk it up as a loss and I'm thankful for an extra point.
- The Flyers at MSG: It has been almost a year since their last win at MSG, February 20, 2011, to be exact, when Dan Carcillo of all people scored the game winner. The Flyers are still an impressive 13-4-2 on the road this season even with those two conspicuous losses at 34th and 7th against the Rangers. They finally scored their first two goals of the year there in the third period on Monday, so hopefully they have broken whatever spell Henrik Lundqvist had over them.
- Ilya Brzygalov: Not that he has been awful, but “Bryz” needs to be more consistent and start making the “10-bell” saves that a supposed Stanley Cup-level goalie needs to make. His save percentage is a dismal 59th in the NHL at .895, and his GAA is 51st at 2.92. There is still time for him to turn it around, but if the Flyers want to win the Cup this season, they will need Brzygalov to be a big reason why.
That does it for this week’s 3-on-3, join me next week when we look back at two more road contests against Tampa and Pittsburgh.
